EVALUATING LANDSCAPE HEALTH - INTEGRATING SOCIETAL GOALS AND BIOPHYSICAL PROCESS

Evaluating landscape change requires the integration of the social and natural sciences. The social sciences contribute to articulating soci etal values that govern landscape change, while the natural sciences c ontribute to understanding the biophysical processes that are influenc ed by human activity and result in ecological change. Building upon Al do Leopold's criteria for landscape health, the roles of societal valu es and biophysical processes in shaping the landscape are explored. A framework is developed for indicators of landscape health and integrit y. Indicators of integrity are useful in measuring biological conditio n relative to the condition in landscapes largely unaffected by human activity, while indicators of health are useful in evaluating changes in highly modified landscapes. Integrating societal goals and biophysi cal processes requires identification of ecological services to be sus tained within a given landscape. It also requires the proper choice of temporal and spatial scales. Societal values are based upon inter-gen erational concerns at regional scales (e.g. soil and ground water qual ity). Assessing the health and integrity of the environment at the lan dscape scale over a period of decades best integrates societal values with underlying biophysical processes. These principles are illustrate d in two contrasting case studies: (1) the South Platte River study de monstrates the role of complex biophysical processes acting at a dista nce; and (2) the Kissimmee River study illustrates the critical import ance of social, cultural and economic concerns in the design of remedi al action plans. In both studies, however interactions between the soc ial and the biophysical governed the landscape outcomes. The legacy of evolution and the legacy of culture requires integration for the purp ose of effectively coping with environmental change. (C) 1998 Academic Press.