Natural resource operators are directly affected by habitat preservation requirements for species listed under the ESA and state equivalents. One possible explanation is that environmental decision-makers do not have sufficient information, ecological training, or appropriate analytical tools so they fall back on the precautionary principle (hope for the best, prepare for the worst) and declare that all actual and potential habitat for the species be left untouched for population sustainability. This is both unnecessary and wasteful as there are robust statistical and spatio-temporal models that can inform technically sound and legally defensible decisions, even with limited data.
“docs/species-populations-habitats-opportunity-costs.pdf” >}}