Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program: Georgia
Education, Research and Technical Assistance for Managing Our Natural Resources

Georgia Project


A decision analytic framework for assessing aquatic invasive species status, risk, and biosecurity measures for three units of the National Park System in the Southeastern U.S.

August 2024 - July 2027


Personnel

Participating Agencies

  • Nation Park Service, Science & NR Mgmt

Aquatic invasive species are a concern for National Parks throughout the southeastern United States. There is not a coordinated plan for early detection and rapid response among the parks. A coordinated plan, which includes decisions about which actions would be most helpful under a given set of circumstances, would enable NPS staff to more quickly and efficiently respond to threats. ​We are partnering with the National Parks Service and the USGS Wetlands Science Center to conduct a series of structured decision making workshops in three parks within the southeastern US. This project will result in an EDRR plan that can be applied to parks throughout the region, as well as training for NPS staff and partners. We will also update the WildSpotter app to allow citizens to directly report sightings of AIS in and around the parks.