Aquatic and Land Interactions Program

Our Mission

The mission of the Aquatic and Land Interactions (ALI) Program is to increase understanding of the effects of natural processes and human activities on interactions between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, with emphasis on understanding the effects of land management on watershed processes and associated biota (e.g., salmonids, amphibians) in the Pacific Northwest.

We also develop assessment tools to assist managers and decision makers in achieving sustainability at multiple spatial and temporal scales. The scope and scale of natural resources research includes site-specific and process-specific studies that fill narrow gaps in knowledge, as well as watershed- and landscape-scale studies that attempt to address processes, functions, and structure of ecosystems.

An important element of the program mission is to discover general relationships and processes that are not limited to a specific geographic locality. Applications of the research will be most direct within the region where the work was done, but much of the knowledge will be broadly applicable and transferable to other geographic regions and ecosystems.

Research Highlights

Understanding the effects of land management activities and natural disturbances on aquatic ecosystems at the reach, the watershed, and the landscape scales.

Quantifying processes affecting productivity of stream habitats.

Riparian ecosystem management in western Washington.

Aquatic and riparian ecosystem management and restoration strategies in eastern Washington and Oregon.