Natural assets such as soil, water, air, plants, and animals provide society with valuable ecosystem services. Ecosystem services can be broadly categorized as life-supporting services, including those that maintain water quality in streams and rivers, flood control, nutrient cycling, and regulation of atmospheric gases, or as life-fulfilling services such as expansion of wildlife habitat and biodiversity. This research investigates the management of life-supporting ecosystem services, which are frequently impaired by a wide variety of natural and anthropogenic activities in watersheds. More specifically, the work focuses on maintaining water quality in streams and rivers. Non-point source (NPS) pollution is the major factor preventing [...]
