Managing natural resources on a sustainable basis, reducing the threat of degradation, and conforming to various environmental regulations is a complex task. This timely book addresses the potential conflict between production-driven and environmentally driven objectives of natural resource use and management. It presents Multiple Objective Decision Support Systems (MODSS) as a holistic, ecosystem-based approach to urgent environmental management problems. Multiple Objective Decision Making for Land, Water, and Environmental Management explores the following major themes: Relevance of addressing user needs, various sectors of society, and different levels of clientele MODSS methodologies, tools, components, and integration Economic, social, cultural, and policy issues and applications (including risk assessment, conflict resolution, and sustainable development) Applicability to global and regional issues, especially in Asia and the Pacific, including degradation processes in small island ecosystems and major river basins, and competitive uses of water for agriculture and aquaculture This book represents a forum for those interested in transforming available information into quantitative aids that facilitate decision making and offer viable solutions. It illustrates the diversity of perspectives and points of view in managing our global community.

Table of Contents:
Introduction, Rationale, and Relevance of MODSS Introduction to Multiple Objective Decision Making for Land, Water, and Environmental Management, S.A. El-Swaify and D.S. Yakowitz Land Use Planning for Agriculture: Are Environmental Conflicts Inevitable? S.A. El-Swaify Resolving Conflict in Resource Management Using the Decision Support System GMCR, K.W. Hipel, D.M. Kilgour, L. Fang, and X. Peng Addressing Diverse Client Needs Co-Learning Our Way to Sustainability: An Integrated and Community-Based Research Approach to Support Natural Resource Management Decision Making, W.J. Allen, O.J.H. Bosch, R.G. Gibson, and A.J. Jopp Consequences of Short-Term, One Objective Decision Making in Land and Water Use Planning in Egypt, M.A. Kishk Pesticide Economic and Environmental Tradeoffs: User's Perspective, A.G. Hornsby, D. Hoag, and D.L. Nofziger Pesticide Economic and Environmental Tradeoffs: Developer's Perspective, D.L. Nofziger, A.G. Hornsby, and D. Hoag Multi-Objective Decision Support Strategies for Cropping Steepland, A.J. Jones A Multi-Criteria Decision Support System for Evaluating Cropping Pattern Strategies, K.M. Abu-Zeid An Integrated Approach to Ecological Risk Assessment of a Large Forested Ecosystem, T.L. Ashwood, B.E. Sample, R.A. Washington-Allen, and G.W. Suter II Managing Environmental Cleanup Risks as a Multi-Objective Decision Problem, T.E. Hakonson and L.J. Lane A Multiple Criteria Decision-Making Model for Comparative Analysis of Remedial Action Alternatives, B.K. Hope Overview of a Decision Support System for the Evaluation of Landfill Cover Designs, G.B. Paige, J.J. Stone, L.J. Lane, and D.S. Yakowitz AGFADOPT: A Decision-Aid for Agroforestry Project Planning and Implementation, M.P. Robotham Developing an Integrated Nutrient Management Decision-Aid, R. Yost and J.Z.C. Li MODSS Methodologies, Tools, Components, and Integration SMART PITCHFORK, P.R. Goodrich Using Desired Future Conditions to Integrate Multiple Resource Prescriptions: The Northeast Decision Model, M.J. Twery, S.L. Stout, and D.L. Loftis A Multi-Attribute Tool for Decision Support: Ranking a Finite Number of Alternatives, D.S. Yakowitz Effects of Optional Averaging Schemes on the Ranking of Alternatives by the Multiple Objective Component of a US Department of Agriculture Decision Support System, B. Imam, D.S. Yakowitz, and L.J. Lane Integrating Agricultural Expert Systems with Data Bases and Multimedia, A. Rafea WATERSHEDSS©; A Decision Support System for Nonpoint Source Pollution Control in Predominantly Agricultural Watersheds, D.L. Osmond et al. A Knowledge-Based Reasoning Tool Kit for Forest Resource Management, S.B. Williams and D.R. Holtfrerich Subjective Evaluation of Decision Support Systems Using Multi-Attribute Decision Making (MADM), J.C. Ascough II, L.A. Deer-Ascough, M.J. Shaffer, and J.D. Hanson CERES Models in Multiple Objective Decision Making Process, G.J. Kovács, J.T. Ritchie, T. Németh, and J. Nagy Advances in Ration Formulation for Beef Cattle Through Multiple Objective Decision Support Systems, S.S. Vickner and D.L. Hoag Conflict Resolution Among Heterogenous Reusable Agents in the PARI DSS, M. Bentham and J.E. Greer Integrated Decision Making for Sustainablilty: A Fuzzy MADM Model for Agriculture, E.G. Dunn et al. Elements of a Decision Support System: Infromation, Model, and User Management, D.E. Moon, S.C. Jeck, and C.J. Selby Applicability to Economic, Social, Policy, Risk, and Sustainability Issues Adoption of Environmental Protection Practices in the Scioto River Watershed: Implications for MODSS, T. Napier and S.M. Camboni SOILCROP-A Prototype Decision Support System for Soil Degradation-Crop Productivity Relationships, S. Gameda and J. Dumanski Evaluation of a Prototype Decision Support System for Rangelands in the Southwest United States, P.A. Lawrence, L.J. Lane, J.J. Stone, and D.S. Yakowitz Managing Soil Structure, Particularly with Respect to Infiltration, for Long-Term Cropping System Productivity, R.D. Connolly and D.M. Freebairn Protecting Soil and Water Resources through Multi-Objective Decision Making, T. Prato and C. Fulcher Socio-Economics of Upland Soil Conservation in Indonesia, P.C. Huszar Issues and Concerns in Multiple Objective Management of Natural Resources in the Agri-Food Industry, D.P. Stonehouse A Multicriteria Approach for Trade-Off Analysis Between Economic and Environmental Objectives in Rural Planning, G. Van Huylenbroeck Long-Term Explorations of Sustainable Land Use, J.J.E. Bessembinder, M.K. van Ittersum, R. Rabbinge, and L.O. Fresco A Multi-Criteria Framework to Identify Land Uses Which Maximize Farm Profitability and Minimize Net Recharge, S.A. Prathapar, W.S. Meyer, E. Alocija, and J.C. Madden The Use of Crop Models for Land Valuation, F. Dolezal et al. An Agroecological Approach to Sustainable Agriculture, I. Amien Does Existence Value Exist? J.C. Bergstrom and S.D. Reiling Analyzing Public Inputs to Multiple Objective Decision Making, D.F. Dennis Non-Economic Values in Multiple Objective Decision Making, T.A. More, J. Averill, and R.J. Glass Quantifying Economic Incentives Needed for Control of Nonpoint Source Pollution in Agriculture, P. Heilman, L.J. Lane, and D.S. Yakowitz "CROPS": A Constraint-Satisfaction System for Whole Farm Planning, N.D. Stone, D. Faulkner, R.K. Scheckler, J.W. Pease, and J. Roach Applicability to National, Regional, and Global Issues Lessons Learned and New Challenges for Integrated Assessment under the National Environmental Protection Act, S.A. Carnes and R.M. Reed Sustainable Agriculture and the MCDM Paradigm: The Development of Compromise Programming Models with Special Reference to Small-Scale Farmers in Chile's Vith Region, C. Kobrich and T. Rehman Use of a DSS for Evaluating Land Management System Effects on Tepetate Lands in Central Mexico, M. Hernandez, P. Heilman, L.J. Lane, J.L. Oropeza-Mota, and H.M. Arias-Rojo Climate Change Effects on Agricultural Productivity in the Midwestern Great Lakes Region, B.Z. Littlefield, J.L. Ehman, W. Fan, J.J. Johnson, B. Offerle, and J.C. Randolph Decision Support Systems for Irrigated Zones: An Integrated Approach to Land Use Planning and Management in Southern Europe, L. Mira da Silva, J. Park, and P.A. Pinto Management of Natural and Renewable Resources on Watershed Basis in India, R. Babu and B.L. Dhyani Irrigation Water Management Scenario Simulation for Decision Support in Multi-Objective Planning, S. Abdeldayem, S. Abdelgawad, and K.A. Zeid Use of Goal Programming in Aquaculture Policy Decision Making in Southern Thailand, K.A. Parton and A. Nissapa A Case Study on the Use of an Expert System as a Multi-Objective Decision Support System (MODSS)-Boobera Lagoon Environmental Management Plan, P.L. Matthew and B.A. Peasley Multi-Objective Decision Support Systems Used in Management of Temperate Forest Ecosystems in Southeast Australia, J. Ross and I. Hannam Seasonal No-Tillage Ridge Cropping System: A Multiple Objective Tillage System for Hilly Land Management in South China, X. Zhang, S. Chen, T. Li, and M. Li The Use of Multi-Objective Decision Making for Resolution of Resource Use and Environmental Management Conflicts at a Catchment Scale, R. Shaw, J. Doherty, L. Brebber, L. Cogle, and R. Lait Summary and Conclusions A Synthesis of the State-of-the-Art on Multiple Objective Decision Making for Managing Land, Water, and the Environment, A.C. Jones, S.A. El-Swaify, R. Graham, D.P. Stonehouse, and I. Whitehouse