Management Prioritization in a Public-Facing Urban Wetland

The Museum of Life and Science is a nature center and science museum located in Durham, North Carolina, working to understand and improve the health of an urban wetland ecosystem located on their campus. The majority of the natural land cover within the wetland’s watershed is forested and managed by the Museum, so a forest inventory and management analysis was conducted to understand potential impacts on the wetland. Interviews and a literature review produced alternatives for community-based environmental management in urban ecosystems that formed a basis for a multi-criteria decision analysis framework. This paper provides a decision-making methodology for the Museum of Life and Science to assess potential environmental management decisions and recommendations through a forestry lens to improve watershed health while meeting their mission.