Cost Effectiveness of AIS Prevention
While we must manage already established AIS, prevention is the most cost-effective method of AIS intervention. But how effective is each prevention method, really?? This project will help in better understanding both the costs and efficacy of three widely utilized prevention techniques. Data obtained will be used to develop evidence-based decision support tools that assess the economic costs of implementing various AIS spread prevention strategies. These tools will provide managers with real-time evaluation of hypothetical prevention scenarios within the safety of a mathematical model prior to implementation on the landscape.
The efficacy of prevention methods:
Common prevention efforts focus on public education, watercraft inspection, and watercraft decontamination. While these methods are founded on sound science, there is little empirical data to determine real-world effectiveness. We conducted an experimental study utilizing mock boat inspections at watercraft launches. Participating boaters and trained watercraft inspectors inspected and removed AIS from a boat that has been realistically staged with AIS. The analysis is underway and the results will be available soon!
The cost of AIS prevention:
Prevention and management of aquatic invasive species (AIS) and their impacts is a daunting task that costs billions of dollars each year on a national scale. Money available to spend on AIS prevention is limited and needs to be used in ways that maximize output. Through a mix of literature review and interviews with AIS program coordinators, we aim to better understand the actual costs for each public education, watercraft inspection, and watercraft decontamination.
A new tool to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of AIS prevention:
The AIS Explorer is an online dashboard that provides data-driven AIS management tools. We will be adding a new tool that incorporates the cost-effectiveness of AIS prevention to allow managers to simulate interventions and evaluate changes in risk. The below draft mockup provides an example of what is to come!
