Willamette River Basin Planning Atlas Trajectories of Environmental and Ecological Change

Oregon's Willamette River Basin, which encompasses some of the nation's richest farm and forest land, is also home to most of Oregon's citizens. More than two million people live in the Willamette Basin today, and that number is expected to reach nearly four million by the year 2050.Using a dazzling variety of color maps, photographs, graphs, and other illustrations, the Willamette River Basin Atlas presents an amazing array of information intended to provide a long-term, large-scale view of changes in human and natural systems within the Basin.Five chapters provide information on current conditions and historical changes since 1850, focusing in turn on land forms and geology, water resources, plants and animals, land use, and human population.Next, there is a detailed examination of how the Basin may change between now and 2050 under three alternative scenarios for future change: one assuming a continuation of current land use and management polices, the second assuming a loosening of current policies to allow freer development, and the third assuming greater emphasis on ecosystem protection and restoration.The final chapter demonstrates how the information and analyses presented in the Atlas can be used to prioritize and design river restoration strategies. Although the focus is on the Willamette River and its floodplain, this provides a useful model that can be applied to other river basins as well.The Atlas makes extensive use of maps, photographs, and other illustrations to present information in a way that will fascinate general readers and specialists alike. It is a priceless resource for public officials, land owners and scientists, as well as for anyone with aninterest in the past and future of the Willamette River Basin or other similar river basins throughout the world.Hulse, David is the author of 'Willamette River Basin Planning Atlas Trajectories of Environmental and Ecological Change' with ISBN 9780870715426 and ISBN 0870715429.