Optimal spatial-dynamic management to minimize the damages caused by aquatic invasive species

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel optimization framework for managing invasive species in lakes by controlling boat trips and fees to minimize ecological damages, accounting for species spread through boaters' activities.

Contribution

It presents a new spatial-dynamic optimization model incorporating endogenous spread mechanisms and an iterative method for optimal management strategies.

Findings

Effective control of invasive species spread through optimized boat ramp fees.

Demonstrated the importance of spatial-dynamic considerations in management strategies.

Provided a computational approach for decision-making in lake ecosystem protection.

Abstract

Invasive species have been recognized as a leading threat to biodiversity. In particular, lakes are especially affected by species invasions because they are closed systems sensitive to disruption. Accurately controlling the spread of invasive species requires solving a complex spatial-dynamic optimization problem. In this work we propose a novel framework for determining the optimal management strategy to maximize the value of a lake system net of damages from invasive species, including an endogenous diffusion mechanism for the spread of invasive species through boaters' trips between lakes. The proposed method includes a combined global iterative process which determines the optimal number of trips to each lake in each season and the spatial-dynamic optimal boat ramp fee.