The Bay-Delta Science Consortium is an effort to increase coordination and collaboration among all parties involved in Bay-Delta science.

Why We're Needed

As one of the most important and impacted ecosystems on the West Coast, San Francisco's Bay-Delta Estuary is the focus of an array of scientific activities. The Consortium was formed to help catalyze increasing cooperation and collaboration among institutions, to prevent the overlap of projects and resources, and to produce a quality and quantity of science unattainable by institutions working alone.

The complexity of the Bay-Delta system demands multidisciplinary studies. California decision-makers need access to multiple decision management tools. They need to understand how potential actions relate to management goals and how to effectively monitor complex changes resulting from management actions. The Consortium encourages researchers developing new information to work more closely with those using the information for policy applications.

Because different institutions each offer different expertise and resources, increased collaboration will improve organizational capabilities and efficiency. Agencies have a strong tradition of maintaining excellent monitoring programs. Research institutions excel at analysis, synthesis and new ideas; in addition they educate the next generation of environmental scientists. Together, agencies and research institutions, can create conceptual models to bridge gaps between science and management.