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      • Electronic Theses and Dissertations
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      • HARVEST
      • College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies
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      Perspectives on prions : mapping the social landscape around chronic wasting disease on the Canadian prairies

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      AMICK-THESIS.pdf (3.880Mb)
      Date
      2014-01-20
      Author
      Amick, Kari
      Type
      Thesis
      Degree Level
      Masters
      Metadata
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      Abstract
      Social perspectives on natural resources management have become an increasingly valuable part of natural resources management decision making, especially at the policy or governance level. However, due to the range of social contexts that can exist around management questions, not every technique for incorporating stakeholders into management is suited for every management problem. My research examines the social landscape around chronic wasting disease (CWD) management on the Canadian prairies in order to identify a way forward for stakeholder involvement in CWD management. CWD is a prion disease that results in neurodegeneration and death in cervids. CWD has the potential for broad social impact because it infects elk and deer, species which are both hunted and ranched. Furthermore, management and monitoring efforts in free-ranging cervids frequently incorporate hunting activity. Q methodology was used to survey stakeholders in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and synthesize perspectives about stakeholder understanding of CWD as a problem and preferences for potential solutions. The perspectives that emerged emphasized the importance of increasing knowledge about CWD and a generalized trust in government management, coupled with a desire for stakeholder consultation under the auspices of government leadership. I found that CWD management may not be ready for stakeholder spearheaded management activity due to ambivalence and uncertainty among stakeholders, but stakeholder involvement in CWD management can still offer valuable insight for managers. This is especially notable in light of the recent loss of Saskatchewan’s CWD monitoring program.
      Degree
      Master of Environment and Sustainability (M.E.S.)
      Department
      School of Environment and Sustainability
      Program
      Environment and Sustainability
      Supervisor
      Clark, Douglas A.
      Committee
      Gober, Patricia; Brook, Ryan K.; Belcher, Ken W.
      Copyright Date
      April 2014
      URI
      http://hdl.handle.net/10388/ETD-2014-04-1377
      Subject
      chronic wasting disease
      adaptive governance
      wildlife management
      wildlife disease management
      elk
      white-tailed deer
      mule deer
      stakeholder perspectives
      Q-methodology
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      • Electronic Theses and Dissertations
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