Reference Condition Research in NARS
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The National Aquatic Resource Surveys (NARS) are a critical source of data regarding the health of aquatic ecosystems in the U.S. Interpreting these data require that scientists be able to estimate how each ecosystem would function in the absence of anthropogenic stressors. For most indicators, these expectations are set using the concept of reference condition. This presentation discusses some of the difficulties inherent in operationalizing this concept, and the research under way to improve the science behind it.