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| From the
1999 Southern Division of the American Fisheries Society Midyear Meeting held in
Chattanooga, Tennessee. |
Negotiating in the Face of
Uncertainty or How to Resolve Conflicts With a Half A Deck
Gary E. Whelan, Michigan Department of Natural Resources,
P.O. Box 30446, Lansing, Michigan 48909; Voice 517-373-6948;
E-Mail whelang@state.mi.us
It is the usual circumstance that biologists have to negotiate agreements
on natural resource issues with less than all of the possible data. This is the norm not
the exception and we should not be intimidated by this prospect. There are a number of
critical points that one must keep in mind to be successful in negotiating natural
resource issues. First, keep
in mind that negotiating settlement agreements (SA) is far more preferable to the normal
regulatory process. Most regulatory processes are very complicated, take a long time, can
be painful, and have significant uncertainty. SA allow for the local solution of problems
and reduces the regulatory agencies discretionary decision making, which equals certainty.
SA usually provide for a much improved working relationship between the parties allowing
one to combine the backgrounds of all parties to solve problems. Thus, negotiating even
with less than perfect data is a preferred alternative. To make negotiations work one
must: develop working relationships between the parties and among the sides; have each
side able to articulate a single position on each issue; understand the management
structure of all parties; be able to have the negotiators for all parties must have the
authority to make decisions; and must have a willingness to negotiate in good faith among
all parties. It is also critical to explore non-traditional solutions; be sure to
understand the other side’s information completely; and to have technical and legal
advice available at all times during the negotiations. The negotiation team must be kept
small and negotiations should be done in an informal environment. I strongly recommend
developing a conceptual agreement on all issues before writing the full agreement.
Finally, develop an understanding of the personalities involved in the negotiations and be
sure that the key issues are made very clear from the beginning of the negotiations. If
you follow these points, it is possible and likely that you can overcome the gaps in your
data and improve public trust resources for long periods of time.
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