Decision-Support and Prioritization Frameworks for
Decision-Support and Prioritization Frameworks for River Restoration and Barrier Removal

Welcome to Oregon State University Marketplace

Professor Jesse O’Hanley

University of Kent, U.K.

Hosted by Dr. Guillermo Giannico

As part of Oregon State University Extension Service and Oregon Sea Grant's professional development offerings, Dr. Guillermo Giannico is pleased to host Professor Jesse O'Hanley for a specialized training workshop on prioritizing fish-passage barrier mitigation and river restoration investments. The workshop is intended for fisheries professionals, watershed councils, consulting firms, tribal staff, government agencies, NGOs, graduate students, and restoration practitioners throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond.


Workshop Information

Dates: September 17 and September 24, 2026

Time: 8:30–11:00 AM (Pacific Time)

Format: Live Online via Zoom

Duration: Two sessions (2.5 hours each)


Registration Fee:

  • Professional: $190 (early bird until August 10), regular: $225
  • Student: $75
  • Watershed Council and Soil and Water Conservation District: $150


Why Attend?

Learn how to evaluate and prioritize culvert replacements, dam removals, and other fish-passage projects using state-of-the-art decision-support tools. Participants will gain exposure to optimization, graph theory, GIS-based analyses, and hands-on applications using OptiPass.

For registration information, contact Dr. Guillermo Giannico: giannico@oregonstate.edu

Workshop Syllabus


Session 1 – September 17, 2026 (8:30–11:00 AM PST)


Module I – Prioritization of Fish Passage Barrier Mitigation

  • Overview of fish passage barriers and ecological impacts
  • Common prioritization methods:
  • - Opportunistic response
  • - Local knowledge and expert opinion
  • - Scoring and ranking approaches
  • - GIS scenario analysis
  • - Graph theory
  • - Mathematical optimization

OptiPass Overview:

  • Data requirements
  • User interface
  • Demonstration and example applications


Session 2 – September 24, 2026 (8:30–11:00 AM PST)


Module II – Hands-On OptiPass Case Study Workshop

Participants will work with real-world datasets to:

  • Estimate accessible habitat
  • Set restoration budgets
  • Generate efficient frontiers
  • Conduct what-if analyses
  • Interpret optimization outputs

Includes Q&A and optional take-home exercises.


Instructor

Professor Jesse O'Hanley is Professor of Environmental Systems Management at the University of Kent. He is internationally recognized for his work applying optimization and simulation techniques to environmental planning, especially river connectivity restoration and barrier prioritization. He has authored more than 70 publications and received the EURO Excellence in Practice Award for developing a decision-support system used in California, the Pacific Northwest, and other locations.

Decision-Support and Prioritization Frameworks for

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