A Design Science Framework for Understanding Scientists as Contributors to the Goals and Values of River Restoration

Science to support environmental management of rivers has grown dramatically over the past few decades. River restoration science, now a prominent area of research, can be viewed as a design science—a branch of science that develops technological artifacts to help society achieve specific aims. Scientific inquiry in a design science involves evaluation of technical norms that specify what ought to be done to achieve what society desires. Typically, the values that determine societal aims in a design science are considered independent of the science, but whether this supposition holds for river restoration science is unclear. This paper examines literature on river restoration science to assess the extent to which river scientists invoke value‐laden language when describing restoration. This assessment shows that a rich array of value‐laden language has been used in river restoration science and that this language inherently privileges the natural dynamics of river systems, where natural is implicitly associated with the condition of these systems in the absence of human impact. Thus, river scientists have not just contributed to scientific analysis to support restoration practice; they have actively contributed to the cache of environmental values that inform the goals of restoration. River scientists have implicitly promoted an environmental ethic of river restoration that privileges natural forms and processes. Whether or not this intertwining of values and scientific inquiry has biased science to support restoration practice is uncertain, but the language used by restoration scientists clearly is not value neutral. This article is categorized under: Water and Life > Nature of Freshwater Ecosystems Human Water > Water Governance Science of Water > Water and Environmental Change