Throughout the nation, there is an increased awareness of, and concern for, environmental restoration. Within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, new authorities are providing more and more opportunities to pursue environmentally oriented projects. This increased emphasis on the environment, however, brings a concomitant need for improved techniques for evaluating and comparing environmental projects and programs. There is almost always more than one way to address a specific objective, and typically more projects and programs waiting to be pursued than funds available. The purpose of this study is to provide conceptual underpinning and preliminary guidance on the development of an evaluation framework and measurement techniques that will contribute to a practical partnership. between ecology and economics. The work reviews, evaluates and draws conclusions about research needs from the published and unpublished literatures bearing on the relation between ecological systems and economic notions of effectiveness and evaluation.