Restoration Ecology

Key terms Intervention Mitigation Reallocation Reclamation Re-creation Rehabilitation Remediation Restoration

Helping Nature Heal Humans have disturbed and degraded nature for as long as we have existed We are able to repair some of the damage (ecological restoration) Recovery: linked to the idea “natural climax community will return if we leave it alone” Modern Ecology: this may not be the case (random process)

Helping Nature Heal Aims of restoration driven by human values (beauty, recreation, utility) rather than science General principles of restoration are drawn from ecology, hydrology, soil science, etc. Most influential American forester: Gifford Pinchot* Another pioneer: Aldo Leopold

Gifford Pinchot Introduced selective harvest and replanting choice tree species This increased the value of the forest Also produced a sustainable harvest First head of U.S. Forest Service

Nature Can Be Resilient First step in restoration: stop whatever is causing the damage Ex. – prohibiting logging, mining, etc., may be enough to allow nature to heal by itself Sometimes rebuilding populations of native plants and animals is a simple process of restocking breeding individuals to an area

Forest Restoration Lumber companies routinely replant forests that they have harvested Mechanical restoration results in a monoculture of uniformly placed trees Japan was almost completely deforested at the end of WWII, now more than 60% is forested Today: Largest reforestation in China; 50 billion trees have been planted over the past 50 years

Forest Restoration Urban planting important 2007: UN announced “billion tree campaign” Historically, fire has been important in controlling vegetation in savannas Settlers eliminated fire and grazing by native animals → shrub and tree growth Accumulated veg. is cleared before fires are started; herbicides prevent regrowth

Forest Restoration Sequoia National Park: 70 years of fire suppression → dense undergrowth → more fuel for destructive fires

Prairie Restoration Before European settlement, prairies covered most of the middle U.S. Tallgrass: eastern edge of the Great Plains. Less than 2% remains Fire is also crucial for prairie restoration; kills many weedy species and removes nutrients (esp. N) The Nature Conservancy has established many preserves to protect tallgrass prairies

Prairie Restoration Huge areas of shortgrass prairie are being preserved Bison help maintain prairies; with fire, an important tool in restoration

Wetland and Stream Restoration Wetlands occupy < 5% of US land; 1/3 of all endangered species spend at least part of their lives in wetlands Until recently governments encouraged drainage for development 1972 Clean Water Act began protecting streams and wetlands by requiring discharge permits for dumping waste into sfc waters

Wetland and Stream Restoration For wetlands, sometimes all that’s needed is to stop destructive forces The Everglades is a fresh water river that comes from springs that has been diverted, causing 90% of wading birds to be lost It is hoped that by restoring the former flow will allow the biological community to recover

Wetland and Stream Restoration The Chesapeake Bay is a drowned river valley with fresh and salty water mixing Overfishing, sewerage discharge, silt, heavy metals, toxic chemicals from industry and agriculture, oil spills and habitat destruction are causing a loss of productive fisheries Restoration = minimal success

Wetland and Stream Restoration Cities: artificial wetlands provide a low-cost way to filter sewerage Stabilizing stream banks, stopping pollution, controlling invasive species, preventing erosion are restoring streams Remediation means finding remedies from problems involving noninvasive techniques Reclamation implies using intense physical or chemical methods to repair ecosystems