©Danilo Lima, Agripalm Ambiental
The RRC database contains a wide variety of resources and publications related to ecological restoration, and we are actively working to expand this collection. It is our aim to serve as the principal clearinghouse for information and tools to support the work of researchers, practitioners, land managers, educators, students, and anyone else interested in restoration. Use the filter tool below to search the database by title, author, resource type, keyword, or any combination of these factors.
Although SER does review all entries in the database for relevance and quality, these resources have not been rigorously reviewed or extensively vetted in every case, and SER therefore makes no claim as to their accuracy or accordance with generally accepted principles in the field. The database is provided as a resource for visitors to the SER website, and it is ultimately left to the individual user to make their own determinations about the quality and veracity of a given publication or resource.
If there is a resource we missed, please let us know! We are interested in current books, articles, technical documents, videos, and other resources that are directly relevant to ecological restoration science, practice or policy, as well as resources treating the social, cultural and economic dimensions of restoration.
Initiative 20×20: The road traveled supporting NDC’s and a path to follow in landscape restoration
Abstract:Initiative 20×20 was launched in 2014 with a goal to initiate restoration processes on 20 Mha by the end of 2020. At COP 25 and in the context of results achieved, Ministries from the region set the goals for the next stage of this road at 50 M ha by the end of 2030 with 30 M ha included in the 2030 NDC goals. Many of the countries in the region have shown an indication to put forward new aspiring goals in 2021 by including restoration targets into the updated NDCs for mitigation and adaptation. This presentation will focus on how restoration as a nature-based solution is contributing to achieving multiple development goals in the region and how regional platforms are helping to provide technical assistance, facilitate private funding, and maintain the political dialog and relevance.
Resource Type:Conference PresentationPublication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Exploring groundwater-surface water interactions within channelized lowland headwater streams as a mean to promote new restoration approaches.
Abstract:Groundwater-surface water exchanges within lowland headwaters translate into ecological services throughout the watersheds, such as flow and biodiversity regulation. In lowland agricultural context, decades of human intervention such as channelization have disrupted the hydrological exchange between the headwater streams and their floodplain and, in doing so, undermined the ecological services these small streams provide. The disruption of hydrological exchanges between the straightened channel and former meander bends has received little attention so far, but restoring ecological services in this type of lowland headwaters requires a thorough understanding of the nature of these hydrological exchanges. This research project explores the parameters controlling the hydrological and hydraulic interactions existing within channelized lowland headwater streams with the objective of proposing a method for assessing the restoration potential of channelized streams based on connectivity with former meanders. To do so, the spatiotemporal variability of groundwater-surface water interactions between channelized reaches and their abandoned meander bends have been investigated through a dense network of piezometers at three sites in the St. Lawrence Lowland (Quebec). Empirical data show that the mechanisms controlling hydrological exchanges between natural meandering lowland rivers, their floodplain and their hillslope also operate in lowland rivers which have been straightened, backfilled, and cultivated. Moreover, the assessment of the pre-straightening hydrogeomorphological configuration of the floodplain partly explains the complex patterns of piezometric fluctuations observed at different sites. The apex of the former meanders stands out as focal areas of hydrological connectivity both fed by flows from the hillslopes, and the surrounding historical floodplain.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Do’s and Don’ts of Subtidal Mussel Reef Restoration
Abstract:The global loss of bivalve reefs combined with a growing awareness of the ecosystem benefits they provide has resulted in an upsurge of interest in their restoration. Although techniques for restoring oyster reefs are well-advanced, the effective restoration of mussel reefs lags well behind. Over the last two years, multiple field deployments and laboratory analyses in New Zealand have revealed critical “dos” and “don’ts” for green-lipped mussel (Perna canaliculus) restoration that will likely have a wider application.
Do: Use adult mussels (70-100 mm shell lengths (SL)) to re-establish subtidal reefs – but be prepared for a very inefficient restoration program where 1-tonne of adult mussels will cover less than 10 m2.
Don’t: Use juvenile mussels (10-30 mm SL) for the initial establishment of mussel reefs.
Do: Use subadult mussels (30-50 mm SL) for more efficient mussel reef restoration, but don’t think it is as straightforward as spreading them across the seafloor like you do with adults – if you do, they will disappear.
Do: Use subadult mussels when they are protected from, or are resistant to, predation and hydrodynamic dislodgement.
Don’t: Use biodegradable substrate to improve subadult mussel survival.
Do: Carefully source your subadult mussels used for restoration based on greater attachment thread thickness, thread number, and shell strength.
Don’t: Assume this will work for all mussels, so do investigate this for other species and tidal zones!
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Integrating Policy as a means to leverage large scale restoration across Latin America
Abstract:The UN Decade for Ecosystem restoration offers a unique opportunity to reach the Paris Accord targets to mitigate and adapt to the effects to Climate Change. A key question that needs to be addressed is What is the existing policy enabling environment for forest landscape restoration in Latin America that contributes to the implementation of the Decade’s objectives? This presentation will provide a snapshot of policy frameworks for restoration designed to address biodiversity, climate, and desertification priorities. Based on that, options for policy integration, cooperation and coherence will be discussed as key pillars for championing restoration at scale across countries.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
The Restoration investment Ecosystem in Latin America
Abstract:In Latin America, 18 countries have pledged about 50 million hectares to restore as part of the Bonn Challenge and Initiative 20×20 platforms. Many governments have developed robust plans and strategies to prioritize areas for restoration under multiple environmental, social, and economic objectives. But once these processes are finished, restoration often stalls. Why? The implementation of restoration requires financial resources from the public and private sectors in a coordinated effort to implement the desired activities and materialize expected results. To ensure additionality and the permanence of restoration, these activities must generate multiple benefits to the landowners and do not have to come at the expense of the degradation. Landowners could be communities, individuals, or companies. In many countries, resources from the public sector are scarce, making it difficult to implement sustainable practices and investments. On the other hand, the private sector faces many barriers related to the long-term nature of investments in restoration, the high levels of perceived risks, and the difficulties in finding bankable projects with landowner aggregation. In this presentation, we will discuss practical experiences from the public and private sectors to overcome some of those barriers. These experiences are showing the path to a sustainable future that would make possible the restoration at the scale required by the climate change challenges and in response to global initiatives such as the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Restoring Lebanon’s Biodiversity Through the Integration of Ecological Restoration Research, Policy and Practices
Abstract:Lebanon is one of the most forested countries by total percentage in the middle east. However, the decline of Lebanon’s forests coupled with climate change, poses serious threats to natural resource management, national identify, water security, rural and urban livelihoods. In response to these threats, the Lebanon Reforestation Initiative (LRI), launched by U.S. Forest Service International Programs (USFS IP) in 2010, through the support and funding of the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID), aimed to expand, manage, and protect Lebanon’s forests and landscapes through a community-based approach.
Knowing that healthy ecosystems are essential to provide the services that humans and the natural environment require there is an obvious gap in research related to available data that is highly important for conservation efforts, habitat restoration and restoring ecosystem services critical for the development of sustainable traditional land use practices. LRI has built on its previous successes since 2011 and broadened its scope of work within the field of ecological restoration, integrating the ecological, social and economic aspects into developing sustainable restoration strategies. LRI is focusing on 1) fauna-flora research and identifying new data collection and monitoring tools to be integrated in improving restoration strategies; 2) community-based restoration to ensure economic opportunities to underserved local communities such as eco-tourism and agroforestry activities; 3) developing a forest ecosystem services valuation study that values and spatially maps a select set of forest services across Lebanon and 4) continuing to increase restoration efforts throughout Lebanon. LRI was successful in 1) developing studies aiming to make the case for the targeted protection and expansion of valuable forest landscapes, 2) developing an economic sector model for underserved rural communities focused on conservation and restoration and 3) improving understanding of ecological restoration and its practices in different habitats in Lebanon. LRI’s long-term object is to create a link between economic governance, natural resource management and social inclusion strategies, having a positive impact on biodiversity and leading to more sustainable traditional land use and decreased economic stress on the vulnerable rural communities.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Restoring the Bossou‐Nimba Corridor for the Conservation of Chimpanzee Population
Abstract:The Mount Nimba Nature Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is considered a Biodiversity Hotspot and is home to unique and rich flora and fauna. Among them, are the Western Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus), that were listed Critically Endangered by IUCN in 2016. In Eastern Guinea, the most critical and fastest decline was observed in Bossou. The “Institute de Recherche Environnementale de Bossou” (IREB) attributes this alarming decline mainly to the increase forest fragmentation, which isolated the forested area of Bossou from the larger forested habitat of the nearby Nimba mountains. Moreover, continued degradation of the forest constitutes a threat to natural resources of the area, which currently serve not less than 100,000 people in over 20 communities.
This project, with the technical support of the United States Forest Service (USFS), focuses on developing an integrated conservation strategy for managing the Bossou forest reserve, targeting the survival of the Western chimpanzees, through ecological restoration‐based solutions, community led wildfire management, and also prioritizing the improvement of local communities’ livelihoods. A primary pilot was established in the highly degraded Bossou‐Nimba corridor, which, if successfully restored, has the potential to revitalize the western chimpanzee population, and to serve as a model for community wildlife and forest management for other areas of West Africa. The pilot aimed at improving native nursery and outplanting practices, and activities were planned to directly respond to the current ecological, social and economic needs. To date, more than 15,000 native species were planted and monitored in the corridor, involving 3 communities neighboring the corridor. Practices and knowledge were disseminated by local practitioners to increase restoration efforts within the corridor and achieve harmony between ecosystems and communities through restoration‐based solutions.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Reviving the Badia’s Ecosystems Through Restoration Ecology Science and Knowledge Transfer
Abstract:Jordan’s Badia which represents 80% of Jordan’s area characterized by hyper-dry climate, is a unique socio-ecological dryland system as its natural ecosystems are severely degraded due to demographic and natural challenges. Unfortunately, previous restoration efforts were challenged due to knowledge barriers and limited community engagement.
The Watershed and Development Initiative (WADI) is a Jordanian NGO established in 2018 and funded by US Forest Service, International Programs (USFS IP) to improve and implement ecological restoration programs in Jordan. USFS IP developed a comprehensive intervention plan based on its vast experience generated in the U.S. and worldwide throughout the years. Restoration plans were customized to local conditions WADI experts supported in their successful implementation and transferring the knowledge and experience to local communities, nongovernmental, and governmental institutions across Jordan. The value chain approach uses state-of-the art science to propagate high-quality native seedlings, linking nursery operations to restoration planning, provides capacity building
and continuous technical support, and applies a user-friendly M&E system to document and improve processes and techniques.
The activities created 20 annual full-time jobs, thousands of seasonal jobs, co-established four nurseries with annual production capacity of 310,000 seedlings, engaged communities across Jordan with emphasis on women and youth, proved the importance of community-led restoration, developed measured criteria for seedlings’ quality of main species, and developed traditional and GIS-based measures to assess and monitor restoration success. The approach resulted in raising survival rate of planted seedlings to above 70%, compared to 20% reported previously, with no or limited irrigation needs post-planting which renders restoration programs more feasible to implement, considering that Jordan is the 2nd poorest country in the world in water per capita.
An ecological restoration approach was developed and proven to be easily scalable to restore Jordan’s Badia and other degraded ecosystems, and provides a myriad of economic, social, and environmental benefits especially among marginalized groups and underserved communities
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Can SER Ecological Restoration Standards become the “Green Standard” for Ecological Restoration?: Development of Standards in International Law
Abstract:The implementation of “generally accepted international regulation and standards”(GAIRS) changes behavior. GAIRS have played an important role in the international practice of marine law and labor regulation. As the Global Decade for Ecological Restoration is launched, there are many questions about how States might demonstrate implementation of the legal duty to ecological restoration embodied in numerous treaty obligations. While the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) does not explicitly reference GAIRS, it would be possible to develop a mechanism to allow for the development of international standards for ecological restoration that could be implemented domestically by Parties to the CBD. Using the International Plant Protection Convention as a model, this presentation will argue for the adoption of a protocol to CBD to allow for the development of international and regional standards to support the harmonization of ecological restoration work particularly for transboundary projects. The presentation will explain some history of adopting previous CBD protocols and annex. International restoration standards currently advanced by the Society for Ecological Restoration could be translated into “generally accepted international standards” but this will require additional action from States either in the form of a protocol or an annex to the CBD.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Europe’s ‘man on the moon moment’ for ecological restoration
Abstract:Ecological restoration has been firmly grounded in policy and legislation from the European Union (EU). With the new EU Biodiversity Strategy and the EU Green Deal ecological restoration is seen as a cornerstone of EU policy for the next decade. Previous commitments on restoration have not been met and there is a lack of concrete legally binding targets and quality standards in EU legislation. The new EU biodiversity strategy puts forward the development of restoration legislation. This creates unique possibilities for imposing binding targets and obligations for high quality restoration on EU member states. The new law, if well drafted and enforced could be a game changer for both biodiversity protection in the EU, as well as contributing to adaptation and mitigation of climate change in the EU through an upscaling of ecological restoration. This paper discusses the preferable contents of such a new restoration law, its relationship with existing EU legislation (including the Birds and Habitats Directives and the Water Framework Directive), the role of standards in the new law and policy and the possible need for additional sectoral and habitat specific guidelines and standards for restoration. This paper will look at other EU environmental legislation that includes references to standards or best available techniques, as a source of inspiration to include standards in the new EU restoration law and policy.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Beyond Net Gain: ‘Restorative Inputs’ and Legal Standard in International Law
Abstract:The concepts of net gain and no net loss have been dominant in ensuring that we approach development in a sustainable way. In a recent review of the most important environmental legislation in Australia (the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act)) offsets were confirmed as a strategy for avoiding no net loss. The concept of the offset in the EPBC Act review was underpinned by a commitment to sustainability. This paper will explore the concepts of net gain and no net loss as it used in international law instruments to argue that these concepts are ethically neutral, if not harmful, as they don’t account for the major drivers of anthropogenic harm and change, and also don’t support active recovery strategies. These concepts don’t really mobilise and seek to add complexity to ecosystems over time, and presume that simple costbenefit assessment will ensure neutral and sustainable impacts on the environment (prioritising transactional responses). This paper will explore how adding complexity through ‘restorative inputs’, which is included as part of principle 8 of the SER 2019 International Standards, can help us move beyond the net gain paradigm. It is arguable that restorative inputs is a standard within principle 8 for achieving cumulative gain and contributes to the complexity that can help manage unpredictability. This paper will use the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands to explain and explore the potential of restorative inputs to achieve something different than the no net loss strategy of the regime.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Restoration and adaptive governance for social and ecological wellbeing
Abstract:This paper argues that the ontological and epistemological foundations of environmental law, which continue to disaggregate and commodify the “natural” world, can hamper restoration efforts at the landscape level. Law and governance arrangements for ecological restoration is still emerging globally with efforts to date largely concerned with the rehabilitation or remediation of discrete geographical areas, or the creation of services such as carbon sequestration. Such approaches largely reduce ecosystems to their components, undermining an appreciation of the overall complexity of these systems and result in the prioritisation of certain restoration goals over others. As ecological restoration is an adaptive, reflexive and systems approach guided by site characteristics and the relationship of the site with socio-ecological systems, it should necessitate long-term law and governance perspectives that are adaptive, account for uncertainty and imperfect understandings of ecosystem interrelationships and feedbacks.
This paper examines adaptive governance in the context of ecological restoration. Adaptive governance recognises uncertainty as a structural and constant inevitability in complex systems and undertakes ongoing and continuous monitoring, evaluation and adjustment. It also recognises that legal regimes reflect values, narratives, and worldviews and aims to integrate multiple types and sources of knowledge and values. These characteristics accord well with an ecological restoration practice that recognises the complexity of ecosystem function and a plurality of values, not just those limited to natural resources and ecosystem services, but also aesthetics, sense of place, cultural heritage, recreation and economics. This paper argues that the development of restoration governance must situate itself in values-led decision-making processes and we examine the normative values behind the SER 2020 principles to unpack how they assist the governance of restoration.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Scaling Up Ecological Restoration: Environment and Resource Management Law Unfit for Purpose
Abstract:Over the past several decades, nations have increasingly adopted internationally recognized environment and resource management principles into domestic environmental law and policy. There are currently at least 11 such principles that are widely recognized or emergent and relevant in the context of ecological restoration: polluter pays principle, precautionary principle, pollution prevention, sustainability, intergenerational equity, inherent/intrinsic value, ecosystem approach, cumulative effects, ecological integrity, environmental rights and environmental justice, and rights of Indigenous Peoples. In preparation for the Decade on Ecological Restoration, in 2019 the UN identified barriers to achieving restoration objectives. One barrier is “the relative scarcity of legislation, policies, regulations, tax incentives and subsidies that incentivise a shift in investments towards large scale restoration and
production systems, value chains and infrastructure that do not degrade ecosystems.” This presentation will review Canadian domestic law as a case study to assess whether the suite of internationally-recognized environment and resource management principles incorporated into domestic law to date are sufficient to achieve the objectives of the UN Decade on Ecological Restoration. It will be the conclusion of this presentation that domestic legislative and regulatory reform is necessary to catalyze the scale of restoration envisaged by the UN Decade on Ecological Restoration and a broad prescription for reform will be provided. It is anticipated that this prescription will be equally relevant to reform in other nations.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Assessing the potential for assisted natural regeneration of tropical forests a global analysis based on social and env
Abstract:Background and objectives: Assisted natural regeneration of forest is a proven cost-effective restoration strategy for climate change mitigation, biodiversity conservation, and livelihood enhancement. But the potential for natural regeneration varies spatially, emphasizing the need to identify and map areas estimated to have a high potential for assisted natural regeneration. As a collaborative project between Conservation International and the International Institute for Sustainability-Australia, we modelled the probability of natural regeneration at a high-resolution (30m) in tropical and subtropical forests (between ±25° latitude) globally. Methods: Using machine learning, specifically a LightGBM model using the platform driverless H2O, we generated predictions of natural regeneration potential (ANR potential) with high classification accuracies (c. 88 – 93%). We trained this model using sample deforested locations where natural regeneration did or did not occur between 2000 and 2012 and 41 biophysical and socioeconomic covariates that reflect processes known to influence land use, management, and forest regeneration processes. Results: Predictors of ANR potential varied across the three major regions we modelled. In the Neotropics, forest density and
elevation were important predictors of ANR potential, whereas in the Afro-tropics, the most important predictor variables were distance to forest and biome. In the Indo-Malayan tropics, although biophysical variables such as forest density were also important, the human development index (a socio-economic variable) was the most important variable explaining the occurrence of natural regeneration. Conclusion: Our model and results provide important insights for supporting decisions on spatial planning of cost-effective forest restoration across the tropics and subtropics.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Assisted Natural Regeneration for Semi-arid and Arid Lands
Abstract:Resources for restoration of ASAL lands are limited and restoration planning must be based on low cost intervention. Traditionally planning has focused on structure, How many kg of seeds or plants of which species should be applied per hectare? but repairing function, How does water flow through the site?, is often more important. Restoring function can speed natural regeneration. It is also important to determine what economic or cultural drivers led to mismanagement? How can economic incentives be used to sustain local community participation? Payment for ecosystem services may be an option. Carbon sequestration may also provide funding for restoration work. Low cost strategies include modified grazing or farming practices, fencing (even just small exclosures), and roughening the
soil surface to retain rainwater with pitting, swales, rock lines, or microcatchments, and protecting natural seedlings. These can make a big difference. If more funding is available resource islands may be created using locally collected seeds and perhaps a few nursery grown seedlings, in small fenced plots with rainwater catchments and super-efficient irrigation to support seedlings. Assisted regeneration of ASAL can aid ecosystem recovery, even when it may seem hopeless, and should be adopted and used more widely.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Cases of assisted natural regeneration in Brazil: It is a matter of finding the limiting factors
Abstract:One of the most exciting and accountable challenges restorationists face is choosing a restoration method for a degraded site. Research and practice are often focused on natural regeneration (passive restoration) and whole-site seeding or seedling planting (active restoration), however between those extremes there are infinite possibilities for triggering, conducing and accelerating natural regeneration, all called Assisting Natural Regeneration. Here I develop an acknowledged and intuitive framework for designing a restoration method: A method is a set of interventions that reduce restrictions and strengthens the potential of natural regeneration. Framework application: In the Amazon, harrowing and weeding shifted stable exotic pastures into a high-quality forest succession. In that case, pioneer seed rain was high, landscape forest cover was 37%, and the exotic grass stably dominated the sites. Preparing soil for pioneer seedling establishment triggered a fast canopy development and attracted late-successional species. In the Cerrado, sites degraded to bare soils, with dry climate and rare, but torrential, rains, were restored with water retention swales every 2m, following the topography. In the swales we seeded trees, but the ground was covered by native grasses that dispersed by runoffs from surroundings. These and other examples show that assisted natural regeneration may reduce the cost of restoration, where the mainstream option is whole-site planting; or enhance the ecological outcomes, where the mainstream option is passive restoration. Restorationists reach the decade of restoration with a good restoration toolbox, but with opportunities for developing nature-based methods for tropical ecosystems
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Diversifying city greenspaces for both wildlife and people in Beijing
Abstract:Beijing, as one of the world’s most populated city, is home to rich biodiversity. Situated on two major flyways for internationally migratory birds like Beijing swifts, it also provides habitats for small mammals like leopard cats and badgers. However, fast establishment of urban parks and other green spaces in Beijing does not show sufficient consideration on biodiversity. Birds, insects and other wildlife are losing shelter and food resources due to the loss of mixed landscapes such as cropland, bushes, and natural meadow. Supported by Beijing Municipal Forestry and Parks Bureau and Beijing Forestry Carbon Administration, our pilot project explores nature-based solutions in managing greenspaces in urban areas to restore biodiversity. In Wild Duck Lake Wetland Park, in response to the shrinkage of the cropland habitat, crops were planted to supplement food source for the wintering great bustards and common cranes; in Beijing Olympic Forest Park, under-canopy habitat enrichment through bush planting and brush pile building was experimented, and fallen leaves were left on ground to preserve wintering habit for animals and insects, as well as restore soil fertility; in Beijing Jingxi Forestry Farm, gaps were opened in formerly-planted monoculture forests, allowing under canopy plants to regrow naturally to increase biodiversity. Citizens are engaged in monitoring, field surveys and habitat-restoration activities to increase public awareness and understanding of urban biodiversity. We are now monitoring the pilot sites to assess outcome. We plan to produce guidelines for nature-friendly greenspace management to provide reference for other cities facing similar challenges in ‘lifeless’ greenspaces.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Natural Processes for the Restoration of Drastically Disturbed Sites
Abstract:Natural processes have been ‘restoring’ disturbed sites (landslides, volcanic eruptions, shoreline erosion, etc.) for millions of years. By understanding how these natural systems operate they can be applied to sites humans disturb (mines, industrial developments, etc.). Natural systems initiate recovery using pioneer species such as Willows (Salix spp.), Balsam Poplar (Populus balsamifera L.) or Alder (Alnus spp.). The seeds of these species are designed to travel long distances and use commonly occurring conditions to get established. Balsam Poplar and Willows have light fluffy seeds that at some times of the year look like snow. They land on puddles or other water bodies and are blown to the wet mud at the edges of the puddle or on the shore of the waterbody where they germinate and grow. By creating these conditions on a mine site these species can be encouraged to establish on sites that being reclaimed. The cost of these treatments are a fraction of traditional reclamation costs and because the resulting vegetation is appropriate to the area and the site where it establishes, natural processes can provide effective strategies for the reclamation of mining disturbances. Examples in the presentation are drawn from the author’s field experience.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Urban Rewilding for Urban Ecological Network Connection: An Example of Ecosystem Restoration Project in Shanghai Urban Biodiversity Education Base
Abstract:Urban rewilding is to restore the original structure and function of biological communities in fragmented urban habitats, and enable the stability and ecological succession of native communities with low human intervention. In the context of urban surroundings, it includes urban biodiversity restoration for certain sites through two paths: one is the natural succession from urban wastelands to wildlife habitats, i.e. the passive urban rewilding; and the other is the active urban rewilding guided by human intervention, meaning that humans conduct systematic ecosystem restoration based on the natural laws of ecological succession. Here, we discuss the design principles and technical methodologies in active urban rewilding by the example of Shanghai Urban Biodiversity Education Base project. Aiming to restore urban biodiversity and enrich the technical and theoretical research of urban wilderness construction and Nature-based Solutions (NbS), this project has conducted habitat division, native species introduction, natural community construction, ecological benefit assessment, etc. In a year and a half, 260 native plant species, 255 insect species, 7 amphibian and reptile species, 71 bird species, and 6 mammal species were recorded within the 1.7 ha. project site, showing higher biodiversity and density of animal populations than unrestored artificial forests surrounding. Along with the spontaneous progressive succession of the plant communities, the project has achieved good results. The technical approaches in the project can be broadly applied in design and construction of country parks, wildlife habitats, ecological corridors / networks, and environmental education bases. Further wildlife habitat research is conducted in the restoration site, and will be used for the identification and connection of urban ecological networks.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Use of Assisted Natural Regeneration techniques to restore forest ecosystems in a major tiger reserve in South India: a case study
Abstract:Junglescapes has been restoring degraded forests in a large tiger reserve in South India since 2008. The restoration sites consist of dry deciduous and thorn scrub ecosystems. Degradation factors include anthropogenic pressures and invasive alien species, resulting in soil erosion, high run-offs and denuded vegetation with low diversity of around 30 species. Initial restoration efforts were focused on introduction of saplings, mainly of tree species. Low rainfall levels of 600-800 mm a year along with fewer rainy days resulted in poor survival and growth rates of saplings. In 2010 the strategy was changed to assisted regeneration, focused on revival of natural processes. Rain water harvesting was undertaken through trenches, small water bodies and swales. This resulted in improved water retention, soil alleviation, reemergence of grasses and natural recruitment of pioneer species. Resultant increase in faunal presence facilitated seed dispersal from adjacent areas. Removal of invasive species opened up the forest floor for native vegetation. Both gully and sheet erosion were addressed. A ‘natural juvenile support’ methodology helped accelerate growth of naturally recruited plants. Significant ecosystem recovery is observed with over 70 tree species and 90 shrub species, including successional, recorded till now. We observe successional species appearing even without proximate seed sources, indicating that assisted natural regeneration facilitates regeneration from both local plant material as well as long-range seed dispersal. Assisted regeneration, combined with targeted species introduction based on gap-analysis, provides a low-cost and robust methodology that can enable tackling larger restoration areas given the same resources.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Ecological Space Quality and Ecological Restoration: A Case Study in the Pearl River Delta Urban Agglomeration, China
Abstract:Ecological space quality (ESQ) and ecological restoration is very important to urban sustainable development and management. Most previous studies have lacked a comprehensive model for evaluating ESQ and are thus unable to provide effective support for decision-makers. Based on the purpose of policy and needs of the public, this paper constructs a comprehensive adaptive evaluation model for mapping ESQ using the Pearl River Delta (PRD) urban agglomeration, China as an example, and the analysis uncovers the driving forces of urbanization indicators of ESQ change. From 2000 to 2017, the overall ESQ was considered as good, but the overall value decreased slightly, from 52.8 to 51.5. ESQ in the central PRD exhibited a notable downward trend, while coastal cities exhibited an upward trend. There was an approximate negative correlation between ESQ and the urbanization indexes, except for education level and the proportion of primary industry. In the PRD, rural population density, the proportion of primary industry, and education level were the important drivers of magnitude and direction in most cities, but their impacts differed across cities. The ecological management lacked control of in areas good and moderate ESQ, and this was the main factor resulting in the decline of regional ESQ. By quantifying ESQ and the spatially explicit urbanization drivers, the potential for ecological restoration and management in the urban agglomeration is also discussed.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Ecological thresholds and indicators during 14 years of urban forest development
Abstract:Successfully reconstructing functioning forests from early-successional tree plantings is a long-term process requiring continual monitoring to gauge progress and hone management. However, many projects lack quantitative follow-up, sometimes leading to failure. Here we present a 65-ha urban restoration project in Aotearoa New Zealand where forest has been undergoing reconstruction on public retired pasture land since 2004. Such projects are becoming common due to emphasis on restoring urban nature, so by studying them we improve management and develop urban restoration theory. We measured key components of forest development in 25 plots (100m2 each) across a 14-year chronosequence including: canopy openness, native tree basal area, non-native herbaceous ground cover, leaf litter, dead trees, native tree seedling abundance and richness, and epiphyte colonisation. Linear regression models revealed statistically significant relationships between all these ecosystem attributes and forest age. Using breakpoint analysis we also identified several important ecological thresholds after planting, when canopy closure occurred (9.6 years) reducing understorey light, and a subsequent drop in nonnative herbaceous weeds (100% to 25%; 10.9 years). With these ecosystem changes, important indicators of functioning forests appeared, like leaf litter accrual (0% to 95% cover), increased tree deaths (0 to 15), and juvenile native plant recruitment. For example, spontaneous native tree seedling regeneration increased both in abundance (0 to ~150 per 4m2) and species richness (0 to 13), and epiphytes colonised (0 to 3 individuals). These results contribute to ecological theory regarding forest developmental thresholds and ecological indicators while also highlighting timelines and informing future restoration management.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
From Fore to Forest for Fins and Feathers: Transformation of a Private Golf Course to a Public Park through reforestation and stream, wetland and meadow restoration
Abstract:Cleveland Metroparks acquired Acacia golf course (62.7 ha) in 2012 with the directive to restore Acacia Reservation into a natural area. The private golf course had been in operation since 1921. This was an important land acquisition in a highly urbanized area of the eastern suburbs of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, USA and situated at the headwaters of Euclid Creek, a direct tributary to Lake Erie, one of the Great Lakes.
In 2013 Cleveland Metroparks developed an Ecological Restoration Master Plan that served as a map for stream restoration, wetland creation and meadow establishment as well as a tool for garnering significant external funding. Formerly a maze of underground irrigation pipes and tile drainage, a primary goal of the plan is to restore the natural hydrology of the site to the extent possible. In addition to conducting their own land management activities (ie. reforestation, prescribed burns, tile breaking, invasive plant management), Cleveland Metroparks hired a design-build consultant/contractor team to restore three tributaries and create five headwater wetland swales. Channelized Euclid Creek was transformed to a meandering base flow channel. Springs and seeps were daylighted and spread out into wetland pockets that hydrate the landscape and provide an aquatic and terrestrial oasis.
Eight years later the Park District has documented 465 species composed of 237 plant species, 60 species of fungi and 168 species of animals. Meanwhile well over 100,000 people visit this popular park every year, showcasing the progress of restoration in this urban setting.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Practice of Nature-based-Solutions in Chongqing, China
Abstract:As a municipality of middle and western China, Chongqing is a representative city of rapid urbanization. Chongqing has unique ecological background characteristics, such as the integration of mountains, cities and rivers. The three types of natural elements, mountains, valleys and rivers, constitute a complex development space where multiple ecosystems coexist and interact, and human live. Affected by factors such as geographical pattern and historical development, Chongqing is faced with the problems of heavy pressure on resources, and unbalanced development between human and environment. It is necessary to carry out urban ecological restoration systematically. This article introduces Chongqing’s practice in urban ecological restoration, such as systematic planning of conservation and restoration projects, scientific layout of green infrastructure based on the concept of close to nature, building a symbiotic ecological self-purification system, and establishing an intelligent supervision platform. The relevance between the practices of Nature-based-Solutions criterions about design by scale, societal challenges, biodiversity, and adaptive management is discussed. Through urban ecological restoration, Chongqing successfully reconstructed urban landscape suitable for floods, improved urban ecosystem services, strengthened the effectiveness of supervision and management. Therefore, societal challenges including disaster prevention and mitigation, water security, environmental degradation, and biodiversity loss were effectively solved. The case of Chongqing not only provides new ideas for solving the problems of socialeconomic-natural complex ecosystem, but also contributes Chinese-style Nature-based Solutions for urban ecological restoration.
Resource Type:SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Bridging Cultures- Ethical Space for Indigenous Voices
Abstract:Abstract
The practice of ecological restoration has grown in recent decades, yet the profession is still developing methods of how to best work with Indigenous Peoples. This event is looking at how can we begin to bridge and break down barriers to meaningful engagement with Canada’s Indigenous Peoples. Strive together to be inclusive of both knowledge systems (western written and Indigenous oral histories) to create a conservation and restoration frameworks that has more focus on positioning practitioners to restore the damages to Mother Earth and their commitments through the Treaty making process. This program is meant to be interactive as best we can in a virtual setting, topics that will be introduced in the presentation will include:
• Ethical Space,
• Two-eyed Seeing,
• Co-governance and
• Achieving Nation to Nation success.
Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Restoration Practices in Gujarat state, India
Abstract:India has all different states with different climatic conditions, political changes and cultural and aesthetic values. Gujarat is one of the industrial, cultural states of India. It comes under semi-arid conditions; it has longest coastlines, desert, evergreen forest and is full of natural resources. As a human nature Gujarat is one of the 3rd largest states who pay tax and it is the industrial hub of India. However, some conservation and restoration practitioners try to conserve or protect the natural ecosystem with traditional knowledge and seeds banks. According to me, the execution of ecological systems focuses on products or services desired by people, with emphasis on marketable products. Resource managers learn just enough about ecosystems to maximize the production of these commodities. This presentation will give you brief idea about the very few people who are actually engaged with the restoration activity like , Agroforestry, environment regeneration, Ecological Landscape, Grassland restoration (Banni Grassland), land (Soil) restoration (Organic farmers) , work with indigenous people, indigenous seed bank, native plant species nursery, Wetland , mining restoration, compilation of Traditional knowledge. This is the beginning of restoring the natural ecosystem in Gujarat state of India.
Resource Type:Conference PresentationPublication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
SER’s certification program for ecological restoration practitioners: Opportunities and challenges around the world
Abstract:The practice of ecological restoration has grown in recent decades, yet the profession is still developing. The Society for Ecological Restoration’s (SER) Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner (CERP) program began in 2017 and now has over 500 certified restoration practitioners, primarily in North America with pockets of activity in Europe, Australia and Asia. One of the major benefits of certification is that it helps to raise the standards for ecological restoration projects by identifying qualified professionals who follow a process and use criteria for doing good restoration work as exemplified by SER’s International Standards for Ecological Restoration. Certification benefits funding organizations by increasing the probability of getting good restoration work done, in part by paying attention to the whole restoration project life cycle. In many developed nations, the field of ecological restoration is well established, so the growth of the restoration profession requires more work distinguishing restorationists’ skills and values from related professions. Globally there is a need to diversify the restoration profession to include under-represented groups and regions and increase involvement by indigenous communities. The need for ecological restoration will only increase in the years to come. There will be continued demand for well-trained restoration professionals and certification to improve our ability to address global challenges such as climate change and land degradation
Resource Type:Conference PresentationPublication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Training and certification needs for ecological restoration in Puerto Rico
Abstract:The Archipelago of Puerto Rico is located on the eastern Caribbean and consists of 4 islands with a combined area of 5,800 km2 . It has many coastal habitats that include coral reefs, coastal dunes, lagoons, salt flats, ponds, freshwater swamps, mangrove and coastal forests. Most of these habitats were severely degraded by recent storms and could benefit from ecological restoration measures designed to put them back into their historical trajectory. The restoration of habitats in Puerto Rico presents many challenges in balancing conservation and development and the government does not offer effective protection for them. Puerto Rico would greatly benefit from the training of a new generation of certified ecological restoration practitioners that could improve wildlife habitats and increase the resilience of coastal communities to future storms and climate change. The University of Puerto Rico at Aguadilla is actively working on several restoration projects on the island and working on the creation of an MOU with the Society for Ecological Restoration (SER), curriculum alignment to train new CERPITs, and on the creation of an official SER student association. Visits to other UPR campuses and other local institutions of higher learning will introduce students to ecological restoration, inform them of volunteer and training opportunities in our ecological restoration projects and promote the creation of more student chapters of SER on the island. This will be the first step to increase the number of ecological restoration projects in Puerto Rico and the rest of the Caribbean.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Biomimicry, an Innovative Approach to Rehabilitate Fish Nursery Function inside Marinas
Abstract:Ports and marinas occupy an increasing part of the world’s coastline. That’s why the mitigation of their impacts has become during the last decades a major issue in coastal marine ecology. Today, many harbour managers aim to improve water quality and many works support the idea that their “grey” structures can be modified structurally to increase their quality as a nursery for juvenile fish. It would allow the contributing to the maintenance of populations while ensuring their primary functions. This has been achieved through myriad techniques, including manipulating building materials or pegging complex artificial microstructures. Here, we explored the efficiency of biomimetic micro-structures called ReFISH® and inspired by seagrass meadows. The study was conducted in 2017 within the marina of Bormes-les-Mimosas (French Riviera, France). An underwater visual sensus monitoring was conducted inside the marina on ReFISH equipped and bare docks and outside on two natural habitats (P. oceanica meadow and rocky reef). Fish juvenile densities and taxonomic richness were higher on ReFISH than on control and natural sites. Juveniles fish assemblages and behaviour changed over time according to biologic preferences of species (settlement, recruitment). This suggests that fish species can adapt their behaviour to artificial habitats especially when they mimic natural habitats features. Therefore increasing the use of ReFISH in marinas can considerably enhance their suitability for juvenile fishes. We argue here for a consideration of the whole harbour configuration for further ecological restoration program using an ecosystem-based approach.
Resource Type:Conference PresentationPublication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program
Coral restoration as a strategy to improve ecosystem services
Abstract:In 2019, the United Nations Environment Assembly requested that the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) define best practices for coral restoration. Guidelines led by the UNEP were prepared by a team of 20 experts in coral reef management, science, and policy to catalogue the best-available knowledge in the field and provide realistic recommendations for the use of restoration as a reef management strategy. Here, we provide a synthesis of these guidelines. Specifically, we present (1) a case for the value of coral reef restoration in the face of increasing frequency and intensity of disturbances associated with climate change, (2) a set of recommendations for improving the use of coral reef restoration as a reef management strategy, tailored to goals and current methods. Coral reef restoration can be a useful tool to support resilience, especially at local scales where coral recruitment is limited, and disturbances can be mitigated. While there is limited evidence of long-term, ecologically relevant success of coral reef restoration efforts, ongoing investments in research and development are likely to improve the scale, and cost efficiency of current methods. We conclude that coral reef restoration should not be seen as a “silver bullet” to address ecological decline and should be applied appropriately, with due diligence, and in concert with other broad reef resilience management strategies.
Resource Type:Conference Presentation, SER2021Publication Date: 2021
Pre-approved for CECs under SER's CERP program