©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.
Big Canyon Creek Watershed Ecological Restoration Strategy
Abstract:This plan was created to demonstrate the ongoing need and potential for aquatic resources and fish habitat restoration within the watershed, and to ensure continued implementation of restoration actions and activities. It was developed not only to guide the District and the Tribe, but also to encourage cooperation among all stakeholders, including landowners, government agencies, private organizations, tribal governments, and elected officials. Through sharing information, skills, and resources in active, cooperative relationships, all concerned parties will have the opportunity to join together to strengthen and maintain a sustainable natural resource base for present and future generations within the watershed.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
A Beginner’s Guide to Wetland Restoration
Abstract:Wetlands were once considered useless wastelands or potential pasture. Today, we recognise that they are important and hugely diverse ecosystems – and that conserving and restoring them benefits not only wetland species, but also many other aspects of our environment and way of life.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Best Practice Guidelines on Restoration of Mangroves in Tsunami Affected Areas
Abstract:Observations in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami in December 2004 revealed that mangroves (and other coastal vegetation) are capable of effectively dissipating energy in waves and thus perform a coastal defense function. Inferiority of exorbitantly expensive engineering structures in coastal protection has been manifested in many an occasion and therefore a protection strategy based on natural defensive capacity of coastal vegetation, particularly of mangroves, has come into limelight as an alternative strategy.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Biodiversity Offset Design Handbook
Abstract:The Principles on Biodiversity Offsets and accompanying supporting materials such as this Biodiversity Offset Design Handbook have been prepared by the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP) to help developers, conservation groups, communities, governments and financial institutions that wish to consider and develop best practice related to biodiversity offsets.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
California Riparian Habitat Restoration Handbook
Abstract:This handbook provides practitioners, regulators, land managers, planners, and funders with basic strategies and criteria to consider when planning and implementing riparian conservation projects. The handbook should be used for planning projects, creating budgets, and assessing restoration success. One aim is to provide a common language for riparian restoration, appropriate planning of projects and effective restoration on the ground. Ecological, biological, and regulatory components of a riparian restoration project are described.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Ecological Best-Practice Livestock Production Guidelines for the Namakwa District
Abstract:The purpose of the Best-Practice Livestock Production Guidelines contained within this document is to summarize our current state of knowledge regarding industry standards and best practice activities within the livestock production industry. The focus of these guidelines relates specifically to activities associated with the ecological and conservation impacts of livestock production in its_ broadest sense. The various activities addressed in the guidelines are considered primarily within a local ecological context and broader impacts such as the release of gasses associated with climate change are not directly considered. Although more broadly applicable, these guidelines were developed with specific reference to the Namakwa District Municipality.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Guidebook for the Formulation of Afforestation/Reforestation and Bioenergy Projects in the Regulatory Carbon Market
Abstract:The purpose of this guidebook is to serve as guidance for those interested in developing land- use change, forestry and bio-energy projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol. The guidebook has been updated by Winrock International with the support of UNEP’s CASCADe programme, modified from an earlier version of an ITTO publication (TS 25 / 2006). This updated version includes new information on bio-energy projects and an Annex on voluntary carbon markets.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Guideline: Forest Landscape Restoration in Indonesia
Abstract:This guideline was developed by National Working Group on Landscape Restoration in Indonesia under International Workshop of Forest Landscape Restoration in Batu Karu, Bali, 12- 15 May 2009, supported by ITTO and IUCN.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Guidelines for the in situ Re-introduction and Translocation of African and Asian Rhinoceros
Abstract:These guidelines seek to share and synthesise knowledge and experience of rhino translocations in Africa and Asia, and to provide decision-makers and senior wildlife managers with guidelines on “best practice” for the translocation of African and Asian rhinos.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Guiding Principles for Constructed Treatment Wetlands: Providing Water Quality and Wildlife Habitat
Abstract:The Workgroup decided to focus upon and encourage those projects that not only provide water treatment, but also strive to provide water reuse, wildlife habitat, and public use benefits. While this document focuses on municipal wastewater treatment wetlands, many of the principles can be used to help guide other treatment wetland projects, such as those treating acid mine drainage, agricultural and storm water runoff, livestock and poultry operations, and industrial wastewater. Information from specific case study projects, and scientific literature was used to develop these principles, along with technical information provided by constructed wetlands experts and dialogue during the Workgroup meetings
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Management Measures for Protecting and Restoring the Puget Sound Nearshore
Abstract:The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) co-lead an ecosystem study of the Puget Sound called the Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project (PSNERP). The study commenced in federal Fiscal Year (FY) 2001 and is scheduled to conclude in FY 2012. The purpose of the study is to evaluate significant ecosystem degradation in the Puget Sound Basin; to formulate, evaluate, and screen potential solutions to these problems; and to recommend a series of actions and projects to restore and preserve critical nearshore habitat. The second phase of work, which will entail implementing process-based restoration projects, will commence when the study is completed and federal and state restoration funds are dedicated for necessary projects. These projects will be carried out to improve the integrity and resilience of ecosystem processes and to promote environmental and human health and well being.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Manual de Restauracio_n de Dunas Costeras
Abstract:El objetivo de este Manual es dotar de la informacio_n que permita proponer las medidas te_cnicas necesarias para conseguir una restauracio_n ecolo_gica de las dunas costeras, mediante un proceso que facilite la recuperacio_n del ecosistema degradado, dan_ado o destruido, cuya meta sea recuperar sus valores intri_nsecos, elementos bio_ticos, abio_ticos y su funcionamiento y dina_mica, en su contexto histo_rico y regional, y que permita la realizacio_n de pra_cticas culturales sostenibles. El Manual va dirigido, por tanto, a los te_cnicos y gestores que dedican su actividad a la gestio_n y restauracio_n de los sistemas dunares.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Manual on Guidelines for Rehabilitation of Coastal Forests damaged by Natural Hazards in the Asia-Pacific Region
Abstract:The manual includes introductory chapters on coastal forests (mangrove forests, beach and dune forests, and forests of coral islands), natural hazards (tsunamis, tropical cyclones, coastal erosion and sea-level rise), and the protective roles of coastal forests. The main chapter provides an overview (concepts and rationale of rehabilitation, and rehabilitation efforts), and guidelines for rehabilitation of mangroves and other coastal forests. The guidelines include the rationale for rehabilitation; choice of species; site selection and preparation; propagation and planting; monitoring and tending; and case studies. The case studies provide useful lessons of success and failure of past and on-going projects in coastal forest rehabilitation.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Manual para la Reforestacio_n de los Medanos
Abstract:El objetivo de este manual es presentar informacio_n pra_ctica, basada en las experiencias desarrolladas como parte del proyecto CONAFOR-CONACYTINECOL No.14766. Presenta informacio_n sobre la germinacio_n, crecimiento, establecimiento de una plantacio_n arbo_rea y seguimiento de la misma en un sistema de dunas o me_danos. Adema_s, la informacio_n se amplia con una revisio_n bibliogra_fica que permite proporcionar datos y sugerencias sobre un mayor conjunto de especies, todas ellas habitantes importantes de las selvas de los me_danos.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Re_ge_ne_ration des Hauts-marais: Bases et Mesures Techniques
Abstract:Ce guide pre_sente, d’une part, les donne_es de base ne_cessaires a_ l’e_laboration d’un projet de restauration ou de re_ge_ne_ration dans un hautmarais et, d’autre part, de_crit pre_cise_ment l’exe_cution de mesures techniques de restauration dans les domaines de la ve_ge_talisation de surfaces de tourbe nue et des retenues d’eau. Ce guide technique s’adresse aux autorite_s charge_es de la mise en oeuvre de la protection des marais et aux gestionnaires de sites.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2009
Australia’s Biodiversity Conservation Strategy 2010–2020
Abstract:Australia’s Biodiversity Conservation Strategy is a new approach to addressing biodiversity conservation in a rapidly changing world. The strategy is a call to action. It sets a national direction for biodiversity conservation over the next decade and it asks all Australians to contribute.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2009
Coral Reef and Fisheries Habitat Restoration in the Coral Triangle: The Key to Sustainable Reef Management
Abstract:So much Coral Triangle reef habitat is now severely degraded that conservation alone is inadequate to preserve the ecosystems along with the species and people who depend on them. Only active, large-scale coral reef and fisheries habitat restoration can maintain fisheries, shore protection, ecotourism, and biodiversity ecosystem services of the Coral Triangle. Turning fisher folks from hunters into sustainable reef farmers will be essential to maintain fisheries and biodiversity in the future. The techniques to do so have been developed in Indonesia, but large- scale investment by governments and funding agencies is needed for training and application of new technologies within the context of community based restoration and management programs
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2009
EU Birds Directive
Abstract:The directive recognises that habitat loss and degradation are the most serious threats to the conservation of wild birds. It therefore places great emphasis on the protection of habitats for endangered as well as migratory species (listed in Annex I), especially through the establishment of a coherent network of Special Protection Areas (SPAs) comprising all the most suitable territories for these species.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2009
Forest Governance and Climate Change Mitigation
Abstract:This policy brief summarizes the main findings of five workshops that were jointly funded and convened by ITTO and FAO in Southeast Asia, West Africa, Central Africa, the Amazon Basin and Mesoamerica, between August 2006 and July 2008 to promote a multi-sectoral dialogue between countries on improving forest law compliance. It highlights the lessons learned from experiences on the ground and sets out the key elements of an approach to forest law compliance and governance that will ensure the optimal role of forests in mitigating climate change.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2009
Forest Landscape and Kenya’s Vision 2030
Abstract:Forest practitioners, researchers, educators, managers and decision makers are faced with the challenge of laying the groundwork, clarifying the vision on the future of our forests and determining the promising strategies to make Vision 2030 a reality. Past experience has underscored the vital importance of forests, as much for their capacity to provide goods as well as contributing to maintaining ecological functions essential to society.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2009
Forests and Climate Change: Adaptation and Mitigation
Abstract:This issue of ETFRN News aims to contribute to a better understanding of the role of forests and their management in climate change mitigation and adaptation. It presents some promising approaches and measures and the enabling conditions needed. The articles in this issue are the result of an open call for papers. They do not cover all issues and initiatives that are relevant to the forest-climate connection; this was not the goal. Nevertheless, the issue brings together a lively mix of articles with a wide range of perspectives, varying from papers with an international policy focus and conceptual pieces, to field experiences written by individuals who do not often address an international audience. Collectively, the articles constitute a broad- ranging insight to the importance of forests in climate change and some of the challenges that need to be addressed at the different levels — from local to global, from policy to practice — to make things work.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2009
Pollination and Restoration
Abstract:Pollination services underpin sustainability of restored ecosystems. Yet, outside of agri- environments, effective restoration of pollinator services in ecological restoration has received little attention. This deficiency in the knowledge needed to restore pollinator capability represents a major liability in restoration programs, particularly in regions where specialist invertebrate and vertebrate pollinators exist, such as global biodiversity hotspots. When compounded with the likely negative impacts of climate change on pollination services, the need to understand and manage pollinator services in restoration becomes paramount.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Putting Watershed Restoration in Context: Alternative Future Scenarios Influence Management Outcomes
Abstract:We estimated how the choice of the best management strategy might differ among alternative future scenarios. Results suggest that dam passage will provide access to large amounts of high- quality habitat that will benefit fish populations. Moreover, conservation of existing riparian areas, if implemented, has the potential to improve conditions to a much greater extent than restoration strategies examined, despite expected urban growth. We found that the relative performance of management strategies shifted when fish were allowed to migrate above dams, but less so among alternative futures examined. We discuss how predicted outcomes from these seven hypothetical management strategies could used for developing an on-the-ground strategy to address a real management situation.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Rapid Recovery of Damaged Ecosystems
Abstract:Recent reports on the state of the global environment provide evidence that humankind is inflicting great damage to the very ecosystems that support human livelihoods. The reports further predict that ecosystems will take centuries to recover from damages if they recover at all. Accordingly, there is despair that we are passing on a legacy of irreparable damage to future generations which is entirely inconsistent with principles of sustainability. We tested the prediction of irreparable harm using a synthesis of recovery times compiled from 240 independent studies reported in the scientific literature. We provide startling evidence that most ecosystems globally can, given human will, recover from very major perturbations on timescales of decades to half-centuries. Accordingly, we find much hope that humankind can transition to more sustainable use of ecosystems.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Rebuilding Global Fisheries
Abstract:After a long history of overexploitation, increasing efforts to restore marine ecosystems and rebuild fisheries are under way. Here, we analyze current trends from a fisheries and conservation perspective. In 5 of 10 well-studied ecosystems, the average exploitation rate has recently declined and is now at or below the rate predicted to achieve maximum sustainable yield for seven systems. Yet 63% of assessed fish stocks worldwide still require rebuilding, and even lower exploitation rates are needed to reverse the collapse of vulnerable species. Combined fisheries and conservation objectives can be achieved by merging diverse management actions, including catch restrictions, gear modification, and closed areas, depending on local context. Impacts of international fleets and the lack of alternatives to fishing complicate prospects for rebuilding fisheries in many poorer regions, highlighting the need for a global perspective on rebuilding marine resources.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Recovering Subtidal Forests in Human-dominated Landscapes
Abstract:The failure of subtidal forests to recover from natural and human disturbance and their ultimate replacement by degraded habitats is recognized globally. The current lack of knowledge on whether such shifts can be reversed jeopardizes considerations of restoration policy within increasingly human-dominated landscapes. We demonstrate that future restoration is a possible outcome of polices that promote ecosystem recovery. In doing so, we reduce uncertainty about policy initiatives that aim to upgrade the recycling potential of wastewater treatment plants (e.g. nearly 45% of South Australia’s metropolitan wastewater) to improve the quality of water needed to restore subtidal forests. Uncertainty about resilience- building and restoration management are redressed by demonstrating that the feedbacks maintaining regime-shifted landscapes are not necessarily permanent.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Reforesting “Bare Hills” in Vietnam: Social and Environmental Consequences of the 5 Million Hectare Reforestation Program
Abstract:In recent years, forestry has been strongly promoted by the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam through large-scale projects to rehabilitate and reforest millions of hectares of land. One project to reforest 5 million hectares has received hundreds of millions of US dollars for implementation. Yet based on a case study in one area of northern Vietnam, this project appears to have had a number of unforeseen consequences. Large areas of land classified as “bare hills” have been targeted for reforestation, despite the fact that these lands already harbor a number of species that were used by local communities. The bare hills were especially economically important to poor households and to women who collected a variety of nontimber forest products there. Because the reforestation project focused most efforts on establishing new plantations rather than supporting natural regeneration, diverse sources of nontimber forest products were being replaced with monocrop exotic tree plantations. A strong inequity in the allocation of private lands for reforestation has characterized the regreening projects to date, and this may have continuing unwelcome social, environmental, and economic impacts into the future, particularly for the poor.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Regeneration Response of Juniperus procera and Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata to Exclosure in a Dry Afromontane Forest in Northern Ethiopia
Abstract:The Afromontane forests of northern Ethiopia have been degraded and fragmented for centuries. Recently, efforts have been made to restore these forests by protecting them from livestock interference. In this study, the natural regeneration of Juniperus procera Hochst. ex Endl. and Olea europaea L. subsp cuspidata (Wall. ex G. Don) Cif. is investigated under protected conditions after 3 years of enclosure and under open management systems in a dry Afromontane forest in northern Ethiopia.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Rehabilitating China’s Largest Inland River
Abstract:The biggest challenge facing decision makers, however, is to balance water allocation and water rights between agricultural and natural ecosystems in a sustainable way. A large number of inhabitants in the Tarim Basin depend on these limited water resources for a living. At the same time, the endangered ecosystems need to be protected. Given the ecological, socioeconomic, and sociopolitical realities in the Tarim Basin, adaptive water policies and strategies are needed for water allocation in these areas of limited water resources.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009
Relevance of Natural Recovery to Ecological Restoration
Abstract:Incorporation of natural recovery in the design of ecological restoration is a valid and important strategy. In this respect, well-informed projects maximize opportunities for natural processes in order to reduce expenditures of labor and budget and to assure a restoration “product” that is as faithful to the site and as natural as possible.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2009