Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
1.1
INTRODUCTION
that 'restoration ecology is the future of conservation
biology' (Young 2000). By that he surely meant that
in today ' s crowded, much - transformed world, conser-
vation - in the sense of preservation or setting-aside
- will not be adequate to meet the goals of conservation
- and sustainability. Instead, restoration of damage
will be required on both scores. In terms of the sci-
ences, at any rate, a clear convergence between the
three fi elds is taking place, conservation biology, resto-
ration ecology and the overarching, inter- and transdis-
ciplinary fi eld of
sustainability science
that is barely
a decade old. Why include the latter in this introduc-
tory chapter? Because ecological restoration does not
only aim at the repair of degenerated ecosystems,
including their structure and functioning and their
biodiversity. For ecological restoration to be effective,
we must consider not only the biophysical context, but
also the socio-economic and political matrix in which
a restoration project must be planned, fi nanced and
carried out. That is why there is a clear need for a
broader interdisciplinarity, and
transdisciplinarity
as well, which means forging interprofessional part-
nerships and coalitions, as well as good communica-
tion and indeed collaboration with nonprofessional
stakeholders and neighbours. Jackson
et al
. (1995)
portrayed ecological restoration as having four main
components to consider - ecological, social, cultural
and economic (see Figure 1.1). In the last few years,
however, it is also becoming clear that political and
legislative components are needed as well (Aronson
2010) and will also be an important part of restoration
in coming years.
Ecological restoration aims at the safeguarding and
the repair of what is commonly called 'nature' (i.e.
ecosystems
and
biodiversity
) and what ecological
Increasing and unrelenting human impact on the bio-
sphere - in particular since the industrial revolution
began in the late eighteenth century - has brought us
to the threshold of what Paul Crutzen dubbed the
'Anthropocene Era', that is an unprecedented geologi-
cal era in which humans dominate all ecosystems and
the global environment as a whole. However, the wide-
spread recognition of the need to regulate the human
'footprint' dates back only a few decades, in most parts
of the world. Pioneer nature conservation organiza-
tions began to be formed over a century ago, it is true,
in western and central Europe in particular - including
the German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation
Union, founded in 1899, and the Dutch organization
known as
Natuurmonumenten
that was founded by an
elementary school teacher in Amsterdam in 1905.
Today, there are literally thousands of conservation
NGOs around the world, and gradually, over the past
50 years, they have found increasing support from the
public and the scientifi c community. Although started
as recently as the 1960s, 'in response to the devasta-
tion of our natural habitats', the network of Wildlife
Trusts in the United Kingdom now has more than
800 000 members. This is just one example among
many, and ecological restoration - under many differ-
ent names - is gaining an increasing share of attention
in conservation activities all around the world, and in
international treaties as well.
In this introductory chapter, we start using the ter-
minology related to the subject without defi ning the
terms; the defi nitions will be given and discussed in the
next chapter. Throughout the topic we draw the read-
er's attention to the Glossary in this topic by marking
terms in bold.
Restoration ecology
is the fi eld of study and exper-
imentation that provides the scientifi c background and
underpinnings for practical
ecological restoration
,
rooted in the early developments and visionary work
of a few individuals and programmes in the nineteenth
and twentieth centuries. It has grown to a respectable
'size' and volume only in the last few decades, since
Bradshaw's (1983) pioneering work, but as mentioned
already, is now gaining momentum and attention as
never before. Restoration ecology has also begun to
command much more attention from scientists in the
last 25-30 years, especially since the Society for Eco-
logical Restoration has got underway in the late 1980s.
Twelve years ago, ecologist Truman Young suggested
Figure 1.1
Five main components of ecological
restoration. Modifi ed from Aronson (2010) .
