Ecological restoration research in Canada: who, what, where, when, why, and how?

Abstract

Much has been achieved by research into ecological restoration as a nature-based solution to the destruction of ecosystems, particularly in Canada. We conducted a national-level synthesis of Canadian restoration ecology research to understand strengths and gaps. This synthesis answers the following questions: Who is studying restoration? What ecosystem types are studied? Where is restoration studied? Which themes has restoration research focused on? Why is restoration happening? And how is restoration monitored and evaluated? We employed systematic searching for this review. Our results show that restoration research is conducted mainly by academics. Forest, peatland, grassland, and lake ecosystem types were the most commonly studied. There was a concentration of research in four provinces (Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, and British Columbia). Research into restoration has changed its thematic focus over time from reforestation to climate change. Legislation was the most common reason given for restoration. Restoration research frequently documented results of less than 5 years of monitoring and included one category of response variable (e.g., plant response but not animal response). Future research could investigate the outcomes of restoration prompted by legislation. At the dawn of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, this work demonstrates Canada's momentum and provides a model for synthesis in other countries.

Global Peatlands Assessment: The State of the World’s Peatlands - Evidence for Action toward the Conservation, Restoration, and Sustainable Management of Peatlands

“…The Canadian horticultural peat industry has a small total footprint that has contributed to the disturbance of peatlands (35,315 hectares including some land-use changes other than restoration or equivalent to 0.03% of the peatlands in Canada) compared to other causes of degradation (Table 7.3), but they are playing an outsized role in facilitating the advancement of sciences in peatland ecological restoration (Alamenciak et al 2022). They have been supporting academic research for more than 30 years allowing for the development of peatland restoration techniques and the establishment of a long-term monitoring program to evaluate successful successional trajectories and indicators (González et al 2013;González and Rochefort 2019).…”

Creating landscape‐appropriate habitat restoration strategies: success of a novel nesting habitat design for imperiled freshwater turtles

“…In many cases, habitat is created or restored without thorough evaluation (e.g. Lesbarrères & Fahrig 2012;Auge et al 2023) or long-term monitoring (Alamenciak et al 2023) hindering our ability to conduct evidence-based restoration (Cooke et al 2018). Moreover, when restoration outcomes are evaluated, they are often focused on only a single response variable (e.g.…”

“…Moreover, when restoration outcomes are evaluated, they are often focused on only a single response variable (e.g. plant biodiversity or hydrological properties) rather than a combination of interdisciplinary response variables (Alamenciak et al 2023). While over 60% of studies (that reported the reason for restoration) conducted ecosystem restoration due to legislation in Canada (Alamenciak et al 2023), Aronson et al (2011) argue against widespread standardized approaches and encourage legislation to account for regional variations.…”

“…plant biodiversity or hydrological properties) rather than a combination of interdisciplinary response variables (Alamenciak et al 2023). While over 60% of studies (that reported the reason for restoration) conducted ecosystem restoration due to legislation in Canada (Alamenciak et al 2023), Aronson et al (2011) argue against widespread standardized approaches and encourage legislation to account for regional variations. As a result, it is important that restoration strategies are specifically designed with the target landscape in mind.…”

Recovery of Velykyi Luh through ecological restoration of the Kakhovka Reservoir

“…In China, W. Hong et al (2024) used indices of damage to the green space ecosystem and its ability to recover to build a discrimination matrix for an ecological recovery model under 12 different scenarios. T. Alamenciak et al (2023) described that forest, peatland, grassland, and lake ecosystems are being restored through ecological restoration in Canada. The practice of ecological restoration, as a deliberate activity that initiates or accelerates the restoration of an ecosystem (which has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed), factoring in its integrity and stability, includes a wide range of projects.…”