Linking restoration ecology and ecological restoration in estuarine landscapes

Abstract

More than ever, there is a need to integrate restoration ecology, as practiced by the scientific community, and ecological restoration, a province that is largely, but not entirely the purview of practitioners. Success in some coastal restoration projects is increasingly measured in the context of practioner skills and cultural goals rather than by the manifestation of underlying ecological principles and mechanisms in the restoration process. Especially in human-dominated landscapes, restoration practices should attempt to balance human needs with those of extant biota in a consensus based combination of restoration ecology and ecological restoration criteria. The goal is to devise plans at the appropriate scale that allow humans and other biota to share space and resources in an increasingly complex landscape. No matter where restoration takes place, both ecological fidelity (in ecocentric terms) and human dimensions (in anthropocentric terms) must comprise the restoration design, but ultimately in proportion to human density in the landscape. Without this integration, compromise, and balance, restoration will not likely prosper in the mainstream of society.

Integrating Larval Dispersal, Permitting, and Logistical Factors Within a Validated Habitat Suitability Index for Oyster Restoration

“…Accordingly, restoration practices should consider factors that reduce costs and accommodate, to the extent practical, human needs (Weinstein, 2007). In marine systems, restoration projects often require large vessels equipped with heavy machinery to deploy materials such as limestone marl and concrete for artificial reef construction.…”

“…A critical first step in the restoration process is the identification of optimal sites for restoration within the broader land-or seascape of interest (Bell et al, 1997;Weinstein, 2007). Habitat suitability models tailored to restoration applications are commonly used to inform the site selection process (U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1981;Brooks, 1997;Roloff and Kernohan, 1999).…”

Photosynthetic and water use characteristics in three natural secondary shrubs on Shell Islands, Shandong, China

“…In the recent 20 years, the fragile ecological system in the Shell Island has been severely damaged, and the area of the Shell Island and the biodiversity species reduced sharply because of the increase of human activities, including sand digging, illegal requisitioning, and occupation of forest land, and destructive lumbering. Therefore, the ecological restoration technology with vegetation reconstruction was one of the important measures to recover vegetation and ecology (Weinstein 2007;Dowarah et al 2009;Tsonev et al 2011;Fenu et al 2012). The selection of shrub species is critical for vegetation restoration, and constructing soil and water conservation plantation with combination of shrubs, grasses, and arbors, mainly with shrubs, has significance for accelerating afforestation and soil and water conservation (Chen et al 2008;Cano et al 2011;Xia et al 2011a,b;Marchetti et al 2012).…”

Comprehensive Evaluation of Scenario Schemes for Multi-objective Decision-making in River Ecological Restoration by Artificially Recharging River

“…Water shortages threaten human and ecological health, and negatively affect the existing precarious relationship between human beings and nature. These water shortage issues have attracted increasing attention from environmentalists, ecologists and other experts in related fields (Koebel Jr et al 1999;Hobbs and Harris 2001;Purcell et al 2002;Walsh et al 2005;Nakamura et al 2006;Weinstein 2007;Buchanan et al 2012;Singh and Panda 2013), who all seek to protect the environment and, in particular, river ecosystems, through ecological restoration.…”

“…Indeed, a multi-objective optimization approach has been increasingly used to help solve environmental and ecological problems (Koebel Jr et al 1999;Hobbs and Harris 2001;Purcell et al 2002;Nakamura et al 2006;Weinstein 2007;Buchanan et al 2012;Singh and Panda 2013). The weighting coefficients of the evaluation indices are important in multi-objective evaluation, as these coefficients determine whether the final results are reliable and rational.…”