Rewilding of Fukushima's human evacuation zone

Lyons, Phillip C; Okuda, Kei; Hamilton, Matthew T.; Hinton, Thomas G.; Beasley, James C.

doi:10.1002/fee.2149

Cited by 40 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 34 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Similar benefits from reductions in human activities were previously observed in large protected areas or during prolonged episodes of war (Lotze et al 2011, as well as in specific areas such as in the exclusion zones around the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear plants and the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea (e.g. Lyons et al 2020, Main 2020. Future studies based on data collected during the lockdown will provide important quantitative insights into human− wildlife interactions and the specific mechanisms behind them (Bates et al 2020, Rutz et al 2020.…”

Section: Effects Of the Pandemic On The (Marine) Environmentsupporting

confidence: 72%

Environmental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic from a (marine) ecological perspective

Coll

2020

Ethics. Sci. Environ. Polit.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The 2019−2020 pandemic of the SARS-CoV-2 virus-the cause of the novel COVID-19 disease-is an exceptional moment in modern human history. The abrupt and intense cessation of human activities in the first months of the pandemic, when large parts of the global human population were in lockdown, had noticeable effects on the environment that can serve to identify key learning experiences to foster a deep reflection on the human relationship with nature, and their interdependence. There are precious lessons to be learned. A global, tangible threat was needed to trigger a global lockdown, where different societies adopted different strategies and management measures to adapt or transform their activities. Humanity is still coming to terms with how to relaunch the economy while preventing further outbreaks. Here, I summarize the immediate positive and negative effects that the pandemic has had on the natural environment, with emphasis on marine ecosystems. I reflect on key lessons learned from this unprecedented situation so far. The essential role that the oceans play in maintaining the functioning of natural systems and key socioeconomic activities is exceptionally relevant, and I discuss key not-to-miss opportunities to add the 'Blue Recovery' to the international agenda under the new 'Build Back Better' or 'Healthy Recovery' context after the acute phase of COVID-19. Achieving sustainable use of the ocean is one of the grand challenges of the new decade, and marine ecologists must play a more proactive role.

show abstract

Section: Effects Of the Pandemic On The (Marine) Environmentsupporting

confidence: 72%

Environmental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic from a (marine) ecological perspective

Coll

2020

Ethics. Sci. Environ. Polit.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…They can adjust their life history strategies such as daily activity patterns to decrease interaction with humans in populated areas. In addition, wild pigs can adjust their diet throughout the year and in a variety of climatic conditions to benefit their long-term survival depending on local environmental conditions 19 , 69 , 73 , 74 . Although our study was limited to the SRS in the Southeastern U.S., wild pigs demonstrate consistent selection patterns for vegetation types associated with certain resources (i.e., water, mast, etc.)…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioral state resource selection in invasive wild pigs in the Southeastern United States

Clontz

Pepin

VerCauteren

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Elucidating correlations between wild pig (Sus scrofa) behavior and landscape attributes can aid in the advancement of management strategies for controlling populations. Using GPS data from 49 wild pigs in the southeastern U.S., we used hidden Markov models to define movement path characteristics and assign behaviors (e.g., resting, foraging, travelling). We then explored the connection between these behaviors and resource selection for both sexes between two distinct seasons based on forage availability (i.e., low forage, high forage). Females demonstrated a crepuscular activity pattern in the high-forage season and a variable pattern in the low-forage season, while males exhibited nocturnal activity patterns across both seasons. Wild pigs selected for bottomland hardwoods and dense canopy cover in all behavioral states in both seasons. Males selected for diversity in vegetation types while foraging in the low-forage season compared to the high-forage season and demonstrated an increased use of linear anthropogenic features across seasons while traveling. Wild pigs can establish populations and home ranges in an array of landscapes, but our results demonstrate male and female pigs exhibit clear differences in movement behavior and there are key resources associated with common behaviors that can be targeted to improve the efficiency of management programs.

show abstract

“…An explanation of the remarkable resilience of plants comes from [58], explaining the various mechanisms of plants to replace dead cells or tissues easier than animals, irrespective of the source of damage, i.e., due to attack by an animal or due to radiation. Rewilding has also been demonstrated in both Chernobyl and Fukushima Exclusion Zones and is, in both cases, related to the absence of human activities in those areas [10,12], highlighting the dominant role of human activities on the environment. However, radiation does harm life and may shorten the lives of individual plants and animals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Are Vegetation Dynamics Impacted from a Nuclear Disaster? The Case of Chernobyl Using Remotely Sensed NDVI and Land Cover Data

Gemitzi

2020

Land

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There is a growing interest for scientists and society to acquire deep knowledge on the impacts from environmental disasters. The present work deals with the investigation of vegetation dynamics in the Chernobyl area, a place widely known for the devastating nuclear disaster on the 26th of April 1986. To unveil any possible long-term radiation effects on vegetation phenology, the remotely sensed normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) was analyzed within the 30 km Exclusion Zone, where all human activities were ceased at that time and public access and inhabitation have been prohibited ever since. The analysis comprised applications of seasonal trend analysis using two techniques, i.e., pixel-wise NDVI time series and spatially averaged NDVI time series. Both techniques were applied in each one of the individual land cover types. To assess the existence of abnormal vegetation dynamics, the same analyses were conducted in two broader zones, i.e., from 30 to 60 km and from 60 to 90 km, away from Chernobyl area, where human activities were not substantially altered. Results of both analyses indicated that vegetation dynamics in the 30 km Exclusion Zone correspond to increasing plant productivity at a rate considerably higher than that of the other two examined zones. The outcome of the analyses presented herein attributes greening trends in the 30 km and the 30 to 60 km zones to a combination of climate, minimized human impact and a consequent prevalence of land cover types which seem to be well adapted to increased radioactivity. The vegetation greening trends observed in the third zone, i.e., the 90 km zone, are indicative of the combination of climate and increasing human activities. Results indicate the positive impact from the absence of human activities on vegetation dynamics as far as vegetation productivity and phenology are concerned in the 30 km Exclusion Zone, and to a lower extent in the 60 km zone. Furthermore, there is evidence that land cover changes evolve into the prevalence of woody vegetation in an area with increased levels of radioactivity.

show abstract

Rewilding of Fukushima's human evacuation zone

Cited by 40 publications

References 34 publications

Environmental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic from a (marine) ecological perspective

Environmental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic from a (marine) ecological perspective

Behavioral state resource selection in invasive wild pigs in the Southeastern United States

Are Vegetation Dynamics Impacted from a Nuclear Disaster? The Case of Chernobyl Using Remotely Sensed NDVI and Land Cover Data

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About