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 RESTORE is a weekly e-bulletin, published by SER International, linking you to the latest, breaking news stories from around the world keeping you up-to-date on a wide variety of topics related to ecological restoration including the latest funding opportunities. RESTORE is free to SER International members and can be subscribed to for only $20/year by visiting: www.ser.org/content/restoration_network.asp. |
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Get Involved / Community-Based Restoration
Wetland Restoration and Wetland Delineation Short Courses
Professional wetland short courses for practicing engineers, planners, scientists, and resource managers at the Heffner Wetland Building at the Olentangy River Wetland Research Park, Columbus, Ohio. July 9-11, 2008 (3 days) CREATION AND RESTORATION OF WETLANDS with William J. Mitsch and Roy R. "Robin" Lewis, and August 11-15, 2008 (5 days) WETLAND DELINEATION with Ralph W. Tiner, Mark D. DeBrock, Frank Gibbs, and William J. Mitsch.
http://swamp.osu.edu/ShortCourses/index.html
Summer Field Course in Restoration Ecology
The University of Oregon is taking applications for its summer 2008 field course in restoration ecology. The course offers hands-on experience at ecological restoration projects in Central Oregon. A diverse faculty from the University of Oregon and Oregon State University instruct in restoration methods, invasive species, soils, geomorphology, and philosophy. The course is four quarter-credits, and runs from June 16-27, with final projects due via email on July 7. It is designed for upper-division students (juniors, seniors, and graduated seniors) and entry-level masters students from any academic institution. For more information, including photos, student comments, a sample syllabus, and how to apply, visit www.uoregon.edu/~ecolrest.
Special Webinar with Dean Apostol February 21, 2008
SER International is pleased to present a special webinar with Dean Apostol on Thursday, February 21, 2008, from 12-1pm PST. Relax in the comfort of your office or home for this interactive discussion about "Restoring the Pacific Northwest: The Art & Science of Ecological Restoration in Cascadia." The Cascadia Bioregion of North America is a global ecological "hotspot" because of its relatively healthy native ecosystems, a high degree of biodiversity, and the number and scope of restoration initiatives that have been undertaken there. From coastal estuaries to valley grasslands to montane forests, this area stretches from the Pacific Ocean to the Continental Divide.
http://www.ser.org/?RSS=132
California: Conservation Group Needs Volunteers
Sequoia Riverlands Trust, a nonprofit organization dedicated to conservation of the southern Sierra Nevada and San Joaquin Valley, needs volunteers. Volunteers will be asked to do restoration work from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Feb. 16 at the 725-acre James K. Herbert Wetland Prairie Preserve at Road 168 and Highway 137, between Tulare and Lindsay.
http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080206/NEWS01/802060344/1002/NEWS01
California: Bull Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project Groundbreaking Ceremony
You are cordially invited to attend the ground breaking for the Bull Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project. The ceremony will take place at Beilenson Park in the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area.
The Bull Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project will provide nearly 28 acres of aquatic, riparian and native upland habitat along the Bull Creek channel in the Sepulveda Flood Control Basin. It will enhance and restore wildlife resources through additional foraging, nesting, cover and resting opportunities for wildlife indigenous to the region. The project will create additional recreational assets and will minimize further degradation of the existing riparian habitat.
http://www.sfvaudubon.org/2008/02/11/restoration-project-to-break-ground/ |
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People in the News
Disabled Transkei Botanist Wins International Award for Poster
A disabled botanist from the Transkei caused waves with a poster he designed for an international conference which explains why so-called weeds growing in wastelands are rich in starch, vitamins and protein. He said the weeds were magnificent food for humans, especially starving schoolchildren. Pumlani Cimi, 35, resident botanist at the Selmar Schonland Herbarium based in the Albany Museum in Grahamstown, recently presented his poster to the European Union-sponsored IndigenoVeg conference at Rhodes University. IndigenoVeg is an international network which aims to promote the consumption of nutritious indigenous plants, especially in poor areas.
http://www.theherald.co.za/herald/news/n23_12022008.htm
Career Climate Specialist to Speak
When Al Gore received the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on climate change, 13 U.S. Forest Service workers were among the hundreds of researchers who shared in the honor. In March, one of those forest researchers will share her experiences with local fourth- and fifth-grade girls. As part of the March 8 Gender Equity in the Math and Sciences Exploration Seminar career fair, Linda Joyce of the U.S. Forest Service's Rocky Mountain Research Station in Fort Collins will speak to attendees about her work as a quantitative ecologist, or climate change specialist.
http://www.reporterherald.com/news_story.asp?ID=14910 |
| New Books & Articles
Green-Collar Jobs: The Secret History
In 1999, Sightline (then Northwest Environment Watch) published a slim book called Green-Collar Jobs. Researched and written by Alan Durning, the book chronicles the changing economic base of rural towns in the Pacific Northwest, from resource extraction industries such as timber to "green-collar" jobs such as sustainable forestry, ecosystem restoration, and tourism. The book was well-received as a landmark study of the post-logging Northwest economy.
http://www.sightline.org/daily_score/archive/2008/02/06/green-collar-jobs-the-secret-history
Natural Ocean "Thermostat" May Protect Some Coral Reefs
Natural processes may prevent oceans from warming beyond a certain point, helping protect some coral reefs from the impacts of climate change, new research finds. The study, by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), finds evidence that an ocean "thermostat" appears to be helping to regulate sea-surface temperatures in a biologically diverse region of the western Pacific.
http://www.ucar.edu/news/releases/2008/coral.jsp
Forest Guardians, Forest Destroyers
This book has sought to illustrate how environmental politics in [northern Thailand] has become dominated by environmental beliefs that are simplistic, misleading, and highly selective. Since at least the 1960s, a variety of observers have claimed that the upland zones of northern Thailand are in a state of urgent environmental crisis. While environmental problems do exist, and interventions are required, the common belief that upland agriculture is causing immense damage to uplands and lowlands is simply not supported by available evidence. Yet, despite this lack of evidence, the narrative of upland crisis is widely popular and highly persistent.
http://rspas.anu.edu.au/rmap/newmandala/2008/02/07/forest-guardians-forest-destroyers/ |
| Restoring Natural Capital (RNC)
Oregon: Ebb and Flow
Nesting geese would mark another milestone in the evolution of One Horse Slough, a 135-acre wetland mitigation bank that opened about a year ago near the South Santiam River east of Lebanon. It's one of two such banks developed so far by Oregon Wetlands Inc., a local venture owned by Fiori, Marvin Gilmour and Al Sullivan - a wildlife biologist, a grass seed farmer and a construction contractor. That might seem an uneasy alliance in a region where conservation, agriculture and development frequently come into conflict. But it makes a lot of sense in Oregon's mitigation banking industry, a homegrown business sector that has found success by using construction techniques to convert farmland into nature preserves to offset - or mitigate - the destruction of wetland habitat for factories and freeways, shopping centers and subdivisions.
http://www.dhonline.com/articles/2008/02/10/news/top_story/1aaa01_wetlands.txt |
Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)
Call for Papers: The Role of Indigenous Knowledge in Polar Science
Abstract Deadline: Friday, 15 February 2008. Papers are invited for "The Role of Indigenous Knowledge in Polar Science" (session 5.4) being held at the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) / International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) IPY Open Science Conference in St. Petersburg, Russia, on 8-11 July 2008.
http://polarmeetings.blogspot.com/2008/02/role-of-indigenous-knowledge-in-polar.html |
| Agro-Ecology
Audio: Chicken Industry Clogging Chesapeake
The presidential candidates haven't wasted a lot of breath talking about the environment this year. That probably won't change as they focus this week on primary elections in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. One issue in the area is pollution in the Chesapeake Bay, the nation's largest estuary. And one source of the problem: the chicken-growing industry.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18854842&ft=1&f=1025 |
| Biodiversity & Climate Change
UNESCO Declaration Pledges to Protect World's Biospheres
A United Nations' declaration has backed the preservation of the world's biospheres, saying they can help the planet adapt to climate change. Biospheres are the global ecological systems in which life exists. The UN has a world network of 531 biosphere reserves spread over 105 countries. The Madrid Declaration protecting them was adopted following week-long deliberations led by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).
http://www.inthenews.co.uk/news/autocodes/world-cup-teams/spain/unesco-declaration-pledges-protect-worlds-biospheres-$1202207.htm
Ottawa Excludes Provinces, Environmental Groups at UN Meeting on Biodiversity
Greenpeace has learned that, contrary to previous practice, the federal government will not invite environmental groups and the provinces to join its delegation at the Convention of Biological Diversity's scientific meeting in Rome on 18 -22 February. Many controversial subjects, such as biofuels and genetically engineered trees, will be on the agenda.
http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/press/press-releases/ottawa-excludes-provinces-env
Indonesia: Rainforest Alliance Validates First Carbon Offset Project
In an effort to mitigate the effects of global warming, the Rainforest Alliance - which has begun to promote forest conservation as a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions - completed its first validation of a project proposal in Indonesia to the standards of the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Alliance (CCBA).
http://www.ewire.com/display.cfm/Wire_ID/4518
Destroying Native Ecosystems for Biofuel Crops Worsens Global Warming
Findings have major implications for climate change policy. Turning native ecosystems into "farms" for biofuel crops causes major carbon emissions that worsen the global warming that biofuels are meant to mitigate, according to a new study by the University of Minnesota and the Nature Conservancy.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-02/uom-uom020508.php
India: Call To Save Major Biodiversity Hotspot
Environmentalists are reviving a plan to conserve the vast hilly, forested region running parallel to the west coast of peninsular India (western ghats), recognised as a global biodiversity hotspot. "We have to get together again to stop the ecological degradation that is now taking place in the western ghats,'' says Pandurang Hegde, leader of the 'appiko' (hug the trees) movement of the 1980s, which forced the government to ban tree-felling inside the protected area.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41115
http://www.kanglaonline.com/index.php?template=headline&newsid=41099&typeid=1 |
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Senators Bingaman, Domenici Introduce Forest, Ecosystem Restoration Bill
U.S. Senators Jeff Bingaman and Pete Domenici have introduced legislation aimed at undertaking large-scale national forest restoration projects with an eye toward reducing wildfires, restoring ecosystems and creating jobs. The two senators are the chairman and ranking member, respectively, of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
http://www.currentargus.com/ci_8190212
US: State Foresters Furious Over 60 Percent Cut in Federal Funding
State foresters across the country reacted angrily this week to deep cutbacks in federal funding for state and private forestry programs within the U.S. Forest Service. The president's FY09 budget proposal cuts nearly 60 percent from current levels, with funding for some priority programs slashed as much as 80 percent. "The drastic reduction of funding for State and Private Forestry programs threaten vital forestlands that improve air and water quality, provide essential wildlife habitat, reduce global warming and enhance the quality of life for all Americans," said the National Association of State Foresters, NASF.
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2008/2008-02-07-02.asp
Tenth of China's Forests Damaged by Blizzards
About one-tenth of China's forests were damaged by recent winter storms, the worst in at least five decades, and in the hardest-hit regions nearly 90 percent of forests were ruined, Xinhua news agency said on Saturday. The State Forestry Administration (SFA) said total losses reached 17.3 million hectares of forest in 18 provinces in southern China, said Xinhua.
http://www.enn.com/ecosystems/article/30888
India: Kashmir Forest Ruin has Reached Alarming State
Degradation of forests in the state has reached an alarming state due to excessive exploitation and open grazing, states a recent official survey. The Economic Survey for the year 2007-08 paints a grim picture of the state's fast degrading forests and suggests their speedy restoration. "With the increase in population of both human and livestock, the forests are under great pressure due to open grazing, heavy exploitation and excessive biotic dependence. Now the situation has become so alarming that in most of the areas the forests are lacking in natural regeneration and are at different stages of degradation," the survey states.
http://www.greaterkashmir.com/full_story.asp?Date=13_2_2008&ItemID=53&cat=1 |
| Wetland Restoration
Florida: Indiantown Cattle Ranch Slated to be Restored to Wetland
A former cattle ranch is slated for restoration back to its natural state as a Florida wetland. The governing board of the South Florida Water Management District on Thursday is set to discuss approving the $8.4 million purchase of about 553 acres off State Road 710, known as the Beeline Highway.
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/feb/12/indiantown-cattle-ranch-slated-be-restored-wetland/
Canada: Urban Sprawl Paves over Wetlands
The remaining wetlands in Kelowna cover just one per cent of the city's land base. It's estimated that 85 per cent of the wetlands in the Central and South Okanagan have been lost due to agriculture and other development. Kyle Hawes, of Ecoscape Environmental Consultants, reported at the Status of Central Okanagan Watershed workshop Friday on Kelowna's wetlands, calling them "some of the rarest and yet most biologically significant and diverse communities in Kelowna."
http://www.bclocalnews.com/news/15356081.html |
River & Watershed Restoration
Maine: $25 Million Raised to Begin Ambitious Penobscot River Restoration Project
The Penobscot Indian Nation and its public and private partners have raised $25 million for the first phase of the Penobscot River Restoration Project, an unprecedented collaborative effort between tribal, federal, and state governments, industry, and conservation groups, working to restore self sustaining populations of native migratory fish while fulfilling the need for hydro electric power generation. The Penobscot River is the second largest river system in the northeast. The river and its tributaries and brooks are the arteries, veins and capillaries of an 8,570-square-mile watershed - the eastern third of the state of Maine.
http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096416611
Studying Rivers for Clues to Global Carbon Cycle
In the science world, in the media, and recently, in our daily lives, the debate continues over how carbon in the atmosphere is affecting global climate change. Studying just how carbon cycles throughout the Earth is an enormous challenge, but one Northwestern University professor is doing his part by studying one important segment -- rivers.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-02/nu-srf020808.php |
| Grassland Restoration
California: Goleta Restores Native Grasslands
As part of its efforts to restore native grasses to the area, Goleta city staff has fenced off a 1.5 acre portion of the Sperling Preserve at Ellwood. According to Goleta Advance Planning Manager Anne Wells, this is the latest in a series of ongoing efforts to restore native grasses to the area. The project was started in 2005, with native seed harvest, storage and propagation. The 1.5 acres that was fenced off was weeded and planted with native grassland plants. The city will continue to monitor the progress of the seeding and planting, a process that could take up to five years, after which the fencing will be removed.
http://www.noozhawk.com/local-news/unedited/goleta-restores-native-grasslands.html
Minnesota: Nitrogen Pollution Stomps on Biodiversity
Nitrogen emitted into the atmosphere as a result of human activity could be changing plant communities worldwide. Although hot spots of high nitrogen pollution are known to change plant dynamics, new work predicts substantial effects from the lower, chronic levels of pollution found throughout most of the world. A study of a prairie site in the middle of Minnesota shows that after more than 20 years of slow, chronic deposition of nitrogen - at levels typical of nitrogen pollution in most of the industrial world - cut the number of plant species by 17% compared with control plots not exposed to extra nitrogen.
http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080206/full/news.2008.561.html |
| Desertification & Arid Land Restoration |
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Lake Restoration
Arizona: Lake Mead Could Be Dry by 2021
Analysis of current and scheduled use and human-induced climate change sparks urgent warning from researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego. There is a 50 percent chance Lake Mead, a key source of water for millions of people in the southwestern United States, will be dry by 2021 if climate changes as expected and future water usage is not curtailed, according to a pair of researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego.
http://scrippsnews.ucsd.edu/Releases/?releaseID=876
Wisconsin: Economic Survey a Key Step in Eagle Lake Restoration Efforts
Residents living around Eagle Lake are being asked to give 10 to 15 minutes of their time in an effort to bring long-term health to the silt and weed-plagued body of water. Ten to 15 minutes is the estimated time needed to complete a 23-question survey that will help gauge the lake's economic impact on the town. Economic factors are often an important determinant in the awarding of grants that the town may apply for to help with lake restoration efforts, according to Russ Kashian, associate professor of economics at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. The university's Fiscal and Economic Research Center is administering the survey for the town.
http://www.journaltimes.com/local_news/ |
| Coastal & Marine Restoration
Deep-Sea Biodiversity Conservation Needed to Avoid Ecosystem Collapse
The exploration of the abysses of our planet is one of the last frontiers of ecological research. The dark portion of the biosphere likely hosts millions of undiscovered-yet new species. A global scale study conducted on biodiversity collected down to 8000 m depth reveals for the first time that small invertebrates (including worms and crustacea) play a key role in sustaining the overall functioning of these ecosystems. This study concludes that even a minor loss of biodiversity can cause a major impact on the functioning of the global biosphere. In the future, we should start protecting not only large "flag species", but also the almost invisible and sometime monstrous creatures that inhabit the abyss and the ocean interior.
http://www.scitizen.com/screens/blogPage/viewBlog/sw_viewBlog.php?idTheme=22&idContribution=1398&PHPSESSID=d5937a5a01a30106cb3303a09c233bea
California: Edison to Expand Kelp Forest
Southern California Edison is about to make a big splash. On Friday, the utility announced that it has gained approval from state regulators to create a 150-acre, two-mile-long kelp forest off the coast of San Clemente. The work is scheduled to begin in June and will turn an existing 23-acre test reef SCE built in 1999 into the the largest U.S. environmental project of its kind. The expanded kelp forest is expected to produce as much as 50 tons of fish a year. SCE also is developing the San Dieguito Wetlands Restoration Project near Del Mar. That 150-acre marine and bird estuary will become a protected spawning site for a variety of ocean-going fish.
http://origin.sgvtribune.com/business/ci_8209577
Ancient Glacial Sediments Drag Down Louisiana's Sinking Coast
Sediments deposited into the Mississippi River Delta thousands of years ago when North America's glaciers retreated are contributing to the ongoing sinking of Louisiana's coastline, finds new research by NASA and scientists at Louisiana State University. The weight of these sediments is causing a large section of Earth's crust to sag at a rate of 0.04 to 0.3 inches a year, the study determined.
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2008/2008-02-10-01.asp
Coral Reefs May Be Protected By Natural Ocean Thermostat
The research team, led by NCAR scientist Joan Kleypas, looked at the Western Pacific Warm Pool, a region northeast of Australia where naturally warm sea-surface temperatures have risen little in recent decades. As a result, the reefs in that region appear to have suffered relatively few episodes of coral bleaching, a phenomenon that has damaged reefs in other areas where temperature increases have been more pronounced.
http://www.enn.com/ecosystems/article/30854
Online Tool Pinpoints Sand for Florida Beach Restoration
Florida today debuted the first database in the country that identifies sand sources for beach restoration and nourishment projects. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection, DEP, has compiled a comprehensive on-line tool for identifying suitable sand sources from Florida's coastal waters. "With this new database, both the state and local beach managers will be better equipped to evaluate and protect our precious coastal resources," said DEP Secretary Michael Sole.
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2008/2008-02-12-094.asp |
Wildlife Restoration
Alabama: Forever Wild Moves to Buy Hunting Land
A large chunk of public hunting land that includes one of the best privately owned longleaf pine habitats for the red-cockaded woodpecker could be purchased by the state's Forever Wild land acquisition board. The board was authorized Thursday during its first yearly meeting to proceed in making an offer to purchase what is known as the Weogulfka Watershed Tract. That land includes much of the Coosa Wildlife Management Area and is located between Montgomery and Birmingham.
http://www.al.com/sports/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/sports/1202638558211330.xml&coll=1
US: Conservation Projects Approved in 18 States
Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner has announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved conservation projects on more than a quarter-million acres in 18 states, including Colorado, under a new partnership within the Conservation Reserve Program. The projects unveiled are the first to be approved under a new CRP practice called SAFE, which stands for State Acres For wildlife Enhancement, according to a news release. Participants plant appropriate cover such as grasses and trees in crop fields and along streams. These plantings help prevent soil and nutrients from running into regional waterways and affecting the water quality. The long-term vegetative cover also improves wildlife habitat and soil quality.
http://www.fortmorgantimes.com/articles/2008/02/07/news/rural-economy/conservation%20projects%20econ.txt
Scottish Black Grouse Thrive in Unique Woodland Conservation Scheme
The population of black grouse has increased dramatically during the past six years at two upland sites involved in projects managed by the Scottish Forest Alliance (SFA) - a unique woodland conservation project uniting BP, RSPB Scotland, Forestry Commission Scotland and the Woodland Trust Scotland.
http://www.wildlifeextra.com/black-grouse990.html |
| Extractive Industries
Ohio: Stripped, Reclaimed and Reborn
On vast rolling hills once devastated by strip mining, alien grasses stubbornly dominate the reclaimed land. Their grip has become so strong that native trees can't get a foothold. The open land draws meadow voles and rabbits, which in turn draw unlikely winter predators. Although this unnatural setting is less diverse than the native mixed woodlands of oak, hickory, beech and maple that once covered southeastern Ohio, the tundralike landscape has attracted golden eagles, rough-legged hawks and short-eared owls to the Wilds, a conservation center in Muskingum County.
http://www.columbusdispatch.com/live/content/science/stories/2008/02/12/sci_raptors.ART_ART_02-12-08_B4_0H99S9O.html?sid=101
Ecuadoran Warned about Oil Fields in Nature Preserve
Attorney General Xavier Garaicoa urged oil companies from China, Brazil, Spain and Ecuador to pull up their stakes from an Amazonian natural preserve to prevent "environmental and social problems." The oil fields "are inside the Yasuni national park," which has been declared a world nature preserve and is home to the Tagaeri and Taromenane indigenous communities, Garaicoa said in a statement addressed to the government of President Rafael Correa.
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5go9MzbI9htu0RH8yfeNILVDMkKVg
Montana: Arco Agrees to Pay $187 Million to Restore Upper Clark Fork
Atlantic Richfield Co. has agreed to pay $187 million to restore the upper Clark Fork River Basin, marking a milestone in the effort to clean up the nation's largest Superfund site. The settlement clears the way for a full-scale restoration of the watershed, where the mining industry brought economic wealth and environmental ruin to southwestern Montana starting in the 19th century. The agreement was announced Thursday by Gov. Brian Schweitzer, Montana Attorney General Mike McGrath and officials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Justice. It ends a 25-year legal battle between the state and Arco, although some federal claims against the company are still being negotiated.
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2008/02/07/news/top/news01a.txt |
| Invasive Species
Wyoming: Illegal Crayfish Introduction Costs Colorado Company $100,000
The owner of a Colorado company must pay $100,000 in fines and restitution for illegally transporting rusty crayfish into Wyoming, a U.S. District Court judge ruled on Monday. Thirty-four-year-old Shannon Skelton, owner of Fort Collins, Colorado-based Colorado Fisheries, Inc., a company that creates fish habitats and sells trophy-quality fish to high-end ranches and fishing lodges, pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful transportation of illegally possessed wildlife, a violation of the Lacey Act. Skelton and Colorado Fisheries, Inc. must jointly pay $40,000 in fines for the Lacey Act violation, and $60,000 in restitution to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.
http://outdoornewsdaily.com/index.php/archives/2709
Minnesota: Restoration of Islands in Lake of the Isles Set to Begin
Weather and ice conditions permitting, forestry crews will begin restoration work on the islands in Minneapolis' Lake of the Isles next week. Non-native, invasive shrub species such as buckthorn and mulberry, as well as half-fallen trees that create safety hazards, will be cut down and burned to prepare for restoration of the islands' native habitat.
http://www.startribune.com/local/15467491.html
Florida: Ambitious Team is Restoring Virginia Key
Much of the thick jungle of invasive vegetation that long ago overtook Virginia Key's stunning oceanfront is suddenly gone, just like that, cleared away by the brute power of heavy earth-moving equipment. The demolition has revealed blue water and some unexpected natural treasures: clumps of leather ferns and soaring red mangroves rising from the raw sandy soil, improbable remnants of an ecosystem all but destroyed by years of human abuse and neglect.
http://www.miamiherald.com/top_stories/story/414279.html |
| Urban Restoration
Urban Ecology: Taking Measure of the Coming Megacity's Impact
If you are reading this, chances are that you live in a city - one, perhaps, on its way to becoming a megacity with a population that exceeds 10 million or more. If not, you and most of the world's population soon will be, according to global population demographics projections. What shape could these future cities take and how will their populations meet environmental and resource challenges" An article, "Global Change and the Ecology of Cities," published in the journal Science on Feb. 8, 2008, by Arizona State University ecologist Nancy Grimm and her colleagues, addresses these questions.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-02/asu-uet020508.php |
| Recreation & Tourism
Washington: Everett Marshlands Park gets Another Look
Everett plans to study 1,000 acres, including a proposed 300-acre park, to determine how to restore wetlands and build playing fields. A soggy swath of prime farmland on the city's southern fringe called the Marshlands could one day be Everett's largest park with miles of trails and open space for picnics. More than triple the size of Forest Park, the squishy 305-acre property along the Snohomish River is close to the city, yet still a place where marsh hawks hunt for mice and farmers work the land.
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080210/NEWS01/251811678 |
| Funding Opportunities
US: Program to Help Ohio Watersheds
If you are an agricultural producer interested in wetland restoration within the Tiffin or Blanchard River watersheds, you may be eligible for technical assistance and funding. The Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program is a voluntary land retirement program within the Farm Bill title that helps agricultural producers protect environmentally sensitive land, decrease erosion, restore wildlife habitat and safeguard ground and surface water. Landowners enrolled in CREP receive monetary compensation for helping improve the condition of Ohio's land and water resources.
http://ohiofarmer.com/index.aspx?ascxid=fpStory&fpsid=31993&fpstid=2
US: Five Star Restoration Matching Grants Program Closes February 15, 2008
The Five Star Restoration Program seeks to develop community capacity to sustain local natural resources for future generations by providing modest financial assistance to diverse local partnerships for wetland, riparian, and coastal habitat restoration. The National Association of Counties, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Wildlife Habitat Council, in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Southern Company, and our newest partner Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), are pleased to solicit applications for the Five Star Restoration Program.
http://www.naco.org/MOTemplate.cfm?Section=Grants_Clearinghouse&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=25748
UK: £120k Woodland Grants on Offer Closes February 29, 2008
People in Cumbria are being offered another chance to apply for grants totalling £120,000 to help make the region even greener, thanks to a Forestry Commission grant scheme boost. The Woodland Improvement Grant Scheme (WIG) aims to provide landowners with support for improving public access and biodiversity. Projects include work that benefits the environment and the creation of new places for people to enjoy healthy exercise. http://www.nwemail.co.uk/news/viewarticle.aspx?id=576639
IUCN National Committee of the Netherlands: Ecosystems Grant Programme (EGP) Closes March 15, 2008
The IUCN National Committee of the Netherlands Ecosystems Grant Programme (EGP) offers grants of up to €85,000 to fund projects of local organizations in the South that link ecosystem conservation and poverty issues. The programme funds proposals from NGOs and focuses on the following regions - West Africa, Central Africa, Southeast Asia (including Papua New Guinea), Mekong Region, Parana-Paraguay River Basin, Guiana Shield Region - but remains open to low-risk, high potential proposals from outside the focal regions.
http://tkbulletin.wordpress.com/2008/02/11/funding-opportunity-ecosystems-grant-programme-iucn-netherlands/ | |
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