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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
Volunteers Clean Up and Preserve State Parks at California State Parks
The California State Parks Foundation (CSPF) will fund 22 environmental improvement projects at parks statewide as part of the 11th annual Earth Day Restoration & Cleanup. On Saturday, April 19th, volunteers of all ages are needed to help restore the beauty of California's treasured state parks. Now more than ever, community participation is critical due to continuing budget cuts and a variety of threats to state parks throughout California.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/03-11-2008/0004771989&EDATE=
Tennessee: Apply For Youth Conservation Corp
The Tennessee Youth Conservation Corps is accepting applications from young people ages 16 to 24 for positions working in Tennessee State Parks and Natural Areas in June and July. The Tennessee Youth Conservation Corps will help train our next generation of environmental stewards, said Bredesen. The program provides young people with on-the-job experience doing meaningful work in a variety of natural resource management and restoration projects on state-owned lands.
http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_123699.asp
Oregon: Pixieland Tour and Tree Planting Planned
The Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council (SDCWC) and the U.S. Forest Service (Hebo Ranger District) will be hosting an open-house tour and tree planting at the Pixieland site from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday March 15. Pixieland is located in Otis on the north side of Highway 18, immediately east of its intersection with U.S. Highway 101. Watershed volunteers and forest service staff will conduct tours of the Pixieland site, giving people a unique opportunity to learn more about planned and ongoing restoration while getting a good look at the site to see some of the remaining infrastructure.
http://www.newportnewstimes.com/articles/2008/03/07/news/news16.txt
Canada: Call for Submissions of Poetry on Restoration Ecology
We invite submissions for an anthology of poems concerning different approaches to the scientific and linguistic questions of "restoration" or "reclamation" in an ecological context. Potential poems are not necessarily required to literally feature Sudbury, but we are particularly interested in works that re-imagine this infamous Canadian symbol. We welcome work that explores any aspect of the physical response of the landscape to human perturbation (such as urbanization, climate change, and invasive species) and our attempts to mitigate these effects. We also welcome work which explores the restoration of complex human ecologies in the wake of industrial devastation. Additionally, we encourage the submission of formally innovative works that consider discursive ecologies and their relationship to re-claiming natural and cultural spaces.
http://ubcgrapevine.net/?p=375
Virginia: Volunteers Restore Waterford Stream Bank
About 40 volunteers turned out on a chilly Saturday morning last weekend to join Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy stream monitor Meg Findley and ecology consultant Jeff Wolinski as they led a riparian restoration project on Catoctin Creek on the Phillips Farm west of Waterford.
http://www.leesburg2day.com/articles/2008/03/04/news/fp614stream030408.txt
France: River Restoration Short Course June 23-27, 2008
The course emphasizes understanding geomorphic process as a sound basis for planning and designing river restoration projects and programs. It covers general principles and case studies from a wide range of environments, with specific applications and field visits to Mediterranean and mountain environments. The course and course materials are in English, but draw heavily on river restoration and management experiences in France and elsewhere in the EU, complemented by experiences in North America.
http://institutbeaumont.com/
Seek Leads to Early Projects and Initiatives for History of Restoration
We are interested in documenting projects that represent early attempts at restoration, as defined by SER, or that are related to this form of land management in interesting ways. We are also interested in initiatives related to the development and application of restoration for environmental, educational or scientific purposes, or its use in landscaping, soil rehabilitation, hydrological management and the like. We are focusing on work in the United States and Canada, but are also interested in projects in other parts of the world that help place this work in broader perspective. We would very much appreciate hearing from SER members who know of projects that might play an important or interesting role in the story we are putting together. If you have suggestions, please contact me at newacademy@comcast.net, 815-337-6896; or George at George.Lubick@NAU.EDU; 928-523-6211.
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. |
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People in the News
David Suzuki: Blind Date with Disaster
As I approach my 72nd birthday, I have reluctantly achieved the position of elder, and it is mindboggling to reflect on the changes that have occurred in my lifetime. The population of the world has tripled, while technology has exploded from early radio, telephones and propeller planes to the telecommunication revolution, computers, space travel, genetic engineering and oral contraceptives. And stuff! My biggest challenge is to staunch the flow of stuff into my life. But these great successes - economic growth, technology, consumer goods - have come at enormous cost: the degradation of our very life support systems - air, water, soil, energy and biodiversity.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/mar/12/conservation.climatechange
Doris Duke Foundation Rewards NAU's Future Conservation Leaders
The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation is setting it sights on Northern Arizona University for the next generation of environmental leaders. The foundation recently identified five students who are working toward a master of science in environmental sciences and policy as Doris Duke Conservation Fellows, an honor that not only targets them as future conservation leaders, but also offers research opportunities, tuition funding and a paid internship.
http://vocuspr.vocus.com/VocusPR30/Newsroom/Query.aspx?SiteName=nau&Entity=PRAsset&SF_PRAsset_PRAssetID_EQ=112677&XSL=PressRelease
Reef Restoration Provides Passion for Diver
After witnessing the rapid devastation of a Cayman Island coral reef where he had been diving since childhood, Todd Barber was moved from horror to action. He gave up a six-figure salary as a marketing consultant and dedicated his life to restoring the world's ocean reef ecosystems.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/wayoflife/03/06/heroes.barber/
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| New Books & Articles
Invasive Species can Produce 'Hotspots of Evolutionary Novelty'
When exotic species invade new territory, they often present a major threat to the other plants and animals living there-that much is clear. But researchers writing in the March 11th issue of Current Biology, a publication of Cell Press, now show that, in addition to their destructive tendencies, invasive species can also have a surprisingly "creative" side. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-03/cp-isc030408.php
Riparian Study Identifies Causes of Damage
Cattle have a bad reputation when it comes to riparian areas. Everything from shallow channels to excess sediment to devastated vegetation - all detrimental to endangered fish - has been blamed on livestock grazing. Tamzen Stringham, a rangeland and riparian ecologist at Oregon State University, doesn't argue that cattle can be hard on streams. Her point is that grazing is not the only cause of stream degradation.
http://www.capitalpress.info/main.asp?SectionID=67&SubSectionID=792&ArticleID=39782&TM=80885.33
Healthy Rivers Needed to Remove Nitrogen
Healthy streams with vibrant ecosystems play a critical role in removing excess nitrogen caused by human activities, according to a major new national study published this week in Nature. The research, by a team of 31 aquatic scientists across the United States, was the first to document just how much nitrogen that rivers and streams can filter through tiny organisms or release into the atmosphere through a process called denitrification.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-03/osu-hrn031208.php
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| Restoring Natural Capital (RNC)
Multiple Resource Management is Focus of New Technical Report
Forests can serve society in numerous ways-by providing timber, habitat for fish and wildlife, and recreational opportunities, for example. Management of these multiple resources is a primary mission of the USDA Forest Service. In May 2007, the agency co-sponsored a biennial workshop in Ketchikan, Alaska, for silviculturists, forest practitioners, and researchers designed to present and discuss new ideas in silviculture and forest management that produce multiple resource benefits.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-03/ufsp-mrm030608.php
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Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)
Go Green, Save the Indigenous
African indigenous peoples are important custodians of their natural environments with valuable local knowledge and skills, but are struggling to survive, according to a report. "Indigenous peoples are communities that, even though they may be considered backward by urban people, in fact often have very sophisticated knowledge about biodiversity, forest management, and dry areas management," Nigel Crawhall told IPS on Thursday at the launch of his report for the NGO Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) in Oslo.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41523
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| Agro-Ecology
Paraguay: Fighting for Survival in a Green Desert Wonderland
"The first red stains on Nicanor's white shirt" reads the inscription on a memorial niche at the side of the road to Ypecuá, 230 kilometres from Asunción, where peasant farmers are fighting for their land and against the diseases caused by agrochemicals used on nearby soybean plantations.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41544
Connecticut: Charcoal Mounds In Colchester Give Way To Forest
The Potvins have spent the past eight years improving the property they purchased in the late 1990s from the owners of a saw mill. The farm is part of the Coverts Project, a program run by the University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension System. Under the program, landowners develop a sound forest and wildlife management plan for their woodlands. Over the past few years, Wayne Potvin, working with Raymond, cleared a 3-acre portion of the property. The open land will be allowed to regenerate and the resulting thicket will improve the habitat of the ruffed grouse, a non-migratory bird that is a popular target of hunters, and woodcocks. A covert actually means a dense thicket that provides shelter for wildlife.
http://www.courant.com/news/local/hc-nature0307.artmar07,0,5672974.column
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| Biodiversity & Climate Change
Carbon Sinks Rise Again: PG&E and Climos
Pacific Gas and Electric Co. said Tuesday it will pay about $2 million to help restore two California redwood forests as part of a ratepayer-funded program to offset the utility's greenhouse gas emissions. PG&E's ClimateSmart program will invest the money in restoration projects in the Garcia River Forest in Mendocino County and the Lompico Headwaters Forest in Santa Cruz County.
http://www.climateatbay.net/2008/03/carbon-sinks-rise-again-pg-and-climos_08.html
Conservation Areas 'Neglected' Under Current Efforts
The most important areas for biodiversity conservation are neglected under current protection efforts, researchers say. Scientists from the US-based University of California San Diego (UCSD) investigated whether current methods of locating conservation reserves are adequate to deal with future environmental changes. They found that the need for conservation will shift geographically in the future, towards tropical regions that are high in biodiversity but poor in the resources needed to protect them.
http://www.scidev.net/en/news/conservation-areas-neglected-under-current-efforts.html
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Madagascar Slows Destruction of Forests
The Indian Ocean island of Madagascar has reduced the destruction of its protected forests eight-fold as it tries to preserve its unique wildlife and earn more from tourists, conservation officials say. Home to hundreds of species from chameleons and lemurs to magnificent baobab trees, the world's fourth largest island aims to keep 6 million hectares (15 million acres), or about 10 percent of its surface area, as nature reserves.
http://www.enn.com/ecosystems/article/32576
Save the Trees
Scientists and policy-makers will meet in Bonn this June to discuss one of the most pressing concerns to come out of December's United Nations climate meeting - how to manage the world's tropical forests.
http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080305/full/452008a.html
Kyrgyz Greens Warn of Deforestation Risks
Environmentalists in Kyrgyzstan are raising the alarm over the speed with which this Central Asian country is losing its forests. In the last 50 years, the former Soviet republic has lost more than half its forests, and experts are warning that if logging continues at the current rate, the whole Central Asian region will suffer from a scarcity of water, health problems and more frequent natural disasters.
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2008/2008-03-11-02.asp
51.54 Billion Trees Planted by Ordinary Chinese in 27 Years
With coming of Tree-planting Day tomorrow, March 12, the State Forestry Authority revealed in its 2007 Green Coverage Report published Tuesday that a total of 51.54 billion trees have been planted by ordinary Chinese people till the end of last year. China's top legislative body, the National People's Congress (NPC), passed a resolution in December 1981 calling for voluntary tree planting to tackle worsening environmental conditions. Excessive felling and growing industrialization has eroded many of China's green areas, making reforestation more important.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/11/content_7767691.htm
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| Wetland Restoration
Utah: Kennecott May Give Up Wetlands
Kennecott Utah Copper would transfer ownership of 616 acres of wetlands, near Lakepoint in Salt Lake County, to The Nature Conservancy as part of an environmental restoration plan. The public is invited to comment on the draft plan through April 2. The land transfer is part of a settlement agreement between Kennecott and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as compensation for contamination of the North Zone Wetlands near Interstate 80 in Tooele County, according to a statement from the federal government. The Wildlife Service contends the North Zone Wetlands were contaminated by groundwater flowing from Kennecott's smelter.
http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_8459007
Florida: Everglades Restoration Continues Despite Water Scarcity
South Florida experienced a severe water shortage during Water Year 2007, more than a foot below historic averages for the region. From May 1, 2006 to April 31, 2007, low rainfall reduced flows across the entire region, according the annual report released Tuesday by Florida state agencies. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection and South Florida Water Management District report details a year of scientific, engineering and restoration work to improve the environmental quality of the Everglades and the entire South Florida ecosystem.
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2008/2008-03-10-094.asp
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| Desertification & Arid Land Restoration
Expanding 'Deserts,' by Land and Sea
Scientists have long projected that areas north and south of the tropics will grow drier in a warming world -- from the Middle East through the European Riviera to the American Southwest, from sub-Saharan Africa to parts of Australia. These regions are too far from the equator to benefit from the moist columns of heated air that result in steamy afternoon downpours. And the additional precipitation foreseen as more water evaporates from the seas is mostly expected to fall at higher latitudes. Essentially, a lot of climate scientists say, these regions may start to feel more like deserts under the influence of global warming.
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/expanding-deserts-by-land-and-sea/
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| Lake Restoration
Government to Develop Water Bodies in South India
Water bodies across the country are being developed into tourist attractions. An irrigation and water resource finance corpus with an initial corpus of Rs 100 crore was announced in the Union Budget 2008-09. The Government of India has already proposed to extend the externally aided project for Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of water bodies throughout the country.
http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?aid=2404&sid=36&sname=Top%20Stories
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Coastal & Marine Restoration
California: Rare Shrub's Spread may Revive Wetlands
The California sea-blite hasn't been seen in San Leandro since 1960 - primarily because of urban sprawl, experts say. But just like an eerie ship emerging from a sea of clouds, the endangered plant is quietly being reintroduced, thanks to the Fish and Wildlife Service. Its sole mission: to spread like wildfire.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/dailyreview/localnews/ci_8530870
Florida: $7m Ecosystem Project Bay's Largest Ever
The Bishop Harbor Boat Ramp area will be busier than usual Saturday morning. More than 100 volunteers are expected to plant 10,000 marsh grass plugs over 34 acres in the Terra Ceia Ecosystem Restoration Project, part of a $7 million venture officials say will be the largest undertaking of its type ever for Tampa Bay.
http://www.bradenton.com/local/story/451259.html
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Wildlife Restoration
Malaysia: Corporate Helping Hand
Funding from HSBC is helping to protect the habitat of orang utans in a Sabah forest reserve. Touted as one of the best-managed forestry schemes in the country, Deramakot Forest Reserve caught the attention of HSBC Bank Malaysia Berhad when it was looking for a deserving reforestation project to support. The 55,083ha commercial forest reserve in Sabah became one of the international banking institution's corporate responsibility projects in January when a memorandum of understanding was signed between the bank and the Sabah government.
http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2008/3/11/lifefocus/20467853&sec=lifefocus
Tennessee: Last-Minute Effort to Halt Elk Relocation Fails
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency warded off a last-minute effort to halt the relocation of 36 elk from TVA's Land Between the Lake to the Royal Blue Wildlife Management Area. The relocation of the elk is scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday March 8.
http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_123441.asp
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| Extractive Industries
Canada: Native Leader Serving Six Months for Opposing Mine
Algonquin community leader Robert Lovelace had never been charged with an offence, but when a uranium company began prospecting for radioactive ore on unceded native land without engaging in consultation, he decided to take action, organising a non-violent blockade. On Feb. 15, Judge Cunningham of Ontario's Superior Court sentenced Lovelace to six months in jail for contempt of court and fined him 50,000 dollars for his involvement in the peaceful protest.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41469
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| Invasive Species
Environmental Restoration!
Invasive species are a huge problem. These species, also called exotic species, are introduced into ecosystems where they are not native. Often this means that their natural environmental controls (climate or predators) are non-existant in the new ecosystem. The result is that they can take over, out-competing native species and running unchecked. Their dominance can cause the extinction of native species from the area and lower species diversity in the area.
http://biojournalism.com/60-invasive-species-environmental-restoration.html
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Urban Restoration
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Recreation & Tourism
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| Funding Opportunities
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/
Great Lakes Fish And Wildlife Restoration Act Closes March 28, 2008
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is seeking pre-proposals for projects to restore Great Lakes fish and wildlife resources through its Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Grants Program. The program provides Federal grants on a competitive basis to states, tribes and other interested entities to encourage cooperative conservation, restoration and management of fish and wildlife resources and their habitats in the Great Lakes basin. Projects are funded under authority of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 2006.
http://www.fws.gov/midwest/Fisheries/glfwra-grants.html
American Rivers Seeks Proposals for River Restoration Projects Closes April 1, 2008
American Rivers is seeking proposals for projects that aim for restoration of diadromous fish through dam removal projects. Projects in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Northwest and California are eligible to apply for this funding made possible through the NOAA's Open Rivers Initiative.
http://www.hydroreform.org/news/2008/02/25/american-rivers-seeks-proposals-for-river-restoration-projects
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