April 14, 2010 
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Society for Ecological Restoration International
In This Issue
Get Involved
People in the News
New Books & Articles
Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)
Agro-Ecology
Biodiversity & Climate
Forest Restoration
River Restoration
Lake Restoration
Coastal Restoration
Wildlife Restoration
Invasive Species
Urban Restoration
Funding Opportunities
Sponsors
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serlogoRESTORE 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 or can be subscribed to for only $20/year by visiting: www.ser.org/content/restoration_network.asp. Please send your news stories and articles to the RESTORE editor at info@ser.org. 

Attention SER Members

 

SER Seeks a Development Director

SER seeks a highly motivated and well-organized individual to develop and implement a fundraising strategy to support SER's long-term objectives. View the complete job announcement at:

https://www.ser.org/pdf/Development_Director_Job_Announcement.pdf

 

SER Seeks a New Membership Coordinator

SER seeks a highly motivated and well-organized individual to develop and manage all aspects of the Society's membership program. View a complete description of the job responsibilities and requirements at:

https://www.ser.org/pdf/Membership_Coordinator_Announcement.pdf

 

Discount on Wiley-Blackwell Products: Code is SDP18

http://www.wiley.com

 

Discount on Island Press/SER Book Series: Code is 2SER

http://www.islandpress.org/ser/index.html

 

Get Involved / Community-Based Restoration

 

Florida: Oyster Fest in Daytona Beach Raises $25K for Reef Restoration

The first-ever Halifax Oyster Fest in Daytona Beach raised $25,000 - 100 percent of which will go towards oyster reef restoration in local waters.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/florida_beaches/2010/04/oyster-fest-in-daytona-beach-raises-25k-for-reef-restoration.html

 

Hawaii: Park Seeks Volunteers to 'Fend off Faya'

Volunteers are needed to help "fend off faya" during a forest restoration project sponsored by the Friends of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, April 23.

http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/articles/2010/04/11/features/features01.txt

 

Texas: Marsh Mania

The goal of Marsh Mania is to involve local citizens in hands-on marsh restoration activities while increasing their awareness and appreciation of wetland habitats and functions. In eleven years, Marsh Mania has involved more than 5,450 community volunteers in the restoration of roughly 132 acres of vital salt marsh habitat at 54 sites around Galveston Bay.

http://www.cechouston.org/2010/04/07/marsh-mania-3/

 

Conferences & Workshops

 

Free Habitat Restoration Workshop at Loleta's Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge, California - April 23, 2010

http://www.humboldtbeacon.com/ci_14852933

 

A Joint Meeting of SE-EPPC and the SER Southeast Chapter - May 11-13, 2010

http://www.se-eppc.org/2010/

 

The National Native Seed Conference - May 17-21, 2010 - Snowbird, Utah

http://www.nativeseed.info/

 

San Francisco Wetland Restoration Monitoring Techniques - May 21, 2010

A one day course focusing on field based tools and techniques to properly monitor wetland restorations. This course will provide resources and methods for monitoring and assessing restoration success. In addition we will address restoration management all with an emphasis on salt marshes in the SF bay area.

http://www.sws.org/training/details.mgi?Session=2107

 

Workshop on "River Restoration: Fluvial Geomorphic and Ecological Tools" - June 7-11, 2010

http://institutbeaumont.com/

 

Tropical Rain Forest Restoration: Practice, Economics and Politics - Indonesia July 9-18, 2010

http://atbc2010.org/doc/ots+atbc2010_restoration_course.pdf

 

International Symposium on Sustainability Science - October 25-27, 2010

https://www.ser.org/pdf/ISSFlier.pdf

 

Ecological Society of Australia 2010 Annual Conference - December 5-10, 2010

This conference celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Ecological Society of Australia, and has been organized around the theme: 'Sustaining biodiversity - the next 50 years'.

http://www.esa2010.org.au/

 

Full 2010 Conference Listing Available on the GRN

http://www.globalrestorationnetwork.org/conferences/ 

People in the News

 

PSU Names Robert Costanza to Lead its Sustainability Center

Portland State University announced Thursday that Robert Costanza will join the faculty to direct its Center for Sustainable Processes and Practices. Costanza is currently the Gund Professor of Ecological Economics and director of the Gund Institute for Ecological Economics at the University of Vermont. He is internationally acclaimed for his cross-discipline work linking ecology and economics to sustainability

http://www.sustainablebusinessoregon.com/articles/2010/04/psu_names_robert_costanza_to_lead_its_sustainability_center.html

 

Letting the Rivers Run: An Interview with Sandra Postel

Global Water Policy Institute director and National Geographic Fellow Sandra Postel joined me to discuss the costs and benefits of taking down dams.

http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/news/chiefeditor/2010/04/letting-the-rivers-run-an-inte.html

New Books & Articles
 

Ecologists Unveil Plan for 'Barometer of Natural Life'

An ambitious project to create a "barometer of life" to track the changing fortunes of the natural world will be set out tomorrow by some of the world's leading ecologists. The plan is for thousands of scientists to collect information on 160,000 of the world's nearly 2 million known species - from great mammals, fish and birds to obscure insects and fungi - chosen to be representative of life on Earth.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/apr/08/barometer-of-life

 

UO Study Shows Upswing, Value in Forest and Watershed Restoration

Three related working papers released today by the University of Oregon's Ecosystem Workforce Program paint a picture of economic growth and optimism in the rapidly emerging field of forest and watershed restoration.

http://www.articleant.com/p/re/72679-uo-study-shows-upswing--value-in-forest-and-watershed-restoratio.html

 

16 Percent of Mangrove Species Threatened with Extinction

The first ever assessment of mangrove species by the IUCN Red List found 11 out of 70 mangrove species threatened with extinction, including two which were listed as Critically Endangered. Threats include coastal development, logging, agriculture, and climate change.

http://news.mongabay.com/2010/0411-hance_mangroves.html

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)

 

Scientific Weather Data Meets Traditional Inuit Knowledge

For the last 15 years, the Inuit have reported that the Arctic weather has been less stable and more unpredictable. Now, scientists are listening.

http://mother-earth-journal.com/2010/04/scientific-weather-meets-inuit-knowledge/

Agro-Ecology
 

US: Federal Agencies Cut Deal to Help Western landowners Protect Sage Grouse

Farmers and ranchers in Oregon, Washington and nine other western states can help protect both their operations and sage grouse thanks to an agreement between two federal agencies.

http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2010/04/federal_agencies_cut_deal_to_h.html

Biodiversity & Climate Change
 

7,500 Due for Alternate Climate Conference in Bolivia

The alternative "people's conference" on climate change called by socialist Bolivian President Evo Morales is expecting 7,500 delegates from more than 100 countries, officials said Monday. Named the People's World Conference on Climate Change and Mother Earth Rights, the gathering is intended to "give a voice to the people" on climate change after the perceived failure of the United Nations-sponsored Copenhagen summit on the same issue, organizers say

http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/7500-due-for-alternate-climate-conference-in-bolivia-1943169.html

 

Chile - Protection of the Tamarugal Forest in the Atacama Desert

The endemic tamarugo tree survives in one of the world's driest deserts, the Atacama Desert in north Chile. The tree is able to "stretch its roots to the genitalia of the earth and ultimately defeats death", as the Chilean Nobel Prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda once expressed it. But the tamarugal forest has enemies. First nitrate mines needed wood, now the forest is depleted of its water by the surrounding towns and agriculture.

http://reforestation.suite101.com/article.cfm/chile--protection-of-the-tamarugal-forest-in-the-atacama-desert

 

Arizona: Breakthrough Forest Agreement Complete

Environmentalists and loggers have agreed on a groundbreaking plan to use a reinvented timber industry to restore forest health by thinning 750,000 acres of dangerously overgrown central Arizona forests. The unprecedented cooperative effort has resulted in completion of a final outline of the plan after nearly a decade of effort, said Bonnie Stevens, with Northern Arizona University's Ecological Restoration Institute.

http://www.paysonroundup.com/news/2010/apr/09/breakthrough-forest-agreement-complete/

 

Alaska: USFS Planning Shift toward Restoration on Tongass

The days of large-scale old growth logging in the Tongass are finished. That's according to top U.S. Forest Service officials in Alaska, who say future Tongass timber sales will include what they call "very low" amounts of old growth trees. The policy shift is seen by some municipal officials as the final nail in the coffin of a dying industry. Others hope Southeast's timber companies can play a key role in new forest restoration efforts.

http://kfsk.org/modules/local_news/index.php?op=sideBlock&syndicated=true&ID=1106

River & Watershed Restoration

 

Washington: U.S. Hopes Dams' Demolition Will Let Salmon Return

They were known as June Hogs - 100-pound salmon that, when stood on end, were taller than a man. Up until a century ago, they returned annually to the Elwha River on Washington state's Olympic Peninsula in runs so huge homesteaders reported the river turned into a wiggling mass from bank to bank. One count placed their number at 392,000. Then, two dams were built across the river, and the spawning grounds were blocked, giving the fish less than five miles of river to breed. Today fewer than 3,000 fish return to the Elwha. That's about to change.

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/11/1870815/us-hopes-dams-demolition-will.html

 

Michigan: SWMTU Receives $40,000 to Restore Coldwater River

The Schrems West Michigan TU chapter was awarded $40,750 today by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's Sustain Our Great Lakes program to improve habitat on the Coldwater River. The grant will fund restoration of 2,500 feet of habitat in the Coldwater River to reduce bank erosion and enhance populations of trout and other wildlife.

http://www.swmtu.org/conservation/swmtu-receives-40000-to-restore-coldwater-river

 

Canada: Fish Ladder Added to Waugh's River System

The installation of a fish ladder in the Waugh River has enabled a volunteer committee to climb to the next step of a long-term commitment to improve fish habitat. The North Colchester River Restoration Project committee has established a hatchery for Atlantic salmon to help boost the population.

http://www.trurodaily.com/News/Local/2010-04-12/article-1001351/Fish-ladder-added-to-Waugh%26rsquo%3Bs-River-system/1

 

Washington: Conservation Victory: 7,000 Acres along Hoh River Permanently Protected

After nearly 10 years of work and more than $11 million, one of the largest single conservation efforts in Washington has permanently protected some 7,000 acres of land along the Hoh River. Taken together, the lands purchased, plus those already protected within Olympic National Park, conserve nearly the entire length of the Hoh.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2011551677_hohconservation08m.html?syndication=rss

Lake Restoration 

 

Michigan: Feds to Funnel $10 Million to Great Lakes Restoration

A bundle of federal grants will pump $10 million into Great Lakes restoration efforts over the next three years, Sen. Debbie Stabenow's office announced Thursday. Charlie Wooley, deputy regional director of the Midwest region for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, said the money is part of a larger body of projects stretching across the Great Lakes basin. Of all the states involved -- stretching from Minnesota to New York -- Michigan will have the most projects.

http://www.detnews.com/article/20100409/POLITICS02/4090353/1022/rss10

Coastal & Marine Restoration
 

California: Sea Forester Plants a Rare Species

After years reviving local kelp beds with seedlings nurtured by students, marine biologist Nancy Caruso is attempting underwater farming with a different species: she's intent on reintroducing the nearly wiped out green abalone to the rock reefs off Laguna Beach.

http://www.lagunabeachindependent.com/news/2010-04-09/Front_Page/Sea_Forester_Plants_a_Rare_Species.html

 

UAE: EAD and Tokyo University Partner to Restore Abu Dhabi's Coral Reefs

The Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD) has launched a Coral Reef Restoration Programme in coordination with Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology (TUMSAT) and Japan Oil Development Company, Ltd. (JODCO).

http://www.coral.org/node/4605

 

Video: Indonesia: Corals of Trawangan

The 20-minute mini-documentary that is strictly about the coral reef restoration efforts in Indonesia is now live online for viewing!

http://www.puttingthepieces.com/2010/04/20-minute-promo-corals-of-trawangan-is.html

Wildlife Restoration

 

Malaysia: Hope for Survival as Isolated Orangutans Joined by Rope Bridge

Researchers in the Malaysian state of Sabah in Borneo are joyful after receiving confirmation that a young male orangutan used a rope bridge to cross a river, which has separated one orangutan population from another. Due to logging and clearing forests for oil palm plantations, which cover 18 percent of land in Sabah, orangutans on the Kinabantangan River have been cut into fragmented populations.

http://news.mongabay.com/2010/0411-hance_ropebridge.html

Invasive Species
 

New York Moves to Classify and Control Invasive Species

Zebra mussels, Sirex wood wasps and Eurasian milfoil, snakehead fish and giant hogweed - these are among the non-native species invading New York state. Now state officials are proposing a system that could help control invasive species, one of the state's fastest growing environmental threats.

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2010/2010-04-14-091.html

 

Counting the Cost of Alien Invasions

Far too many governments have failed to grasp the scale of the threat from invasive species, warns UN Environment Programme's executive director Achim Steiner. In this week's Green Room, he issues a call to arms to halt the alien invasion.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8615398.stm

Urban Restoration
 

D.C.'s 'Forgotten River' To Enter New Stage of Restoration

The Anacostia River runs all of 8.4 miles from stem to tip. Those 8.4 miles of water are among the dirtiest in the nation, yet flow mere miles from the U.S. Capitol Building. On Monday, the Anacostia Watershed Restoration Partnership, along with several local politicians, will unveil a new restoration plan

http://chesapeake.news21.com/blog/index.php/2010/04/11/anacostia-river-restoration/

 

Washington: Kirkland Named Tree City USA, Eighth Year Running

The City's tree regulations provide for the protection, preservation, replacement, proper maintenance and use of significant trees throughout the City. In 2008, the City Council adopted a 20-Year Forest Restoration Plan that calls for the restoration of Kirkland's natural areas. Much of the restoration is happening through the City's volunteer network, the Green Kirkland Partnership.

http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/east_king/kir/news/90117092.html

Funding Opportunities
 

Australia: River Prize - Closes May 14, 2010

Nominations are sought from individuals and organisations engaged in best practice river

and catchment management and restoration from across Australia. (Australian river and

catchment management groups may enter both the national and international Riverprize

awards). Previous entrants are encouraged to apply again.

http://www.riverfoundation.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=29&Itemid=47

 

FishAmerica Foundation - Marine and Anadromous Community-Based Fish Habitat Restoration - Closes May 17, 2010

The American Sportfishing Association's FishAmerica Foundation invites proposals for citizen-driven habitat restoration projects under its partnership with the NOAA Community-based Restoration Program. The partnership requests proposals for local efforts to accomplish meaningful on-the-ground restoration of marine, estuarine, and riparian habitats, including salt marshes, seagrass beds, mangrove forests, and freshwater habitats important to anadromous fish species (fish like salmon and striped bass that migrate to and from the sea). Emphasis is on using a hands-on, grassroots approach to restore fisheries habitat across coastal America, the Great Lakes region, and U.S. Territories of the Caribbean.

https://researchfunding.duke.edu/detail.asp?OppID=8190
 

If you're interested in sponsoring RESTORE and receiving recognition and a link to your website, please contact us at restore@ser.org  RESTORE is distributed to more than 2,000 subscribers in the field of ecological restoration.

 

This issue of RESTORE is sponsored by:

 
Biohabitats Logo
 
Biohabitats, Inc., a company that provides ecological restoration, conservation planning and regenerative design services to clients throughout the world. Biohabitats' mission is to "Restore the Earth and Inspire Ecological Stewardship." Visit them at www.biohabitats.com.