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Faustian bargains? Restoration realities in the context of biodiversity offset policies
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The science and practice of ecological restoration are increasingly being called upon to compensate for the loss of biodiversity values caused by development projects. Biodiversity offsetting—compensating for losses of biodiversity at an impact site by generating ecologically equivalent gains elsewhere—therefore places substantial faith in the ability of restoration to recover lost biodiversity. Furthermore, the increase in offset-led restoration multiplies the consequences of failure to restore, since the promise of effective restoration may increase the chance that damage to biodiversity is permitted. But what evidence exists that restoration science and practice can reliably, or even feasibly, achieve the goal of ‘no net loss’ of biodiversity, and under what circumstances are successes and failures more likely? Using recent reviews of the restoration ecology literature, we examine the effectiveness of restoration as an approach for offsetting biodiversity loss, and conclude that many of the expectations set by current offset policy for ecological restoration remain unsupported by evidence. We introduce a conceptual model that illustrates three factors that limit the technical success of offsets: time lags, uncertainty and measurability of the value being offset. These factors can be managed to some extent through sound offset policy design that incorporates active adaptive management, time discounting, explicit accounting for uncertainty, and biodiversity banking. Nevertheless, the domain within which restoration can deliver ‘no net loss’ offsets remains small. A narrowing of the gap between the expectations set by offset policies and the practice of offsetting is urgently required and we urge the development of stronger links between restoration ecologists and those who make policies that are reliant upon restoration science. Keywords:Compensatory habitat - Conservation policy - Mitigation banking - Environmental risk - No net loss - Restoration success
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Climate Science Documents
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Buried by bad decisions
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From the text: Alas, research shows that when human beings make decisions, they tend to focus on what they are getting and forget about what we are forgoing.
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Climate Science Documents
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Biodiversity and the Feel-Good Factor: Understanding Associations between Self-Reported Human Well-being and Species Richness
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Over half of the world’s human population lives in cities, and for many, urban greenspaces are the only places where they encounter biodiversity. This is of particular concern because there is growing evidence that human well-being is enhanced by exposure to nature. However, the specific qualities of greenspaces that offer the greatest benefits remain poorly understood. One possibility is that humans respond positively to increased levels of biodiversity. Here, we demonstrate the lack of a consistent relationship between actual plant, butterfly, and bird species richness and the psychological well-being of urban greenspace visitors. Instead, well-being shows a positive relationship with the richness that the greenspace users perceived to be present. One plausible explanation for this discrepancy, which we investigate, is that people generally have poor biodiversity- identification skills. The apparent importance of perceived species richness and the mismatch between reality and perception pose a serious challenge for aligning conservation and human well-being agendas.
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Climate Science Documents
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Agenda - March 11, 2015 Workshop
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Urban Woodlands Conservation and Management Workshop. Organized and facilitated by the National Park Service to identify and create opportunities for greater collaboration among urban woodland researchers and managers working to restore and manage urban woodland ecosystems.
To view the goals and objectives of the workshop, please open the workshop agenda.
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Cultural Resources
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Urban Conservation
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Urban Woodlands Conservation and Restoration
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National Heritage Areas - within AppLCC Boundary
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Prepared by Paul Leonard, AppLCC staff.
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Workspace
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Additional Partner HD Activities and Resources
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Documents
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Vitality Index - Information Sheet
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Introductory fact sheet on the Vitality Index developed by NEMAC (National Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Center) associated with NC State University in Asheville, NC.
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Additional Partner HD Activities and Resources
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Documents
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SAMAB Cooperative Agreement
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Interagency Cooperative Agreement for the Establishment and Operation of the Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere Cooperative. The Biosphere Reserve is an UNESCO Program initiated in the 1970s.
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Additional Partner HD Activities and Resources
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Documents
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Working with SAMAB on Revitalization Initiative
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The Appalachian LCC Coordinator recently joined a meeting of the Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere (SAMAB) Executive Committee in Asheville, NC as they reviewed the organization’s 25-year history and launched into a new “Revitalization Initiative.”
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News & Events
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2013 SN Portfolio (Full Report)
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In February 2013, almost 50 experts from a wide range of technical background in both natural and social sciences, as well as geographic expertise across the entire region, volunteered to participate in the annual review of the Appalachian LCC Science Needs Portfolio. 2013 marked the first revision of the Portfolio.
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Cooperative
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2013 Science Needs Portfolio
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PDF Thematic Areas
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Human Dimensions
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2013 SN Portfolio: Mission is to incorporate ecosystem services values into natural resource decision-making.
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Cooperative
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2013 Science Needs Portfolio
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PDF Thematic Areas
