Project Planning and Evaluation
The methods and tactics for restoring an impaired ecosystem are disarmingly simple. Some restoration projects may use earth-moving equipment that is automated by global positioning systems (GPS) and equipped with lazar-leveling devices, which may seem com
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Project Planning and Evaluation
The methods and tactics for restoring an impaired ecosystem are disarmingly simple. Some restoration projects may use earth-moving equipment that is automated by global positioning systems (GPS) and equipped with lazar-leveling devices, which may seem complex to some, but such technology is in common use in civil engineering. Site preparation may be conducted using subsoil rippers, seed drills, cultipackers, and automated tree-planting machinery, but such equipment is merely borrowed from standard practice in agronomy and forestry. For the most part, restoration is performed with relatively low-tech methods, which seems appropriate for a discipline that returns ecosystems to a former condition. Nonetheless, ecological restoration projects are surprisingly complex and require considerable attention to detail. Like a jigsaw puzzle that is missing a few pieces, an ineptly designed restoration project can look simply awful, ecologically speaking, and not work at all when it is said to be completed. The analogy of a jigsaw puzzle is appropriate for ecological restoration, whereby all of the pieces, or steps along the way, are simple. However, they are interconnected and must fit together in a holistic manner. The job of the restoration planner is to identify all of the pieces and explain how they are to be put together ecologically to benefit biodiversity and fulfill values to the satisfaction of stakeholders and the local community. A satisfactory ecological restoration project is one that was conceived on ecological principles and planned to translate those principles into appropriate action. Competent project implementation cannot be discounted; however, it must be predicated on proper conception and planning. This does not mean that a well-conceived and planned project will be carried to completion without incident. It does mean that practitioners should have the flexibility and support to
A.F. Clewell and J. Aronson, Ecological Restoration: Principles, Values, and Structure of an Emerging Profession, The Science and Practice of Ecological Restoration, DOI 10.5822/978-1-59726-323-8_9, © 2013 Andre F. Clewell and James Aronson
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ecological restoration: principles, values, and structure of an emerging profession
overcome unanticipated hindrances as they arise and that such problems will be kept to a minimum. Much of the critical work, therefore, occurs as a new project is being conceived, prior to the time when the decision is made to initiate its actual implementation. Intervention and manipulation are two terms that are commonly used interchangeably in discussions of planning, but we recognize a subtle distinction. A manipulation is a direct activity to improve biophysical attributes at a project site, such as amending the soil with lime or outplanting nursery-grown stock. An intervention can be an alternate term for manipulation, or it can designate another action that facilitates biophysical improvement indirectly. Excluding grazing by livestock is an indirect intervent
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