Restoration of Ailing Wetlands
It is widely held that humankind’s destructive
tendencies when exploiting natural resources leads to
irreparable harm to the environment. Yet, this thinking
runs counter to evidence that many ecological systems
damaged by severe natural environmental disturbances
(e.g., hurricanes) can restore themselves via processes of
natural recovery. The emerging field of restoration
ecology is capitalizing on the natural restorative tendencies
of ecological systems to build a science of repairing
the harm inflicted by humans on natural environment.
Evidence for this, for example, comes from a new metaanalysis
of 124 studies that synthesizes recovery of
impacted wetlands worldwide. While it may take up to
two human generations to see full recovery, there is
promise, given human will, to restore many damaged
wetlands worldwide
Publication Date: 2012
Credits: Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
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