All you need to know about ecosystem restoration

By 2050, 95% of our planet’s land will be degraded. But we don’t have to wait until 2050 to see the damage: 4.7 million hectares of forests are lost each year. This is about the size of Finland in northern Europe (4.5 million hectares) and bigger than Montana in the US (3.9 million hectares).

A degraded ecosystem means that it doesn’t have normal, natural functions working as they should. For example, nutrient cycling and climate regulation are affected. Did you know that those functions are essential to make sure that our planet can sustain life? 

The good news is that just like ecosystem degradation exists, so does ecosystem restoration. Such restoration is generally complex and expensive and full recovery can take a very long time - thus, it is better to avoid ecosystem degradation. In this article, we’ll look at what ecological restoration is, its differences from conservation, which actions we can perform, and why it’s important to keep Earth and ourselves healthy.

What is ecosystem restoration?

First things first: do you know what an ecosystem is? An ecosystem is a community of living organisms, including plants, animals, and microorganisms, that interact with each other (i.e. a web of life) and their physical environment in a particular area or habitat

Ecosystems come in different sizes: they can be large like a forest or small like a pond. What they all have in common is that they’re dynamic, and that plants, animals, and microorganisms that live there interact with each other and, thus, with the system. . Plus, ecosystems give us many benefits like climate protection and ecosystem services such as clean air and water

Sadly, human activities are degrading, damaging, and destroying ecosystems:

• Degradation is the long-lasting human impact that causes biodiversity loss and ecosystem structure, composition, and functionality disruption. Some examples include long-term grazing impact, persistent invasion by non-native species, and long-term overfishing.
• Damage involves the harmful impact on an ecosystem - like logging, road building, invasions of non-native species, and poaching.
• Destruction includes the most severe impact produced by degradation or damage. This term comes in when all the macroscopic life and the physical environment are ruined. Of course, human activities like mining, land clearing, and urbanization are behind this.

Ecological restoration or ecosystem restoration is a process that focuses on supporting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed. 

Ecosystem restoration is boosted by restoration practitioners. These practitioners create the conditions that plants, animals, and microorganisms need to recover themselves. Therefore, we can say that practitioners assist in their recovery. 

Some actions that these restoration practitioners execute are:

• Reintroducing lost species or a lost function
• Planting vegetation
• Changing the hydrology
• Elimination of threats (like removing invasive species or human impact)
• Altering landforms

The actions they perform aim to help return a degraded, damaged, or destroyed ecosystem to its historic trajectory, not its historic condition. Note that it’s not about taking ecosystems to their former stage, because contemporary ecological realities that include climate change don’t make that possible. 

One more thing before we move on: restoration has its own scientific field: restoration ecology. This field has all the practices and efforts that support ecological restoration. We can say that restoration ecology is the research, practices and ecological restoration which uses research and practices to be able to create its own processes and projects around the planet. 

When is the restoration of a degraded ecosystem complete?

It often doesn’t take too much time to perform restoration activities in a damaged, destructed, or degraded ecosystem. Well, at least not that much if we compare it to the ecosystem being fully recovered, which can take decades or even hundreds of years. 

The reason why it’s like that when individual actions to restore an environment end, the ecosystem needs to continue the restoration process itself by recovering and maturing. Plus, some unforeseen barriers to recovery may appear, or even some extra restoration activities can be needed at later stages of development. 

Let’s check this out with an example. Imagine that we want to restore a forest. We’ll start the process by planting trees, but this forest would need to have fully functioning trees, a natural assemblage of many species and a natural age structurein order to say that it’s totally recovered. 

A successful restoration of a forest ecosystem isn’t considered complete until the newly planted trees have thrived, reproduced, and established a mature and self-sustaining system with full biodiversity and ecological functions that no longer require additional conservation management. The ultimate goal is to restore the ecosystem as close as possible to its original condition before the degradation occurred. Plus, keep in mind that some ecosystems such as coral reefs are inherently difficult to restore once they have been degraded. For example, the act of growing and planting corals is unlikely to save coral reefs.

What’s the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration?

In 2021, World Environment Day was set as the official launch day of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. This is a 10-year initiative that aims to help reduce the decline of the natural world. The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration was declared in the United Nations resolution 73/284. 

The UN announced the first 10 World Restoration Flagships and called for every government, company, and individuals to play their part. The purpose of this declaration is crystal-clear: “halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems on every continent and in every ocean”. This can also help end poverty, fight climate change, and prevent mass extinction. 

Here at Lemu we’re also playing a role in protecting our ecosystems. At COP 27, our founders announced that our strategy was going to be outlined to channel up to $3 billion by 2033 to protect 130 million hectares of our planet or 1% of the Earth’s land.

Ecosystem restoration vs conservation

Although ecosystem restoration can help restore biodiversity, structure, and functions of degraded, destroyed, and damaged environments, this is not an excuse to say yes to their destruction or unsustainable use. 

Conservation shouldn’t be left behind. We still have to protect the environments, their species, plants, and microorganisms because by doing so we’ll be protecting our planet. Note that ecosystem restoration may not be successful in restoring the full environment.  Some species might be impossible to restore as well as the ecosystem’s functions and structure. 

If you’re looking for some tech solutions to help preserve Earth’s ecosystems, explore our app. It’s available for iOS and Android 🌳 

What we can do with damaged ecosystems: Ways to embrace ecosystem restoration 

In order to explore some actions that can be executed to restore biodiversity, functions, and ecosystems’ structures, let’s divide the different environments according to the eight main types. 

1. Farmlands

In agriculture, it’s common to use fertilizers. Those fertilizers have nitrogen and pollute water and the air. But that’s not the end of the story: they also boost climate change. Plus, ecosystems are also suffering from over-intensive use and soil erosion. Even ecosystems far away from the use of fertilizers suffer: for example, fertilizers are washed off into streams, rivers, wetlands, lakes, and the ocean.

Among the actions that we can take to restore farmlands, is the use of natural fertilizer and pest control, and the growth of diverse crops, including trees. With these actions, we’ll help rebuild carbon stores in soil, and therefore boost their fertility and make them a better habitat for wildlife. Modern technologies using remote sensing and GPS application can help to targeted and optimise fertilizer application, thus reducing over-use.  

  2. Lakes and rivers

Pollution, overfishing, infrastructure, extraction of more and more water for irrigation, homes, and industries are just some of the actions that are causing damage, destroying, or degrading lakes and rivers. 

In this case, we should: stop pollution, reduce and treat waste, manage demand for water and fish, and revive vegetation above and below the surface. One helpful piece of advice is to let more insect-friendly plants grow on river banks. Why? Because many fish eat insects, which is  a pretty good way to restore their habitats.

  3. Forests

Forests being cleared thanks to human activities is a pretty well-known story. The excessive human need for land and resources ends up in logging, firewood sourcing, pollution, wildfires, and invasive pests destroying what’s left of the forest. Note that forests are the habitat of 80% of the world’s amphibian species, birds, and mammals.

Here’s some stuff we can do in order to restore them:

• Replanting and reducing the pressure on forests. By doing so, trees will be able to regrow naturally. 
• Choose wisely the food we put on our plates. Food systems are behind forest loss too. For example, excessive cattle farming and the associated growing of animal feed is a disaster for tropical forests.
• Nurture patches of forest and woodland in landscapes like busy farms and villages.
   

4. Mountains

Dangerous erosion and river pollution are being driven by the clearing of slopes for farming or housing. The key to restoring mountain ecosystems is: reviving forests and restoring their protection against avalanches, landslides, and floods. Asking officials to plan dams and roads that avoid rivers and other habitats fragmenting also helps. Another good idea is making sure that farming techniques are being performed based on resiliency.   

5. Grasslands and savannahs

Millions of years ago, savannahs were the place where humans evolved. Nowadays, they’re still important.  But shrublands, grasslands and savannahs are suffering from overgrazing and erosion, mainly thanks to agriculture and animal farming.

The good news is: we can help. We can clear woody vegetation, re-seed native grasses, and reintroduce lost plants and animals. For this last point, we should also consider the fact that we need to protect them until they are well-established. 

6. Oceans and coasts

Seagrass makes for great carbon storage. It can capture carbon up to 35% faster than a tropical rainforest. So why do we keep on damaging, destroying, and degrading marine ecosystems? They suffer from pollution, climate change, and overexploitation and we still have a lot to do to restore them.

The causes are known but now so are the actions we can take to restore them. For instance, governments and communities can make sure that fishing and mangrove harvesting are being performed within a sustainable framework. Plus, keeping plastic out of the oceans is another urgent action that needs to be executed. 

It’s important to consider that coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrasses support billions of livelihoods around the planet so it’s key that we manage them carefully and work hard to restore them. 

7. Peatlands

Another important source of carbon storage and water are peatlands. Peatlands have been drained and transformed for agricultural purposes for centuries but the process is accelerating. Plus, they are also being degraded by fire, overgrazing, peat extraction and pollution. Note that although peatlands cover only 3% of the Earth’s land, they store almost one-third of all the carbon in its soil. 

We should act fast so that the carbon that’s stored there stays there. What can we do? We can re-wet and close drainage channels, for example. This will also help protect rare plants and animals. 

8. Urban areas

In cities and towns, there’s almost no room for vegetation because of houses, roads, and factories. Therefore, there’s a lot of room for waste and pollution in waterways, soils, and the air. 

We can still do something about this. For example, we can clean up waterways and build urban woodland and other wildlife habitats in green spaces, schools and public locations.

Other good ideas are to mow grass less frequently, use permeable sidewalks and urban wetlands so we’re protected against flooding, transform and rehabilitate industrial areas by  into green spaces for nature and recreation.

Why is ecosystem restoration important?

Ecosystem restoration is a very costly and long-term process. Sometimes, it is excessively difficult if not  impossible to restore ecosystems such as deforested tropical after years of erosion and compaction by cattle of soil, or coral reefs. Thus, our aim needs to be primarily to prevent ecosystem degradation. But for already degraded ecosystems, there are many reasons why restoration is essential to making sure that our planet stays healthy, and also that so do we. Here, we’ve chosen only five of them that adequately reflect how important ecological restoration is.

1. If we want to sustain life on Earth, our planet needs healthy soils

Healthy soils are the fuel for our food systems. Therefore, degraded soils need to be restored not only because they put the intrinsic value of ecosystems at risk, but also because they are a threat to producing healthy and sustainable food.

We can restore degraded soils, for instance, by restoring the complex relationship between plants and a plethora of microbes like fungi, bacteria and viruses. The tiniest, microscopic lifeforms are key in this process. They pave the way for plant growth and protection against diseases. This will end up in the revival of plants, crops and forests. But soil restoration is inherently complex and difficult.

2. Protect indigenous cultures and knowledge 

It’s well-known that indigenous culture is strongly connected to the land. This means that when ecosystems are suffering from erosion, the same happens to the indigenous culture. Considering this, when we restore ecosystems we are also keeping the livelihoods of communities safe. 

Note that there’s a lot of diversity around the globe so in this case restoring ecosystems is seen as a way of supporting relationships between humans and the environment and also protecting the rights of indigenous people. 

3. Human health

The health of ecosystems is deeply connected to human health, so when we restore them, we’re also protecting human health. Think about the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s a not-so-distant reminder of how degrading our ecosystems can boost the spread of novel pathogens causing zoonotic disease, which is disease caused by the transmission of animal pathogens to humans. Without ecosystem degradation, many of these pathogens would not have come into contact with humans. 

Another pathway in how biodiversity loss leads to human sickness is through changes in microbe ecosystems, which exist in humans (gut, skin, airways) and the environment (soil, waters, plants, animals). Microbes are tiny living things that are found all around us and include, for example, bacteria and other single-cell organisms. 

There has been a significant rise in health issues, including asthma and inflammatory bowel disease, among urban residents across the globe. The concept that the loss of biodiversity could result in immune dysfunction and disease was introduced recently and was subsequently supported by the observation of allergy through empirical data. Accordingly, a decline in biodiversity leads to a decline in microbial diversity. The deprivation of microbial deprivation leads then to microbial imbalance and disturbed immune responses, which are intercorrelated and both contribute to a high risk of inflammatory diseases and allergies.

4. Fight climate change

If our ecosystems are healthy, they are warriors ready to join the climate change battle. By restoring Earth’s ecosystems and protecting them at scale, we could enjoy more than one-third of the annual emissions reductions our planet needs by 2030 in order to keep Earth’s temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius. 

Picture this: the world’s forests by themselves can store 1.5 times more carbon than the United States emits each year, and could even absorb up to 23% of global CO2 emissions per year if we make sure that they are able to naturally regenerate. 

5. Adapt and reduce risks

The foundation of adaptation is made of healthy ecosystems. In the short and long term, when ecosystems lose their balance, mainly due to human activities, and they struggle to regenerate and restore without the protection they need, the results now and in the future will just keep on getting worse.

When an ecosystem is balanced, living and non-living things interact i.e. soil, insects, water, trees, birds, and air. Each one has a role to play and each one is being affected by our behavior. 

Healthy ecosystems help us stay safe from natural disasters and respond better to climate change. And one sure thing is they’ll help us build resilience for the future.

Now that you’re aware of how important ecosystem restoration is, are you ready to get involved? Thousands of ecosystems are waiting for you on our app. Download it and discover how you can help protect them while exploring different environments on our Earth 🌱