Rapid recovery of damaged ecosystems

source: PLoS One, May 2009
"Recent reports on the state of the global environment provide evidence that humankind is inflicting great damage to the very ecosystems that support human livelihoods. The reports further predict that ecosystems will take centuries to recover from damages if they recover at all. Accordingly, there is despair that we are passing on a legacy of irreparable damage to future generations which is entirely inconsistent with principles of sustainability. We tested the prediction of irreparable harm using a synthesis of recovery times compiled from 240 independent studies reported in the scientific literature. We provide startling evidence that most ecosystems globally can, given human will, recover from very major perturbations on timescales of decades to half-centuries."

Comparison of condition class, point sampling and track problem assessment methods in assessing the condition of walking tracks in NSW protected areas

Source: CRC Sustainable Tourism
"Protected area managers need to monitor the ecological effects of visitor use and assess their performance in managing visitor use. To assist this process STCRC has established a series of projects to develop indicators and protocols for monitoring visitor use and its impacts that can be used as part of an integrated monitoring system for protected areas. This report is one in a series examining terrestrial ecological impacts of visitor use."

Corporate ecosystem evaluation: a scoping report

Source: World Business Council for Sustainable Development
"All businesses, regardless of their location on the value chain, both impact and depend on ecosystems and ecosystem services. This in turn presents both risks and opportunities, and securing the business license to operate in a world where we are exceeding biocapacity (or the capacity of the Earth to meet our needs), will require companies to develop clear strategies of how to measure, manage and mitigate their ecosystem impacts and dependence. The scoping study report reaches the conclusion that any attempt to advance corporate ecosystem valuation should focus on new ways of valuing ecosystem dependencies and impacts and incorporating these values within existing financial and business planning tools, drawing where relevant on the existing methods that have been developed specifically to value ecosystem services."

Saving the honeybee

Source: Scientific American, vol.300,no.4 (April 2009)
"The mysterious ailment called colony collapse has wiped out large numbers of the bees that pollinate a third of America’s crops. The causes turn out to be surprisingly complex, but solutions are emerging."

Urban ecosystems

Source: Springer Link
Urban Ecosystem is an international journal devoted to scientific investigation of the ecology of urban environments, and policy implications. Please enjoy free access to the electronic version of Urban Ecosystem for the month of May and don't forget to check out the 1st Special Issue on Urban Soils.

Our panarchic future

Source: Worldwatch, vol.22,no.2 (2009)
"Panarchy--a theory explaining the evolution of complex systems, from forests to economic markets--may provide insight into the future adaptation and resilience of civilization to ecological stresses and rising energy costs."