Abstract
Restoration of salt marsh is urgent, as these ecosystems provide natural coastal protection from sea-level rise impacts, contribute towards climate change mitigation, and provide multiple ecosystem services including supporting livelihoods. This study identified potential restoration sites for intervention where agricultural and degraded land could be returned to salt marsh at a national scale in South African estuaries. Overall, successful restoration of salt marsh in some estuaries will require addressing additional pressures such as freshwater inflow reduction and deterioration of water quality. Here, we present, a socio-ecological systems framework for salt marsh restoration that links salt marsh state and the well-being of people to guide meaningful and implementable management and restoration interventions. The framework is applied to a case study at the Swartkops Estuary where the primary restoration intervention intends to route stormwater run-off to abandoned salt works to re-create aquatic habitat for waterbirds, enhance carbon storage, and provide nutrient filtration. As the framework is generalized, while still allowing for site-specific pressures to be captured, there is potential for it to be applied at the national scale, with the largest degraded salt marsh areas set as priorities for such an initiative. It is estimated that ~1970 ha of salt marsh can be restored in this way, and this represents a 14% increase in the habitat cover for the country. Innovative approaches to restoring and improving condition are necessary for conserving salt marshes and the benefits they provide to society.
Highlights
Worldwide, salt marshes provide key ecosystem services to coastal communities such as carbon sequestration, coastal protection, wave attenuation, trophic enrichment of coastal waters, nursery areas for fish species, permanent or transient habitat for aquatic invertebrates, and resting areas for migratory birds [1]
The Swartkops Estuary was used as a case study to illustrate the application of the proposed restoration framework for the delivery of multiple ecosystem services
This study presented a framework for salt marsh restoration in which the extent of degradation and the responsible pressures were discerned and feasible restoration interventions were outlined
Summary
Salt marshes provide key ecosystem services to coastal communities such as carbon sequestration, coastal protection, wave attenuation, trophic enrichment of coastal waters, nursery areas for fish species, permanent or transient habitat for aquatic invertebrates, and resting areas for migratory birds [1]. The estimated total value of these ecosystem services is disproportionately high given that salt marshes cover less than 1% of Earth’s surface [2] Despite their ecological and socio-economic importance, these habitats are threatened by multiple anthropogenic pressures such as freshwater inflow reduction, land-use change, and development resulting in fragmentation and habitat loss, biological invasions, and pollution [3,4,5,6]. Restoration of salt marsh at the Swartkops Estuary is used as a case study to illustrate the site-specific application of this framework for the delivery of multiple ecosystem services At this site, the proposed restoration approach will allow for stormwater run-off to be routed to an abandoned salt works with the aim to improve aquatic habitats for waterbirds, blue carbon storage, and nutrient filtration. This will provide cultural benefits and improve community well-being; a single restoration intervention can provide multiple benefits
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