Development Of Restoration Plans Research Articles

Seeing the Harm to Happiness: Integrating Satisfaction With Life Into Restorative Practices

This article proposes an approach to intervening in harms that is based on the integration of positive psychology and restorative justice. We begin by reviewing the importance of interpersonal relationships to restorative justice. Next, we discuss harms as viewed in restorative justice. We then explore the concept and language of happiness through models of satisfaction with life (SWL) from positive psychology. We end the article by proposing the integration of models of SWL into the practices of restorative dialogue and the development of restoration plans.

Non-Invasive Moisture Detection for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage

Moisture damage is the most critical issue regarding the preservation and integrity of cultural heritage sites. The electromagnetic (EM) sensitivity to the presence of moisture, in both soils and structural materials, is a well-known phenomenon. Thereby, studying the EM response to the presence of moisture, in order to prevent the damages done to sites of cultural heritage, is a well-established method. This paper will discuss the ability of a geophysical non-destructive technique (NDT), present in a Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) system, to investigate a very precious building in Rome that is affected by a moisture problem (the Turkish Room at Villa Medici). This geophysical instrument is able to locate and estimate the extent of water ingression, which can aid in the development of restoration plans before permanent damage occurs. The main objective of this paper is to help restorers understand the related hazards, due to the presence of moisture in the wall structures, in real-time and to rapidly and non-invasively develop strategies for the preservation of cultural heritage sites.

Analysis of Spanish University Training in Climate Change and Restoration of Degraded Land

Training in the restoration of degraded land in Spain has traditionally been linked to qualifications related to the environment, such as Forestry Engineering, Agronomy, Mining and science degrees like Biology, Environmental Science and Geology. Each of these degrees focuses on its own particular areas of specialty, such as hydrologic restoration, ecological restoration, restoration of mining areas and so on. In general, training focuses on learning and understanding key aspects related to the definition of degraded land, philosophies of restoration of physical environments and the development of restoration plans. This paper describes the skills covered, according to different programmes and certifications, in the training currently offered in Spain in restoration of degraded land. It also identifies the needs and highlights innovations in training. Finally, the future provision of graduate studies is analysed through a European Master Programme in Climate Change and Restoration of Degraded Land, RECLAND, belonging to the Lifelong Learning Programme of the European Union, which aims to cover the necessary skills to train future technicians in the restoration of degraded areas and improve knowledge of the effects of climate change on these processes.

Portfolio Decision Analysis Framework for Value-Focused Ecosystem Management

Management of natural resources in coastal ecosystems is a complex process that is made more challenging by the need for stakeholders to confront the prospect of sea level rise and a host of other environmental stressors. This situation is especially true for coastal military installations, where resource managers need to balance conflicting objectives of environmental conservation against military mission. The development of restoration plans will necessitate incorporating stakeholder preferences, and will, moreover, require compliance with applicable federal/state laws and regulations. To promote the efficient allocation of scarce resources in space and time, we develop a portfolio decision analytic (PDA) framework that integrates models yielding policy-dependent predictions for changes in land cover and species metapopulations in response to restoration plans, under different climate change scenarios. In a manner that is somewhat analogous to financial portfolios, infrastructure and natural resources are classified as human and natural assets requiring management. The predictions serve as inputs to a Multi Criteria Decision Analysis model (MCDA) that is used to measure the benefits of restoration plans, as well as to construct Pareto frontiers that represent optimal portfolio allocations of restoration actions and resources. Optimal plans allow managers to maintain or increase asset values by contrasting the overall degradation of the habitat and possible increased risk of species decline against the benefits of mission success. The optimal combination of restoration actions that emerge from the PDA framework allows decision-makers to achieve higher environmental benefits, with equal or lower costs, than those achievable by adopting the myopic prescriptions of the MCDA model. The analytic framework presented here is generalizable for the selection of optimal management plans in any ecosystem where human use of the environment conflicts with the needs of threatened and endangered species. The PDA approach demonstrates the advantages of integrated, top-down management, versus bottom-up management approaches.

Soil seed bank analysis of planted and naturally revegetating thermally-disturbed riparian wetland forests

Accelerating the reestablishment of a mature, biotic community following a disturbance is a common goal of restoration ecology. In this study, we describe the relative successional status of a recently disturbed riparian seed bank when compared with less recently disturbed and undisturbed systems, and the short-term effects of restoration on seed bank development within the recently disturbed system. The study location, the U.S. Department of Energy's Savannah River Site in South Carolina, provides a unique opportunity to investigate the development of wetland seed banks following a severe disturbance, in this case the release of elevated temperature and flow effluent from nuclear reactor operations. To assess the recovery of wetland seed banks over time, we compared seed banks of naturally recovering riparian corridor and swamp delta sites of two different ages since disturbance (nine years and 30 years) with undisturbed forested corridor and swamp sites. To assess the potential effects of restoration efforts (site preparation and planting of seedlings) on seed bank development, we compared seed banks of naturally recovering (unplanted) and planted riparian corridor and swamp delta sites in the more recently disturbed system. We expected total germinants and species richness to be highest in the recently disturbed sites and decline as wetland systems matured. Within recently disturbed sites, we expected planted sites to have higher abundance and richness than unplanted sites. We also expected a greater abundance of woody species in the undisturbed forested sites. The number of germinants differed among the sites, ranging from 748 individuals per m 2 in the undisturbed swamp area to 10,322 individuals per m 2 in the recently disturbed planted swamp delta. When corridor and delta sites within a stream system were combined, the mean number of germinants was greater in the recently disturbed system, intermediate in the 30-year (mid-successional) system, and lowest in the undisturbed system. Seed banks from the recently disturbed and mid-successional sites were more similar in composition than they were to the undisturbed systems. Across all stream systems, riparian corridors had greater mean species richness than swamp deltas, though differences in seed bank abundances were not significant. Sedges and rushes were the predominant life forms in the recently disturbed and mid-successional sites, while undisturbed sites had a greater proportion of herbs and woody seedlings. In addition, there were more germinants from planted sites than from unplanted sites. The dominance by early successional species at recently disturbed planted sites may be an unintended consequence of site preparation treatments, and such potential effects should be recognized and weighed during the development of restoration plans.