economic recovery

Research published by CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, examined the positive effects of restoration efforts for coastal ecosystems in terms of biodiversity, local economies, and human wellbeing.

Coastal ecosystems include saltmarshes, mangroves, seagrasses, oyster reefs, kelp beds, and coral reefs. All of these have suffered declines of up to 85% over recent decades. The research identified a number of successful coastal and marine restoration projects in recent years that indicate the likelihood that such efforts could be expanded by as much as a factor of ten to support human health and wellbeing, boost the adaptation response to climate change, and generate jobs.

Some of the successful efforts identified included projects in the Great Barrier Reef to harvest coral larvae to boost large-scale coral restoration efforts. Simple changes to how saltmarshes are planted have resulted in doubled survivorship and biomass. In the U.S., the propagation of seagrass seeds has resulted in seagrass meadows recovering in areas where they had been lost decades ago. In Indonesia, recovery of reefs impacted by blast fishing has been achieved by placing rocks or other hard structures underwater to help with coral colonization.

Investing in coral restoration creates jobs and can be used as a strategy to boost economic recovery and coastal marine health. Restoration of marine habitats like kelp forests and oyster reefs has improved commercial and recreational fishing.

The United Nations has recognized the importance of coastal restoration and has declared the Decade on Ecosystem Restoration to start from 2021.

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Scientists shine light on ‘bright spots’ to restore coastal ecosystems

Photo, posted November 29, 2012, courtesy of Robert Linsdell via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Forest loss is a major contributor to climate change, and it is continuing at a rapid pace. The tropics lost about 30 million acres of tree cover in 2019, a third of which was within humid tropical primary forests, which are especially important for biodiversity and carbon storage. To put that loss in a human-scale perspective, it is the equivalent of losing a football field of primary forest every six seconds for the entire year.

The losses last year were 2.8% higher than in the previous year, and these losses have continued over the past 20 years despite worldwide efforts to halt deforestation.

Brazil single-handedly accounted for over a third of all global loss of humid tropical primary forests. Bolivia experienced record-breaking tree cover loss due to fires. The losses in its forests were 80% greater than in any previous year. The fires were often started by people who were trying to clear land for agriculture but had the fires go out of control. Several countries in Africa’s Congo Basin also experienced sustained or worsening forest loss.

Indonesia, often the focus of the world’s attention for its deforestation activities, actually saw a 5% reduction in primary forest loss in 2019. It was the third year in a row for lower losses. The now-permanent moratorium on clearing forests for oil palm plantations and logging seems to be working.

Going forward, the coronavirus pandemic poses additional threats to the world’s forests in the near future. There may be a tendency to sacrifice forests in pursuit of economic recovery, which will only lead to future complications for the health and livelihoods of millions of people around the world.

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We Lost a Football Pitch of Primary Rainforest Every 6 Seconds in 2019

Photo, posted February 7, 2011, courtesy of Chad Skeers via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

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Restoring Coastal Ecosystems | Earth Wise

Research published by CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, examined the positive effects of restoration efforts for coastal ecosystems in terms of biodiversity, local economies, and human wellbeing.

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Disappearing Rainforests | Earth Wise

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