PLANT STRUCTURAL POPULATION AND DYNAMICS OF DEGRADED ECOSYSTEMS IN SOUTHERN BENOUE  OF NORTH CAMEROON

The Biology of Lakes and Ponds focuses on the interactions between the abiotic frame, such as turbulence, temperature, pH and nutrients, and the organisms, including interactions with and among organisms at the individual, population and community level. The book fills this niche between traditional limnology and evolutionary ecology by focusing on physiological, morphological and behavioural adaptations among organisms to abiotic and biotic factors and how interactions between biotic processes and abiotic constraints determine the structure and dynamics of lake and pond systems. In addition, the book describes and analyses the causes and consequences of human activities on freshwater organisms and ecosystems and covers longstanding environmental threats, such as eutrophication and acidification, as well as novel threats, such as biodiversity loss, use of everyday chemicals and global climate change. However, also signs of improvement and the possibilities to restore degraded ecosystems are discussed and provide hope for future generations.

Environmental impacts of smart local energy systems

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-900 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Samuel Robinson ◽

Alona Armstrong

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Environmental Impacts ◽

Natural Capital ◽

Critical Evaluation ◽

Energy Systems ◽

Energy System ◽

Simulation Modelling ◽

Local Energy ◽

Energy Technologies ◽

Degraded Ecosystems

<p>Energy systems around the world are rapidly transitioning towards decentralised and digitalised systems as countries aim to decarbonise their economies. However, broader environmental effects of the upscaling of these smart local energy systems (SLES) beyond reducing carbon emissions remain unclear. Land-use change associated with increased deployment of renewables, new infrastructures required for energy distribution and storage, and resource extraction for emerging energy technologies may have significant environmental impacts, including consequences for ecosystems within and beyond energy system project localities. This has major implications for biodiversity, natural capital stocks and provision of ecosystem services, the importance of which are increasingly recognised in development policy at local to international scales. This study assessed current understanding of the broader environmental impacts and potential co-benefits of SLES through a global Rapid Evidence Assessment of peer-reviewed academic literature, with a critical evaluation and synthesis of existing knowledge of effects of SLES on biodiversity, natural capital and ecosystem services. There was a striking overall lack of evidence of the environmental impacts of SLES. The vast majority of studies identified considered only energy technology CO<sub>2</sub> emissions through simulation modelling; almost no studies made explicit reference to effects on ecosystems. This highlights an urgent need to improve whole system understanding of environmental impacts of SLES, crucial to avoid unintended ecosystem degradation as a result of climate change mitigation. This will also help to identify potential techno-ecological synergies and opportunities for improvement of degraded ecosystems alongside reaching decarbonisation goals.</p>

An evaluation of a community-based forest restoration programme in Gunung Gede Pangrango National Park, West Java, Indonesia

Indonesian Journal of Applied Environmental Studies ◽

10.33751/injast.v1i2.2213 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

pp. 25-33

Author(s):

Tintin Retno Pramesti ◽

Rita Retnowati ◽

Dolly Priatna

Keyword(s):

Forest Ecosystem ◽

Forest Restoration ◽

National Park ◽

Evaluation Model ◽

Product Evaluation ◽

Input Process ◽

Programme Implementation ◽

Community Based ◽

The People ◽

Degraded Ecosystems

Forest restoration is needed to improve the condition of degraded ecosystems and boost up the ecological services. The existence of forest areas, especially in Indonesia, cannot be separated from the livelihoods of the people living around them. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the feasabiluty of the community-based forest restoration programme, implemented by the Gunung Gede Pangrango National Park Agency (BBGGPNP) and its partners, is feasible and can support efforts to restore forest ecosystem functioning and build community independence in managing the forest ecosystem. This study used the Context, Input, Process and Product (CIPP) method. This is an evaluation model which provides an analytical and rational basis for programme decision-making, based on a cycle of planning, structuring, implementing and reviewing and revising decisions, examined through a different aspect of evaluation –context, input, process and product evaluation. Data were obtained from field observations, interviews and document analysis. Aspects of the programme ‘Context’ were found to be categorized as good and can become the basis for programme implementation, Programme ‘Inputs’ were also determined to be good, and fulfilled the criteria required to support the achievement of programme objectives. The ‘Process’ aspects were found to be sufficient, with key areas for improvement included the need for better coordination with partners and the need to respond to technical restoration requirements by adjusting the area of land to be restored, the number of trees to be planted, and by considering the technical rule of restoration. The ‘Product’ aspect of the programme were shown to be good, is shown by the achievement of the target amount and growth of trees and the increased capacity of human resources as well as the development of independent businesses in the ex-encroachers who were the programme participants. Based on these results, it can be concluded that the community-based forest restoration programme such as conducted by the GGPNP Agency is feasible and can be implemented in similar sites.Restorasi hutan diperlukan untuk memperbaiki fungsi ekosistem hutan yang terdegradasi. Keberadaan kawasan hutan, khususnya di Indonesia, tidak dapat dipisahkan dengan penghidupan masyarakat yang tinggal di sekitarnya. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengevaluasi apakah program restorasi hutan berbasis pemberdayaan masyarakat yang dilaksanakan oleh Balai Besar Taman Nasional Gunung Gede Pangrango (BBTNGGP) bersama mitranya, layak serta dapat mendukung upaya pemulihan ekosistem dan membangun kemandirian masyarakat. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode CIPP, yaitu model evaluasi pada aspek Context, Input, Process dan Product. Data diperoleh dari hasil observasi lapangan, wawancara dan analisa dokumen. Berdasarkan analisis data, dapat disimpulkan bahwa program restorasi hutan berbasis pemberdayaan masyarakat layak untuk diterapkan sebagai upaya memulihkan ekosistem dan membangun kemandirian masyarakat di sekitar hutan. Aspek Konteks program berkategori baik dan dapat menjadi dasar utama pelaksanaan program, Aspek Input program baik, telah memenuhi kriteria yang mendukung tercapainya tujuan program, Aspek Proses berkategori cukup, perlu melakukan koordinasi yang lebih baik dengan pihak mitra untuk lebih berkomitmen dan perlu untuk melakukan penyesuaian antara target luasan lahan yang direstorasi dengan jumlah pohon yang ditanam dengan mempertimbangkan aturan teknis restorasi. Aspek Produk berkategori baik ditunjukkan dengan tercapainya target jumlah dan pertumbuhan pohon dan meningkatnya kapasitas SDM serta terbangunnya usaha mandiri pada masyarakat eks perambah yang menjadi peserta program.

The potential of mycorrhizal inoculants and soil conditioners for the restoration of degraded ecosystems

Environment, Energy and Applied Technology ◽

10.1201/b18135-70 ◽

2015 ◽

pp. 359-364

Keyword(s):

Soil Conditioners ◽

Degraded Ecosystems

A Web-Based Software Platform for Restoration-Oriented Species Selection Based on Plant Functional Traits

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.3389/fevo.2021.570454 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Chen Wang ◽

Shuguang Jian ◽

Hai Ren ◽

Junhua Yan ◽

Nan Liu

Keyword(s):

Plant Species ◽

Functional Traits ◽

Selection Process ◽

Plant Functional Traits ◽

Species Selection ◽

Software Platform ◽

Web Based ◽

Successful Case ◽

The Future ◽

Degraded Ecosystems

Plant functional traits are fundamental to the understanding of plant adaptations and distributions. Recently, scientists proposed a trait-based species selection theory to support the selection of suitable plant species to restore the degraded ecosystems, to prevent the invasive exotic species and to manage the sustainable ecosystems. Based on this theory, in a previous study, we developed a species screening model and successfully applied it to a project where plant species were selected for restoring a tropical coral island. However, during this process we learned that a software platform is necessary to automate the selection process because it can flexible to assist users. Here, we developed a generalized software platform called the “Restoration Plant Species Selection (RPSS) Platform.” This flexible software is designed to assist users in selecting plant species for particular purposes (e.g., restore the degraded ecosystems and others). It is written in R language and integrated with external R packages, including the packages that computing similarity indexes, providing graphic outputs, and offering web functions. The software has a web-based graphical user interface that allows users to execute required functions via checkboxes and buttons. The platform has cross-platform functionality, which means that it can run on all common operating systems (e.g., Windows, Linux, macOS, and others). We also illustrate a successful case study in which the software platform was used to select suitable plant species for restoration purpose. The objective of this paper is to introduce the newly developed software platform RPSS and to provide useful guidances on using it for various applications. At this step, we also realized that the software platform should be constantly updated (e.g., add new features) in the future. Based on the existing successful application and the possible updates, we believe that our RPSS software platform will have broader applications in the future.

POLYPHENOL CONTENT AND ANTIOXIDANT POTENTIAL OF Allophylus edulis (A. St.-Hil. et al.) Hieron. ex Niederl. AND Cupania vernalis Cambess. (SAPINDACEAE)

Revista Árvore ◽

10.1590/1806-908820210000007 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 45 ◽

Author(s):

Andréa Michel Sobottka ◽

Elisandra Tessaro ◽

Suelen Maier da Silva ◽

Marina Pedron ◽

Lara Tortini Seffrin

Keyword(s):

Antioxidant Activity ◽

Ethyl Acetate ◽

Skin Diseases ◽

Radical Scavenging Activity ◽

Radical Scavenging ◽

Ethyl Acetate Fraction ◽

Antioxidant Potential ◽

Total Phenolic ◽

Butanol Fraction ◽

Degraded Ecosystems

ABSTRACT Allophylus edulis and Cupania vernalis (Sapindaceae) are Brazilian native trees used as medicinal plants for the treatment of respiratory, digestive, circulatory, and skin diseases. Ubiquitously distributed in the Brazilian territory, these species are indicated for mixed plantations aimed at the recovery of degraded ecosystems. In this study, the total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC), and the antioxidant activity of extracts and fractions obtained from A. edulis and C. vernalis leaves were assessed. The TPC and TFC was determined spectrophotometrically. Antioxidant activity was evaluated through radical scavenging activity of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). The extracts were obtained by two methods: maceration (method 1) and Soxhlet (method 2). Solvents of increasing polarity (hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, and n-butanol) were used to obtained the fractions. The results showed that the ethyl acetate fraction from A. edulis, obtained from the maceration method, had the highest TPC (442.0 ± 18.2 mg GAE g-1) and TFC (58.1 ± 0.4 mg RUE g-1), and antioxidant activity (EC50 = 43.6 ± 2.6 µg mL-1). By C. vernalis, superior results were obtained with the n-butanol fraction (TPC = 126.1 ± 5.8 mg GAE g-1, TFC = 37.7 ± 0.6 mg RUE g-1). The highest antioxidant potential was found in the crude hydroalcoholic extract (EC50 = 816.1 ± 50.9 µg mL-1) and butanol fraction (1,156.4 ± 3.8 µg mL-1). The results of this study show that the fractions obtained by maceration and liquid-liquid partition with more polar solvents (ethyl acetate and n-butanol) are the richest in TPC and TFC, and presented the greater antioxidant activity. Comparing the two plants, A. edulis showed the best results, with a high content of TPC, TFC, and antioxidant potential, and therefore may be used to treat diseases related to oxidative stress.

Contributions of organic matter and nutrients via leaf litter in an urban tropical dry forest fragment

Revista de Biología Tropical ◽

10.15517/rbt.v66i2.33381 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 66 (2) ◽

pp. 571 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jeiner Castellanos-Barliza ◽

Juan Diego León-Peláez ◽

Rosalba Armenta-Martínez ◽

Willinton Barranco-Pérez ◽

William Caicedo-Ruíz

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Leaf Litter ◽

Tropical Dry Forest ◽

Soil Surface ◽

Dry Forest ◽

Litter Production ◽

Forest Fragment ◽

Litter Bags ◽

One Year ◽

Degraded Ecosystems

The litterfall and decomposition represent the main transfer of organic matter and nutrients from the vegetation to the soil surface and determine positive trajectories in the process of rehabilitating and restoring degraded ecosystems. The aim of this study was to evaluate the contributions of organic materials and nutrients through the characterization of fine litter in an urban dry forest fragment. Litter production was monitored for one year by collecting 29 traps (0.5 m2). To evaluate leaf nutrient resorption, green leaves were collected from 5-10 individuals that represented the dominant tree species. Litter-bags (20 x 20 cm, 2 mm pore) were used for six months to evaluate the decomposition of leaf litter. Annual fine litter production was found to be 8 574 kg ha-1, with the Cordia alba species contributing the most leaf litter (1 134 kg ha-1) and nutrients (N: 6.16; P: 0.21; Ca: 4.72; Mg: 0.47; K: 1.27 kg ha-1). Decomposition rates (k constant) followed the decreasing order: C. alba (k: 4.6) > Machaerium milleflorum (k: 3.5). M. milleflorum and Albizia niopoides presented a pattern of rapid N and P release in the first 30 days, with more than 80 % and 60 % released from M. milleflorum and C. alba, respectively, by the end of the experiment. The litterfall monitoring carried out in this urban dry forest fragment revealed some important aspects of the functioning of an ecosystem as seriously threatened as the tropical dry forest. Rev. Biol. Trop. 66(2): 571-585. Epub 2018 June 01.

An Agro-Based Society after Post-Industrial Society: From a Perspective of Economic Growth Paradigm

Social Sciences ◽

10.3390/socsci10120455 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (12) ◽

pp. 455

Author(s):

Hongyun Han ◽

Sheng Xia

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Environmental Change ◽

Industrial Revolution ◽

Global Environmental Change ◽

Profit Maximization ◽

Industrial Society ◽

The Holocene ◽

Degraded Ecosystems ◽

Almost All ◽

Post Industrial

Since the Industrial Revolution, a new era has arisen called the Anthropocene, in which human actions have become the main driver of global environmental change outside the stable environmental state of the Holocene. During the Holocene, environmental change occurred naturally, and the Earth’s regulatory capacity maintained the conditions that enabled human development. Resource overexploitation of the industrial “Anthropocene”, under the principle of profit maximization, has led to planetary ecological crises, such as overloaded carbon sinks and climate changes, vanishing species, degraded ecosystems, and insufficient natural resources. Agro-based society, in which almost all demands of humans can be supported by agriculture, is characterized by life production. The substitution of Agro-based society for a post-industrial society is an evolutionary result of social movement, it is an internal requirement of a sustainable society for breaking through the resource constraint of economic growth. The core feature of agriculture is to use organisms as production objects and rely on life processes to achieve production goals. The substitution of Agro-based society for a post-industrial society is the precondition for a sustainable carbon cycle, breaking through the resource limits of the industrial “Anthropocene”, alleviating the environmental pressure of economic development, and promoting society from increasing disorderly entropy to orderly decreasing entropy. Meanwhile, technological advancements and growing environmental awareness of society make it feasible for the substitution of an agro-based society for a post-industrial society.

Mapping co-benefits for carbon storage and biodiversity to inform conservation policy and action

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rstb.2019.0128 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 375 (1794) ◽

pp. 20190128 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

C. Soto-Navarro ◽

C. Ravilious ◽

A. Arnell ◽

X. de Lamo ◽

M. Harfoot ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

High Resolution ◽

Amazon Basin ◽

Global Climate ◽

Central Africa ◽

Integrated Approach ◽

Tropical Andes ◽

Biological Communities ◽

Local Diversity ◽

Degraded Ecosystems

Integrated high-resolution maps of carbon stocks and biodiversity that identify areas of potential co-benefits for climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation can help facilitate the implementation of global climate and biodiversity commitments at local levels. However, the multi-dimensional nature of biodiversity presents a major challenge for understanding, mapping and communicating where and how biodiversity benefits coincide with climate benefits. A new integrated approach to biodiversity is therefore needed. Here, we (a) present a new high-resolution map of global above- and below-ground carbon stored in biomass and soil, (b) quantify biodiversity values using two complementary indices (BIp and BIr) representing proactive and reactive approaches to conservation, and (c) examine patterns of carbon–biodiversity overlap by identifying 'hotspots' (20% highest values for both aspects). Our indices integrate local diversity and ecosystem intactness, as well as regional ecosystem intactness across the broader area supporting a similar natural assemblage of species to the location of interest. The western Amazon Basin, Central Africa and Southeast Asia capture the last strongholds of highest local biodiversity and ecosystem intactness worldwide, while the last refuges for unique biological communities whose habitats have been greatly reduced are mostly found in the tropical Andes and central Sundaland. There is 38 and 5% overlap in carbon and biodiversity hotspots, for proactive and reactive conservation, respectively. Alarmingly, only around 12 and 21% of these proactive and reactive hotspot areas, respectively, are formally protected. This highlights that a coupled approach is urgently needed to help achieve both climate and biodiversity global targets. This would involve (1) restoring and conserving unprotected, degraded ecosystems, particularly in the Neotropics and Indomalaya, and (2) retaining the remaining strongholds of intactness. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Climate change and ecosystems: threats, opportunities and solutions’.