Aldo Leopold, father of the "land ethic," once said, "The time has come for science to busy itself with the earth itself. The first step is to reconstruct a sample of what we had to begin with." The concept he expressedâ€"restorationâ€"is defined in this comprehensive new volume that examines the prospects for repairing the damage society has done to the nation's aquatic resources: lakes, rivers and streams, and wetlands. Restoration of Aquatic Ecosystems outlines a national strategy for aquatic restoration, with practical recommendations, and features case studies of aquatic restoration activities around the country. The committee examines: Key concepts and techniques used in restoration. Common factors in successful restoration efforts. Threats to the health of the nation's aquatic ecosystems. Approaches to evaluation before, during, and after a restoration project. The emerging specialties of restoration and landscape ecology.

Simplistic thinking would have us believe that by eliminating the loading of a given pollutant, an aquatic system will revert to its previous pristine state. This premise is without scientific verification. Besides the fact that typically very little documentation exists defining what exactly that previous pristine state was, it should be noted tha

Innovative Methods of Marine Ecosystem Restoration offers a ray of hope in an increasingly gloomy scenario. This book is the first presentation of revolutionary new methods for restoring damaged marine ecosystems. It discusses new techniques for greatly increasing the recruitment, growth, survival, and resistance to stress of marine ecosystems, fis

"Society for Ecological Restoration"--Cover.

Papers presented at the Lake 2002 International Symposium on Conservation, Restoration and Management of Aquatic Ecosystems, held at Bangalore during 9-13 December 2002.

This classroom resource provides clear, concise scientific information in an understandable and enjoyable way about water and aquatic life. Spanning the hydrologic cycle from rain to watersheds, aquifers to springs, rivers to estuaries, ample illustrations promote understanding of important concepts and clarify major ideas. Aquatic science is covered comprehensively, with relevant principles of chemistry, physics, geology, geography, ecology, and biology included throughout the text. Emphasizing water sustainability and conservation, the book tells us what we can do personally to conserve for the future and presents job and volunteer opportunities in the hope that some students will pursue careers in aquatic science. Texas Aquatic Science, originally developed as part of a multi-faceted education project for middle and high school students, can also be used at the college level for non-science majors, in the home-school environment, and by anyone who educates kids about nature and water. To learn more about The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment, sponsors of this book's series, please click here.

Despite nearly three decades of efforts intended to protect the nation's waters, and some success against certain forms of chemical and organic contamination, many of our nation's waterways continue to be seriously degraded. The call of the 1972 Clean Water Act -- "to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation's waters" -- remains unanswered. Restoring Life in Running Waters discusses freshwater ecosystems in the United States and the need for using biology to understand their present condition. The book makes a case for using indexes that integrate measurements of many biological attributes to assess and communicate environmental health. In a unique and innovative format, the authors present 37 premises and 7 myths that explore the theory and practice of biological monitoring and the use of multimetric indexes. The book explains: why biological monitoring and assessment are needed the historical evolution of biological monitoring how and why living systems give the best signals for diagnosing environmental degradation what multimetric indexes do and why they are effective how multimetric indexes can be used and common pitfalls to avoid in using them why many criticisms of biological indexes are not valid how the principles of biological monitoring and multimetric indexes can be expanded beyond aquatic systems to other environments how information from indexes can be integrated into the regulatory and policy framework Restoring Life in Running Waters provides practical and effective tools for managers and scientists seeking to understand the impact of human activities on natural systems and to determine proper action to remedy problems. It is an essential handbook for conservation biologists; agency personnel at all levels, including technical staff, policymakers, and program managers; and for anyone working to protect and restore the health of the nation's waters.

Lake and Reservoir Restoration deals with the eutrophication process and the methods to protect, restore, and manage lakes and reservoirs. The most common in-lake techniques or procedures, plus nutrient diversion, are reviewed with regard to their scientific basis, methods of application, known effectiveness, feasibility, drawbacks, and costs. Areas for further research and development are also highlighted. This book is comprised of 16 chapters organized into four sections. After an introduction to the theory of the problem and the restoration technique, the discussion turns to the various restoration methods such as those used for physical and chemical control of nutrients. Diversion and advanced waste treatment, hypolimnetic withdrawal, and dilution and flushing are considered along with phosphorus precipitation and inactivation, sediment oxidation, sediment removal, and hypolimnetic aeration. Case studies and success stories are presented and the costs and potential negative impacts of the methods are examined. The following chapters focus on methods to control plant biomass, including artificial circulation, water-level drawdown, harvesting, biological control, and surface and sediment covers. A chapter on liming acidified lakes concludes this text. This monograph will be useful to professional limnologists and engineers, on-site lake or reservoir managers, and those who are interested in learning about the problems and management of lakes and reservoirs.

This open access book describes the serious threat of invasive species to native ecosystems. Invasive species have caused and will continue to cause enormous ecological and economic damage with ever increasing world trade. This multi-disciplinary book, written by over 100 national experts, presents the latest research on a wide range of natural science and social science fields that explore the ecology, impacts, and practical tools for management of invasive species. It covers species of all taxonomic groups from insects and pathogens, to plants, vertebrates, and aquatic organisms that impact a diversity of habitats in forests, rangelands and grasslands of the United States. It is well-illustrated, provides summaries of the most important invasive species and issues impacting all regions of the country, and includes a comprehensive primary reference list for each topic. This scientific synthesis provides the cultural, economic, scientific and social context for addressing environmental challenges posed by invasive species and will be a valuable resource for scholars, policy makers, natural resource managers and practitioners.