Active Restoration - Underwater diver re-attaches damaged coral fragments using underwater cement in the Caribbean. Photo credit: NOAA Passive Restoration - Conservation Corps crews install fencing to keep cattle out of streams and allow streamside vegetation to re-grow naturally in central California. Photo credit: Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County

Habitat restoration is the process of re-establishing a self-sustaining habitat that closely resembles a natural condition in terms of structure and function. This includes returning a polluted or degraded environment as closely as possible to a successful, self-sustaining ecosystem with both clean water and healthy habitats. These habitats support fish and wildlife, as well as human uses such as swimming, diving, boating, and recreational and commercial fishing.

Restoration usually does not focus on a single species, but strives to replicate the original natural system to support numerous species. The goal is to expedite natural processes in rebuilding a healthy, functioning natural ecosystem that works as it did before it was polluted or destroyed. Restoration activities should result in an increase in coastal and marine habitats from current conditions, as measured both by structural and functional characteristics that have the ability to support fish and wildlife.

In general, restoration activities fall into two overall categories: active and passive (NOAA et al. 2004). Active restoration includes "on-the-ground" or "dirt-moving" activities, in which restoration practitioners make physical alterations to the land scape, such as planting vegetation or removing fish passage barriers. Passive restoration usually involves changes to management practices and use of landscapes.

Typical active restoration techniques include:

• Removal of fish passage barriers
• Dredging and removal of fill materials
• Oyster reef construction with natural materials
• Revegetation of riparian and wetland areas

Typical passive restoration techniques include:

• Installation of exclusionary fencing to minimize cattle access to a stream
• Minimization of vehicular access to estuary and beach
• Purchase of conservation easements and "fee-simple" land acquisition
• Planning/zoning that prevents inappropriate development in areas frequently inundated

As there are many habitat types that require restoration, many restoration techniques are available. This website includes habitat-specific suggestions for appropriate approaches to restoration. In general, to be successful in restoration it is important to have a good plan. A few keys to consider when planning are:

• Include professionals in planning (e.g., fishery and wildlife biologists, hydrologists, geologists, oceanographers, river morphologists, engineers, and botanists).
• Build consensus with pertinent agencies and stakeholders (e.g., local, state, and federal natural resource agencies, tribal groups, adjacent landowners, environmental groups, chambers of commerce, economic development boards, community organizations, and schools).
• Identify any available long-term datasets (including historical photos, aerial photos, and maps) from the area or similar systems that give insight into natural variability in salinity and other key physical factors.
• Incorporate monitoring information and restoration efforts into management decisions.
• Avoid actions that require continual maintenance, money, or energy to operate (e.g., pumps, annual dredging, and riparian removal) and that are subject to long-term failure.
• Manage for variability - coastal and marine systems by their nature are not static.

The issue of how best to restore our coastal and marine resources becomes more urgent as we learn more about how vital these habitats are to species of concern, and as we learn how degraded these areas have actually become.

References Cited