With all of the horrible things happening in the world, it’s nice to find the wins. Especially in the area of our environment. A group called Coral Guardian is restoring coral reefs, and it’s quite magnificent.
These photos represent 7 years of work on the Indonesia’s Hatamin Island. In this they have increased the fish population by 5x with 53k corals restored.
#ClimateDiary Now this is a story that has cheered me up (not much, recently). It sounds like a really wonderful, thought-through regenerative #restoration project - tree planting done the right way.
And: it is wonderful to see the efforts of people like Guy Shrubsole, George Monbiot and Eoghan Daltun, campaigning and writing about UK and Irish #rainforests for years, bear fruit. All this work does matter. Spurs me on a bit again! #HistoricalEcology#Devon
"This one-hectare rooftop oasis has become one of the largest places for animals to touch down, uninterrupted by chemicals and humans, from Monterey Bay all the way to Marin – a distance of about 190 kilometres.
"Though the living roof is small in comparison to other whole-landscape #rewilding projects, the hidden secrets and history of this patch of green hold inspiration and lessons for small-scale rewilding efforts in cities everywhere."
"A totally wild, unkempt, cacophony of lawn-to-meadow conversion is a lost opportunity, and indeed, shooting ourselves in the foot," writes Benjamin Vogt.
The U.S. just changed how it manages a tenth of its land
For decades, the federal government has prioritized oil and gas drilling, hardrock mining and livestock grazing on public lands across the country.
That could soon change under a far-reaching Interior Department rule that puts #conservation, #recreation and #renewable#energy development on equal footing with resource extraction.
The final rule released Thursday represents a seismic shift in the management of roughly 245 million acres of public property
— about one-tenth of the nation’s land mass.
It is expected to draw praise from conservationists and legal challenges from fossil fuel industry groups and Republican officials,
some of whom have lambasted the move as a “land grab.”
Interior’s Bureau of Land Management, known as the nation’s largest landlord, has long offered leases to #oil and gas companies, #mining firms and #ranchers.
Now, for the first time, the nearly 80-year-old agency will auction off “#restoration leases” and “#mitigation leases” to entities with plans to restore or conserve public lands.
"Little did we know that those first shovels full of earth would launch a journey of unimaginable joy. Or how greatly our work would transform not just our home, but our lives."
It's free BBQ season around here. My advice: you can usually restore Weber grills (all parts are replaceable), and usually it's mostly Simply Green and replacing the burners, grills, and the igniter. You'll end up with something much better (IMHO) than whatever the 'sale" grill was at the big box store. #free#DIY#restoration#reducereuserecycle
"We are a traumatized people living in a traumatized ecosystem. Our history and culture have profoundly alienated us from nature, from our own natures, from each other’s natures."
What should happen to native forests when logging ends? Ask Victoria’s First Peoples
"Conservationists are celebrating a win sought for decades. The damage done by logging on biodiversity has been significant, with once common species now endangered and mature forests now fragmented and dotted with young fire-prone regrowth."
"Colonisation affected Country differently across Australia. But many effects are similar across the continent. European-style land management coincides with species extinctions across the continent. "
>> https://theconversation.com/what-should-happen-to-native-forests-when-logging-ends-ask-victorias-first-peoples-206412
Reading the black book: The number, timing, distribution and causes of listed extinctions in Australia
"We conclude that 100 Australian endemic species are validly recognised as extinct since 1788: a rate of loss of about 4.3 species per decade since European colonisation of the continent. This rate is not diminishing and we interpret this more-or-less constant but continuing rate of loss .."
"Australia now has about 100 ecological communities at risk."
"Australia is an enormous contributor to global biodiversity loss. A recent study found 97 species in Australia have now gone extinct since British colonisation in 1788, with roughly 10% of all native mammal species gone forever. The numbers would be higher if invertebrate losses were included."
"What happened here? These forests have been subject to decades of intensive clearfell logging, as well extensive cutting dating back to the late 1920s."
"Our analysis found nearly 70% of these forest communities are already either severely disturbed by fire and logging or exist within 70 metres of severely disturbed areas."
Since I'm now in my last semester of grad school for my Master of Landscape Architecture degree, I'm going to begin sharing pieces of my capstone project on here regularly.
I welcome all your comments, feedback, suggestions, references to related projects and people, and encouragement!
First up, my project title -
WATERSHED NEIGHBORHOODS:
Exploring Community-Building as a Method for Stormwater Management and Ecological Restoration
💧 Do you know where the water from the property you're on right now ends up? What creek or river is your property connected to?
Can the property soak up rain from heavy storms? Or is the site mostly paved, causing water to flood streets & overwhelm sewers? 🌊 Does the water sweep up pesticides or fertiliser as it does?
Find out where all that ends up using the link below - it might be in the water you drink & shower in. 🚿
A few days ago, Telev78 very generously shared his new scan of the official "Monkey Island 2 Hint Book" with the community. I am a huge fan of the classic LucasArts adventure, so - of course - I was excited!
It was glorious, but I felt his original upload could benefit greatly from a little bit of digital restoration. With Telev78's permission, I used macOS and Pixelmator Pro to clean and repair all of the Hint Books's 72 pages.
New video! In the second part of the series, I'm trying to resurrect the Apple Macintosh Performa 630 Power Supply I found to have lots of leaky capacitors in the previous episode.
“Most of us love #nature and appreciate it for its beauty, but living in relation to land through ecosystem restoration, #stewardship or harvesting creates a different appreciation and perspective,” says Sarah Jim.
“Once I started seeing the land for who it was and who it was trying to be, that’s when I realized the ivy was not letting the land be who it was meant to be.”
"Nature's complexity is its strength. This bio-complexity sustains our planet & can also be our ally in stabilizing the climate. We must allow ecosystems to recover & thrive. #Biodiversity is not a luxury but a necessity for the stability of people, nature, & #climate. It is the interconnected web of life that maintains the balance & resilience of our #ecosystems.
#Forests are not just collections of trees, but intricate networks of life, with each species playing a unique role in maintaining ecological balance. By focusing on native forest restoration, we re-establish these natural habitats, offering a sanctuary for myriad species.
"If the project seems small-scale, in one sense it is: the conservationists here are working not to return wolves to the hillsides but rather larvae to the undersides of leaves.
"And yet the journey to this point has been a long and trying one, shedding a light on the over-caution that still fetters ecological #restoration in a world that seems to be changing far more quickly than many human minds."