Alan Watson Featherstone, Trees for Life, Scotland, UK
The history of Scotland’s boreal forest is one of almost total destruction, but in recent years the tide has turned. Trees for Life is leading the field in learning about the spiritual and ecological principles of forest restoration, and these principles and lessons will apply throughout the boreal region.
What is Ecological Restoration?
In recent decades ecological restoration has become a burgeoning field of study and practice in conservation science. Broadly speaking it refers to projects that seek to return ecosystems that have been degraded or depleted by human activities to a more pristine, natural and undisturbed condition. However, these should be seen in the larger context of the natural process of restoration, which could be defined as ‘the recovery of an ecosystem after large-scale disturbance’. Restoration is integral to the functioning of the biosphere: it has been occurring on the planet for millions of years. Examples include the return of forest to much of the boreal zone at the end of the last ice age, about 10,000 years ago, when lichens, plants, trees and wildlife recolonised the newly exposed bare rock and earth as the ice retreated; and the recovery of forest species to the large area of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest (in Washington State, USA), which was devastated by the eruption of Mt St Helens in 1980.
Restoration should not be confused with afforestation or reforestation which, although they also aim to increase tree cover, often utilise non-native tree species and frequently lead to the establishment of ecologically simplified plantations or monocultural tree farms that bear little resemblance to natural forests. True restoration, in contrast, seeks to bring back together all the elements of the original ecosystem and then to allow natural processes to take over again, as the guiding force that will determine the ongoing development of the restored ecosystem. As such, restoration represents a radical departure from the main thrust of modern day culture, which is directed towards the ever-increasing management and manipulation of ecosystems for human objectives.
Restoration, by its very principles, is based on the premise that ‘Nature knows best’. It is the practice of helping to reweave the web of life, the interconnected and interdependent species, relationships and habitats that comprise an ecosystem , that is being relentlessly fragmented and diminished around the world.
Boreal Restoration
With its long winters and short growing seasons, the boreal zone presents special challenges for restoration, and results will obviously be much slower than in, for example, the tropics. As much of the boreal zone consists of exploited and depleted forests, considerable effort will be required to bring about their restoration.
My own work since the mid-1980s has focused on helping to bring about the restoration of one boreal forest area: the native pinewoods of the Caledonian Forest in the Highlands of Scotland. By the late 20th century, this forest was reduced to 1% of its original extent, and survived mostly as scattered remnants of geriatric trees: old trees reaching the ends of their natural lives, with no young trees growing to take their places, because of overgrazing by excessive numbers of deer and sheep. It became obvious to many people that the forest would only continue to exist if urgent recovery measures were implemented, and since then numerous restoration projects have been initiated.
Although it will be in the order of 200 years (the time it will take for the restored forests to have mature Scots pines in them) before these projects come to full fruition, early indications and results are promising. The experiences gained to date by Trees for Life have led to the formulation of a list of key principles that guide our work (see box). Stemming directly from the aforementioned premise that ‘Nature knows best’, these principles are neither exclusive to our work, nor comprehensive; rather they represent a work in progress, and will be added to over time.
The Green Thumb Principle
In addition to those principles, there is another important element that has become obvious through our work in Scotland. The quality of human love, as it is directly expressed through the practical work of restoration, has a tangible, positive effect on all living things to which it is directed. As such, carrying out restoration work with an open heart, and experiencing a spiritual connection with the land or forest, can accelerate the actual restoration process. This is what could be termed the ‘green thumb principle’, as it is the same thing as that exemplified by people who have an ability to make their gardens or houseplants flourish with greater vitality and abundance, a facility which has led to such people being described as having a ‘green thumb’.
Taking part in restoration work can also have a profound effect on the people involved. Chief Seattle is reputed to have said, “This we know. All things are connected like the blood which unites one family.Whatever befalls the Earth befalls the sons of the Earth. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web he does to himself”.
Restoration reweaves the web of life, and as we help to heal an ecosystem, so we can experience a healing in ourselves, and of the human relationship with the rest of nature. By taking part in restoration work, the practitioner becomes reconnected not only with the ecosystem that is being restored, but also with some of the most important qualities in human experience: healing, hope, love and the ability to make a positive difference in the world. Taken together, these qualities can result in a profound spiritual connection with the land or forest that is being restored, and provide a powerful (and much-needed) answer to some of the critical problems in our society today, such as alienation from nature, apathy and despair.
Challenges
There are a number of key issues and challenges that will need to be met if restoration is to be effective and successful in the boreal zone. For example, in some areas, such as much of Scandinavia, tree cover is substantial, but human management practices are focused primarily on maximising economic gain from these areas, with the result that few old-growth forest areas, with their key habitats and unique species, remain. The forests have been simplified and biologically impoverished, and consist mainly of relatively young trees.
For restoration to be effective in such situations, the goal of maximising economic productivity will have to be forgone and measures implemented to ‘naturalise’ the areas, to facilitate their development towards an old-growth condition. Implicit in this too is the need to adopt a long-term perspective, and be willing to let today’s young stands of trees take the time (centuries in some cases) to evolve again to the stage at which they can provide the habitat for, for example, the old-growth-dependent lichen species of the boreal forest.
To ensure that the boreal forests continue to thrive in a healthy state of dynamic balance, some key ecological processes will also need to be reinstated. Examples of these include natural disturbance (fire, windthrow, etc.), predation by large carnivores, occasional large scale infestations by insects, etc. These pose considerable challenges in our modern mainstream culture, where predators are still routinely persecuted throughout much of the boreal zone, and where natural fires or insect outbreaks are viewed as damaging to ‘our timber resource’.
The critical question, then, is whether humanity in the 21st century is willing to step back from our culture’s present headlong rush towards ‘managing the entire planet’, and instead to give some of the Earth back to the natural processes of evolution, so that some areas and ecosystems at least can become self-willed again. Because of its low human population density, harsh climate and relatively intact forests, the boreal zone offers one of the best opportunities in the world to achieve this goal. The existing restoration projects in the region can therefore be seen as the pioneers and forerunners for a much more ambitious positive vision for the future: Restoring the Earth.
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Principles of Ecological Restoration
1 Work from areas of strength – the areas where the ecosystem is closest to its natural condition.
2 Pay particular attention to keystone species: those species on which many others depend, and which are key components of the ecosystem.
3 Utilise ecological processes, such as the initial use of pioneer species, natural succession, etc., to facilitate the restoration process.
4 Mimic nature wherever possible.
5 Recreate ecological niches where they have been lost.
6 Re-establish ecological linkages – reconnect the threads in the web of life.
7 Control and/or remove introduced species.
8 Remove or mitigate the limiting factors that prevent restoration from taking place naturally.
9 Reintroduce species that are unlikely (or impossible) to return to the ecosystem by themselves.
10 Let nature do most of the work.
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