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In Britain they plan to restore areas of semi-natural grasslandthat were once common across much of the UK and supported largenumbers of wild flowers and insects. They will also target wetlands, a habitat which has reduced byalmost half in UK over the past 75 years. The Ecological Restoration Alliance, which includes botanic gardensfrom around the world including in China, Brazil, Hawaii, Kenya,Mexico, South Africa and Venezuela, was formed in response to aUnited Nations call to restore at least 15 per cent of the world'sdamaged ecosystems by 2020. Dr Bruce Pavlik, head of restoration ecology at the Royal BotanicGardens in Kew, which is one of the lead institutions in theproject, said: "We have set ourselves an ambitious goal, but theaim is to heal the wounds that humans have inflicted on the planeton a global scale. "Right now most restoration projects are very small. If we aregoing to change the way we treat the planet over the next centurythen we need to focus on a larger scale." Some of the most endangered habitats have suffered massive lossesto deforestation to make way for agriculture and to provide timber,while mining has caused many rare landscapes to be destroyed. Many areas require careful management to restore the soil qualityand to ensure that the plant species build up in the right orderbefore animals and wildlife can return. Each botanic garden will draw on the expertise of their scientiststo find the best ways of restoring the endangered habitats. The scientists will also use seed banks like Kew's Millennium SeedBank, which now has specimens from more than 10 per cent of theworld's wild plant species, to help replant the habitats. In some cases species from the last remnants of the habitat willalso be cultivated and transferred to repopulate the land beingrestored. The project has been given initial funding of £50 million andthe final locations of all 100 habitats will be decided later thisyear. Dr Pavlik said: "We are looking at ecosystems that are verydiverse, from tropical rainforests to temperate deserts andgrasslands. "One of the main causes of degradation is fragmentation whereagriculture has impinged on an area of forest and it has becomeisolated. Minding is also a problem as soil is often removed andthe organisms that live in that soil go with it, so restoring thatland is difficult. "Deforestation should be relatively easy to overcome, but manyreforestation projects use the wrong species." An example of this is in the upland forests of Kenya, which havebeen cleared to make way for tea plantations and have reduced innumbers by up to 95 per cent since the early 1900s. Threatened mammals including leopards, African wild dogs and therare golden cat live in these upland forests along with more than650 species of bird. In many places the trees have been replaced with monotonous grovesof foreign species such as pine, eucalyptus and acacia, whichsupport little wildlife and are mainly used for firewood. Mark Nicholson from the Brackenhurst Botanic Gardens near Nairobihas found that by reintroducing native tree species, which cantower up to 30 feet high, the canopy can provide shelter for rareplants including lianas and orchids, along with many animals. Researchers found that the restored forest can support over 170species of bird while the eucalyptus only supports 30. The huarango arid woodlands of Peru are another of the rarelandscapes the Alliance will attempt to save. Huge areas have beenturned into virtually barren, sandy desert as the trees have beencut down to create farmland. Without the huarango trees to release moisture into the atmosphere,however, the area has become prone to drought. Scientists at Keware now hoping to reestablish these woodlands to transform thelandscape back into a lush, green environment. Similarly the high altitude forests of Mexico are among the richeston earth, containing 12 per cent of the country's plant species.These forests help to condense water from the atmosphere and supplywater for many of the cities below. In the US the Alliance will attempt to restore the prairies, whichhave been so heavily exploited for agriculture and development thatjust small pockets remain. In Britain researchers at Kew are also looking at recreating thechalk and acidic grasslands that were once prominent across much ofEngland. A switch from traditional farming and grazing methods saw many ofthese grasslands being lost, with up to 90 per cent of chalkgrassland disappearing since the 1950s. The scientists have discovered a method for replanting grasslandsthat ensures the survival of almost all of the plants. I am an expert from modern-arearug.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Shaggy Pile Rug , China Contemporary Shaggy Rug, Polyester Shaggy Rug,and more.
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