PARENT SESSION
Symposium #3: Ecological Theory and Restoration Ecology.
Organized by: MA Palmer, D Falk, and J Zedler
Monday, August 5. 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM. Leo Rich Theatre.
Determining limits to restoration success: experiments in isolated urban patches.
Handel, Steven*,1, 1 Center for Urban Restoration Ecology, New Brunswick, NJ
ABSTRACT- Urban degraded lands are typically small scale, widely separated, have little ecological memory, and are surrounded by pavement, infrastructure, alien species, and many physical stresses. But by being also surrounded by many people, the lands are of great potential value for environmental health and ecological services. To determine the limits to restoration potential of urban lands into natural habitats and to define pragmatic target communities, we are conducting experiments at Fresh Kills landfill in New York City. Patches of installed woody plants of varying sizes are helping to determine the effect of spatial position and scale on plant-animal interactions, population growth, and soil characteristics. Even in a dense, industrialized landscape and on an engineered soil, many community links such as pollinator service and seed dispersal are being reestablished. However, poor soil conditions and landscape fragmentation may be critical constraints to achieving a high biodiversity and a complex habitat structure.
KEY WORDS: restoration, urban , landfill, patch