Handbook

Restoration ecology is a new and vital area of ecology, which aims to underpin and improve current approaches to restore modified or degraded landscape elements. In this subject, we will first review the current status of biodiversity, land and water resources in Australia; explain key terminology, and then describe some of the key management principles, ecological models and theoretical frameworks that underpin restoration ecology. The problems and pitfalls of the discipline are discussed, as well as the challenges in linking theory to practice. Restoration principles specific to agricultural, riverine, urban and mining contexts are also examined. This subject has no intensive. On completion, students will be able to make sound judgements regarding the development of appropriate restoration strategies for most major Australian contexts (i.e. mining, agriculture, riparian and urban) and be able to apply scientific rigour and adaptive management principles to restoration projects.

This subject will cover the following topics:

• The state of the Australian environment;
• Introduction to restoration ecology;
• Problems and pitfalls in restoration ecology;
• Theoretical contexts: population and community ecology;
• Theoretical contexts: landscape ecology and scale;
• Project management and goal setting;
• Project Evaluation;
• Restoration in agricultural landscapes;
• Restoration of riverine ecosystems;
• Restoration of urban ecosystems;
• Rehabilitation of mine sites and
• The future for restoration ecology.