Introduction

Environmental repair

From 1788, British military forces, administrators and settlers progressively dispossessed the First Nations communities of Australia (Broome 2019). Too often, inexperienced, environmentally rapacious settlers applied inappropriate European modes of natural resource management to the land. They were frequently slow to acquire and apply regional environmental knowledge. Ecosystems that had been carefully managed by Aboriginal Traditional Custodians were damaged, degraded and even destroyed (Barr, Cary 1992; Hutton, Connors 1999; Lines 1991; Muir 2014; Rose 1996).

This website, Australian Ecological Restoration History, presents the earliest known attempts by Australian settlers to restore degraded ecosystems and landscapes. Australian Ecological Restoration History particularly draws on the contemporary degraded area management concept, environmental repair, to interpret and analyse settler attempts to reverse degradation and restore ecosytems.

Environmental repair is any intentional activity—including reduction of impacts, rehabilitation and ecological restoration—that improves ecosystem functionality, ecosystem services, or biodiversity (SERA 2021: 29)

Ecological restoration

Ecological restoration is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged or destroyed (SERA 2021: 29).

Ecological restoration is a degraded area restoration management framework that features six guiding principles of practice, and accompanying standards. The principles and standards were developed by the Society for Ecological Restoration Australasia (SERA 2021).

The principles recommend

adoption of a local indigenous reference ecosystem;
guidance of restoration work by levels of site degradation and resilience;
setting of targets, goals and objectives;
commitment to achievement of substantial to full recovery of ecological functioning;
partnering of practice with science and derived restoration knowledge; and
project pursuit of social and economic engagement with stakeholders and community (SERA 2021).

The principles and standards serve as an analytical tool. They illustrate the complexity of the historical projects and their ecological, administrative, technical, stakeholder and conservation attributes and shortcomings.

Of particular interest is the practice principle that focuses on the ecological aspirations and intensity of a repair project.

The goal of ecological restoration is full recovery, insofar as possible…in some cases, constraints
may limit potential to less than full level of recovery. Such cases can still be referred to as
ecological restoration projects as long as the aim is for substantial recovery relative to the
appropriate local native reference ecosystem (SERA 2021: 14).

A close analysis of the Australian historical projects reveals that many of them did feature aspiration to recover ambitious levels of indigenous plant or animal species, and even both in some cases. Achieving conservation outcomes was another prominent objective. Botanical, ecological and other scientific principles were utilised in many projects. Innovative restoration techniques were developed.

Rehabilitation

A further set of historical Australian environmental repair projects reinstated to degraded sites more moderate, but nevertheless, beneficial levels of ecological functioning. These projects resemble the contemporary environmental repair practice, rehabilitation (see SERA 2021).

Rehabilitation is the process of reinstating a level of ecosystem functionality on degraded sites where ecological restoration is not the aspiration, as a means of enabling ongoing provision of ecosystem goods and services (SERA 2021: 31).

These historical rehabilitation projects are presented on the page, Rehabilitation.

Mitigation of degrading environmental impacts

The page, Managing impacts presents interesting examples of historical settler attempts to manage environmentally degrading behaviours and impacts.

Map and Gallery pages further illustrate the historical stories presented on the website.

References:

Barr N, Cary J (1992) Greening A Brown Land Melbourne MacMillan Education

Broome, R. (2019) Aboriginal Australians: a history since 1788 Sydney Allen & Unwin

Hutton D, Connors L (1999) A History of the Australian Environment Movement
Cambridge Cambridge University Press

Lines W (1991) Taming the Great South Land Georgia University Georgia Press

Muir, C. (2014) The Broken Promise of Agricultural Progress: An Environmental History Melbourne Routledge

Rose, D.B. (1996) Nourishing Terrains Canberra Australian Heritage Commission

SERA (2021) Standards Reference Group ‘National Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration in Australia’ Edition 2.2. Society for Ecological Restoration Australasia www.seraustralasia.com

'The red-tailed black cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus banksii) on Banksia serrata L.f., family Proteaceae, 1929' Source: E. Gostelow NLA — ‘The red-tailed black cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus banksii) on Banksia serrata L.f., family Proteaceae, 1929’ Source: E. Gostelow National Library of Australia

Please acknowledge and reference the work of others

Sharing knowledge creates benefits for all, and contributes to the ongoing development of a civil, informed society. When quoting from, referring to or utilising in any manner content displayed on this website, please acknowledge and cite appropriately. If this website has contributed to your research, manuscript or understanding of environmental repair in Australia, then please acknowledge that contribution in your created work. The copyright and Moral Rights provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968 apply to all of the content of this website, including the text and illustrations.

'Cockatoo and koala' approx. 1880-1903 Source: N Cayley NLA — ‘Cockatoo and koala’ approx. 1880-1903 Source: N Cayley National Library Australia

The author

Australian Ecological Restoration History is an independent website solely managed and edited by Peter Ardill BA LLB (Uni. Syd.) MA (UNE). Peter developed an interest in contributing to the history of Australian environmental repair after viewing the historically significant Broken Hill regeneration area during a 2016 holiday in western New South Wales. The dearth of accurate information available about the regeneration area and how it actually came into being provoked an interest in learning more about its origins, the people who made it happen and their environmental ideals. Peter is a member of the Australian Association of Bush Regenerators (AABR) and the Society for Ecological Restoration Australasia (SERA).

………