Ecological Restoration in the Deep Sea: Desiderata

Type Article
Date 2014-02
Language English
Author(s) Van Dover C. L.1, Aronson J.2, Pendleton L.3, Smith S.4, Arnaud-Haond SophieORCID5, Moreno-Mateos D.6, Barbier E.7, Billett D.8, Bowers K.9, Danovaro R.10, Edwards A.11, Kellert S.12, Morato T.13, 14, Pollard E.15, Rogers A.16, Warner R.17
Affiliation(s) 1 : Duke Univ, Nicholas Sch Environm, Marine Lab, Beaufort, NC 28516 USA.
2 : CNRS, Ctr Ecol Fonct & Evolut, UMR 5175, F-34033 Montpellier, France.
3 : Duke Univ, Nicholas Inst Environm Policy Solut, Durham, NC 27708 USA.
4 : Nautilus Minerals, Milton, Qld, Australia.
5 : IFREMER, F-34203 Sete, France.
6 : Stanford Univ, Woodside, CA 94062 USA.
7 : Dept Econ & Finance, Laramie, WY 82071 USA.
8 : Univ Southampton, Natl Oceanog Ctr, Southampton SO14 3ZH, Hants, England.
9 : Biohabitats, N Charleston, SC 29405 USA.
10 : Polytech Univ Marche, Dept Life & Environm Sci, I-601321 Ancona, Italy.
11 : Newcastle Univ, Sch Biol, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 7RU, Tyne & Wear, England.
12 : Yale Univ, Sch Forestry & Environm Studies, New Haven, CT 06511 USA.
13 : Univ Acores, Dept Oceanog & Pescas, Ctr IMAR, P-9901862 Horta, Portugal.
14 : LARSyS Associated Lab, P-9901862 Horta, Portugal.
15 : EURC, Biodivers Consultancy, Cambridge CB2 1RR, England.
16 : Dept Zool, Oxford OX1 3PS, England.
17 : Univ Wollongong, Australian Natl Ctr Ocean Resources & Secur, North Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia.
Source Marine Policy (0308-597X) (Elsevier Sci Ltd), 2014-02 , Vol. 44 , P. 98-106
DOI 10.1016/j.marpol.2013.07.006
WOS© Times Cited 98
Note This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivative Works License, which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Keyword(s) Deep-sea resource use, Restoration science, Marine policy, Hydrothermal vents, Cold-water corals
Abstract An era of expanding deep-ocean industrialization is before us, with policy makers establishing governance frameworks for sustainable management of deep-sea resources while scientists learn more about the ecological structure and functioning of the largest biome on the planet. Missing from discussion of the stewardship of the deep ocean is ecological restoration. If existing activities in the deep sea continue or are expanded and new deep-ocean industries are developed, there is need to consider what is required to minimize or repair resulting damages to the deep-sea environment. In addition, thought should be given as to how any past damage can be rectified. This paper develops the discourse on deep-sea restoration and offers guidance on planning and implementing ecological restoration projects for deep-sea ecosystems that are already, or are at threat of becoming, degraded, damaged or destroyed. Two deep-sea restoration case studies or scenarios are described (deep-sea stony corals on the Darwin Mounds off the west coast of Scotland, deep-sea hydrothermal vents in Manus Basin, Papua New Guinea) and are contrasted with on-going saltmarsh restoration in San Francisco Bay. For these case studies, a set of socio-economic, ecological, and technological decision parameters that might favor (or not) their restoration are examined. Costs for hypothetical restoration scenarios in the deep sea are estimated and first indications suggest they may be two to three orders of magnitude greater per hectare than costs for restoration efforts in shallow-water marine systems.
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Van Dover C. L., Aronson J., Pendleton L., Smith S., Arnaud-Haond Sophie, Moreno-Mateos D., Barbier E., Billett D., Bowers K., Danovaro R., Edwards A., Kellert S., Morato T., Pollard E., Rogers A., Warner R. (2014). Ecological Restoration in the Deep Sea: Desiderata. Marine Policy, 44, 98-106. Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2013.07.006 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00153/26421/