Transformation Pathways - The recovery and restoration of native vegetation.
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Case studies across Australia, including Mulligans Flat and Goorooyarroo, are presented providing insights in plant community resilience, possible system trajectories. Outcomes of each assessment can be used in adaptive management e.g. 1) inform what direct measures of field-based attributes need to be collected to fill gaps in knowledge and 2) to guide potential management interventions to transition a site toward a desired condition state. Each assessment commences with knowledge of local First Nations land management regimes in the early 1800s and is followed by a detailed local scale systematic chronology of land use and land management regimes and a synthesis of relevant ecological data and information on the responses of the plant community over time with observed impacts of on ground regimes and practices. The framework is based on 22 indicators hierarchically organised into ecological function, structural and compositional criteria. Changes in benchmarked values of criteria and indicators over time are used to track the response of a plant community to land management regimes and practices. A transformation index is calculated over time relative to a fully natural reference state. This process enables a competent ecologist to assess status, change and trend of native vegetation (plant community types). A systematic framework is presented for assessing the outcomes of intentional and unintentional land management practices on the condition components of plant communities. The world over – land management regimes and practices are used to maintain or to transform natural ecosystems by modifying, removing and replacing native vegetation. Equally, management regimes and practices are used to rehabilitate and restore native vegetation (plant community types). Decisions to reconnect fragmented landscapes are informed by such information. Response measures in the framework are populated using relevant data and information from expert elicitation, environmental histories, interviews with skilled subject specialists, long term ecological monitoring programs and multi-spatial and multi-temporal remote sensing datasets.
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Transformation Pathways - The recovery and restoration of native vegetation.
- 1. Transformation pathways – modification, removal and replacement, recovery and restoration of native vegetation – selected case studies Richard Thackway Public lecture presented at Wildbark at Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve, ACT 27 October 2022
- 2. Outline • Concepts and definitions • Why & how land managers change their landscapes • Case studies • A standardised system for assessing and reporting change • Site and fine scale landscapes • Lessons • Conclusions
- 3. Stories, science and frameworks
- 4. Models of ecosystem change Source: Adamson and Fox (1982). Time Change in vegetation indicator Settlement 1000 0 Reference
- 5. 1925 Occupation Relaxation Anthropogenic change Net benefit time 1900 2025 1950 Reference change in vegetation indicator or index 1850 1875 1975 2000 A model of ecosystem change Modified from Hamilton, Brown & Nolan (2008). FWPA PRO7.1050. pg 18 Land use impacts on biodiversity and Life Cycle Analysis
- 6. Estimated pre-1750 Major Vegetation Groups NVIS 2007
- 7. VAST = Vegetation Assets States and Transitions NVIS = National Vegetation Information System VI V IV III II I 0 Native vegetation cover Non-native vegetation cover Increasing modification caused by use and management Transitions = trend Vegetation thresholds Reference for each veg type (NVIS) A framework for assessing & reporting changes in plant communities Condition states Residual or unmodified Naturally bare Modified Transformed Replaced - Adventive Replaced - managed Replaced - removed Thackway & Lesslie (2008) Environmental Management, 42, 572-90 Diagnostic attributes of VAST states: • Vegetation structure • Species composition • Regenerative capacity NVIS
- 8. Condition of plant communities – a snap shot Thackway & Lesslie (2008) Environmental Management, 42, 572-90 NB: Input dataset biophysical naturalness reclassified using VAST framework / replaced / unmodified VAST 2009 Native
- 9. 0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00% 70.00% 80.00% 90.00% 100.00% NVIS MVG and Condition classes VAST 6 VAST 5 VAST 3 VAST 2 VAST 1 VAST 0 2008
- 10. Land managers affect native veg condition Process: Land management regimes /practices are used to influence ecological function and vegetation at sites and the landscape by: • Removing and replacing • Modifying • Enhancing • Restoring • Improving • Maintaining Purpose/s: To deliver an ecosystem service or mix of services (space & time)
- 11. Regulation ofhydrologicalregime Generation offood and fibre Regulation ofclimate / microclimate Generation ofraw materials Recyclingoforganic matter Creating and regulatinghabitats Controllingreproductionand dispersal Why transform? - Multiple benefits (ecosystem services)
- 12. Regulation ofhydrologicalregime Generation offood and fibre Regulation ofclimate / microclimate Generation ofraw materials Recyclingoforganic matter Creating and regulatinghabitats Controllingreproductionand dispersal Why transform? - Multiple benefits (ecosystem services)
- 13. 1925 Occupation Relaxation Anthropogenic change Net benefit time 1900 2025 1950 Reference change in vegetation indicator or index 1850 1875 1975 2000 A model of ecosystem change Modified from Hamilton, Brown & Nolan (2008). FWPA PRO7.1050. pg 18 Land use impacts on biodiversity and Life Cycle Analysis
- 14. Case studies
- 15. Rocky Creek Dam, Lismore NSW Reference state: Sub-tropical rainforest on basalt Source: Ralph Woodford
- 17. Rocky Creek Dam, Lismore NSW 2022 km 0 1 2 3 4 5
- 19. Morton NP, NSW Reference state: Wet and dry heaths on sandstone Source: CSIRO colleages
- 20. 2014 Wet and dry heaths – Tianjara Defence Training Area, Morton NP km 0 1 2 3 4 5
- 21. 1981 Morton NP, NSW Defence Training Area
- 23. ‘T.G.B. Osborn Veg Res’, Koonamore Station, SA Reference state: Low open woodland on hard loam soils a Myoporum platycarpum (false sandalwood) and Alectryon oleifolius (bullock bush, rosewood) Understorey of low chenopod shrubland Source: Russell Sinclair
- 25. Uni SA - Quadrat 100 ‘T.G.B. Osborn Veg Res’, Koonamore Station, SA km 0 1 2 3 4
- 26. Quadrat Q100 Outside the reserve Inside the reserve 2013
- 27. Uni SA Quadrat Q100 Inside the reserve Site has been monitored ~annually for almost 100 years
- 29. ‘Wirilda’, Harrogate, SA Source: Brendan Lay Reference state: Open woodland River red gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), Blue Gum (E. leucoxylon) – Drooping sheoak (Allocasuarina verticillata)
- 30. ‘Wirilda’, Harrogate, SA 1973 Source: Brendan Lay
- 31. ‘Wirilda’, Harrogate, SA 2017 km 0 1 2 3 4 5
- 33. Source: Keith McDonald & Jeanette Kemp North Molle Island, Qld Reference state: Tussock grassland to closed tussock grassland: Themeda triandra and/or Imperata cylindrica and/or Chionachne cyathopoda (RE 8.12.13) recently colonised by Timonius timon (tree ~8m)
- 34. 1945 2021 km 0 1 2 3 4 5 North Molle Island, Qld Source: Keith McDonald & Jeanette Kemp
- 36. Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve – site 1 Reference state: Grassy box woodland Eucalyptus melliodora - E. blakelyi (PCT-ACT16)
- 37. Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve – site 1 km 0 1 2 3 4 5
- 39. Goorooyarroo Nature Reserve - site3 Reference state: Grassy /shrub forest (PCT-ACT25)
- 40. Goorooyarroo Nature Reserve - site3 2016 km 0 1 2 3 4 5
- 42. How does the framework work?
- 43. 1925 Occupation Relaxation Anthropogenic change Net benefit time 1900 2025 1950 Reference change in vegetation indicator or index 1850 1875 1975 2000 A model of ecosystem change Modified from Hamilton, Brown & Nolan (2008). FWPA PRO7.1050. pg 18 Land use impacts on biodiversity and Life Cycle Analysis
- 44. Definitions • Transformation = changes to vegetation condition over time • Change in a plant community type due to effects of land management regimes/practices on: – Structure – Composition – Ecological function • Resilience = capacity of a plant community to recover toward a reference state following land use change relative to unmodified state • Condition, resilience and transformation are assessed relative to fully natural (unmodified) a reference state Vegetation condition components
- 45. Map of 1st nations languages https://aiatsis.gov.au/explore/map-indigenous-australia
- 46. Reference state = Unmodified Source: Carron 1987 integrated with IBRA sub-regions and regions
- 47. Land managers can change 10 key criteria that affect condition of plant communities Soil Vegetation Ecological function Vegetation structure & Species composition 1. Soil hydrological status 2. Soil physical status 3. Soil chemical status 4. Soil biological status 5. Resilience to major natural events 6. Reproductive potential 7. Overstorey structure 8. Understorey structure 9. Overstorey composition 10. Understorey composition
- 48. Generate total indices for ‘transformation site’ for each year of the historical record. Validate using Expert Knowledge • Compile and collate effects of land management on criteria (10) and indicators (22) over time. • Evaluate impacts on the plant community over time Transformation site • Compile and collate effects of land management on criteria (10) and indicators (22) Reference state/sites Score all 22 indicators for ‘transformation site’ relative to the ‘reference site’. 0 = major change; 1 = no change Derive weighted indices for the ‘transformation site’ i.e. regenerative capacity (55%), vegetation structure (27%) and species composition (18%) by adding predefined indicators General process for tracking change over time
- 49. Condition components (3) Attribute groups (10) Description of loss or gain relative to pre settlement indicator reference state (22) Ecological function Resilience - major natural disturbances Area /size of major natural events Number of major natural events Soil hydrology Soil surface water availability Ground water availability Soil physical state Depth of the A horizon Soil structure Soil nutrient state Nutrient stress – rundown (deficiency) relative to soil fertility Nutrient stress – excess (toxicity) relative to soil fertility Soil biological state Recyclers responsible for maintaining soil porosity and nutrient recycling Surface organic matter, soil crusts Reproductive potential Reproductive potential of overstorey structuring species Reproductive potential of understorey structuring species Vegetation structure Overstorey structure Overstorey top height (mean) of the plant community Overstorey foliage projective cover (mean) of the plant community Overstorey structural diversity (i.e. a diversity of age classes) of the stand Understorey structure Understorey top height (mean) of the plant community Understorey ground cover (mean) of the plant community Understorey structural diversity (i.e. a diversity of age classes) of the plant Species Composition Overstorey composition Densities of overstorey species functional groups Relative number of overstorey species (richness) of indigenous to exotic species Understorey composition Densities of understorey species functional groups Relative number of understorey species (richness) of indigenous to exotic species
- 51. Synthesising information using a hierarchy • Level 1: Scores over time • Level 2: Components • Level 3: Criteria • Level 4: Indicators • Level 5: Field measures/observations (Direct) and Expert /inference models (Indirect)
- 52. -2 -1 0 1 2 3 1901 1904 1907 1910 1913 1916 1919 1922 1925 1928 1931 1934 1937 1940 1943 1946 1949 1952 1955 1958 1961 1964 1967 1970 1973 1976 1979 1982 1985 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 Summer Seasonal rainfall anomaly (Lat -32.404, Long 152.496) -2 -1 0 1 2 3 1901 1904 1907 1910 1913 1916 1919 1922 1925 1928 1931 1934 1937 1940 1943 1946 1949 1952 1955 1958 1961 1964 1967 1970 1973 1976 1979 1982 1985 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 Spring -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 1901 1904 1907 1910 1913 1916 1919 1922 1925 1928 1931 1934 1937 1940 1943 1946 1949 1952 1955 1958 1961 1964 1967 1970 1973 1976 1979 1982 1985 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 Winter -4 -2 0 2 4 6 1901 1904 1907 1910 1913 1916 1919 1922 1925 1928 1931 1934 1937 1940 1943 1946 1949 1952 1955 1958 1961 1964 1967 1970 1973 1976 1979 1982 1985 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000 2003 2006 2009 2012 Autumn Source: BOM
- 53. ~ Shallower soils with lower SOM Ridge Mid-slope Lower slope ~ Moderately deeper soils ~ Deeper soils with higher SOM Soil landscape units – toposequence Upper slope SOM = Soil organic matter
- 55. • Must establish a network of trusted collaborators • Ecologists, land managers, academics, research scientists, environmental historians, government agencies • Inputs • Reference state • Historical record of land use & Land management practices • Historical record of major natural events e.g. droughts, fires, floods, cyclones, average rainfall 1900-2012 • Observed interactions e.g. rabbits, sheep and drought • Observations and direct measurements of effects • Include written, oral, artistic, photographic and time series remote sensing • Long term ecological monitoring sites Lessons: Resources needed at site level
- 56. Lessons: Scaling up from site to the landscape 1. Constrain assessments to soil landscape units because this approximates management regimes of the land manager 2. Must understand monthly and seasonal rainfall 3. Remote sensing is only part of the solution – a) Some measures of remote sensing e.g. greenness of crown health may not be directly related to vegetation condition 4. Tracking outcomes of management interventions a) Must collect on-ground data and have a model/s for linking change to datasets derived from remote sensing
- 57. Lessons: Importance of dynamics Assume rainfall is main driver of natural system dynamics • Period 1900 – 2013 – also BOM sites • Average seasonal rainfall (summer, autumn, …) • Rainfall anomaly is calculated above and below the mean
- 58. Certainty level standards used to compile a systematic chronology of records Certainty level standards Spatial precision (Scale) Temporal precision (Year of observation) Attribute accuracy (Land use, land management practices, effects on condition) HIGH "Definite” Reliable direct quantitative data. Code: 1 Reliable direct quantitative data. Code: 4 Reliable direct quantitative data. Code: 7 MEDIUM "Probable " Direct (with qualifications) or strong indirect data. Code: 2 Direct (with qualifications) or strong indirect data. Code: 5 Direct (with qualifications) or strong indirect data. Code: 8 LOW "Possible" Limited qualitative and possibly contradictory observations. More data needed. Code: 3 Limited qualitative and possibly contradictory observations. More data needed. Code: 6 Limited qualitative and possibly contradictory observations. More data needed. Code: 9
- 59. Conclusions • The framework: – Reference states published by govt agencies for plant community types are not always helpful – Provides a basis for collating ecological data information from qualitative and quantitative sources (spatial, temporal) – Assists in collating a systematic chronology from multiple sources – Helps integrate complex sources of information on land management practices/regimes and their ecological responses – Helps decision makers understand land use impacts at site and landscape levels – Can inform discussions about how a landscape might be restored/ regenerated – Provides an accounting tool for reporting change and trend in the transformation of vegetation types at sites - used in • National State of the Forests Report (2013) • Regional Environmental Accounts (Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists 2015)
- 60. Acknowledgements • Many public and private land managers, land management agencies, consultants and researchers have assisted in the development of the framework and with case studies
- 62. Cumberland SF, NSW Case study
- 63. 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 scores years Cumberland State Forest _comparts_3a7a7b7c Ecological Function Vegetation Structure Species Composition Transformation score NSW, SB Bioregion, Cumberland SF, ex-comp 3a, 7a, 7b, 7c Reference pre-European: Sydney Blue Gum High Forest Commenced managing area for recreation. Weed control. Arboretum abandoned Cleared & sown to improved pasture for grazing & orchard Commenced grazing native pastures Dharug indigenous people manage the area Area gazetted as State Forest, commenced planting arboretum Area logged for building houses and fences Commenced managing area as a future production forest. Weed control Explorers traverse the area and site selected Ceased grazing. Area purchased as a future working forest Published 2012
- 64. 0% 20% 40% 60% 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Ecological Function 0% 10% 20% 30% 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Vegetation Structure 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Species Composition NSW, SB Bioregion, Cumberland SF, ex-comp 3a, 7a, 7b, 7c Reference pre-European: Sydney Blue Gum High Forest Components
- 65. 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Resilience - major disturbances 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Soil Hydology 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Soil Physical 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Soil Nutrients 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Soil Biology 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 Reproductive Potential Criteria #1 Criteria #2 Criteria #3 Criteria #4 Criteria #5 Criteria #6
- 66. NSW, SB Bioregion, Cumberland SF, ex-comp 3a, 7a, 7b, 7c Vegetation structure Indicators: #13: Height #14: Foliage cover #15: Age structure Indicators: #16: Height #17: Foliage cover #18: Age structure Criteria #7 Criteria #8
- 67. NSW, SB Bioregion, Cumberland SF, Transect 2 (ex-comp 3a, 7a, 7b, 7c) Species composition Criteria #9 Criteria #10
- 68. 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000 2050 scores years Cumberland State Forest _comparts_3a7a7b7c Ecological Function Vegetation Structure Species Composition Transformation score NSW, SB Bioregion, Cumberland SF, ex-comp 3a, 7a, 7b, 7c Reference pre-European: Sydney Blue Gum High Forest Commenced managing area for recreation. Weed control. Arboretum abandoned Cleared & sown to improved pasture for grazing & orchard Commenced grazing native pastures Dharug indigenous people manage the area Area gazetted as State Forest, commenced planting arboretum Area logged for building houses and fences Commenced managing area as a future production forest. Weed control Explorers traverse the area and site selected Ceased grazing. Area purchased as a future working forest Published 2012
Editor's Notes
- Source: Russell Sinclair