The road to recovery: a synthesis of outcomes from ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asian forests

Lindsay F. Banin; Elizabeth H. Raine; Lucy M. Rowland; Robin L. Chazdon; Stuart W. Smith; Nur Estya Binte Rahman; Adam Butler; Christopher Philipson; Grahame G. Applegate; E. Petter Axelsson; Sugeng Budiharta; Siew Chin Chua; Mark E. J. Cutler; Stephen Elliott; Elva Gemita; Elia Godoong; Laura L. B. Graham; Robin M. Hayward; Andy Hector; Ulrik Ilstedt; Joel Jensen; Srinivasan Kasinathan; Christopher J. Kettle; Daniel Lussetti; Benjapan Manohan; Colin Maycock; Kang Min Ngo; Michael J. O'Brien; Anand M. Osuri; Glen Reynolds; Yap Sauwai; Stefan Scheu; Mangarah Silalahi; Eleanor M. Slade; Tom Swinfield; David A. Wardle; Charlotte Wheeler; Kok Loong Yeong; David F. R. P. Burslem

doi:10.1098/rstb.2021.0090

The road to recovery: a synthesis of outcomes from ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asian forests

Lindsay F. Banin, Elizabeth H. Raine, Lucy M. Rowland, Robin L. Chazdon, Stuart W. Smith, Nur Estya Binte Rahman, Adam Butler, Christopher Philipson, Grahame G. Applegate, E. Petter Axelsson, Sugeng Budiharta, Siew Chin Chua, Mark E. J. Cutler, Stephen Elliott, Elva Gemita, Elia Godoong, Laura L. B. Graham, Robin M. Hayward, Andy Hector, Ulrik IlstedtJoel Jensen, Srinivasan Kasinathan, Christopher J. Kettle, Daniel Lussetti, Benjapan Manohan, Colin Maycock, Kang Min Ngo, Michael J. O'Brien, Anand M. Osuri, Glen Reynolds, Yap Sauwai, Stefan Scheu, Mangarah Silalahi, Eleanor M. Slade, Tom Swinfield, David A. Wardle, Charlotte Wheeler, Kok Loong Yeong, David F. R. P. Burslem

School of Applied Sciences

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Current policy is driving renewed impetus to restore forests to return ecological function, protect species, sequester carbon and secure livelihoods. Here we assess the contribution of tree planting to ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asia; we synthesize evidence on mortality and growth of planted trees at 176 sites and assess structural and biodiversity recovery of co-located actively restored and naturally regenerating forest plots. Mean mortality of planted trees was 18% 1 year after planting, increasing to 44% after 5 years. Mortality varied strongly by site and was typically ca 20% higher in open areas than degraded forest, with height at planting positively affecting survival. Size-standardized growth rates were negatively related to species-level wood density in degraded forest and plantations enrichment settings. Based on community-level data from 11 landscapes, active restoration resulted in faster accumulation of tree basal area and structural properties were closer to old-growth reference sites, relative to natural regeneration, but tree species richness did not differ. High variability in outcomes across sites indicates that planting for restoration is potentially rewarding but risky and context-dependent. Restoration projects must prepare for and manage commonly occurring challenges and align with efforts to protect and reconnect remaining forest areas. The abstract of this article is available in Bahasa Indonesia in the electronic supplementary material. This article is part of the theme issue 'Understanding forest landscape restoration: reinforcing scientific foundations for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration'.

Original language	English
Article number	20210090
Number of pages	17
Journal	Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Volume	378
Issue number	1867
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2021.0090
Publication status	Published - 14 Nov 2022

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research was funded by a NERC Global Partnerships Seedcorn Fund (grant no. NE/T005092/1) grant to L.F.B., D.F.R.P.B. and L.M.R. to initiate the FOR-RESTOR network, an ongoing collaborative initiative to bring together and disseminate evidence on best practice for tropical forest restoration. L.M.R. was additionally supported by a NERC Independent Research Fellowship (grant no. NE/N014022). N.E.B.R., S.W.S. and D.A.W. were supported by the Singapore Ministry of Education Research Fund (grant no. MOE2018-T2-2-156) and D.A.W. by National Research Foundation Singapore (grant no. NRF2019-ITC001-001). U.I. acknowledges funding from the Swedish Research Council FORMAS (grant number FORMAS-2016-20005). Acknowledgements

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors.

Keywords

biodiversity
carbon
degradation
nature-based solutions
regeneration
tree planting

Access to Document

10.1098/rstb.2021.0090Licence: CC BY

Cite this

Banin, L. F., Raine, E. H., Rowland, L. M., Chazdon, R. L., Smith, S. W., Rahman, N. E. B., Butler, A., Philipson, C., Applegate, G. G., Axelsson, E. P., Budiharta, S., Chua, S. C., Cutler, M. E. J., Elliott, S., Gemita, E., Godoong, E., Graham, L. L. B., Hayward, R. M., Hector, A., ... Burslem, D. F. R. P. (2022). The road to recovery: a synthesis of outcomes from ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asian forests. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 378(1867), Article 20210090. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2021.0090

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title = "The road to recovery: a synthesis of outcomes from ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asian forests",

abstract = "Current policy is driving renewed impetus to restore forests to return ecological function, protect species, sequester carbon and secure livelihoods. Here we assess the contribution of tree planting to ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asia; we synthesize evidence on mortality and growth of planted trees at 176 sites and assess structural and biodiversity recovery of co-located actively restored and naturally regenerating forest plots. Mean mortality of planted trees was 18% 1 year after planting, increasing to 44% after 5 years. Mortality varied strongly by site and was typically ca 20% higher in open areas than degraded forest, with height at planting positively affecting survival. Size-standardized growth rates were negatively related to species-level wood density in degraded forest and plantations enrichment settings. Based on community-level data from 11 landscapes, active restoration resulted in faster accumulation of tree basal area and structural properties were closer to old-growth reference sites, relative to natural regeneration, but tree species richness did not differ. High variability in outcomes across sites indicates that planting for restoration is potentially rewarding but risky and context-dependent. Restoration projects must prepare for and manage commonly occurring challenges and align with efforts to protect and reconnect remaining forest areas. The abstract of this article is available in Bahasa Indonesia in the electronic supplementary material. This article is part of the theme issue 'Understanding forest landscape restoration: reinforcing scientific foundations for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration'.",

keywords = "biodiversity, carbon, degradation, nature-based solutions, regeneration, tree planting",

author = "Banin, {Lindsay F.} and Raine, {Elizabeth H.} and Rowland, {Lucy M.} and Chazdon, {Robin L.} and Smith, {Stuart W.} and Rahman, {Nur Estya Binte} and Adam Butler and Christopher Philipson and Applegate, {Grahame G.} and Axelsson, {E. Petter} and Sugeng Budiharta and Chua, {Siew Chin} and Cutler, {Mark E. J.} and Stephen Elliott and Elva Gemita and Elia Godoong and Graham, {Laura L. B.} and Hayward, {Robin M.} and Andy Hector and Ulrik Ilstedt and Joel Jensen and Srinivasan Kasinathan and Kettle, {Christopher J.} and Daniel Lussetti and Benjapan Manohan and Colin Maycock and Ngo, {Kang Min} and O'Brien, {Michael J.} and Osuri, {Anand M.} and Glen Reynolds and Yap Sauwai and Stefan Scheu and Mangarah Silalahi and Slade, {Eleanor M.} and Tom Swinfield and Wardle, {David A.} and Charlotte Wheeler and Yeong, {Kok Loong} and Burslem, {David F. R. P.}",

note = "Funding Information: This research was funded by a NERC Global Partnerships Seedcorn Fund (grant no. NE/T005092/1) grant to L.F.B., D.F.R.P.B. and L.M.R. to initiate the FOR-RESTOR network, an ongoing collaborative initiative to bring together and disseminate evidence on best practice for tropical forest restoration. L.M.R. was additionally supported by a NERC Independent Research Fellowship (grant no. NE/N014022). N.E.B.R., S.W.S. and D.A.W. were supported by the Singapore Ministry of Education Research Fund (grant no. MOE2018-T2-2-156) and D.A.W. by National Research Foundation Singapore (grant no. NRF2019-ITC001-001). U.I. acknowledges funding from the Swedish Research Council FORMAS (grant number FORMAS-2016-20005). Acknowledgements Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022 The Authors.",

year = "2022",

month = nov,

day = "14",

doi = "10.1098/rstb.2021.0090",

language = "English",

volume = "378",

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Banin, LF, Raine, EH, Rowland, LM, Chazdon, RL, Smith, SW, Rahman, NEB, Butler, A, Philipson, C, Applegate, GG, Axelsson, EP, Budiharta, S, Chua, SC, Cutler, MEJ, Elliott, S, Gemita, E, Godoong, E, Graham, LLB, Hayward, RM, Hector, A, Ilstedt, U, Jensen, J, Kasinathan, S, Kettle, CJ, Lussetti, D, Manohan, B, Maycock, C, Ngo, KM, O'Brien, MJ, Osuri, AM, Reynolds, G, Sauwai, Y, Scheu, S, Silalahi, M, Slade, EM, Swinfield, T, Wardle, DA, Wheeler, C, Yeong, KL & Burslem, DFRP 2022, 'The road to recovery: a synthesis of outcomes from ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asian forests', Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 378, no. 1867, 20210090. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2021.0090

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T1 - The road to recovery

T2 - a synthesis of outcomes from ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asian forests

AU - Banin, Lindsay F.

AU - Raine, Elizabeth H.

AU - Rowland, Lucy M.

AU - Chazdon, Robin L.

AU - Smith, Stuart W.

AU - Rahman, Nur Estya Binte

AU - Butler, Adam

AU - Philipson, Christopher

AU - Applegate, Grahame G.

AU - Axelsson, E. Petter

AU - Budiharta, Sugeng

AU - Chua, Siew Chin

AU - Cutler, Mark E. J.

AU - Elliott, Stephen

AU - Gemita, Elva

AU - Godoong, Elia

AU - Graham, Laura L. B.

AU - Hayward, Robin M.

AU - Hector, Andy

AU - Ilstedt, Ulrik

AU - Jensen, Joel

AU - Kasinathan, Srinivasan

AU - Kettle, Christopher J.

AU - Lussetti, Daniel

AU - Manohan, Benjapan

AU - Maycock, Colin

AU - Ngo, Kang Min

AU - O'Brien, Michael J.

AU - Osuri, Anand M.

AU - Reynolds, Glen

AU - Sauwai, Yap

AU - Scheu, Stefan

AU - Silalahi, Mangarah

AU - Slade, Eleanor M.

AU - Swinfield, Tom

AU - Wardle, David A.

AU - Wheeler, Charlotte

AU - Yeong, Kok Loong

AU - Burslem, David F. R. P.

N1 - Funding Information: This research was funded by a NERC Global Partnerships Seedcorn Fund (grant no. NE/T005092/1) grant to L.F.B., D.F.R.P.B. and L.M.R. to initiate the FOR-RESTOR network, an ongoing collaborative initiative to bring together and disseminate evidence on best practice for tropical forest restoration. L.M.R. was additionally supported by a NERC Independent Research Fellowship (grant no. NE/N014022). N.E.B.R., S.W.S. and D.A.W. were supported by the Singapore Ministry of Education Research Fund (grant no. MOE2018-T2-2-156) and D.A.W. by National Research Foundation Singapore (grant no. NRF2019-ITC001-001). U.I. acknowledges funding from the Swedish Research Council FORMAS (grant number FORMAS-2016-20005). Acknowledgements Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Authors.

PY - 2022/11/14

Y1 - 2022/11/14

N2 - Current policy is driving renewed impetus to restore forests to return ecological function, protect species, sequester carbon and secure livelihoods. Here we assess the contribution of tree planting to ecosystem restoration in tropical and sub-tropical Asia; we synthesize evidence on mortality and growth of planted trees at 176 sites and assess structural and biodiversity recovery of co-located actively restored and naturally regenerating forest plots. Mean mortality of planted trees was 18% 1 year after planting, increasing to 44% after 5 years. Mortality varied strongly by site and was typically ca 20% higher in open areas than degraded forest, with height at planting positively affecting survival. Size-standardized growth rates were negatively related to species-level wood density in degraded forest and plantations enrichment settings. Based on community-level data from 11 landscapes, active restoration resulted in faster accumulation of tree basal area and structural properties were closer to old-growth reference sites, relative to natural regeneration, but tree species richness did not differ. High variability in outcomes across sites indicates that planting for restoration is potentially rewarding but risky and context-dependent. Restoration projects must prepare for and manage commonly occurring challenges and align with efforts to protect and reconnect remaining forest areas. The abstract of this article is available in Bahasa Indonesia in the electronic supplementary material. This article is part of the theme issue 'Understanding forest landscape restoration: reinforcing scientific foundations for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration'.

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KW - biodiversity

KW - carbon

KW - degradation

KW - nature-based solutions

KW - regeneration

KW - tree planting

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