Ecological restoration success: a policy analysis understanding

This article discusses how ecological restoration success can be understood and evaluated using a policy analysis lens. First, this article details a conceptual tool that helps to develop a more encompassing set of criteria to assess restoration activities that provide socioeconomic benefits. Second, by broadening the understanding of restoration success and how it can be evaluated, it allows a more critical view of evaluation itself and its uses as a policy tool. A table is presented that can help practitioners reveal preferences and clarify the aims and objectives of particular initiatives. The table also sensitizes practitioners to the complexity of the links between restoration rationales and evaluation criteria, which in turn may open up much needed discussion and dialogue between restoration participants about the underlying values an actor may wish to promote. It heightens awareness of the fact that evaluation methods need to recognize that restoration is driven by multiple rationales often in the same project, both process driven and output oriented, which in turn can change over time. Adding process and output criteria together may also raise issues of priority. Evaluation criteria thus need to be assigned in ways that reflect these multiplicities, while at the same time recognizing that some restoration values might be conflictual and that there may be winners and losers. Furthermore, judgement about “failure” of a project can change as new goals emerge in delivery and implementation. Ecological restoration evaluation should therefore be ongoing, contextual, and not a one-off event

Policy language in restoration ecology

elating restoration ecology to policy is one of the aims of the Society for Ecological Restoration and its journal Restoration Ecology. As an interdisciplinary team of researchers in both ecological science and political science, we have struggled with how policy-relevant language is and could be deployed in restoration ecology. Using language in scientific publications that resonates with overarching policy questions may facilitate linkages between researcher investigations and decision-makers' concerns on all levels. Climate change is the most important environmental problem of our time and to provide policymakers with new relevant knowledge on this problem is of outmost importance. To determine whether or not policy-specific language was being included in restoration ecology science, we surveyed the field of restoration ecology from 2008 to 2010, identifying 1,029 articles, which we further examined for the inclusion of climate change as a key element of the research. We found that of the 58 articles with “climate change” or “global warming” in the abstract, only 3 identified specific policies relevant to the research results. We believe that restoration ecologists are failing to include themselves in policy formation and implementation of issues such as climate change within journals focused on restoration ecology. We suggest that more explicit reference to policies and terminology recognizable to policymakers might enhance the impact of restoration ecology on decision-making processes

Environmental protection in Swedish forestry : a study of the implementation process

According to the Swedish Forestry Act, environmental protection is required within forest operations regardless of forest ownership. This thesis examines the extent to which regulations issued by the National Board of Forestry are implemented in clearcuttings. Different factors contributing to the outcome of environmental protection are analyzed both from a top-down and a bottom-up perspec­tive. Empirically, the study combines field investigation of clearcuts, interviews with implementing actors, and evaluation of written prescriptions and advice on environ­mental protection. The Swedish forest-environmental legislation and implementation process is also compared to that of the U.S. and, especially, to the state of Cali­fornia . Conflicting goals within the Forestry Act and vague environmental guidelines leave the implementing agency officers with great discretion. Steering attempts by the Forestry Agency are in terms of friendly advice and information. No breaches of the regulations were taken to court during 1980-1986 although this is formally possible. There is an average compliance of approximately fifty per cent of the required environmental measures. Aesthetic values are taken into account to a greater extent than pure floristic and faunistic ones. Economic considerations and harvest technology contribute to a low degree of environmental protection. Forest machines are inadequately suited for protecting single, environmentally valuable trees and they frequently cause deep tracks. Inadequate environmental knowledge and insufficient pre-harvest environmental planning also affect environ­mental performance negatively. Generally, economic considerations contribute to the low priority to environ­mental protection given by the implementing actors compared to timber production. Economic inducements counteract environmental protection. It is generally rare that environmentalists and other public interests affected by forest operations are consulted. Environmentalists however influence indirectly through political pressure to legislate, participation in the consultation process before legislation is enacted, and mass-media attention.digitalisering@um

¿Proyecto o proceso?: quince años de experiencia de la Agenda 21 Local en Suecia

Lan honek, Suediako esperientzian oinarrituta, Tokiko Agenda 21 (aurrerantzean, TA 21) delakoaren garapen-potentziala iraupen luzeko prozesu gisa aztertuko du. Duela hamabost urte, Suedia TA 21 martxan jarri zuten herrialdeetako bat izan zen. Horrek azaltzen du zergatik, denboraren poderioz, gauzatu zen Suedian Europako Tokiko Agenda 21 delakoaren jarduera-maila handiena. Denboraldi horretan, gobernu zentralak finantza-laguntza handiagoa bideratu du TA 21 delakorako, baina, gero eta ugariagoak diren garapen iraunkorraren aldeko tokiko ekimenak gero eta ugariagoak izan arren, eta arrakasta orokorra izan duten arren, kontua da nolabaiteko nekea eta jarduera txikiagoa antzeman dela azken urteotan, eta horrek Agendaren beraren iraunkortasunaren inguruan galde egiteko bide ematen duela: prozesu hau iraunkorra da ala, beharbada, iraupen laburreko proiektua? Zer ikas daiteke Suediako esperientziatik?This article will discuss the potential of Local Agenda 21 as a lasting process, drawing from the Swedish experience. LA 21 in Sweden had both an early start and a high proportion of LA 21 activity. To date, Sweden has implemented LA 21 for almost fifteen years, have been tested. Over time, central government has increased its financial support to LA 21, but despite a general success in increased local initiatives towards sustainable development, there are also signs of a certain fatigue and less activity in recent years. The question thus arises: How sustainable might Local Agenda 21 become? Is it a lasting process, or is it rather a short-lived project? What might countries that have come less far learn from the Swedish experience?Este trabajo discutirá, a partir de la experiencia sueca, el potencial de desarrollo de la Agenda 21 Local (A21L, en adelante) como un proceso de larga duración. Suecia fue uno de los primeros países en implantar la A21L, lo que explicaría que con el paso del tiempo se registrase en Suecia una elevada proporción de actividad de la A21L europea. Hasta el momento, la A21L lleva implantada ininterrumpidamente en Suecia quince años. Durante este periodo, el gobierno central ha aumentado el apoyo financiero a la A21L, pero, a pesar del éxito general de las cada vez más numerosas iniciativas locales a favor del desarrollo sostenible, lo cierto es que aparecen signos de cierta fatiga y de una menor actividad en los últimos años, lo que da lugar al interrogante acerca de la sostenibilidad de la misma Agenda 21 Local. ¿Es ésta un proceso duradero o más bien un proyecto de corta duración? ¿Qué pueden aprender de la experiencia sueca aquellos países que no han llegado tan lejos

Kommunalt naturskydd i lokala naturvårdssatsningen (LONA)

Den lokala naturvårdssatsningen (LONA) skapades av regeringen 2004 för att stimulera kommunernas arbete med naturvård och friluftsliv. 300 miljoner kronor fördelades av staten på 1530 projekt i 261 kommuner under åren 2004-2006 och minst lika mycket satsades av kommuner och lokala föreningar. Från 2010 fortsätter LONA med 50 statliga miljoner kronor per år på obestämd tid, grundat på tidigare positiva utvärderingar av programmets resultat i form av ökat nyttjande och engagemang samt ökad delaktighet på lokal nivå i naturvården. I denna studie undersöks hur LONA-stödet påverkat kommunernas arbete med att bilda kommunala naturreservat. Analys av LONA-databasen kombineras med en enkät ställd till samtliga Sveriges kommuner, fyra fallstudier i Örnsköldsvik, Falun, Mellerud och Sollentuna samt kompletterande intervjuer med olika nyckelpersoner. Drygt hälften av kommunerna uppger att de bildat kommunala naturreservat, som främst handlar om att tillgodose behov av områden för friluftsliv och om att vårda och bevara värdefulla naturmiljöer. De flesta kommunala naturreservat är dessutom tätortsnära. Studien visar att den politiska viljan i kommunen, resurser för köp och förvaltning av mark samt tid för handläggning utgör hinder när inrättandet av ett naturreservat är aktuellt. LONA var ofta inte avgörande för bildandet av reservat, eftersom många kommuner redan var igång med reservatsprocesser före LONA startade. För cirka 40 procent av kommunerna med ett LONA- finansierat reservat har bidraget varit betydelsefullt: för att öka det politiska intresset, sätta igång processerna kring naturreservat, och för att genomföra åtgärder i reservaten. LONAstödet har i genomförandet av reservaten lett till en kvalitetsförbättring för skötselplaner och anläggningar samt ökade informationsåtgärder. Fallstudierna indikerar att LONA dessutom frigjort extra resurser till handläggning vid reservatsbildandet. Vid köp av mark har markåtkomstbidrag nyttjats av en tredjedel av kommunerna som för de flesta varit avgörande för att kunna bilda reservatet. Slutsatsen är att LONA spelat en viktig roll i att katalysera lokalt områdesskydd särskilt i kommuner där naturreservatsprocessen ännu inte påbörjats och där bidragit till att öka intresset och förankringen hos lokala politiker för naturskydd. LONA kan med sina 25 miljoner kronor till 119 områdesskyddsprojekt därmed ses som ett effektivt styrmedel inom naturskyddet, där tätortsnära områden med naturvärden skyddas och på så sätt kan användas av många människor i deras vardagsliv. LONA bör också ses som ett viktigt verktyg för att leva upp till de internationella åtagandena enligt konventionen för biologisk mångfald om ökat skydd, delaktighet och inflytande på lokal nivå. I framtiden bör LONA utvecklas t.ex. genom temasatsningar och genom regionala konferenser för att lyfta fram vinsterna med områdesskydd och tätortsnära natur.

A Policy Analysis Perspective on Ecological Restoration

Using a simple stages model of the policy process, we explore the politics of ecological restoration using an array of examples drawn across sector, different size and scale, and from different countries. A policy analysis perspective reveals how, at both the program and project levels, ecological restoration operates within a complex and dynamic interplay between technical decision making, ideologies, and interest politics. Viewed through the stages model, restoration policy involves negotiating nature across stages in the policy making process, including agenda setting, policy formulation, implementation, and evaluation. The stages model is a useful heuristic devise; however, this linear model assumes that policy makers approach the issue rationally. In practice, ecological restoration policy takes place in the context of different distributions of power between the various public and private actors involved at the different stages of restoration policy making. This allows us to reiterate the point that ecological restoration is best seen not only as a technical task but as a social and political project