Guidelines for Reference Model Preparation

摘要

Every ecological restoration project begins with a vision of how the restored ecosystem will eventually appear. Ideally, this vision is expressed in a reference model that is described in a written statement in proj?ect plans (Clewell et al. 2005). Reference models clarify important questions about what should be restored and why. These questions are particularly relevant in rapidly changing environments, where we may have to restore to a new state to accommodate future conditions. In such instances, the reference model grounds us in the present while suggesting the probable direction for change (see pp. 80-87 in Clewell and Aronson 2007). Reference models provide targets toward which to restore and distinguish ecological restoration from other kinds of environmental repair, such as rehabilitation and species introductions, that do not necessarily return ecosystems to historic eco?logical trajectories (Clewell 2009). A reference model can be compared to a restored ecosystem to measure success. However, such comparisons must be tempered to allow for ecosystem dynamics and also for differences in ecologi?cal maturity. Therefore, the reference model serves more as a starting point for planning than as a fixed target.