Handbook of Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering

Majeti Narasimha Vara Prasad

• Publisher: Wiley
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN:
  9781119678533
• eBook ISBN:
  9781119678601
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Naturwissenschaften
• Subtopic: Organische Chemie

Learn from this integrated approach to the management and restoration of ecosystems edited by an international leader in the field 

The Handbook of Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering delivers a comprehensive overview of the latest research and practical developments in the rapidly evolving fields of ecological and ecosystem engineering. Beginning with an introduction to the theory and practice of ecological engineering and ecosystem services, the book addresses a wide variety of issues central to the restoration and remediation of ecological environments. 

The book contains fulsome analyses of the restoration, rehabilitation, conservation, sustainability, reconstruction, remediation, and reclamation of ecosystems using ecological engineering techniques. Case studies are used to highlight practical applications of the theory discussed within. 

The material in the Handbook of Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering is particularly relevant at a time when the human population is dramatically rising, and the exploitation of natural resources is putting increasing pressure on planetary ecosystems. The book demonstrates how modern scientific ecology can contribute to the greening of the environment through the inclusion of concrete examples of successful applied management. The book also includes: 

• A thorough discussion of ecological engineering and ecosystem services theory and practice 
• An exploration of ecological and ecosystem engineering economic and environmental revitalization 
• An examination of the role of soil meso and macrofauna indicators for restoration assessment success in a rehabilitated mine site 
• A treatment of the mitigation of urban environmental issues by applying ecological and ecosystem engineering 
• A discussion of soil fertility restoration theory and practice 

Perfect for academic researchers, industry scientists, and environmental engineers working in the fields of ecological engineering, environmental science, and biotechnology, the Handbook of Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering also belongs on the bookshelves of environmental regulators and consultants, policy makers, and employees of non-governmental organizations working on sustainable development. 

 

1
Ecological Engineering and Ecosystem Services – Theory and Practice

Fábio Carvalho Nunes¹, Thaís de Marchi Soares², Lander de Jesus Alves³, José Rodrigues de Souza Filho⁴, Cláudia Cseko Nolasco de Carvalho⁵, and Majeti Narasimha Vara Prasad⁶

¹ Academic Department, Federal Institute Baiano (IFBAIANO), Santa Inês, Bahia, Brazil

² Department of Soil Science, University of Sao Paulo, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil

³ Postgraduate Program in Biology and Biotechnology of Microorganisms, State University of Santa Cruz (UESC), Ilhéus, Bahia, Brazil

⁴ Academic Department, Federal Institute Baiano (IFBAIANO), Catu, Bahia, Brazil

⁵ Department of Biology, State University of Alagoas, Santana do Ipanema, Alagoas, Brazil

⁶ School of Life Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, Telangana, India

1.1 Introduction

In vain we try to snatch the veil from Nature;

She remains mysterious even in bright daylight,

Neither the machine nor any mechanism would reveal

The secrets she hid from us.

Source: Goethe, J. Faust, Part One, Trans. © 1987, Oxford University Press.

Humanity has witnessed magnificent technical‐scientific advancements in recent decades. Robots feel the texture of asteroids and smell the atmosphere of Mars, whereas shining dipods dissect the soul of DNA. However, there is a strong existential and ethical imbalance, so much so that some individuals already compare themselves to Olympian gods and feel supralunary,¹ so their relationship with the inner (body–mind) and outer (planet Earth) “house” has profoundly changed; they believe that the total translation of the genetic code, human cloning, and interstellar travels are just a matter of time and would represent the last frontier to transcend time–space, as they would no longer be bound to the same body and planet Earth [2].

Society experiences a double hybris associated with our way of seeing and being in the world; it happens because we believe that everything is knowable since mystery and paradox are just what is not yet known, that everything can be manipulated and resources are unlimited [3], and that the wings of humanity can reach the sun: Icarus syndrome.² When human pride is confronted with the complexity of the Cosmos, it reveals its flight of Icarus, from which perplexity emerges; frustration stems from one's inability to face the abyss imposed by practical life.

The current culture becomes increasingly blind to the mysterious, to the impenetrable in life [4]. This blindness has made systems produced or changed by humanity – called Black Swans by Taleb [5] – increasingly fragile and susceptible to unpredictability. Complex systems created by humanity tend to develop uncontrolled cascades and chains of reactions, which decrease predictability and generate oversizing – the world becomes increasingly technological, although, paradoxically, that makes things even more unpredictable [4].

In contemporary times, it is believed that science can unveil everything, as observed in the advent of Modernity. However, Nature remains mysterious, and it is necessary to humbly acknowledge that “what we observe is not nature itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning” [6] or, according to Johann von Goethe [7], that Nature “has so much freedom that we, despite our knowledge and science, cannot fully penetrate it.”

Indeed, “in vain we try to snatch the veil from Nature,” but it does not mean we should not nourish our understanding of the world. The pursuit of knowledge is a source of light; it helps us better understand the world and ourselves, but we must not let ourselves be blinded to the point of feeling like Moirae³ – who control the thread of life – or like lords of Nature. We are more than its dependents: we are Nature becoming aware of itself.

Ecological engineering has emerged and developed in the fruitful context of technological advancements and environmental questioning of the post‐World War II period. It has developed methods capable of analyzing matter and energy flows in different ecosystems to highlight economies' dependence on natural sources [8], make sustainability feasible, and enable the cultural transformation of human‐Nature relationships.

The concept of ecosystem service has emerged in the wake of ecological engineering development to systematically express, qualify, and quantify the benefits of natural ecosystems for human societies by considering material aspects such as food and raw material supply, as well as immaterial aspects such as culture and religion.

Human beings inhabit the world to nourish the material and immaterial dimensions. We remove natural resources such as water, food, and raw materials from the environment to nourish the material dimension, a process whose direct and indirect adverse impacts vary in magnitudes and range. On the other hand, we do not always need to extract natural resources to nourish the immaterial dimension; our interaction with soil, wind, or mountains is satisfying.

In light of the preceding, it is evident that ecological engineering must go beyond analyzing the dynamics of ecosystems and their contribution to the economy (materials a...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Table of Contents
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• List of Contributors
• Preface
• 1 Ecological Engineering and Ecosystem Services – Theory and Practice
• 2 Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering for Economic‐Environmental Revitalization
• 3 Environmental Issues and Priority Areas for Ecological Engineering Initiatives
• 4 Soil Meso‐ and Macrofauna Indicators of Restoration Success in Rehabilitated Mine Sites
• 5 Ecological Engineering and Green Infrastructure in Mitigating Emerging Urban Environmental Threats
• 6 Urban Environmental Issues and Mitigation by Applying Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering
• 7 Soil Fertility Restoration, Theory and Practice
• 8 Extracellular Soil Enzymes Act as Moderators to Restore Carbon in Soil Habitats
• 9 Ecological Engineering for Solid Waste Segregation, Reduction, and Resource Recovery – A Contextual Analysis in Brazil
• 10 Urban Floods and Mitigation by Applying Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering
• 11 Ecological Engineering and Restoration of Mine Ecosystems
• 12 Ecological Restoration of Abandoned Mine Land: Theory to Practice
• 13 Wetland, Watershed, and Lake Restoration
• 14 Restoration of Riverine Health : An Ecohydrological Approach –Flow Regimes and Aquatic Biodiversity
• 15 Ecosystem Services of the Phoomdi Islands of Loktak, a Dying Ramsar Site in Northeast India
• 16 The Application of Reefs in Shoreline Protection
• 17 Mangroves, as Shore Engineers, Are Nature‐Based Solutions for Ensuring Coastal Protection
• 18 Forest Degradation Prevention Through Nature‐Based Solutions : An Indian Perspective
• 19 Restoring Ecosystem Services of Degraded Forests in a Changing Climate
• 20 Forest Degradation Prevention
• 21 Use of Plants for Air Quality Improvement
• 22 Phylloremediation for Mitigating Air Pollution
• 23 Green Belts for Sustainable Improvement of Air Quality
• 24 Air Quality Improvement Using Phytodiversity and Plant Architecture
• 25 Information Explosion in Digital Ecosystems and Their Management
• 26 Nanotechnology in Ecological and Ecosystem Engineering
• Index
• End User License Agreement