Good News About Nature Round-up
Personal Experiences Motivate Environmental Action - University of Michigan
A recent study published by UM researchers found that personal experiences with nature motivate environmental action better than warnings about the effects of inaction.
“Drawing on personal experiences with wildlife builds awareness and associations with species that may increase later motivation to help in their conservation,” said U-M psychology professor Stephanie Preston, the study’s lead author.
Cleaner air has boosted U.S. corn and soybean yields, Stanford-led research shows - Stanford News
Pollution reductions from 1999 to 2019 increased corn and soybean yields by 20%, with an estimated value of $5 billion yearly. This study focused on a nine-state region, which included Minnesota as well as nearby states.
“Air pollution impacts have been hard to measure in the past, because two farmers even just 10 miles apart can be facing very different air quality. By using satellites, we were able to measure very fine scale patterns and unpack the role of different pollutants,” said study lead author David Lobell, the Gloria and Richard Kushel Director of the Center on Food Security and the Environment.
This study used computer modeling to examine the Le Sueur River Basin in southern Minnesota, a watershed subject to runoff from intense agricultural production of corn and soybeans. It compared four approaches to managing runoff: cover crops, high-precision fertilizer application, reduced tillage, constructed wetlands and ravine tip management. Of these four constructed wetlands performed the best.
"This work shows that we can't make real progress toward our goals for improving water quality in agricultural areas with more of a business-as-usual approach," said study co-author Jacques Finlay, a professor in the College of Biological Sciences at the University of Minnesota. "Instead, conservation actions, and the investments that support them, can be more effective if they consider the interactions that underlie the source of water pollution and how different management options influence them."
Could miniature forests help air-condition cities? - The Economist
Dr. Miyawaki Akira, a plant ecologist at Yokohama National University, in Japan, has developed a method of building mini-forests in urban areas. These mini-forests were first developed in Japan, then expanded to urban hubs worldwide. Dr. Akira has overseen the creation of over 1500 mini-forests.
Using a wide mix of species, not all of them trees, is important. Most plantations, having been created for commercial purposes, are monocultures. But trees, shrubs and ground-covering herbs all coexist in natural forests, and the Miyawaki versions therefore have this variety from the start. Not only does that pack more greenery into a given space, it also encourages the plants to grow faster—for there are lots of positive ecological relations in a natural forest. Vines rely on trees for support. Trees give shade to shrubs. And, beneath the surface, plants’ roots interact with each other, and with soil fungi, in ways that enable a nutrient exchange which is only now beginning to be understood.
After selecting their species, the gardeners gather seeds and plant them at random, rather than in rows. And they plant at high density. The seedlings therefore have to fight for sunlight, so only the fastest-growing survive. Trees planted in this way can shoot up as much as 14% more rapidly than normal. For three years, the gardeners water and nurture their handiwork. Then it is left to fend for itself. A couple of decades later the whole thing reaches maturity.
10 Golden Rules for Tree Planting - BBC News
While initiatives to plant more trees are good for reforestation, leaders should heed advice about what kind of trees work best for the local ecosystem. In the UK, Botanic Gardens Conservation International offers the following 10 Golden Rules for successful reforestation. Our favorite rule:
Put local people at the heart of tree-planting projects
Studies show that getting local communities on board is key to the success of tree-planting projects. It is often local people who have most to gain from looking after the forest in the future.