A Pilot Project to Limit the Human Impacts on the Fragile Antarctic Biota: Mitigation of a Runway through Vegetation Transplantation
| Autor: | Francesco Malfasi, Stefano Ponti, Nicoletta Cannone |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences Geography Planning and Development TJ807-830 Scientific experiment Management Monitoring Policy and Law TD194-195 biological conservation 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Renewable energy sources Boulder clay medicine GE1-350 Ecosystem vegetation transplantation 0105 earth and related environmental sciences flora and vegetation runway airstrip mitigation of anthropogenic impacts Environmental effects of industries and plants Renewable Energy Sustainability and the Environment business.industry Environmental resource management Biota Priority areas Environmental sciences Transplantation management decisions Environmental science Runway medicine.symptom business Vegetation (pathology) Biological conservation Flora and vegetation Management decisions Mitigation of anthropogenic impacts Runway airstrip Vegetation transplantation |
| Zdroj: | Sustainability Volume 13 Issue 2 Sustainability, Vol 13, Iss 811, p 811 (2021) |
| ISSN: | 2071-1050 |
| DOI: | 10.3390/su13020811 |
| Popis: | Background: Antarctica is among the world&rsquo s last great wildernesses, but the anthropogenic activities and associated infrastructures threaten its fragile biota. We quantify the impact of the construction of a 2200 m long gravel runway airstrip for airfreight operations of the Italian research station on vegetation ecosystems at Boulder Clay (continental Antarctica). We propose a pilot project to mitigate this impact through the transplantation of vegetation from the runway to safe sites. Methods: A vegetation field survey was performed through phytosociological relevé s and vegetation mapping and data were analyzed through multivariate analysis. Results: We quantify the destructive impact of the runway construction on the flora and vegetation of Boulder Clay. Based on vegetation characteristics, 28 priority areas were transplanted from the runway to safe sites, with 89% of survival. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first time that vegetation transplantation was performed in Antarctica to mitigate the consequences of human actions, as formerly it was used only for scientific experiments. This pilot project provides a tool to support management decisions, involving the quantitative evaluation of the infrastructure impacts and showing the suitability of practical mitigation actions. This pilot project proposes a practical tool exportable to all Antarctica and beyond and suggests to link the permissions&rsquo release for the new infrastructures in Antarctica to the realization of specific conservation and mitigation actions. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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