The Waggle
Issue 83.5 How to reset a river to restore wetlands
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Plants and wildlife thrive on the River Aller on National Trust Holnicote Estate, Exmoor, Somerset (UK).
PA Images / Alamy Stock PhotoReconnecting Waters for Resilience | George Biesmans
Imagine a vibrant mosaic of waterscapes and wetlands, thrumming with wildlife, slowing water flow during floods, and drawing down carbon. If you were to visit the Holnicote Estate in Somerset, England, today, that’s the landscape you would see. It’s the fruit of the UK’s first major attempt to “reset” a river by reconnecting it with the surrounding floodplain. The restoration project used a method called Stage 0, which was first used in Oregon, USA. It involved deepening and filling in a 1.2 km managed and straightened section of the River Aller, "resetting” it to its original, pre-human disturbance state. Now, seven hectares of wetlands and waterscapes - the equivalent of over ten soccer pitches - are home to a dazzling diversity of life, from water voles, eels, and lampreys to red kites, swallows, and sparrowhawks. Researchers say aquatic habitat has increased by almost 1,800 percent. What’s more, the landscape responded really well to the UK’s wettest 18-month period on record, acting as a large sponge by absorbing winter floodwater and releasing fresher water in drier periods, thereby protecting communities downstream. The Holnicote project demonstrates how bold restoration can not only boost biodiversity and store carbon but also provide resilience to extreme weather. In light of the recent devastating floods in Central Europe and Spain, it offers a hopeful and urgent solution to a number of the interconnected emergencies we face. To learn more, see the Wetlands Nexus and the Rainmakers Nexus.
The North Atlantic's Largest Marine Protected Area | Juliana Birnbaum
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The Azores is leading Europe with a creation of the largest network of Marine Protected Areas in the North Atlantic! (1 min.)
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The Azores is a Portuguese archipelago of nine volcanic islands located about 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) west of the Iberian peninsula. In a historic move, its regional assembly recently delineated a new marine sanctuary network that will protect the unique biodiversity found within its underwater topography. The area includes hydrothermal vents and seamounts, which form on the boundaries of tectonic plates and provide critical habitats for endangered fish, deep-sea corals, manta rays, dolphins, and migrating whales. The Azores Marine Protected Area (MPA) Network covers nearly 115,830 square miles– the largest MPA in the North Atlantic– and was created through a science-based, participatory process. The aim is to accelerate the 30x30 pledge made by the international community to conserve thirty percent of the planet’s land and waters by 2030. The national government, in consideration of the sanctuary’s impacts on livelihoods, has committed to providing total compensation to fishers for potential losses due to its implementation. Learn more about Marine Protected Areas and other sea-related approaches to climate action by visiting our Nexus database, within the category dedicated to Oceans.
Shaping Tomorrow by Weaving Climate into Curriculum | Hugo Paquin
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The Hyacinth Macaw remains threatened but is vital to Brazil's wetlands. More environmental education will help protect these gentle giants for future generations.
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Knowledge is power, as they say, and a significant lever to foster climate action on a systemic level. That’s the bet Brazil is making by introducing a national climate curriculum into every school by 2025. The decision, celebrated by environmental advocacy groups, has been signed into law and will cover both climate change and biodiversity protection as key elements. Brazil is preparing to be the upcoming host of the COP30 in 2025 and highlighted the potential economic benefits of climate education. By equipping students with knowledge about climate challenges and possible solutions, the nation is ‘’investing in its future capacity for environmental problem-solving and green entrepreneurship.’’ While research and educational resources about climate are improving, they need to be put into context and interpreted by teachers. The North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) notes that 65% of teachers in the United States do not feel prepared to teach climate change, and 26 percent do not see how it aligns with all subjects. With this new curriculum. Brazil is hoping to address this gap within its schools for the benefit of many. Learn more about this topic in the Environmental Education Nexus.
Music Making Forests | Scott Hannan
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A forest in Ecuador could be recognized as the co-author of a song if a petition to the country’s copyright office is successful. (3 mins.)
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A petition has been submitted to Ecuador’s copyright office to recognize the Los Cedros cloud forest, an Ecuadorian forest roughly 15,000 acres (6,070 hectares) in size, as a lawful collaborator in the creation of an original work of art, The Song of the Cedars (5 mins.). The petition is being put forth by the More Than Human Life (MOTH) Project, which advocates for “advancing the rights of humans and non-humans.” The song was composed by musician Cosmo Sheldrake, writer Robert MacFarlane, and field mycologist Giuliana Furci from the Fungi Foundation, a US conservation group. As MacFarlane put it, “This was absolutely and inextricably an act of co-authorship with the set of processes and relations and beings that that forest and its rivers comprise. We were briefly part of that ongoing being of the forest, and we couldn’t have written it without the forest. The forest wrote it with us.” Ecuador was one of the first countries to officially recognize the rights of nature when they recognized their new constitution in 2008, and in 2021, an Ecuadorian constitutional court conferred “personhood” status on the Los Cedros forest. This status helped legally stop the continued mining of the forest that same year. If approved, the motion will set another important legal precedent in the effort to protect and regenerate our natural ecosystems.
Take Action on Nexus
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Photo Credits
1. PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo
2. Lee Dalton / Alamy Stock Photo
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