The San Francisco Bay, the biggest estuary on the west coast of North America, was once surrounded by an almost unbroken chain of tidal wetlands, a fecund sieve of ecosystems connecting the land and the Bay. Today, most of these wetlands have disappeared under the demands of coastal development, and those that remain cling precariously to a drastically altered coastline. This volume is a collaborative effort of nearly 40 scholars in which the wealth of scientific knowledge available on tidal wetlands of the San Francisco Estuary is summarized and integrated. This book addresses issues of taxonomy, geomorphology, toxicology, the impact of climate change, ecosystem services, public policy, and conservation, and it is an essential resource for ecologists, environmental scientists, coastal policymakers, and researchers interested in estuaries and conserving and restoring coastal wetlands around the world.

The San Francisco Bay, the biggest estuary on the west coast of North America, was once surrounded by an almost unbroken chain of tidal wetlands, a fecund sieve of ecosystems connecting the land and the Bay. Today, most of these wetlands have disappeared under the demands of coastal development, and those that remain cling precariously to a drastically altered coastline. This volume is a collaborative effort of nearly 40 scholars in which the wealth of scientific knowledge available on tidal wetlands of the San Francisco Estuary is summarized and integrated. This book addresses issues of taxonomy, geomorphology, toxicology, the impact of climate change, ecosystem services, public policy, and conservation, and it is an essential resource for ecologists, environmental scientists, coastal policymakers, and researchers interested in estuaries and conserving and restoring coastal wetlands around the world.

Many coastal tidal marshes have been significantly degraded by roadways and other projects that restrict tidal flows, limiting their ability to provide vital ecosystem services including support of fish and wildlife populations, flood protection, water quality maintenance, and open space. Tidal Marsh Restoration provides the scientific foundation and practical guidance necessary for coastal zone stewards to initiate salt marsh tidal restoration programs. The book compiles, synthesizes, and interprets the current state of knowledge on the science and practice of salt marsh restoration, bringing together leaders across a range of disciplines in the sciences (hydrology, soils, vegetation, zoology), engineering (hydraulics, modeling), and public policy, with coastal managers who offer an abundance of practical insight and guidance on the development of programs. The work presents in-depth information from New England and Atlantic Canada, where the practice of restoring tidal flow to salt marshes has been ongoing for decades, and shows how that experience can inform restoration efforts around the world. Students and researchers involved in restoration science will find the technical syntheses, presentation of new concepts, and identification of research needs to be especially useful as they formulate research and monitoring questions, and interpret research findings. Tidal Marsh Restoration is an essential work for managers, planners, regulators, environmental and engineering consultants, and others engaged in planning, designing, and implementing projects or programs aimed at restoring tidal flow to tide-restricted or diked salt marshes.

Efforts to direct the recovery of damaged sites and landscape date back as far as the 1930s. If we fully understood the conditions and controlling variables at restoration sites, we would be better equipped to predict the outcomes of restoration efforts. If there were no constraints, we could merely plant the restoration site and walk away. However

Creating and Restoring Wetlands: From Theory to Practice describes the challenges and opportunities relating to the restoration of freshwater and estuarine wetlands in natural, agricultural, and urban environments in the coming century. The underpinnings of restoration, driven by ecological (disturbance, dispersal, succession) theory, are described and applied to various activities (restoring hydrology, soils, and biota) that are used to improve the short- and long-term success of wetland restoration projects. Unforeseen problems that hinder restoration efforts and solutions to these problems are discussed in this comprehensive book that contains five sections and 13 chapters that include an introduction describing the defining characteristics of wetland – hydrology, soils, biota, the role of theory in guiding wetland succession, ecosystem development following restoration, and differentiating wetland reclamation, restoration, and creation, restoration of various estuarine and freshwater wetlands, case studies of estuarine and freshwater restoration and large-scale restoration, and finally, the future of wetland restoration. Explicitly links ecological theory to restoration efforts in a variety of freshwater and estuarine, natural, agricultural, urban landscapes, and wetland ecosystems Contains case studies of small- and large-scale restoration activities ensuring relevance to individuals and organizations Illustrates successes as well as failures of freshwater and estuarine wetland restorations in order to learn from them Presents specific information on hydrology, biota, wetland succession, ecosystem development following restoration, and more