The result of a slow process over hundreds of years, like that of old growth forests, is the resilience of Grasslands.
The study was published in the journal Science in August of 2022.
Over a long time, old growth grassland have a unique set of characteristics. "Recovering grasslands don't have the same species or the same characteristics as they did prior to soil tilling or tree planting, and they take centuries to develop," said the senior author of the paper. We need to conserve the ancient grassland that are still intact.
An expert in the field of North American grassland, Suding collaborated with other experts from around the world to evaluate the current state of global grassland science, preservation and restoration.
Grassland provides habitat for a wide variety of animals and plants and contributes to the livelihoods of over 1 billion people. They can be more resilient than forests in the face of a rapidly changing climate.
Over the past couple of centuries, ancient grassland around the world have mostly been converted into farmland or used to grow trees.
The researchers found that the grassland can be destroyed very quickly, but it can take a long time for the grassland to be fully recovered. The importance of preserving the world's remaining untouched grassland is emphasized by the findings.
Many of the unique diversity and belowground characteristics will never return if you plant trees in an older grassland or till it for agriculture. It is irreversible.
Time is needed for restoration.
Grasslands store most of their material underground in roots that can reach as much as 20 feet deep. About a third of all carbon stored on land is hidden by this unseen physical presence. In comparison to forests, grasslands areunderappreciated. It is out of mind if it is not seen.
Grassland restoration can take a leaf out of the forest's book.
"'Old growth' is not only a term for forests, but also applies to grassland as well," said co-author Elise Buisson, who co-authored that finding in a 2015 publication.
The underground structures of old growth grasslands are unique. The old growth ecosystems provide a model for restoration efforts.
Grassland restoration used to focus on distributing seeds onto the landscape and stepping aside. It takes more than a hands-off approach to succeed, according to the new analysis. Grassland may need more of a step-by-step recipe approach to restoration instead of tossing all the ingredients into a crockpot.
Restoration is more of guiding a trajectory. The grassland needs time to grow and be adjusted as the species get established, and some species don't come in right away. There are processes that take time.
Some plants do well in the upper Midwest but not in Colorado because of the dry climate. Many tropical grasses are difficult to reestablish because they don't spread by seed.
There are implications for policy.
A year has passed since the start of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which aims to restore degraded ecosystems around the world to increase biodiversity, help achieve the sustainable development goals and the Paris Climate Agreement. The planting of trees has become a popular method of removing carbon from the atmosphere.
While the UN initiative explicitly states, "Planting trees on natural grassland may destroy more than it creates," as countries make ambitious goals and commitments to restore the environment, Suding worries that for many, this only means planting trees.
If we planted trees in old growth grassland, we would lose a lot of the flora on the planet. I think we need to be a little bit more careful about what we do with the planet.
Grassland is a good choice to use less water, reduce soil erosion and keep carbon in the ground due to climate change. The veteran grassland is the most beneficial in this regard.
They are very resistant to a lot of these threats. Grassland can deliver well in terms of our priorities of carbon storage, water and soil health.
There are additional authors on this publication.
More information: Elise Buisson et al, Ancient grasslands guide ambitious goals in grassland restoration, Science (2022). DOI: 10.1126/science.abo4605 Journal information: Science
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