10.2 Preservation, Conservation and Restoration of Ecosystems
Human activities often bring negative impacts to the natural environment. However, development can be balanced through sustainable environmental management. To ensure natural resources and habitats continue to exist for future generations, three key preventive and remediation measures are taken: ecosystem preservation, ecosystem conservation, and ecosystem restoration.
Learning Objectives
- Define and distinguish between ecosystem preservation, ecosystem conservation, and ecosystem restoration.
- Describe methods of ecosystem preservation, such as gazetting reserved forests.
- Explain the two main strategies of conservation: in situ and ex situ conservation, providing textbook examples for each.
- Identify ecosystem restoration measures, including reforestation and planting cover crops.
- Justify the necessity of preserving, conserving, and restoring ecosystems to achieve sustainable development.
Summary Framework of Ecosystem Management: Preservation, Conservation, and Restoration
A clear distinction between the definitions, strategies (in situ vs ex situ), and practical examples of preservation, conservation, and restoration.
Preservation
Protect ecosystem components so they remain in their natural condition, free from development.
Conservation
Restore and manage environmental resources to save endangered ecosystem components.
Restoration
Renew and restore natural ecosystems that have deteriorated, been damaged, or been destroyed.
Short Explanation
Necessity of Ecosystem Management
In managing development, preventive and remedial measures are taken to ensure sustainable development so that natural resources remain available to benefit all life forms.
Ecosystem Preservation
Ecosystem preservation is the effort to protect ecosystem components so they remain in their natural condition. Reserved forests are gazetted and strictly protected from any development activities. For example, Belum Forest Reserve, Perak, where 90% of the upper part remains unexplored and has yet to become research sites.
Ecosystem Conservation
Ecosystem conservation is the effort to restore environmental resources such as water, forests, energy, air, and minerals so they will continue to exist. It is carried out to save the components of an endangered ecosystem.
In situ Conservation
In situ conservation retains wildlife species in their original natural habitat. Examples include natural parks and marine parks.
Ex situ Conservation
Ex situ conservation keeps wildlife species outside of their original natural habitat. Examples include zoos, botanical parks, and petting zoos such as Lost World Petting Zoo.
Ecosystem Restoration
Ecosystem restoration is the effort for renewing and restoring natural ecosystems that have deteriorated, been damaged, or been destroyed due to human activities. Methods include reforestation, planting cover crops, and restoring mangrove ecosystems.
Practical Applications and Careers
A drainage engineer plans and manages the construction of drainage or sewage systems to maintain environmental stability. In residential developments, conservation and restoration measures such as planting cover crops, retaining natural forest patches, and tree replanting are necessary to stabilise ecosystems.
Try to Answer First
Answer in your mind, then press “Check Answer”.
What is meant by ecosystem preservation?
Differentiate between in situ conservation and ex situ conservation, giving one textbook example of each.
State two practical steps taken in ecosystem restoration to revive damaged land.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing preservation with restoration: preservation means protecting an intact ecosystem so it remains in its natural condition without development, not repairing damaged land.
- Mixing up in situ and ex situ conservation: zoos are ex situ, while marine parks are in situ.
- Misunderstanding conservation as only protecting animals: conservation also includes restoring abiotic and natural resources such as water, air, minerals, and energy.
Concept Misunderstandings
In situ and ex situ conservation mean the same thing because both protect endangered wildlife.
They differ by location. In situ protects organisms within their native, wild habitat (e.g., national parks), while ex situ protects organisms in artificial or controlled settings outside their natural habitat (e.g., botanical gardens, zoos).
Ecosystem restoration means leaving a damaged area untouched.
Leaving an area completely untouched to prevent any activity is part of preservation. Restoration requires active intervention to renew and rebuild damaged ecosystems, such as planting cover crops or conducting reforestation.
Summary
- Preservation: Protecting pristine ecosystems to remain in their natural state by gazetting reserved forests (e.g., Belum Forest Reserve).
- Conservation: Saving endangered ecosystems and managing resources through in situ methods (within natural habitats like marine parks) and ex situ methods (outside natural habitats like botanical gardens and zoos).
- Restoration: Renewing damaged or destroyed ecosystems through deliberate actions like reforestation and planting cover crops to ensure resource continuity.
Short Activity
Objective: identify preservation, conservation and restoration strategies and examples.
A. Objective Quiz
Which of the following correctly pairs the conservation strategy with its textbook example?
What is the primary objective of ecosystem preservation?
B. Fill in the Blanks
Efforts to renew and repair natural ecosystems that have deteriorated, damaged, or destroyed due to human activities are known as ecosystem .
Retaining wildlife species within their original natural habitat, such as in natural parks and marine parks, is classified as conservation.
C. Matching / Drag and Drop
Match each ecosystem management concept or example to its correct description. On a phone, tap a choice first, then tap the matching box. Tap the Answer Choices area to return a selected item.
C. Match the Concept to Its Description
Write the correct concept next to each description.
| Description | Concept / Example |
|---|---|
| 1. Protecting ecosystem components so they remain in their natural condition, free from development | |
| 2. Retaining wildlife species in their original habitat such as natural parks and marine parks | |
| 3. Keeping wildlife species outside their original habitat such as in zoos and botanical parks | |
| 4. Renewing damaged ecosystems through measures like reforestation and planting cover crops |
Answer choices: Ecosystem Preservation • In situ Conservation • Ex situ Conservation • Ecosystem Restoration
