Applied ecology in Canada’s boreal: a holistic view of the mitigation hierarchy and resilience theory

Canadaâ s boreal biome is made up of a mosaic of forests and peatlands. These ecosystems have developed dynamically, periodically affected by disturbance events of significant spatial extent and variable severity that reduce biomass present in the ecosystem. The same ecosystem types typically regenerate from biological legacies. However, concern is growing about the impact of these different anthropogenic disturbances, particularly compound disturbances including climate change, which opens the door to shifts to alternate stable states. One strategy promoted to regulate anthropogenic disturbance is the â mitigation hierarchyâ for development projects, where impacts on ecosystems are avoided, mitigated, restored or compensated. This practical approach is not yet integrated into disturbance and resilience theory. Here, I develop an integrated view of the mitigation hierarchy, and resilience and disturbance theory, in a boreal context using ecosystem services to measure ecosystem state in a two-step process that first models loss of ecosystem function and then integrates this with the mitigation hierarchy and resilience theory. The application of this model is discussed in the context of studies on the restoration/reclamation of boreal ecosystems after different types of catastrophic anthropogenic disturbance. These studies, some of which are published in this special issue, highlight the important role of bryophytes and understory plants in setting restoration targets and developing criteria and indicators for success.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author