Preface
The continuously growing human population along the coasts of our world will
exacerbate the impact of human activities on all coastal environments. Therefore,
restoration activities will become increasingly important. In particular, sandy
shores and coastal dunes will require significant restoration efforts because they
are preferred sites for human settlements and tourism. A major problem is that
research into coastal dunes is scarce, despite the relative economic, social, and
ecological importance of these ecosystems. The literature that deals with coastal
dune restoration has increased significantly over the last decade, but the few books
published on the subject mostly emphasize mid-latitude dune systems. As of
January 2011, the ISI Web of Science database contained more than 60,000
articles on restoration, but less than 100 of them (\0.1 %) focus on coastal dunes,
beaches, and slacks (or deflation basins and plains). In general, the information
available on the ecology of coastal sand dunes is very uneven, and broad geographical syntheses are rare. Examples of local coverage generally come from
Europe and North America. There is a general lack of attention given to lowlatitude coastal environments where much of the current exploitation and coastal
development of tourism is occurring. To our knowledge, there are no books that
deal with coastal dune restoration from a global perspective. The need for a
worldwide compilation of experiences of restoration efforts is therefore evident.
The International Conference on Management and Restoration of Coastal
Dunes (Santander, Spain, 3–5 October 2007) provided an impetus to compare and
contrast different restoration projects around the world and initiate interdisciplinary and comparative studies. This book is the first step toward the development
of international cooperation among those concerned about coastal sand dunes and
their restoration.
This book is directed mainly at graduate students and colleagues who are
interested in biological, ecological, geographical, and environmental sciences.
This book will also be useful to those with an interest in conservation biology and
coastal management who seek information on the different strategies that have
been used to restore coastal dunes in different regions of the world. This goal can
only be achieved after a comprehensive review and comparison of ongoing studies
v
The continuously growing human population along the coasts of our world will
exacerbate the impact of human activities on all coastal environments. Therefore,
restoration activities will become increasingly important. In particular, sandy
shores and coastal dunes will require significant restoration efforts because they
are preferred sites for human settlements and tourism. A major problem is that
research into coastal dunes is scarce, despite the relative economic, social, and
ecological importance of these ecosystems. The literature that deals with coastal
dune restoration has increased significantly over the last decade, but the few books
published on the subject mostly emphasize mid-latitude dune systems. As of
January 2011, the ISI Web of Science database contained more than 60,000
articles on restoration, but less than 100 of them (\0.1 %) focus on coastal dunes,
beaches, and slacks (or deflation basins and plains). In general, the information
available on the ecology of coastal sand dunes is very uneven, and broad geographical syntheses are rare. Examples of local coverage generally come from
Europe and North America. There is a general lack of attention given to lowlatitude coastal environments where much of the current exploitation and coastal
development of tourism is occurring. To our knowledge, there are no books that
deal with coastal dune restoration from a global perspective. The need for a
worldwide compilation of experiences of restoration efforts is therefore evident.
The International Conference on Management and Restoration of Coastal
Dunes (Santander, Spain, 3–5 October 2007) provided an impetus to compare and
contrast different restoration projects around the world and initiate interdisciplinary and comparative studies. This book is the first step toward the development
of international cooperation among those concerned about coastal sand dunes and
their restoration.
This book is directed mainly at graduate students and colleagues who are
interested in biological, ecological, geographical, and environmental sciences.
This book will also be useful to those with an interest in conservation biology and
coastal management who seek information on the different strategies that have
been used to restore coastal dunes in different regions of the world. This goal can
only be achieved after a comprehensive review and comparison of ongoing studies
v