Grassland Degradation, Restoration and Sustainable Management of Global Alpine Area

Grassland Degradation, Restoration and Sustainable Management of Global Alpine Area involves the stripping and regeneration of the grassland's mattic epipedon. The stripping of the mattic epipedon is a unique phenomenon on the global alpine area, which has left many unanswered questions. Is stripping degradation an inherent, inevitable feature of the alpine grassland ecosystem? Is it an avoidable occurrence? Why is ecological restoration of stripped degraded grassland extremely difficult? Does restoration rely on reconstructing the grassland's mattic epipedon? Or can it be done in another way? How can sustainable ecological restoration be achieved?Frontline researchers in global alpine area have used observational evidence from field studies to respond to these questions and to present a comprehensive picture of the problems and drivers of grassland degradation. The climate-environment interaction mechanism of grassland degradation is revealed by the holistic approach in this book. Ecological restoration is discussed through social and economic participation, and past and present restoration actions are analyzed from the perspective of traditional culture and ecological ethics. The future sustainable management of grassland under climate change and social and economic development trend is also covered. This book will alert people to the dangers of degradation and to the difficulties encountered in ecological restoration.

Part 1: Introduction1. An overview of grassland resources of alpine area on the earth2. History of grassland study and management3. Grassland degradation4. Alpine steppe degradation5. Alpine desert steppe degradation6. Overgrazing and grassland degradation7. Climate change and grassland degradation8. Soil changes during grassland degradation9. Biodiversity and ecological function change with grassland degradationPart 3: Grassland restoration10. Restoration of degraded alpine meadow11. Restoration of degraded alpine steppe12. Restoration of degraded alpine desert steppe13. Local seed resources and development for grassland restoration engineering14. Growth promoting microorganisms for grassland restoration engineering15. Control of rodents, caterpillars, and toxic plants16. Biochar utilization for grassland restoration17. Water utilization for grassland restoration18. Active restoration of degraded grasslandPart 4: Grassland sustainable management19. Sustainable grazing20. Social economy and intuitional development for grassland management21. Local knowledge and application in grassland restoration22. AI technology and application in grassland restoration23. Mitigating climate change for the grassland restoration24. Co-grazing system for wild herbivores and livestock in grassland national park25. Systematic coupling and modeling in sustainable grassland management26. Landscape pathway and modeling in sustainable grassland management27. Philosophy and ethics of grassland sustainable management