A strategy for developing a participatory restoration program for the removal of invasive, non-native plants

Participatory restoration is simultaneously viewed as the solution to limited resource management dollars for natural resource agencies and a threat to ecosystem integrity by conservation specialists. Are urban and suburban areas, that have the population to sustain a large-scale volunteer population and areas for restoration work with long land-use histories, especially adapted to take advantage of this type of restoration? What is the impact of non-specialists in completing restoration? This poster reviews some of the strategic thinking questions that can be answered to help design an effective program and the results of Fairfax County’s first large-scale participatory restoration program, the Invasive Management Area program. Local policies, adequate staff, funding, volunteers and the specific plant communities of a region should be considered when determining if participatory restoration will work in your location. In Fairfax County, site selection proved to be the key to attracting dedicated volunteers. Species to remove were prioritized based on negative ecosystem impact, aggressiveness and ease of identification. Our metrics ranged from volunteer participation to effort and efficacy of removal efforts on community composition. For example, most worksites began with over 50% non-native species cover.