Innovative Methods for Seagrass Meadows Restoration

Seagrasses are vital to marine ecosystems, playing a pivotal role in offering shelter and food for marine animals, preventing sediment erosion, and sequestering carbon. Once covering approximately 150 square kilometers in the Dutch Wadden Sea, seagrass meadows have almost disappeared entirely—a trend mirrored globally. 
 
During the World Seagrass Conference held in Naples, Italy, the BBC spotlighted the work of ecologists Jeanine Olsen, Tjisse van der Heide, and Laura Govers from the University of Groningen through a mini-documentary. The researchers, along with volunteers, were seen using an innovative technique that involves injecting a mix of mud and seagrass seeds into sediment at specific intervals using a modified caulking gun. Additionally, they deployed biodegradable plastic structures to anchor newly planted seagrasses to prevent them from being washed away. 
 
This unique approach has yielded significant results, especially in restoring intertidal seagrass meadows adjacent to the small Wadden Island grizzly. 
 
Jeanine Olsen, who is an Emeritus Professor of Molecular Ecology, is taking this endeavor further by applying genomic approaches to identify climate-resilient varieties of seagrass. With global warming causing sea temperatures to rise steadily over time, seeds and plants used for restoration projects are often sourced from warmer regions. However, Olsen warns against this simplistic solution as it overlooks genetic compatibility, which she emphasizes as crucially important. 
 
In collaboration with colleagues from Sweden, Germany, and the USA, she's been analyzing the genomes of different types of seagrasses, aiming at identifying specific genes associated with traits such as temperature tolerance, salinity variation, resilience towards ocean acidification, etc., thereby ensuring only the right plants get introduced into suitable environments, thus increasing the chances successful restoration efforts considerably. 
 
One key finding emanating from her research has been the gene duplication phenomenon occurring among these aquatic plants, which enables them to 'experiment' with one particular gene while retaining the original, thereby avoiding self-extinction. This discovery holds immense potential for developing new varieties that can thrive under changing environmental conditions. 
 
Restoring seagrass has proven to be a challenging task, with efforts spanning over several decades. Seagrasses not only benefit their environment by stabilizing sediment, trapping mud particles, and dampening waves, but they also oxygenate the surrounding sediments. However, these positive effects are seen only after a substantial meadow is established. 
 
Newly planted seagrasses often fail as they lack the necessary environmental benefits, leading to their being washed away. This problem was addressed by Govers' seed injection method, which optimizes both the depth and spacing of seed injections, resulting in higher success rates. This technique has been adopted globally, with restoration projects underway in countries like England, Wales, France, the USAAustralia, etc., where it's being adapted to local conditions. 
 
While subtidal seagrass restoration remains less successful due to its perennial nature and greater dependence on environmental benefits, van der Heide’s biodegradable structures offer a promising solution, simulating the positive effects needed for initial establishment. 
 
A recent grant received by van der Heide will help fund the development new prototypes for improving restoration efforts. These include better material shapes. Using second-hand robotic arms sourced from car factories, he aims to combine industrial design and ecological expertise to create enhanced strategies for restoring not just seagrasses but also mussel beds, salt marsh plants, and thereby significantly contributing towards conservation marine ecosystems worldwide.