Rubber plantations, which cover over 13 million hectares in tropical regions, have resulted in significant ecological degradation. A substantial portion of these plantations is located within priority conservation areas and economically marginal production sites. Urgent action is thus required to restore these areas, particularly in light of growing concerns regarding tropical biodiversity conservation and the need to reduce global carbon emissions.

In a study published in Integrative Conservation, researchers from Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) explored practical ways to restore these monoculture plantations to healthy and diverse forests. They  explored a range of ecological restoration strategies that may be applied to restore rubber monocultures in protected and marginal areas to semi-natural forest ecosystems that, as far as possible, resemble the biodiversity and ecological functions of the primary tropical rainforests.

They proposed several methods for the ecological restoration of rubber monoculture plantations:

Natural forest regrowth: for rubber monocultures that have invaded conservation areas, this is a low-cost restoration option. Nearby natural forest fragments can provide a seed source.

Assisted natural regeneration and active planting: In other marginal areas, assisted natural regeneration and active planting can be used to promote more rapid recovery.

Before implementing restoration interventions, practitioners should conduct a comprehensive assessment, including landscape context, land-use history, forest regeneration status and resource availability.

The researchers regarded that monitoring a wide range of socioeconomic (e.g., community acceptance and involvement) and ecological factors (e.g., species composition across trophic levels, community structure, ecosystem function) as well as ecosystem services will help to develop effective, bottom-up restoration measures for monocultures in protected and marginal areas.

“These efforts will contribute to achieving the goal of global ecosystem restoration and have a positive impact on climate change,” said SONG Liang of XTBG.

Contact

SONG Liang Ph.D Principal Investigator

Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, the Chinese Academy of Sciences

E-mail: songliang@xtbg.ac.cn

First published: 21 July 2025