More discussion of novel ecosystems:
Novel ecosystems = new configurations of species which arise as a result of anthropogenic influence; they do not require human management to maintain.
I had some immediate questions after the early talks. These did not account for temporal variation. Are currently recognized novel ecosystems stable? For example, areas of the Midwest which were dominated by Eurasian buckthorn in the 1970s are now overtopped by cottonwoods, which are in turn relatively short-lived. In another 80 years, they will be something else. These are relatively unstable, at least for now. They have not had time to find an equilibrium.
Some of the later talks were much better, leading me to believe that the validity of this concept still depends a lot on the person and the definition being used. For example Joe Berg tied it to east coast stream restoration in what I thought was a very meaningful way.
Then came a reminder that this really is a world conference. I just heard an excellent estuary restoration talk by a South African, and am currently listening to a fellow from Beijing.
The best talks are very good. As always, others are too narrow spatially, temporally, or both, or just too rigid. The good ones make it all worthwhile.
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