Rewilding as described by Emma Marris is the idea to restore nature to the point before human interference. Rewilding is another method along with conservation to help restore the ecosystem to its pristine state. It is understood that nature constantly changes regardless of human interaction. The only problem with such a perfect sounding plan is that humans will always change the land. Therefore, it is almost impossible to change nature without any human contact.
Many species that lived during the “pristine” times are now gone. Ecologists decided that they would use these proxy animals which are in some ways related to their extinct relatives. Also, humans would have the choice in choosing which animals are introduced into this environment. I do not think humans have the right to choose which species are allowed to live. In a sense, how can this pristine ecosystem be “pristine” if humans are affecting it in some way?
Another issue is that it is almost impossible to create. The likeliness of creating an environment that is the same as one thirteen thousand years ago seems very unlikely. Like many other conservation methods, I believe that rewilding would be unsuccessful. I believe that trying to preserve nature is extremely important. However, such methods are very inefficient and would not produce the desired results. With such obstacles, I believe that rewilding would be a waste of time.
The selection of species is also detrimental to the “pristine-ness” of the area. Since the area is supposed to represent an area that lacks human interaction, how can the the introduction of certain animals allow the native animals to thrive? With such interference, native and original species may or may not be able to live in the area.
What is the purpose of protecting these areas? Aren’t humans a specie as well? Every specie harms the environment in some way. I think that instead of trying to change areas, humans should just alter their behavior to be more mindful of nature.
It would be useless to change nature now to have it affected by something else in the future. What is there to say that nothing else we do in the future can change these ecosystems that we tried so hard to protect? The effort and money required to complete these projects are just unreasonable. I think humans should continue to live as they have always and forget about what has been done. There is no use in crying over spilled milk my mother used to say.
