Harnessing Natural Processes: CCLT 2011, Part 1

Harnessing Natural Processes:
Sustainable Ecological Restoration
David Polster, M.Sc. R.P.Bio.
Polster Environmental Services Ltd.

Introductions

Who am I?
Dave Polster

16 on the top of Mt Cooper
24 in the Akamina - Kishinena

Summer of 1974 with Dr. T.C. Brayshaw

What better way to spend a couple of summers than studying alpine vegetation processes?

University days...

University days...

Married Genevieve Singleton in 1977

Ben born in 1983
Amy Jean born in 1986

Nathan born in 1988
Rachel born in 1991

A busy family for over 20 years...

A busy career over the same time...

...full of interesting things to do and places to see.
2008 SE Yukon Seismic Line Recovery Study

In the fall of 2008 I was working on this landslide near Pemberton

A rather steep thing with a raging creek at the bottom

This is what it looked like when we were done

June 18, 2010

Restoration is important for protection of our resources

Ecological restoration is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed.

Our insatiable appetite for raw materials means that restoration will always be needed

Our conversion of vast tracts of the earth’s surface to alternative, simplified ecosystems that do not give us the goods and services that were formerly available means that restoration will be needed here as well.

What role does restoration play in re-establishing the critical goods and services provided by natural ecosystems in an urban context?

As our urban areas spread like a cancer across the land…

…can we use natural processes to deal with storm water or can we use landscaping treatments to replace lost habitat?

Can restoration be used to mitigate our un-sustainable lifestyle?

Restoration provides the promise of repairing the damages we have caused

Our use of resources must be coupled with effective repair of damaged sites

We are starting to recognize the interconnection between healthy ecosystems, healthy economies and healthy populations.

Big trees and big fish go together

Traditional Reclamation Approaches

Reclamation strategies evolved from the fields of forestry, agriculture/soils, and ecology.

Forestry based strategies seek to establish commercially productive forests on disturbed lands.

Unfortunately, most severely disturbed sites are a long way from natural forest soils…

… and poor performance is the rule rather than the exception.

Low nutrients and organic matter as well as poor physical characteristics lead to poor tree growth.

Compaction and the lack of soil biota are common problems.

Trying to establish late successional conifer forests on poor sites with poor soils can be frustrating.

Agriculture / soils based strategies seek to provide productive agricultural soils / vegetation covers on disturbed sites.

Establishment of dense stands of agronomic grasses and legumes, as a surrogate for proper soil development, may reduce site productivity over the long term.

As some of these stands age, reduced productivity and bare areas start to appear…

… with weedy species moving in as agronomic stands break down.

In other areas, a dense thatch establishes that can tie up nutrients and prevent natural successional invasion by native species.

The bright green of biosolids supported stands fades over a few years…

… leaving the vegetation with limited diversity that provides little ecological resilience for long term success.

Dense stands of agronomic grasses and legumes may persist for decades, limiting the long term productivity of the site.

Today we will look at some of the things that we can do to transform traditional reclamation to productive ecological restoration that returns the natural capital upon which we, as a species, depend
Turkey Vulture

Outline
Introduction to ecological restoration
Natural processes and successional model for restoration
3. Erosion processes and solutions
4. Dealing with difficult sites
Introduction to some soil bioengineering systems
Monitoring and maintenance

We will be covering a lot of ground so...

…please ask questions as we go through this material.

Let’s take a look at a model of how ecosystems are put together…
Osprey

…so we will have some ideas of how to put them back together when we have taken them apart.

Climate is important to consider in development of restoration programs

Winter weather influences restoration design

Micro-climate influences vegetation patterns

Rain-shadow of Coast Range near Telegraph Creek

Let’s look at these dry grassy slopes in the rainshadow of the mountains.

Lack of rainfall causes distinct vegetation patterns on these south facing slopes

Lower elevation tree line is dictated by climate. Dry areas create restoration challenges.

Wet climatic regions cause problems for restoration as well.

Areas of permafrost can provide restoration opportunities

Chinook Arch – Winter drying

Rocks form the foundation of terrestrial communities

Most landforms in Canada influenced by glaciation

Mountains and plains – gross landform features

Landforms influence plant development, exposure and substrate type

Geology influences vegetation.

Landforms influence surficial materials and thus vegetation

Kechika dunes
Natural disturbances provide useful clues for restoration of drastically disturbed sites

Pioneers on leading edge – tolerant of repeated burial

Different species on the blown-out areas

Talus slopes – inspiration for steep slope restoration

Vegetation patterns on steep slopes

Soil forms the foundation of plant communities

Vegetation

Let’s look closer…

Vegetation reflects conditions
…creates conditions…

Vegetation patterns provide clues to site conditions

Substrates influence vegetation

Nurse logs play an important role in re-establishing nutrient cycling and soil micro-organism communities

Successional patterns on gravel bars – Keystone species

From open area to closed forest…

String fen develops from sedge rhizomes

Plants as physical keystones

Older gravel bar with more growth…

Rich alluvial forest

Forest fires play a major role in vegetation succession.

Species patterns following fire provide a model for restoration.

Out of the ashes springs a new forest. We are starting to realize that Smokey the Bear was wrong and that fire is part of forest renewal cycles – to preclude it causes problems…

Aspen suckering following fire – rapid natural response

Successional model for restoration – start with disturbance.

Natural disturbances dwarf human disturbances.

At one point not long ago most of Canada was covered by ice…

…making some of our largest disturbances look small…

…and giving us opportunities to see how these disturbances are reclaimed.

How do ecosystems unravel?

Biotic Threshold
Abiotic Threshold

Can we learn something about putting ecosystems back together from the natural processes that these models represent?

Insects can turn a healthy green forest into a stand of dead pine.

These state transitions may result in substantial ecosystem changes.

What is the role of humans in restoration of a “natural” disturbance / transitions?

Natural landslides...

Frank Slide
Over time natural processes “restore” these sites

Pockets of organic soils provide sites for seeds

By looking at natural solutions to revegetation we can develop effective restoration systems

Talus slope solutions work in a variety of locations.

We can apply these natural restoration processes to human disturbances.

Fine textures at the top, free draining in the middle, larger rock at the bottom

By pushing the fine textured materials over the face we can eliminate the limitations of the coarse substrate.

By making the surface rough and loose we can control erosion

Look at natural processes and species for solutions

New rock…

What are the processes and species on this lava flow?

Early pioneers

Nitrogen fixing species

Stabilizing species…

You never need to be stuck for ideas...
By following natural processes...

Let’s look at some examples

Tree & shrub planting Connaught tunnel muck, fall 1984

Connaught tunnel muck, July 22, 1986

Connaught tunnel muck, July, 1989

Connaught tunnel muck
1992
1996

Connaught tunnel muck understory, September 16, 1996

Connaught tunnel muck warm in spring, May 24, 1994

Connaught tunnel muck cool in summer, August 26, 1992

Connaught tunnel muck, July 16, 1999

Connaught tunnel muck, July 10, 2005

Connaught tunnel muck, July 10, 2005

Connaught tunnel muck, July 24, 2006

Connaught tunnel muck, August 1, 2009

Mountain Creek fill, 1984

Mountain Creek fill, May 23, 1986

Mountain Creek fill, August 26, 1987

Mountain Creek fill, Fall, 1990

Mountain Creek fill, May 23, 1994

Conifers under canopy of alder

Understory species

Conifers taking over, 2003

July 9, 2005

August 1, 2009

West Portal, Planting in 1989

West Portal, 1989

West Portal tree & shrub planting, 1989

West Portal August 25, 1992

West Portal August 5, 1997

West Portal July 15, 1999

West Portal August 3, 2003

West Portal July 8, 2005

West Portal July 24, 2006

West Portal July 27, 2008

Detail of West Portal July 27, 2008

West Portal September 12, 2010

East Portal topsoil salvage, 1984

Topsoil is important for plant growth

Spent 4 years making a big rock pile

and put it right on the topsoil…

Re-sloping pile, August 15, 1988

Spreading soil

Soil spread, planting, October 5, 1988

East Portal waste rock reclamation, July 22, 1991

East Portal waste rock reclamation, July 10, 2005

East Portal waste rock reclamation, July 24, 2006

East Portal August 1, 2009

East Portal September 12, 2010

Beaver Pit, developed in 1963 for TCH. April 20, 1988

Beaver Pit, July 15, 1999

Beaver Pit, July 10, 2005

Beaver Pit, August 1, 2009

Selection of species that will “work” on site restoration

How do natural systems solve low nutrient problems?
Red Alder (Alnus rubra)

Natural nitrogen fixers
Green alder (Alnus viridis ssp. crispa)

Natural nitrogen fixers
Mountain Avens (Dryas drummondii)

Natural nitrogen fixers
Soopolallie (Shepherdia canadensis)

Natural nitrogen fixers
Arctic lupine (Lupinus arcticus)

Natural nitrogen fixers
Alpine hedysarum (Hedysarum alpinum)

Natural nitrogen fixers
Field locoweed (Oxytropis campestris)

Role of nitrogen fixing pioneering species in forest recovery
Natural processes in forest development

Use of nitrogen fixing pioneering species to enhance forest productivity at Quinsam Coal Mine

Tests at Quinsam Coal Mine, 1982

Tests using nitrogen fixers at Quinsam Coal Mine, 1983

Tree planting at Quinsam Coal Mine, 1983
Soil bioengineering at Quinsam Coal Mine, 1982

Soil bioengineering at Quinsam Coal Mine, 2007

Assessment of forest productivity Quinsam Coal Mine, 2007
Natural forests

Height vs. Age 2007

Natural sites have an average growth rate of 0.54 m/yr

Trees on the trial site have an average growth rate of 0.69 m/yr

Planting strategy based on trial results

By following the successional model of the forests around the site we can make reclamation a profit centre...

...and the trees just jump out of the ground, even on mine wastes.

Repeated harvesting without allowing the ecosystems to recover uses the natural capital of the land and...

...will reduce the productive capacity of the land and leave us with a weedy wasteland... Look at Greece and the Mediterranean.

Mediterranean Steppe Vegetation

So how can we put this all together to restore sites?

Tsawout sewer line restoration
November 26, 1999

Tsawout sewer line restoration November 26, 1999

Tsawout sewer line restoration

Tsawout sewer line restoration November 26, 1999

Tsawout sewer line restoration February 3, 2008

Tsawout sewer line restoration February 3, 2008

Tsawout sewer line restoration
Immediate erosion control, long term successional re-integration
February 3, 2008

Mount Klappan Coal Project (Sept. 17, 1993) – Vegetation limiting factor (s)?

Mount Klappan Coal Project (Sept. 23, 1994) – Good (?) cover of seeded species

June 24, 2008, 14 years later

Seeding slopes for erosion control

Excellent cover of seeded species…
August 27, 1992

…almost too good (preventing woody species establishment). July 9, 2005

Slow encroachment - August 1, 2009

Seeding steep slopes (0.8 : 1 or 51.3o)

Seeding alder, October 30, 1986

Alder seedlings from seeding

Alder seeded slope, July 16, 1999

Alder seeded slope, July 16, 1999

Alder seeded slope, July 9, 2005

Alder seeded slope, August 1, 2009
Conifers continue to move in

Long Term Reclamation Monitoring of Vegetation Covers at the Island Copper Mine, Port Hardy, BC
1993
2010

Transect locations

Production was completed in 1995, although reclamation was started soon after the mine opened with the first tree planting in 1978.
Red Island

Seeding Grasses & Legumes

Grass and legume seeding was used to establish an initial cover of vegetation.

Woody Species Establishment

Tree planting was used for forest re-establishment.
A total of 586,986 woody species planted, 505,630 red alder.

Planted 1996
Photographed 1998
Photographed 2000
Red Island

Red Island
Photographed 2010

Alder was selected to ameliorate adverse substrate conditions and initiate natural successional processes.

Nodules on the roots of Alder contain nitrogen fixing bacteria (Frankia)

Alder kick-starts the successional processes that lead to productive forests…

What are the processes that help the ecosystem shift from a planted Alder / Grass stand…

…to an Alder / Salmonberry / conifer stand?

25 year old alder stand has shifted towards native species.

Swordfern establishment processes

Wind-borne spores trapped on alder branches, washed down with winter rains.

Later successional conifers establish naturally under the canopy of pioneering vegetation…

...as can be seen at a number of locations around the mine site...

… but the dense cover of seeded grasses and legumes out-competes the alder unless the alder can form a closed canopy.

Alder seedlings starting to show up at the foot of dead planted alder.

Lodgepole pine planted on the North Dump in 1996

Seeded grasses and legumes prevent/filter natural successional processes...

...creating conditions that foster the establishment of weeds.

The dynamics of seeded grasses and legumes and weedy species have yet to play themselves out.

Diversity of Vegetation Creates Wildlife Habitats

Planted Wetlands Enhance Biodiversity

A diversity of wildlife finds a good home at the Island Copper Mine.

The ecology of the Island Copper Mine reclamation is teaching us to set aside our former ideas about what makes good reclamation…

…and to look for methods that do not involve seeding with grasses and legumes.

Helicopter seeding exploration trench in the Upper Elk Valley in the fall of 1977

Upper Elk Valley
Seeded with agronomic grasses and legumes in 1977, photographed in 2009.

The agronomic grasses and legumes we have been using for reclamation prevent effective recovery of these sites.
Upper Elk Valley

Dense stand of seeded grasses and legumes at Giant Mine Site (Baker Creek Reach 4)

Poor spruce trying to make a living in a dense stand of seeded species (Baker Creek Reach 4)

BC Hydro is planning to remove the Heber River Dam and will need to restore disturbed sites

What are the successional patterns that operate in the region?

What are the constraints or filters preventing natural recovery?

Can we learn from the mistakes of others?

What can we do to remove the filters and let the ecosystems recover following the natural successional trajectories?

How do pioneering species arrive at disturbed sites?

Can we create conditions that promote the natural recovery processes?

What are the patterns of species establishment and how can we emulate these in our restoration work?

Are there sequences of establishment we should follow?

So if we look at a site with bare gravel that has been dumped in loose piles...

...we see a variety of species starting to invade

A bit further back we find other species...

...with alder forming an important keystone species in the successional processes...

...providing conditions for other species to establish...

...including conifers on some of the very old gravel.

Eventually the fancy species start showing up...

...when conditions are right.

Frequently disturbed sites have a slightly different successional trajectory...

...as do sites with large boulders and coarse rock (riprap)

So now that we know all this, what do we do to restore project sites?

Make gravelly and soil sites rough and loose to control erosion and provide sites for native species seeds to lodge in and grow.

Add some fine textured soils between big rip-rap boulders.

Use willows to live gravel bar stake active gravel bars that are disturbed.

Completely de-compact any compacted surfaces and leave them rough and loose.

Salvage woody debris from sites that are disturbed then scatter the debris on the site to which it belongs.

Keep woody debris in as large chunks as possible – do not grind or chip woody materials.

Do not seed any sites with grasses and legumes.

Stand back and let nature select the species, the densities, the distribution and sequence of vegetation establishment on the disturbed sites.

Application of natural processes to deal with problems.

Sept. 24, 1987

August 26, 1992

July 16, 1999

July 9, 2005

August 1, 2009

Collecting Dryas seed

Hydroseeding Dryas seed, 1984

Established Dryas, July 3, 2005

Natural successional processes at the Faro Mine, Yukon

A lot of bare ground…

Pioneering herbaceous species

Grass established in wheel ruts

Balsam poplar seeds fly like snow at some times of the year

Balsam poplar seeds are trapped in puddle areas

Willow seedlings establishing in puddle areas

Willows and other pioneering species

Conditions that encourage establishment of pioneers

The bright green of biosolids supported stands fades over a few years…

Other pioneering species including Balsam poplar

Spruce establishing under willows

Later successional conifers poking through willows and other pioneering woody species

Late successional forest

Use of natural successional processes to inform vegetation management – a Yukon example…
Cleared roadside – initial successional stage

Cleared roadside – pioneering invaders… lot’s of moose food!

Blocks sightlines, hides signs…

Cleared roadside – grows to dense thicket… good cover for moose…

Wildlife collisions are a major problem…
…but we do everything we can to provide enticing food for wildlife near the road.

Fresh grass in the spring brings the deer to the roadside…

This is a hazard to both the deer and the motorists…

Eventually bad things happen…

This is a restoration issue…

Planting tasty forage crops along highways attracts animals with fatal results – mostly for the animals but sometimes humans

Send in the brush cutters…

Cleared roadside 2005 – clearing repeated

Cleared roadside 2005

Cleared roadside 2006 – so what do we have?

Pioneering vegetation – let’s take a closer look…

Rapidly growing aspen

Rapidly growing balsam poplar

A variety of rapidly growing pioneers…

Cleared roadside – look to forest to get off this early successional treadmill…

Open aspen forest – limited cover for a moose and no forage…

Selective removal of understory stems to speed opening up of forest.

Selective removal of understory trees, pruning spruce boughs…

What about the spruce?

Prune branches, remove young trees.

Prune branches…

With branches pruned, no need to touch this site for decades…

Understanding vegetation successional patterns allows cost effective management

Used on forestry intersections

Intersection site in Whitehorse during clearing

Notice blocked sightlines

Following trimming

Dense early seral vegetation blocks sightlines
September 25, 2007

A bit of selective pruning…
September 25, 2007

…and we can go from here…
September 25, 2007

…to here.
September 25, 2007

May 21, 2008

May 15, 2009

Consider wildlife when developing restoration programs…

Habitat for wildlife

Creating habitat for small mammals can provide a variety of benefits…

…as a lower rung on a food chain…

…and to introduce plant propagules…

Woody debris piles can provide habitat for small mammals and...

…and encourage invasion by other species.

A diversity of habitats encourages a diversity of species and the goods and services they provide (e.g. insect control)