Innovation Anthology #671:
Recreating a peatland or fen after mining for bitumen is a big experiment for Syncrude.
It takes a lot of research to understand the relationships between plant growth, soil composition, hydrology and wildlife.
According to environmental scientist Jessica Piercey, the Sand Hill Fen project involves a multi-disciplinary approach with several universities as partners.
JESSICA PIERCEY: So we work with the University of Alberta, Windsor University, McMaster, some universities out of the States. So it’s quite a large group of academics. So we have programs looking at carbon and carbon fluxes and how reclaimed wetlands compare to natural ones. We have another program that’s looking at wetland vegetation. How do you plant a reconstructed wetland and how do you monitor that vegetation community and be able to predict how its going to perform in the future? We have a program looking at water quality and quantity and how the water is moving through the landscape.
The Sand Hill Fen project covers 57 hectares.
Jessica Piercey says the results from this research will be applied as Syncrude reclaims future mine sites back to peatlands.
Thanks today to SYNCRUDE
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I’M CHERYL CROUCHER
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Syncrude
Program Date: 2015-03-10