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Restoring ecological function to disturbed landscapes in Alberta – multiple challenges addressed by

reclamation and remediation science

Brett Purdy, Senior Director

Alberta Innovates Energy & Environment Solutions (AI-EES)

Biological Solutions Forum - Building the Business Case

October 1-2, 2014

Outline

• Alberta Innovates – Energy & Environment Solutions (AI-EES)

• Objectives of reclamation

• Scope and scale of the challenge

• Recommend an approach

• Knowledge gaps

• Remaining challenges

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AI – EES Portfolio

Energy

Technologies

Water & Environmental

Management

Renewable &

Emerging

Technologies

AI-EES

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Environmental management programs in energy development

Reclamation & restoration

Water management

GHG management

Oil sands tailings

… so that soils and landforms are capable of supporting a self-sustaining ecosystem ...

... use native species

... establish ecological function similar to that which existed before ...

Objectives for reclamation (equivalent capability)

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Remediation Outcomes …

Remove the parts that expose risk to the local environment?

Contain the remaining risk that remains on site?

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Restoration / Reclamation Outcomes …

Make sure they are working?

Put the pieces back?

Ensure the land provides the desired values?

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Scale of disturbed footprint in Alberta?

• Oil sands mines/in situ > 9000 km2

• Coal mines > 90 km2

• Power Lines > 16,000 km

• Pipelines > 430,000 km

• Wellsites > 400,000

• Sand & gravel > 500 km2

• Cutlines & trails >930,000 km2

+ New Licenses + Active Licenses + Abandoned Leases + Reclaimed Leases - Certified + Reclaimed Lease - Exempted + Discontinued Pipelines + Abandoned Pipelines + Active Pipelines + Pipelines to be Constructed + Powerlines + Coal + Enhanced Oil Recovery + In Situ + Oil Sands Mines

Alberta: Land Use Framework Regions

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• Contaminants

• Poorly designed landforms

• Degraded soils – not enough, compaction, nutrients, water holding capacity, soil organisms

• Vegetation – wrong species, arrested succession

• Land use – not meeting expectations

Environmental issues with the disturbed and reclaimed footprint?

Abandoned mine site

Credit – BGC Engineering

Key Principles for reclamation back to native ecosystems?

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Establish targets based on knowledge of natural systems

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Integrated Land Management Conserve ecological legacies

• Soil, sediments, propagules & dead wood

• Best use of forest residue?

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Photo: Cenovus

Design landforms to sustain natural geomorphic processes

Natural appearance, hydrologic regime

Credit - Suncor

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Best Management Practices for soils

• Salvage, storage, placement

• Nutrient pools / cycling

• Soil organisms

• Dead wood

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Soil & hydrology BMPs

Syncrude Canada Ltd

Integrate wetlands with uplands Soil handling methods

Ecological structure

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Establish important ecological processes early and manage succession

• stand level

• landscape

… scalable tools environmental monitoring

Alberta Wilderness Association

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Monitoring challenges with reference conditions …

dynamic moving target

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Knowledge gaps to assist operations and policy

Aquatic reclamation

Soil capping over

novel materials

Soil water and nutrients

Reclaiming novel materials Wetland reclamation

Suncor Energy Inc.

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• Remediation

• Landform design

• Soil placement

• Revegetation

• Monitoring

Suncor Pond 1 - 2005

Suncor Pond 1 - 2009

Suncor Pond 1 - 2011

Fluid tailings reduction, reclamation and closure

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End pit lakes

Photo by Louis Helbig

Release

Oil Sands Process-

Affected Water

Active or passive

treatment systems

Assess

Biological

Effects

Reduced

Biological

Effects

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Treatment wetlands

Treatment wetlands are more than just wetlands

for treatment

Treatment wetlands mentioned > 180 times in

OS mine C&R plans

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• Peatland design criteria

• Operational approaches & assessment

Credit - novaNAIT Credit – Syncrude Canada Ltd.

Wetland restoration / reclamation

Peatland reclamation

Shell Peace River

Fen reclamation

Syncrude Canada

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Wetland restoration / peatlands

Restore peat forming species - Sphagnum

Alberta requires treed peatlands

What can we learn from nature -

Bitumount Provincial

Historic Site

Facility operated from the ‘20s to ‘50s Upland forest vegetation with

shallow soils over bitumen

Wetland on exposed bitumen Wetland and terrestrial vegetation rooted into bitumen

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• US EPA / National Renewable Energy Lab

Solar, wind, biopower, geothermal opportunities on contaminated sites

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Final comments …

• Objectives for reclamation have changed so we can’t always just build on past experience

• Policy and operational practices that are founded on knowledge of natural systems and processes are more likely to succeed

• Legacy activities and ongoing disturbance provide opportunities for biological solutions to better meet remediation and reclamation objectives