NSERC industrial research chair for colleges in peatland restoration

由于油砂工业的快速发展，对敏感泥炭地的环境影响正在加剧。原地开采是在艾伯塔省的和平河油砂中使用的一种开采方法，用于钻探太深而无法在地表开采的沥青。由于新的原地井场的数量超过了开垦的井场数量，恢复泥炭地的方法和技术对于艾伯塔省西北部北部地区的健康以及工业和围垦企业的社会许可证和繁荣至关重要。 NSERC的泥炭地恢复学院工业研究教席将使NAIT在新兴的泥炭地恢复领域处于领先地位，并补充其在传统油气井场地复垦方面的成熟研究。自1995年成立以来，NAIT Boreal Research Institute(NBRI)已成为一个应用研究中心，为政府政策制定提供科学驱动的最佳实践、高素质人员培训和实际投入。泥炭地恢复教席将讨论独特的水文学、土木工程和泥炭地植物群落，以恢复受非生产性或废弃的大型就地井坪影响的敏感泥炭地。为了应对泥炭地恢复的挑战并支持主席，NAIT建立了一个强大的网络，其中包括教师专业知识、nBRI开垦专家、大学湿地科学家、艾伯塔省政府湿地测绘技术以及行业和中小企业领域专家。NBRI吸引了来自石油和天然气公司、复垦中小企业和艾伯塔省政府的大量资金和实物承诺。

The environmental impact on sensitive peatlands is growing as a consequence of the rapid pace of oilsands industrial development. 'In situ' production is the extraction method used in the Peace River oilsands of Alberta to drill for bitumen which is too deep to be mined at surface level. As the number of new in situ wellsites outpaces those that are reclaimed, methods and technologies to restore peatland are essential for the health of the boreal region in northwest Alberta and for the social licence and prosperity of industry and reclamation enterprises. The NSERC Industrial Research Chair for Colleges in Peatland Restoration would place NAIT in a leadership role in the emerging field of peatland restoration, and complement its well-established research in the reclamation of conventional oil and gas wellsites. Since its creation in 1995, the NAIT Boreal Research Institute (nBRI) has become a centre for applied research, providing science-driven best practices, training of highly qualified personnel, and practical input to government policy development. The Chair in Peatland Restoration would address the unique hydrology, civil earth works, and peatland plant communities required to restore sensitive peatlands impacted by non-producing or abandoned large-scale in situ wellpads. To meet the challenge of peatland restoration and support the Chair, NAIT has established a strong network of faculty expertise, nBRI reclamation specialists, university wetland scientists, Alberta Government wetlands mapping technologies, and industry and SME field specialists. nBRI has attracted significant financial and 'in kind' commitments from oil & gas companies, reclamation SMEs, and the Alberta Government.