Designing forest reclamation techniques for the tailings deposit at Mount Polley

包括采矿在内的严重干扰后对陆地栖息地的评估和恢复 充分处理对生态系统恢复至关重要的植物-土壤微生物相互作用。这一点在 恢复的生态系统的简单性和脆弱性。植物-微生物网络与生态学研究新进展 复杂性共同为开发改进评估的创新工具奠定了良好的基础 和修复实践。公元前波利山(MP)尾矿坝决口后，帝国金属(IM) 旨在恢复受影响的陆地生态系统。这为开发、测试和应用提供了一个独特的机会 评估和恢复陆地栖息地的新概念。这项研究的前提是使用 原生林的生态遗产对于生态系统的自助式恢复是必要的。时间的选择 这项研究至关重要，因为目前受影响地区的树木死亡缩小了促进 将遗产转移到正在恢复的植物-土壤群落。在2015/16年度的秋冬季，四项实验 将与IM合作在MP建立：(1)确定土壤遗产对建立 苗木；(2)测试已建立的苗木是否在它们所栖息的土壤中创造遗产 继代苗木，导致随时间逐步恢复；(3)确定是否 传统树木的邻近或健康状况影响育苗；以及(4)整地和土壤的试验效果 对正在恢复的植物群落进行遗产转移。新的知识将构成适应的基础 在海洋公园开垦陆地栖息地。此项目对IM很重要，因为它将启用本地 直接在MP尾矿流出区内进行修复试验，迅速适应 结果是快速变化的环境条件，以供立即使用，并培训IM人员 研究和森林复垦技术。我们预计这个项目将为 加强污染场地风险评估的矿业部门在不列颠哥伦比亚省和 加拿大环境部，从而为所有加拿大人提供重要的生态和经济利益。

The assessment and restoration of terrestrial habitat following severe disturbances including mining do not adequately address plant-soil microbe interactions that are crucial to ecosystem recovery. This is evident in the simplicity and vulnerability of restored ecosystems. New research on plant-microbial networks and ecological complexity together provide a promising foundation for developing innovative tools for improved assessment and restoration practices. Following the tailings dam breach at Mount Polley (MP), BC, Imperial Metals (IM) aims to restore the affected terrestrial ecosystem. This presents a unique opportunity to develop, test and apply new concepts for assessing and restoring the terrestrial habitat. The premise of the research is that use of ecological legacies from native forest is necessary for bootstrapping recovery of the ecosystem. The timing of the research is crucial because current tree mortality in the affected area narrows the window for facilitating transfer of legacies to the recovering plant-soil communities. In the fall/winter of 2015/16, four experiments will be established at MP in collaboration with IM to: (1) determine soil legacy effects on establishment of seedlings; (2) test whether established seedlings create legacies in the soils they inhabit for facilitating subsequent generations of seedlings, leading to progressive recovery with time; (3) determine whether proximity or health of legacy trees affect seedling establishment; and (4) test effects of site preparation and soil legacy transfer on the recovering plant community. The new knowledge will form the basis for adaptive reclamation of the terrestrial habitat at MP. This project is important to IM because it will enable local remediation experimentation directly inside the tailings outflow area at MP, expeditious adaptation of the results to the rapidly changing environmental conditions for immediate use, and training of IM personnel in research and forest reclamation techniques. We anticipate this project will provide essential information to the mining sector for enhancing Contaminated Sites Risk Assessment Guidance Development in both BC and with Environment Canada, thus providing vital ecological and economic benefits for all Canadians.