Fen creation in the post oil sands landscape: Phase 2

后油砂景观中的沼泽地形成：第二阶段

• 批准号: 523334-2018
• 负责人: Price, Jonathan
• 金额: $ 16.03万
• 依托单位: University of Waterloo
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Collaborative Research and Development Grants
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=719556
• 关键词: Fen; creation; post; oil; sands

In Northern Alberta, where oil sands are extracted, open pit mining covers an area of ~895 km2, and peat dominated wetlands fed by groundwater, mostly fens, cover about half of this area. Industry is required to return the landscape to equivalent functionality. This means that functioning wetlands must be returned to the landscape as part of their landscape reclamation effort. An experimental fen system was constructed, along with the entire watershed that is required to generate groundwater flows that sustain an appropriate level wetness in the fen peatland. This system, the Nikanotee Fen Watershed, was constructed of overburden stripped to access the oil sands, and processed materials including tailings sands and petroleum coke, with construction completed in January 2013. The goal was to construct a self-sustaining ecosystem that accumulates peat, is capable of supporting a representative assemblage of plant species, and is resilient to normal periodic stresses such as those associated with climate variability. The system was designed and constructed using the best knowledge available at the time. Our initial assessment (2013-2017) showed the system remained wet under moderately dry conditions, was carbon accumulating, and had plants that included those found in nearby natural systems. It also showed the system was undergoing rapid change as soils and vegetation developed. The focus of this proposal is to evaluate the nature and extent of those changes, and use them to predict how the system will function in the future. For this we will continue to study how this system functions, and how this compares to nearby natural sites To predict future behaviour we will develop mathematical models, which must be constrained with parameters measured in the field. We will also use models to refine designs that can function with more efficient use of material and resources, as well as recommend where and how to place these wetlands in the final closure landscape, after a mine lease is completed.

在北方阿尔伯塔开采油砂的地方，露天采矿占地约895平方公里，以泥炭为主的湿地（主要是沼泽）由地下水供水，约占该地区的一半。工业需要将景观恢复到同等的功能。这意味着功能湿地必须返回到景观作为其景观复垦工作的一部分。一个实验性的围栏系统，沿着与整个流域，需要产生地下水流，维持适当水平的湿度在沼泽泥炭地。该系统称为Nikanotee Fen流域，由剥离的覆盖层和加工材料（包括尾矿砂和石油焦）建造，于2013年1月完工。其目标是建立一个自我维持的生态系统，积累泥炭，能够支持植物物种的代表性组合，并能适应正常的周期性压力，如与气候变化有关的压力。该系统是利用当时最好的知识设计和建造的。我们的初步评估（2013-2017）显示，该系统在适度干燥的条件下保持湿润，正在积累碳，并且有包括附近自然系统中发现的植物在内的植物。它还表明，随着土壤和植被的发展，该系统正在发生快速变化。本建议的重点是评估这些变化的性质和程度，并利用它们来预测系统今后将如何运作。为此，我们将继续研究这个系统是如何运作的，以及它与附近的自然场地相比如何。为了预测未来的行为，我们将开发数学模型，这些模型必须受到现场测量参数的约束。我们还将使用模型来完善设计，使其能够更有效地利用材料和资源，并建议在矿山租赁完成后，将这些湿地放置在最终关闭景观中的位置和方式。