Organic Soil Stockpile Management: Mitigating Environmental Footprints Through the Establishment of a Woody Vegetation Community of Native Boreal Species

艾伯塔省北部地区有丰富的泥炭地，面临着资源勘探和开采活动的压力。根据艾伯塔省《环境保护和加强法》，旱地森林表土、泥炭地地区的有机土壤和具有适当特性的底土将在原址设施建设期间被抢救和储存。土壤是一种宝贵的复垦资源，在使用前可能会保存数十年。在帝国石油公司位于堡垒附近的Aspen项目研究区域内。艾伯塔省麦克默里的湿地，包括树木繁茂的针叶沼泽、沼泽和沼泽，覆盖了研究区域的77%。道路、取土坑和中央处理设施的建设导致了几个大量的有机土壤储备。虽然已经为矿物来源的储备制定了常见的做法，但对土壤抢救、储存和植被管理对有机土壤特性和随后作为复垦材料的质量的影响知之甚少。该项目旨在测试建立木本植物群落的方法，该群落是从有机土壤储备上的本地、北方乔木和灌木树种池中挑选出来的。除了常见的物种外，还将选择具有栽培意义和传统用途的物种来测试不同的技术，以提高在实验室和田间条件下的催芽和生长性能。我们将采用并测试首次为矿物土壤库存开发的搭便车种植方法。我们还将评估来自附近来源的自然恢复植被的潜力和回收土壤中的种子库。一个高产的木本植物群落可以帮助稳定土壤和控制侵蚀，调节土壤水分和径流，防止杂草入侵，并抵消分解有机物质造成的温室气体排放。通过妥善管理有机土壤储存，该行业将能够减少其足迹，养护土壤，并保存或生产高质量的回收材料供未来使用。最终，改善土壤管理将带来更好的开垦结果和受干扰的北方景观的恢复，为该地区的所有人提供更高的环境质量。

Alberta's boreal regions have abundant peatlands that are facing pressure from resource exploration andextraction activities. As per Alberta's Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, upland forest topsoil,organic soil from peatland areas, and subsoil with appropriate characteristics are to be salvaged and storedduring construction of in-situ facilities. Soil is a valuable resource for reclamation and may remain stored fordecades before use. Within Imperial Oil's Aspen Project study area near Ft. McMurray, Alberta, wetlands,including wooded coniferous bogs, fens, and swamps, cover 77% of the study area. Construction of accessroads, borrow pits, and the central processing facility has led to several large stockpiles of organic soil. Whilecommon practices have been developed for stockpiles of mineral origin, less is known about the effect of soilsalvage, stockpiling, and vegetation management on organic soil properties and the subsequent quality asreclamation material. This project aims to test methods to establish a woody vegetation community selectedfrom a pool of native, boreal tree and shrub species on organic soil stockpiles. In addition to common species,species of cultural significance and traditional use will be selected to test different techniques to enhancegermination and growth performance in both lab and field conditions. We will adopt and test the hitchhikerplanting method first developed for mineral soil stockpiles. We will also assess the potential of spontaneousrevegetation from nearby sources and seed banks within the salvaged soil. A productive woody vegetationcommunity can help stabilize soil and control erosion, regulate soil moisture and runoff, prevent weedinvasion, and offset greenhouse gas emissions from decomposing organic matter. Through the propermanagement of organic soil stockpiles, the industry will be able to reduce its footprint, conserve soil, andpreserve or produce high-quality reclamation material for future use. Ultimately, improved soil managementwill result in better reclamation outcomes and restoration of disturbed boreal landscape providing higherenvironmental quality for all those living in the region.