Responses of reclamation plants to enhanced non-segregated tailings

油砂开采复垦具有很强的挑战性，因为土地扰动严重，复垦植物的生长条件也很困难。受干扰的地区包括油砂尾矿，这给植被恢复带来了额外的挑战。尾矿中的化合物含量普遍偏高，可能对植物有害。为了应对这些挑战，加拿大自然资源有限公司（CNRL）一直在研究新的方法，旨在尽量减少尾矿对复垦地区工厂的影响。这些努力导致了最近新型尾矿技术的发展。这些新型尾矿被称为增强型非分离尾矿（eNST）和增强型非分离尾矿（esNST）。尽管这些尾矿在工业生产中具有重要的优势，但这种新型尾矿技术的成分对将在尾矿上种植的土壤覆盖层中的植物群落生长的潜在影响。在拟建项目中，我们将表征eNST和esNST尾矿的化学和物理性质，并在受控环境条件下研究它们对油砂复垦常用植物生长和生理过程的影响。我们还将比较eNST和esNST沉积和释放水对植物存活、生长和生理反应的影响。本研究的主要目的是为开发eNST尾矿回收的最佳策略提供所需的知识。本研究的具体目标是：1)描述植物短期暴露于eNST尾矿的影响和潜在毒性，并将其与esNST尾矿的影响进行比较；2)深入了解eNST中可能对植物生长和生存产生不利影响的因素；3)研究eNST尾矿对复垦地区植物生存所必需的外生菌根和类菌根关联的影响。该项目将培养2名硕士生、3名本科生暑期生（每年学习1名本科生）和1名博士后研究助理。

Oil sands mining reclamation is highly challenging due to the severity of land disturbance and challenging growth conditions for reclamation plants. The disturbed areas include oil sands tailings, which pose additional challenge for the revegetation efforts. The tailings have commonly elevated levels of compounds that may be harmful to plants. To deal with these challenges, Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL) has been working on new approaches that are intended to minimize the effects of tailings on plants in reclaimed areas. These efforts have resulted in a recent development of the novel tailings technology. These novel tailings are referred to as enhanced non-segregated tailings (eNST) and enhanced-spiked non-segregated tailings (esNST). Although these tailings have important advantages to the industrial production, the potential impact of the composition of this novel tailings technology on the growth of plant communities that will be planted in soil capping layers on top of the tailings. In the proposed project, we will characterize the chemical and physical properties of eNST and esNST tailings and study under controlled-environment conditions, their effects on growth and physiological processes in plants that are commonly used for oil sands reclamation. We will also compare the effects of eNST and esNST deposits and release waters on plant survival, growth, and physiological responses. The main objective of the study is to generate knowledge that is required to develop optimal strategies for the reclamation eNST tailings. The specific objectives of the study are to 1) characterize the effects and potential toxicity of short-term exposure of plants to eNST tailings and compare them with the effects of esNST tailings, 2) develop a thorough understanding of the factors in eNST that may adversely affect plant growth and survival, and 3) examine the impact of eNST tailings on ectomycorrhizal and ericoid mycorrhizal associations that are essential for the survival of plants in reclamation areas. The project will train two MSc students, three undergraduate summer students (one undergraduate student per year of the study), and a postdoctoral research associate.