Download or read book Baseline Hydrogeochemistry and Connectivity Among Landscape Units of Two Wetland rich Boreal Sites in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Alberta written by Caren Küsel and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Developing critical loads for nitrogen (N) in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) requires an understanding of the hydrological connectivity and potential for N transport among uplands, fens and bogs typical in the wetland-rich Boreal region of northern Alberta. The Cumulative Environmental Management Association's (CEMA) overarching mandate is to determine a nitrogen critical load specific to the Boreal region of northern Alberta. To this end, nitrogen amendment experiments were initiated at two Boreal wetland sites: an upland -- rich fen gradient at Jack Pine High (JPH) and an upland -- fen -- bog mosaic at Mariana Lakes (ML), 45 km north and 100 km south of Fort McMurray respectively.The objectives of this study are to use geochemical and isotopic tracers to describe baseline hydrogeochemical variability and connectivity between bog, fens and upland areas in the AOSR. Sites were instrumented with piezometer nests and water table wells along transects that cover the targeted landscape units (n = 108 sampling locations). Fieldwork related to this thesis was conducted during the open-water season: in June and August 2011, and in May, July, and September 2012. Field campaigns also included a snow survey (March 2012), and spring melt/freshet sampling (April 2012). The analysis of spatiotemporal variability of water isotopes and geochemistry in the years 2011-2012 yielded: i) a characterization of baseline conditions from which perturbations can be assessed, and ii) evidence of connectivity among landscape units. No evidence for elevated concentrations of nitrogen related to the amendment experiments was found in 2011 or 2012. The baseline characterization and annual monitoring did show increasing concentrations of inorganic ammonium with increasing depth associated with increasing solute concentrations: average concentrations of inorganic ammonium were 23 mg/L at deepest sampling locations (7 m) at ML bog and ML fen landscape units. These ammonium concentrations in porewaters, given a porosity of 0.90 for peatlands, constitute a store of ammonium that may be a significant source of nitrogen if the hydrology is altered due to co-occurring changes in vegetation (due to, for example, elevated nitrogen inputs), climate and/or landuse.Hydrologic connectivity at JPH is likely driven by topography. Hydraulic head in 2011 and 2012 field seasons showed that flow persisted from the upland to the fen. The consistent and distinct geochemical signatures and isotopic labelling of mid-depth and deep groundwater samples of fen and upland landscape units is consistent with such a stable groundwater continuum. Near-surface water samples at JPH fen however varied hydrogeochemically in response to seasonal changes in precipitation inputs, water levels, and biogeochemical productivity ... .

Download or read book Nitrogen Transport and Connectivity in Two Wetland rich Boreal Sites in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Canada written by Mikaela Cherry and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Development of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) has increased atmospheric nitrogen emissions, a trend which is expected to increase in the future. The area surrounding development is comprised of Boreal upland forests and peatlands. Improved understanding of the hydrological connectivity between Boreal peatlands and uplands is needed to predict the fate and transport of atmospheric N deposited across the region. Two field sites: Jack Pine High (JPH, located 45 km north of Fort McMurray) and Mariana Lakes (ML, located 100 km south of Fort McMurray) were instrumented with piezometers nests and water table wells for this study (n= 108 sampling locations). The wells were placed along transects that cover target landscape units (bog, fen, upland). Wells were sampled for water isotopes and geochemical parameters during the summers of 2011-2014 to characterize the baseline geochemistry of groundwater in the different landscape units.

Download or read book Hydrogeochemical Soil Dynamics Relative to Topography for Forested Land Units Undergoing Reclamation in a Post mined Landscape in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Alberta written by Tristan Gingras-Hill and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 87 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Natural forest soils of the Western Boreal Forest rarely witness near-surface soil flushing events during the growing season due to the forest's excessive evapotranspiration demands and large unsaturated zone storage capacity. This leads to the accumulation of nutrients such as Soluble Reactive Phosphorus (SRP) and Total Inorganic Nitrogen (TIN) within the surface soils, increasing along a low-relief moisture gradient transitioning through upland forests, riparian zones and wetlands, influencing vegetation communities. In the post-mined landscape, decompressed overburden produce topographically elevated hillslopes with cover soils exhibiting poor transmissivity and hydrophobic properties, which are often subject to erosion. Reclamation projects are beginning to develop entire watersheds consisting of engineered wetlands, uplands and hillslopes, varying in elevation, to ensure a hydrologic connectivity that can support resiliency to moisture deficit during periodic stresses. To avoid undesirable interactions between land units, it is important to understand their hydrogeochemical connectivity. This study focuses on the interactions between a recently (i.e. three years) reclaimed low-relief upland and three encompassing hillslopes (aged five to nine-years since reclamation), located within a constructed fen watershed. The objectives were to determine if topographically driven moisture-nutrient gradients were being formed and how this would influence vegetation colonization. No topographically driven moisture-nutrient gradient was detected within the lower-lying constructed upland, attributed to the heterogeneity of the cover soil placement and the lack of preferential flow paths, typically witnessed in newly reclaimed soils. Furthermore, the application of control release fertilizer likely hindered the detection of any topographic influence on ion mobility. Runoffs collectors suggest that fertilizer may lead to off-site movement immediately following application. Results also demonstrated that SRP is likely in excess within this system and susceptible to leaching following overland flow events. However, TIN is potentially a limiting nutrient and while immobilized at the surface, demonstrated greater susceptibility towards vertical flow, especially when groundwater recharge promoting structures are incorporated within the construction of forested land units. Sapling survival within the constructed upland appeared to be influenced by moisture stress over nutrient availability, re-examining the need for fertilizer application when reclaimed soils still lack moisture absorbing properties. The elevated hillslopes also did not demonstrate any topographically driven moisture-nutrient gradient regardless of age since reclamation. The more mature hillslope was expected to demonstrate such a gradient, however the dry growing season likely hindered subsurface interflow downslope. The two younger hillslopes still demonstrated poor transmissivity attributed to their immaturity. TIN contributions towards the constructed upland proved to be minimal, however phosphorus inputs from erosion prone areas are likely to influence SRP availability following phosphate desorption processes within the constructed upland. Although our system demonstrated positive correlations of increased SRP on native species establishment, TIN availability demonstrated increased forb and non-native species colonization. This study demonstrates how current forested upland reclamation practices might influence other land units when re-initiating hydrogeochemical connectivity throughout engineered landscapes. This study also demonstrates how contributions from topographically elevated land units might impact vegetation communities downslope, which is crucial for re-establishing the resiliency of the landscape. Current forest upland and hillslope reclamation practices will likely need to be re-evaluated when considering landscape scale hydrogeochemical connectivity.

Download or read book Environmental Controls on Carbon Sequestration in a Saline Boreal Peat forming Wetland in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region written by Olena Volik and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 126 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Saline boreal fens represent potential models for post-mining landscape reclamation in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) (Canada) where wetland construction is challenged by salinization. One of the key indicators of reclamation success is the accumulation of organic carbon within constructed fens, and a better understanding of the drivers of carbon sequestration in natural saline fens can be useful for advancing fen construction in this region. As such, this thesis aims to determine the main environmental controls on carbon uptake and its long-term storage in a saline boreal fen near Fort McMurray (Alberta, Canada) by: 1) reconstructing past salinity change; 2) determining relations between reconstructed salinity, hydrological conditions, vegetation and organic matter accumulation rates (OMAR) over the last ~100 years in open-water areas (ponds) within the fen; 3) investigating the effects of salinity, vegetation and hydrology on the long-term apparent rate of carbon accumulation (LARCA) within the peatland; and 4) assessing CO2 fluxes within the peatland and open-water areas. Past salinity change was investigated using paleolimnological analysis of sediment cores from three ponds situated within the fen. Salinity fluctuations were reconstructed using weighted-averaging transfer functions based on diatoms and an environmental dataset from 32 saline boreal ponds. Results reveal complex “precipitation - surface water - groundwater” interactions associated with differences in the hydrologic functioning of the studied ponds, and their connectivity with shallow groundwater aquifers and adjacent wetlands. Relationships between cumulative departure from mean precipitation (CDLM) and diatom-inferred (DI) salinity suggest that precipitation may control salinity both directly and indirectly. In ponds recharged predominantly by meteoric water, precipitation may govern salinity directly by dilution of salt content in water, so that increases in precipitation result in a salinity decline. In ponds situated within a saline groundwater discharge zone, salinity may be influenced by precipitation indirectly through recharge of the saline aquifer, so increases in precipitation lead to rises in salinity. Our study suggests that complex DI-salinity response to precipitation change, coupled with notable range of DI-salinity fluctuation within natural saline fens should be considered while designing saline constructed wetlands and predicting their potential resilience under climate change. Median OMAR (181 g m-2 yr-1) of the site suggests that ponds situated within saline boreal fens OMAR comparable to freshwater boreal and subarctic ponds, and reconstructed salinity levels (3-21 ppt) did not severely affect organic matter accumulation. Strong significant positive (Lager Pond), strong significant negative (South Pond), and weak insignificant (Pilsner Pond) correlations between OMAR and DI-salinity were observed, suggesting that relations between organic matter accumulation and salt content are not straightforward, and salinity was not the main control on OMAR. Macrofossil data showed that OM accumulation was mainly driven by water level, type of primary producers and pond regime. OMAR was the highest during the transition from peatland to ponds due to low decomposition rates resulting from high inputs of relatively resistant plant litter, and anoxic conditions. A macrophyte-dominated pond regime was associated with higher OMAR relative to phytoplankton-dominated regime. LARCA within the fen was studied using two peat sediment cores. Changes in LARCA in the less saline part of the fen correlate well with water table fluctuations and seem not to be affected by low salinity (EC 5 mScm-1). The highest LARCA values are related to wet conditions; however, prolonged inundations coupled with high salinity (EC10 mScm-1) appear to have negative effect on LARCA. In the southern more saline part of the fen relationships between LARCA and hydrology are complicated by salinity probably through the impact on the net primary productivity. The influence of salinity on LARCA is determined by salinity level, and there is a threshold value (probably 10 mScm-1) after which salinity can significantly affect “LARCA - hydrology” links. Mean LARCA of the site (19.7 gm-2 yr-1) is lower than in western continental fens, but it is comparable to the average rate reported for western Canadian peatlands. The northern less saline part of the fen has LARCA of 29.67 gm-2 yr-1 that is close to LARCA in rich fens, but LARCA in the southern part is considerably lower (9.79 gm-2yr-1). Environmental controls on net ecosystem exchange (NEE), ecosystem respiration (R), and gross primary productivity (GEP) within the fen were studied using community-scale CO2 measurements along a salinity gradient. Strong positive correlations between NEE, GEP, leaf area index (LAI), and vegetation biomass within terrestrial areas and strong positive correlation between GEP and vegetation density within aquatic areas illustrated importance of vegetation properties for carbon uptake. CO2 fluxes within peatland were driven primary by water table depth, and electrical conductivity as revealed by strong negative correlations between these variables and NEE, GEP, and R. Links between CO2 exchange and environmental factors were influenced by microtopographical differences, and additional controls (e.g., soil moisture, availability of magnesium, manganese and calcium) on NEE, GEP, and R were found within depressions. Strong negative correlation between R and water table depth (WTD), coupled with strong positive correlation between R and belowground biomass within ridges and no significant correlation between WTD and R within depressions possibly suggested predominance of root and/ or root-associated microbial respiration within depressions and prevalence of microbial respiration within ridges. Within open water areas, GEP and R were related to phosphate concentration as suggested by strong positive correlation. In contrast to terrestrial areas, EC had no relations to CO2 fluxes, and higher GEP was found in mesosaline ponds comparatively to hyposaline ones. This study revealed importance of development of appropriate planting schemes for terrestrial and open-water.

Download or read book Response of Peatland Microbial Community Function to Contamination by Naphthenic Acids and Sodium in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Alberta Canada written by Vinay Daté and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 91 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reclamation of closed oil sands mining operations in former pristine boreal ecosystems of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region of Alberta, Canada (AOSR) requires construction of new fen land uses such as peatlands in order to meet the environmental regulatory requirements for restoration of 'equivalent landscape capacity' and because 'wetlands are required as an integral part of the reclaimed landscape' (Alberta Government 2000). Reconstruction rather than restoration is required due to the extensive disruption to the vegetation and hydrology of these sites inherent to the mining process. Such sites will be constructed with tailings sands forming part of the aquifer; consequently, they may be exposed through leaching to a variety of chemical contaminant species either not present (e.g. naphthenic acids) or present at significantly higher-than-baseline concentrations (Na+) than in the pre-disturbance sites. The presence of these contaminants is likely to affect both the plant and microbial communities, which are the two major players in the carbon cycling function of peatland landscapes, and the effects of these contaminants on the microbial community is unknown in such landscapes. Oil sands process-affected water (OSPW) contains high concentrations of the contaminants to which these sites might be exposed. This study therefore tested the effects of OSPW on the aerobic and anaerobic carbon-cycling potential activity of the microbial communities of a variety of reference peatlands from the AOSR to determine the possible effects these contaminants might have on the communities of these constructed sites, through measurement of substrate-induced respiration (SIR) and methanogenic potential respectively. This study also measured the baseline aerobic and anaerobic carbon-cycling potential of these sites, to provide a reference baseline against which site managers might measure the development of such sites. Aerobic carbon-cycling potential at the start of the growing season was not significantly different (p=0.799) between the hypersaline rich fen and the Sphagnum-dominated poor fen, which both had significantly greater aerobic carbon-cycling potential than the treed rich fen at the start of the growing season. The sites' aerobic carbon-cycling potential did not significantly differ between any pair of sites at midseason. The low potential of the treed rich fen was attributed to phosphorus limitation indicated by a substrate preference for low molecular-weight organic acids in that site. None of the sites displayed any significant change in overall SIR on exposure to OSPW, though the hypersaline site showed an SIR preference for saccharide compounds only under contamination, attributed to salt stress response from the high levels of Na+ present in OSPW. The overall lack of effect of OSPW contamination was likely either due to short incubation times (6h) or the immobilization of OSPW contaminants through physical and chemical interactions with the peat substrate. Control methanogenic potential was highest at the treed rich fen, significantly lower at the poor Sphagnum-dominated fen, and significantly lower than either of the other two sites at the hypersaline rich fen. The extremely low control methane of the hypersaline rich fen site was likely due to the presence of sulfate in the pore water of that site and inhibition of methanogenesis via the presence of a more thermodynamically favourable terminal electron acceptor. Exposure to OSPW significantly decreased methanogenic potential in both the treed rich fen and the hypersaline rich fen, but had no significant impact on methanogenic potential in the Sphagnum-dominated poor fen. As amendment with OSPW containing twice its usual concentration of Na+ did not significantly further decrease methanogenic potential, it appears unlikely that high sodium concentrations are responsible for the inhibitory effect. The mechanism of resistance to OSPW inhibition in the Sphagnum-dominated poor fen is also unclear, but may be the consequence of a more-resilient microbial community or the rapid consumption by the microbial community of any alternative electron acceptors that might be suppressing methanogenesis. These results have implications for the construction of site-reclamation peatlands. Identifying the mechanism of resistance to OSPW contamination of methanogenesis in Sphagnum peat will inform choices about its use in the construction of such sites.

Download or read book Hydrology of a Constructed Fen Watershed in a Post mined Landscape in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Alberta Canada written by Scott James Ketcheson and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 166 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Peatlands (i.e., wetlands with organic soil) cover approximately 12% of Canada's total land area, 18% of Alberta's land base and nearly half of the landscape in Canada's Western Boreal Plain. Some of these peatlands overlay vast fossil fuel resources. Mounting pressure from resource extraction industries is impacting an increasing proportion of peatland ecosystems in Canada. In Alberta, approximately 4800 km2 of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region near Fort McMurray has been deemed suitable for surface mining, which involves the removal of large expanses of undisturbed peatlands to access the oil sands beneath. The concept of peatland creation has been adapted into the Canadian regulatory framework and fen peatlands have now been constructed in post-mined oil sands landscapes. However, there is little information with respect to the nature of the hydrological processes that operate within constructed fen ecosystems and their associated watersheds and this concept is only now being tested in the field. Oil sands reclamation requires the reconstruction of entire landforms and drainage systems. The hydrological regime of reclaimed landscapes will be a manifestation of the processes operating within the individual landforms that comprise it. Hydrology is the most important process regulating wetland function and development, as it exhibits a strong control on the chemical and biotic processes operating in peatlands. Accordingly, this research aims to tackle the growing and immediate need to understand the hydrological processes that operate within reconstructed landscapes. The approach is to couple the controls on water distribution, storage and release within several reclaimed landforms (reclaimed slopes, tailings sand upland aquifer and fen peatland) to the function of a constructed fen watershed (the Nikanotee Fen watershed). A comparison of two constructed fen ecosystems with fundamentally different conceptual approaches provides the framework for examination of the key challenges and opportunities associated with fen creation in an oil sands reclamation setting. Although the focus of this work is on the hydrological processes, issues related to both water quantity and quality are identified as major challenges for fen creation. An adaptive approach to fen creation is recommended, in which the knowledge developed in concurrent research should be assimilated with the available longer-term information. The multi-faceted complexities associated with the ability to deem fen creation projects a success within the context of oil sands reclamation are also explored. The suggestion from this discourse was that success should be measured by the ability to design and construct systems that exhibit predictable and desirable characteristics. The distribution, ablation and fate of snowmelt waters were quantified for the constructed watershed, which addresses a lack of understanding of snowmelt dynamics within reclaimed landscapes. Results indicated that the snowmelt period hydrology within recently constructed landscapes is fundamentally different from that reported for natural settings. Reclaimed slopes represented large stores of over-winter precipitation and generated substantial surface runoff during the snowmelt period. This research demonstrates that snow dynamics must be incorporated into the design of landscape-scale constructed ecosystems. The dominant controls on the soil water regimes and runoff generation mechanisms on two reclaimed slopes (reclaimed five years apart) within the Nikanotee Fen watershed were also investigated during the snow-free period. The contrasting hydrological regime exhibited by these slopes suggests that changes in the hydrophysical properties of reclamation materials following construction could result in a shift in the hydrological role of reclaimed slopes at the watershed scale. It appears that, over time, recently reclaimed slopes should produce less overland flow and shift from water conveyors to water storage features in constructed watershed systems. Finally, the water fluxes within the Nikanotee Fen - upland system were evaluated for the first two years following construction (2013 - 2014). The hydrological performance of the constructed system was assessed and discussed within the context of the construction-level design. It was determined that the system design was capable of sustaining wet conditions within the Nikanotee Fen during the snow-free period in 2013 and 2014, with persistent ponded water in some areas. Evapotranspiration dominated the water fluxes from the system. These losses were partially offset by groundwater discharge from the upland aquifer, which demonstrated strong hydrologic connectivity with the fen in spite of most construction materials having lower than targeted saturated hydraulic conductivities. However, the variable surface infiltration rates and thick placement of a soil-capping layer constrained recharge to the upland aquifer, which remained below designed water contents in much of the upland. These studies comprise one of the most comprehensive hydrological evaluations of a constructed fen peatland watershed to date. The findings of this research indicate that it is possible to engineer the post-mining landscape to accommodate the hydrological functions of a fen peatland. Several recommendations are made to help guide the construction of future fen peatlands, which should be done at the commercial-scale. Research priorities include understanding the storage and release of water within coarse-grained reclaimed landforms as well as evaluating the relative importance of external water sources and internal water conservation mechanisms for the viability of fen ecosystems over the longer-term. The novel, catchment-scale approach to reclamation research presented within this thesis provides an integrated understanding of the hydrological functioning of constructed watersheds, and a similar approach is recommended for future research in reclaimed landscapes.

Download or read book Methane Dynamics of a Constructed Fen in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Alberta written by Kimberley Murray and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Oil sands mining activities in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region in northeastern Alberta, Canada have resulted in an extensive amount of land disturbance. The Alberta government requires some reclamation of disturbed land to be to wetland ecosystems, and given the predominance of fen peatlands in the area, fen construction on post-mined landscapes has recently been attempted. Peatlands sequester substantial amounts of carbon over thousands of years due to waterlogged conditions and inefficient decomposition, and on a large time scale provide a cooling effect on the planet's radiative budget. However, peatland conditions are also ideal for production of the strong greenhouse gas methane (CH4). Natural peatlands emit a significant amount of CH4 to the atmosphere, particularly following formation when these ecosystems have a net warming effect associated with the large CH4 flux. Given the knowledge that the conditions that are conducive to CH4 production and flux in natural peatlands also result in the eventual accumulation of peat and carbon sequestration, understanding the CH4 dynamics of constructed fens may indicate biogeochemical function, along with the ability of these ecosystems to ultimately accumulate peat, a major goal of reclamation. Further, understanding important controls on CH4 dynamics from the constructed fen, including vegetation and geochemistry, in comparison to natural sites, is beneficial for the development of recommendation that may result in lower CH4 flux through vegetation impacts, but appropriate water chemistry for peat accumulation. For this research CH4 flux, CH4 concentration, and variables including vegetation and hydrochemistry were monitored from a constructed fen and two natural reference sites in northeastern Alberta over the 2015 growing season. A factorial greenhouse experiment was also used to understand differences in CH4 flux, concentration, and oxidation between two vascular plants, Carex aquatilis and Juncus balticus, planted for fen construction. This greenhouse experiment further considered how water sourced from the reclaimed constructed fen influenced CH4 dynamics compared to natural rich fen water. Both the field data from 2015 and the greenhouse experiment results found lower CH4 concentration from constructed fen plots compared to natural fen plots. Differences in hydrochemistry/water chemistry variables were found between constructed fen and natural fen plots in both studies, including evidence of terminal electron acceptors known to influence CH4 production such as sulfur, iron, manganese, and inorganic forms of nitrogen. While aboveground biomass and productivity in the field was found to be similar or higher at the constructed fen site compared to the two reference sites, belowground biomass was lower. In the greenhouse experiment, on the other hand, above and belowground biomass and productivity was similar between Carex aquatilis and Juncus balticus plots. Overall, several vegetation and hydrochemistry/water chemistry variables were found to significantly explain the CH4 results in the field and greenhouse experiment. For example, in both cases high sulfur at the constructed fen plots decreased CH4 flux and concentration. Lower CH4 concentration and higher relative oxidation found from plots including Juncus balticus compared to Carex aquatilis in the greenhouse experiment suggest that planting Juncus balticus in future constructed fen projects may result in lower CH4 flux. However, CH4 emissions will likely remain low at constructed fens if water chemistry does not change over time, or if future constructed fen designs are not altered to result in water chemistry more similar to natural sites.

Download or read book Dissolved Organic Carbon Production and Transport in a Constructed Watershed in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Alberta written by Sarah Irvine and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 105 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Within the Western Boreal Plains, a significant amount of surface cover has been removed through open-pit oil sands mining activities, which includes fen peatlands. Fen construction has been performed on the post-oil sands mined landscape, with the goal of returning ecohydrologic function such that the fen may become a carbon sink. Early results from studies within the Nikanotee Fen watershed indicate that groundwater is directed from the upland towards the fen, which has become a carbon sink. Work within the carbon budget includes dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and early post-succession concentrations and quality have been compared to natural analogues within the region. It was determined that initial conditions do not resemble that of reference sites; DOC concentrations were lower at the constructed site, and DOC appeared large and aromatic. However, DOC quantity and quality may shift as vegetation becomes established on the fen. However, no work has been done to determine the importance of other DOC sources in relation to both DOC dynamics within the fen, and how all DOC sources interact to affect DOC export quantity and quality. DOC export is typically highest in wetland-dominated watersheds, and can have important impacts on nutrient cycling, metal mobility, acidity, and availability of organics downstream. Therefore, it is important to ascertain if vegetation has become an important DOC source, and to consider hydrologic sources of DOC as well. This will be important when determining the best strategies for fen integration into a larger landscape. For this research, DOC concentration, flux, and quality was assessed through all sources within the watershed, to determine the relative importance of each input for determining DOC export from the site. DOC concentration and quality within the fen was then compared to reference sites, to assess the evolution of DOC sources post-construction. Water sampling occurred from May-August, 2015 in and July-August in 2016. It was determined that hydrological fluxes represented minimal inputs to the fen compared to the net production from vegetation, specifically as root exudates. However, when compared to reference sites, the constructed fen displayed less variability in its sources of DOC, whereas natural analogues displayed characteristics of both vegetation and microbially-sourced DOC. This is unlikely to change until mosses become dominant on site, or peat accumulation occurs. When considering all hydrological sources of DOC, groundwater represented the largest in 2015, while precipitation was the largest input in 2016. DOC concentration from each input did not significantly vary seasonally or by event size, therefore DOC fluxes were dependent on the volume of water mobilised. Yet, DOC quality varied substantially between sources. Both 2015 and early 2016 received less than average precipitation, this limited groundwater recharge and runoff in 2015. In wetter years, hydrologic inputs would increase, however will still be considerably less than the net production within the fen. This is evident when analyzing DOC quality at the outflow; DOC quality most resembled that in the fen. Total DOC export was limited, due to dry conditions. As DOC export only occurs through surface flow, dry conditions limited surface runoff within the fen, also promoting DOC accumulation. It is unlikely that hydrologic inputs will increase enough to represent a significant portion of the DOC budget in the fen even in wet years, therefore when the outflow is situated adjacent to the fen, monitoring should be most intensive within the fen. However, in constructed watersheds that do not contain wetlands, it will be important to monitor each contributing area to determine which areas within the watershed represent important DOC fluxes downstream, and how the DOC quality from each source may impact downstream biogeochemical dynamics.

Download or read book Groundwater Observation Well Network Athabasca Oil Sands Area 1982 Update written by Alberta Research Council and published by . This book was released on 1974 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Athabasca Oil Sands Mining Soils and Land Reclamation in Northeastern Alberta written by Graeme M. Greenlee and published by . This book was released on 1978 with total page 59 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Groundwater Observation Well Network written by and published by . This book was released on 1975 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Water Quality of the Athabasca Oil Sands Area Vol 1 Data Collection and Quality written by Canada-Alberta. Alberta Oil Sands Environmental Research Program and published by . This book was released on 1980 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Hydrogeology of the Athabasca Oil Sands Area Alberta written by D. A. Hackbarth and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page 39 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Preliminary Study of Chemical and Microbial Characteristics of the Athabasca Oil Sands Area of Northeastern Alberta written by Alberta Oil Sands Environmental Research Program and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Characterizing Controls on Plot scale Evapotranspiration and Soil Water Dynamics of a Constructed Fen in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region Alberta written by Sarah Scarlett and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 59 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the Athabasca oil sands region of the Western Boreal Plains (WBP) mining companies now recognize the importance of reclaiming peatlands, as they cover > 50% of the pre-mined regional landscape. Open-pit mining operations require the removal of overburden, which is the surficial soil and vegetation overlying the oil-bearing formation. As a result, mining processes leave an unnatural, undulating landscape, which promotes the establishment of ecosystems non-native to the region. To date, oil sands wetland reclamation efforts have focused on marsh and open water wetlands. However, these wetland systems are not abundant in the sub-humid climate of the WBP due to high evaporative demand from free water surfaces. Despite their abundance on the landscape, the re-establishment of peatland ecosystems had not been previously tested due to their complexity and long successional development. However, the importance of these ecosystems was recognized by Alberta's Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act (EPEA), which mandated mining companies to test peatland reclamation. As a result Suncor's Nikanotee Fen, an experimental fen and watershed constructed as part of the landscape reclamation, was completed in 2013 and engineered with the intent to support natural fen vegetation and hydrologic processes. During the initial years post-construction, the influence of the experimental planting design on the fen's hydrology is unknown. Therefore, plot-scale evapotranspiration (ET) and soil water dynamics were monitored at various mulched and unmulched vegetation plots (control, moss, seedlings; n = 31) across the fen, including ponds. Treatments types were found to influence available energy and thus ET, with highest rates over open water (4.4 mm/day) and lowest rates over moss-mulch plots (2.4 mm/day). Mulch reduced ET by lowering the vapour pressure deficit within the mulch layer, thus providing a favorable microclimate for moss establishment by elevating near-surface relative humidity and reducing air and soil temperatures by ~2°C. Plot-scale ET trends followed ponds (331 mm) > seedlings (294 mm) > seedling-mulch (273 mm) > control (246 mm) > moss (212 mm) > moss-mulch (179 mm), where cumulative seasonal ET exceeded cumulative precipitation (132 mm) in all plots. While plot type was found to influence ET losses, it did not show a significant control on soil water dynamics in this study. While there were slight water deficits (P-ET) and lower soil moisture contents in mulched plots, probably caused by precipitation interception, the specific effects of mulch on plot soil water dynamics are difficult to elucidate due to significant differences in plot water table levels (p 0.05). Water table variability was directly related to surface elevation, which differed between plots by ~ 24 cm. Despite a relatively small range in elevations, plot water table positions varied 20 cm bgs, where plots located at higher elevations had consistently lower and more variable water tables. Furthermore, the salvage and placement methods of the peat created highly heterogeneous peat properties across the fen, which significantly differed with location across the fen (p

Download or read book Athabasca Oil Sands written by Barry Glen Ferguson and published by University of Regina Press. This book was released on 1985 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Covers the research - private, scholarly, and government - that went into developing the oil sands.

Download or read book Water Quality of the Athabasca Oil Sands Area written by Akena, Anthony Mark and published by . This book was released on 1980 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: