Master of Science in Ecological Restoration Applied Research Projects
Description
This is Canada’s first master’s program specializing in Ecological Restoration and is offered as a joint program between British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) and Simon Fraser University (SFU). The MSc in Ecological Restoration combines the strong technical and applied (experiential) knowledge at BCIT with SFU’s fundamental (contextual) basic science and community engagement expertise.
Geochemical and biological attributes of three intertidal areas in the Squamish Estuary with different levels of disturbance (low, medium, and high) were assessed to determine short-term ecosystem responses to localized restoration efforts conducted one year previously on a former log handing site. Sediment and macroinvertebrate variables were analyzed among sites to characterize the ecosystems response and provide insight on the nature and process of an assisted successional trajectory. Invertebrate composition and biomass were lowest on the site with the highest level of disturbance. The high disturbance site also contained the highest percentage of fine sand (0.0067 mm to 0.25 mm). This confirms that in the short term there are distinct site responses to disturbance and ameliorative restoration efforts – even in a highly dynamic estuarine environment. The medium site contained more invertebrates than the low disturbance site indicating that something other than localized disturbance is affecting the invertebrate community on the low site. All sites exhibited a less-rich and less diverse invertebrate community than that of historical records (circa. 1970-1980). Invertebrate community in the east delta today is more typical of estuarine environments with higher salinity levels - which indicates more widespread levels of disturbance throughout the Estuary is affecting the study sites. This
study highlights the importance of considering temporal and spatial scales when setting restoration goals, objectives and creating monitoring plans. Additional monitoring of sediment, invertebrate, and other variables on restored and reference sites is recommended to characterize typical recolonization and reassembly attributes of restoring intertidal estuaries in coastal British Columbia. This would provide evidence and rigor in determining effective restoration techniques and management strategies for a critical and increasingly threatened ecosystem., Macroinvertebrates, Restoration, Sediment, Benthic ecology, Estuaries, Intertidal flats
Road mortality poses a significant threat to freshwater turtles globally, including the western
painted turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii). Even low levels of road mortality can severely impact the
long-term survival of these long-lived reptiles. While mitigation infrastructure is employed to
reduce mortality, its effectiveness may vary depending on the location and species involved.
Population viability analysis can be a valuable alternative for wildlife managers to assess the
viability of the populations they monitor and the potential impact of management decisions, but
are most useful when data from target populations is available. This research project aimed to
evaluate the long-term persistence of a rural western painted turtle population experiencing road
mortality. The study first investigated the effectiveness of a turtle tunnel and drift fencing in
reducing road mortality. Parameters derived from the population were then used to model the
long-term viability of the turtle population in the program Vortex under various scenarios of
ongoing road mortality. This study analyses three years of mark-recapture, ratio telemetry
tracking, and road mortality surveys done by contractors and summer hires of the Ministry of
Water, Land, and Resource Stewardship at Baynes Lake, BC. The turtle population was
estimated to be 1,451 (SD= 75) individuals, with a female-biased sex ratio (1.5 females: 1
male). Only a quarter of sexually mature females were found to be gravid in a given year, with
gravid females laying only one clutch. Subadult and adult survivorship were calculated using the
same dataset employed for the population estimate, resulting in a survivorship rate of 96.4%
(SD = 1.3%) per year. Radio telemetry was used to assess the number of road crossings made
in a given year. Gravid females were found to make a higher average number of road crossings
(1.6 road crossings per season) than males (0.1 road crossings per season) or non-gravid
females (0.7 road crossings per season). In 2021, an under-road turtle tunnel was installed in
Baynes Lake, followed by the installation of drift fencing in the spring of 2023. Over time and
after the implementation of drift fencing, more turtles were observed encountering the installed
turtle tunnel. However, evidence regarding the complete traversal of the turtle tunnel was not
conclusive. Before the installation of the turtle tunnel, casual community-led surveys in 2021
estimated a mortality rate of 1% of the population. Mortality rates, calculated over the duration of
the survey periods, decreased after the installation of the turtle tunnel (0.1 mortalities per day in
2022) and further decreased after drift fencing was installed (0.03 mortalities per day). The
long-term viability of the Baynes Lake population was modeled in Vortex, with additive road
mortality modeled as a percentage loss of the population. The road mortality rate of 1% additive
mortality, seen before road mortality reduction strategies, resulted in a 60% decrease of the initial population after 100 years. This indicates that even low levels of additive adult road
mortality can lead to declines in the Baynes Lake western painted turtle population. Sensitivity
testing of the model indicates that the Baynes Lake population is highly sensitive to changes in
adult/subadult and juvenile mortality. Pre-mitigation mortality levels had the potential to
dramatically impact the population of Baynes Lake. It is crucial to acknowledge and address
what may appear to be relatively low levels of roadway mortality in rural areas, as even these
seemingly modest rates can have a significant impact on western painted turtle populations., Western painted turtle, Chrysemys picta bellii, roadway mortality, population viability modeling, population estimate, scavenge rate
Kelp is an ecologically, economically, and culturally important species that is facing global declines. This pilot project investigated if declines in Bull Kelp in the Saturna Island Interim Sanctuary Zone could be attributed to increased herbivory by sea urchins, and/or thermal stress caused by increased ocean temperatures. In areas where sea urchins were excluded, bull kelp was more abundant and in areas where sea urchins were not excluded, heavy grazing was observed. Throughout the summer 2023 study period, sea surface temperature did not exceed bull kelp’s adult or gametophyte thermal tolerance.
Restoration of this site should include methods to reduce sea urchin herbivory, while
carefully considering cultural and ecological implications., macroalgae, sea urchin, bull kelp, kelp restoration, herbivore exclusion
Siwash Island is a tidal marsh situated at the southern end of the Widgeon Marsh Regional Park Reserve, Coquitlam, British Columbia (BC). The numerical model MarshMorpho2D was used to depict the evolution of marsh under various scenarios of sea level rise (SLR), suspended sediment concentration (SSC), and tidal range (TR) over the next 80 years. Changes in SLR and TR substantially impact the island’s morphology. Higher TR and SLR cause higher inundation and erosion rate, resulting in loss of vegetation, elevation, and habitat across the island. The model projection indicates that Siwash Island is likely to submerge within the next 80 years. The MarshMorpho2D model provides insights for policymakers and conservationists to develop adaptive strategies to mitigate the effect of SLR on coastal ecosystems., tidal marsh, numerical model, MarshMorpho2D, sea level rise, tidal range, suspended sediment concentration
Forest managers are interested in determining how stands that have been logged might be managed to restore features characteristic of forests in later-stages of development. Incorporating forest restoration into forest management enables the use of forest-management skills, such as silviculture and regeneration techniques, to manage individual stands for multiple objectives. Therefore, I performed a comparative analysis of large trees, very-large trees, large snags, very-large snags, and large CWD among three stand types (i.e., 60-yr-managed, 140-yr-natural, and 500-yr-natural stands). The 140-yr-natural and 500-yr-natural stands were used as reference conditions to guide the restoration of a 59-yr-managed spacing trial. All attributes differed among stand-types; however, large snags were the most similar attribute between 140-yr-natural and 500-yr-natural stands. Large trees were the fastest attribute to recover in 60-yr-managed stands, however mean values among stand-types still differed. This study highlights the potential of restoring old-natural attributes in younger-managed stands to increase ecological resiliency., forest, natural, managed, prescription, restoration, old-natural attributes
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