Conservation & Restoration Ecology (CARE) student Gerald Cousin outlines The Pipeline Energy Industry and Restoration in Alberta for a Restoration Ecology course at Lakeland College. CARE is one of four majors students can choose for an environmental sciences diploma. Cousins examines this major Alberta industry and techniques and procedures (establishing vegetation, watershed management, erosion control, wildlife management, soil management) that are used to restore lands disturbed by pipelines construction.

1. The
Pipeline
Energy
Industry
and
Restora6on
in
Alberta
Gerald
Cousin
Lakeland
College
Conserva5on
and
Restora5on
Ecology
Major
Trans
Canada
These
slides
were
designed
to
accompany
an
oral
presenta5on
and
were
submi8ed
in
par5al
fulfillment
of
the
requirements
of
Restora5on
Ecology
(SC329).
This
material
was
prepared
for
a
general
audience.

2. Pipelines:
A
Major
Industry
in
Alberta
The
Canadian
Energy
Pipeline
Associa5on
(CEPA)

3. Ecosystems
Pipelines
Built
Through
•
•
•
•
•
•
Prairies
Forests
Rock
mountains
Wetlands
Unlike
mines
&
wells,
pipelines
cover
huge
areas
A
single
pipeline
may
cross
many
different
ecosystems

4. Alberta
Environmental
Sustainable
Resource
Development
Environmental
Considera6ons
Land
and
water
contamina5on
Loss
and
Fragmenta5on
of
wildlife
Loss
of
natural
vegeta5on
Increased
invasive
weed
disturbance
Soil
contamina5on
and
erosion
Soil
compac5on
Reduced
land
capability
and
produc5vity
in
agriculture
and
forestry
• Stream
sedimenta5on
• Impairment
of
fish
habitat
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

5. Construction
1)
Staking
and
clearing
“Right
of
Way”
Environmental
impacts:
• Vegeta6on
loss
• Increased
weeds
• Soil
erosion
• Soil
compac6on
• Reduced
land
capability
Working
Class
Heroes

6. 2)
Ditching
the
Trench
Environmental
impacts:
• Soil
erosion
• Soil
compac6on
• Reduced
land
capability
• Stream
sedimenta6on
• Impaired
fish
habitat
CEPA

7. 3)
Installa6on
of
pipe
(Bellow/Above
Ground)
Enbridge
Energy
Environmental
impacts:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Land
and
water
contamina6on
Loss
and
Fragmenta6on
of
wildlife
Loss
of
natural
vegeta6on
Increased
invasive
weed
disturbance
Soil
contamina6on
and
erosion
Soil
compac6on
Reduced
land
capability
and
produc6vity
in
agriculture
and
forestry

8. 4)
Comple6on
Environmental
impacts:
• Loss
and
fragmenta6on
of
wildlife
• Loss
of
na6ve
vegeta6on
• Increased
invasive
weeds
• Soil
contamina6on
and
erosion
• Soil
compac6on
• Reduced
land
capability
and
produc6vity
in
agriculture
and
forestry
Trans
Canada

9. Restora6on
Procedures
Plains
Midstream
Erosion
&
Ground
Control:
Logs
in
the
area
spread
across
right
of
way.

10. Plains
Midstream
Establishing
Vegeta6on:
Collec6ng
na6ve
seeds
from
tress
and
shrubs.

11. Plains
Midstream
Establishing
Vegeta6on:
Germina6ng
Seedlings
in
controlled
area
from
a
collec6on
of
na6ve
seeds.

12. Plains
Midstream
Establishing
Vegeta6on:
Plan6ng
of
germinated
seed
plugs
in
pipeline
right
of
way.

13. Kinder
Morgan
Watershed
Management:
Pipeline
stream
crossing
Stream
bank
restora6on.

14. Kinder
Morgan
Wildlife
Management:
Installa6on
of
“soW
plugs”
helps
animals
cross
construc6on
area.

15. Plains
Midstream
Soil
Management:
Topsoil
is
replaced.

16. Kinder
Morgan
Pipeline
Kinder
Morgan
Below-­‐ground
pipeline:
rocks
on
banks
direct
water
flow
away
from
pipeline.

17. Kinder
Morgan
Wildlife
Management:
Reloca6ng
Columbian
Ground
Squirrel,
Jasper
Na6onal
Park,
Alberta.

18. Kinder
Morgan
Stream
flow
direc6on
restora6on
aWer
construc6on.

19. Trans
Mountain
Anchor
Loop
Pipeline
Trans
Mountain
Germinated
na6ve
seed
plugs
to
be
planted
on
pipeline
right
of
way.

20. Trans
Mountain
Re-­‐establishing
na6ve
trees
and
shrubs.

21. Trans
Mountain
Jasper
Na6on
Park
&
Mount
Robson
Na6onal
Park:
plan6ng
of
na6ve
shrubs
along
TransCanada
pipeline.

22. Trans
Mountain
Spray
plan6ng
seeds
along
right
of
way
bank
in
Jasper
Na6onal
Park.

23. Enbridge
Athabasca
Gerald
Cousin
Enbridge
Pipeline
crossing
wetland
using
float
system.

24. Results
Lakeland
College
Aerial
Photo:
April/16/1977

25. Lakeland
College
Aerial
Photo:
April/24/1986

26. Lakeland
College
Aerial
Photo:
August/31/1995

27. Challenges
with
Pipeline
Restora6on
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ecosystem
regenera5on
Soil
reclama5on
Soil
contaminated
Seedling
emergence
Watershed
runoff
All
due
to
altera5on
of
environment
during
construc5on

28. •
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
References
Alberta
Environmental
Sustainable
Resource
Development.
2012.
[online].
h8p://environment.alberta.ca/index.htmll
[accessed
November
16
2013].
Cepa
Pipeline
Construc5on.
2000.
[online].
h8p://www.cepa.com/about-­‐pipelines/pipeline-­‐design-­‐construc5on/pipeline-­‐construc5on
[accessed
November
17
2013].
Enbridge
Energy.
2012.
[online].
h8p://www.enbridge.com/
[accessed
November
25
2013].
Government
of
Alberta.
2012.
[online].h8ps://www.albertacanada.com/business/sta5s5cs/inventory-­‐of-­‐
major-­‐projects.aspx
[accessed
November
15
2013].
Kinder
Morgan
Pipeline.
2009.
[online].
h8p://www.kindermorgan.com/business/canada/data/2/rec_docs/
newsle8er_fraser_valley_
trans
[accessed
November
10
2013].
Kinder
Morgan
Pipeline
2009.
[online].
h8p://www.kindermorgan.com/business/canada/data/2/rec_docs/newsle8er_fraser_valley_Dec2011.pdf
[accessed
November
10
2013].
Northern
Gateway
Pipeline.
1999.
[online].h8ps://www.northerngateway.ca/
[accessed
November
23
2013].
Plains
Midstream.
2013.
[online].
h8p://www.plainsmidstream.com/
[accessed
November
13
2013].
Sycrude
Canada.
2013.
[online].
h8p://www.syncrude.ca/users/folder.asp
[accessed
November
24
2013].
Trans
Canada.
1998.
[online].
h8p://www.transcanada.com/splash/
[accessed
November
22
2013].
Trans
Mountain.
2000.
[online].
h8p://www.transmountain.com/reclama5on
9acessed
November
5
2013].
Working
Class
Heroes.
1999.
Pipeline
Construc5on.
[online].
h8p://www.workingclassheroes.me/?p=991
[accessed
November
15
2013].