Transcript Overcoming Challenges for Reclamation Success

Overcoming
Challenges for
Reclamation Success
Cindy Pappas
Ed Redente, Ph.D.
Richard Bell
Importance of Reclamation
Heightened focus on reclamation and, most importantly,
reclamation “success”
1. State and other stakeholders perception that wildlife
habitat and therefore hunting are being adversely
impacted by the lack of habitat restoration
2. BLM’s own assessment and determination that
reclamation has not been “successful” is driving the
development of a standard reclamation planning template
3. BLM is including disturbance cap-based alternatives in a
number of EISs
Reclamation as a Part of
NEPA Compliance
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Key component of mitigation either as
ACEPMs/Design Features or as COAs
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Required by 43 CFR 3000 and 36 CFR 228,
Onshore O&G Orders, and Notices to Lessees –
the Gold Book
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Until recently, reclamation planning for O&G
projects have been proposed and implemented
with varying levels of commitment of science or
evaluation for success
Successful Reclamation
• BLM is now including criteria or thresholds for success
in terms of a percent cover and species diversity within
a specified period of years
• Other stakeholders such as WG&F are coming up with
similar guidance on reclamation planning including
criteria for success
• Are these criteria for success achievable? Are they
science based? Do they account for the dynamic and
variable nature of the environment?
Disturbance Cap
• BLM has included and will likely continue to include a
Disturbance Cap Alternative, especially EISs
• Applied reclamation that is determined to be
“successful”, both interim and final, during the life of the
project by the BLM/stakeholders allows the operator to
subtract the “successfully” reclaimed acreage from the
project total so to keep the acreage of disturbance below
the cap
• How can an operator plan and go forward with a project
whose development over time will be subject to accepted
“success” for timely reclamation in challenging
environments?
Reclamation Science—The State of the Art
• The knowledge base for the reclamation of disturbed
lands in the western U.S. is extensive
• Reseeding of millions of acres following the dust
bowl of the 1930s
• Improvements of millions of acres of arid and
semiarid rangelands in the 1960s—1980s following
more than a half a century of rangeland
exploitation
Reclamation Science—The State of the Art
• Conversion of millions of acres of marginal farm
land to perennial grasslands under the USDA
Conservation Reserve Program beginning in
1985
• Reclamation of tens of thousands of acres of
mined lands, especially following SMCRA and
rigorous state rules and regulations governing
mine land reclamation
Reclamation Science—The State of the Art
• Relevance to Oil and Gas Reclamation
• The knowledge that has been accumulated from
decades of reclamation work in the western U.S.
has direct application to the O&G industry
• No need to reinvent to wheel for O&G reclamation
Reclamation Science—The State of the Art
• Relevance to Oil and Gas Reclamation (continued)
• Although some of the knowledge is being applied
to O&G, much of it is not being used
• In general, reclamation has not been a high
priority for O&G projects
• The effectiveness of achieving reclamation
success needs to increase if O&G development is
going to be allowed to continue
Environmental Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Physical Challenges
• Extremes in Texture
• Infiltration
• Hydraulic conductivity
• Water holding capacity
• Cation exchange capacity
• Soil Compaction
• Too much compaction results in the loss of macropores,
runoff increases, potential for erosion increases, and
root growth is restricted.
Environmental Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Physical Challenges (continued)
• Rock Fragments
• Reduction in root volume
• Decline in TWH capacity
• Reduction in total soil nutrients
• Elevated surface temperature (higher heat capacity than
soil)
• Poor seed soil contact in seedbed
Environmental Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Physical Challenges (continued)
• Erosion
• Major limiting factor to restoration success
• Water (sheet and rill/gully)
• Wind
Environmental Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Physical Challenges (continued)
• Precipitation
• Precipitation is limiting factor for plant
establishment
• Plant establishment limited by frequency and
duration of rainfall events
• Rainfall often results in successful germination,
but frequency of events does not support longterm establishment
Environmental Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Chemical Challenges
• Soil pH
• Extremes in pH are problematic for plant growth (<5.0
or >9.0)
• Soil pH is not typically a problem with oil & gas
reclamation
• Soil salinity (EC > 4 mmhos/cm)
• Effects plant’s ability to take up water
• Effect is more prevalent during germination and early
seedling growth
Environmental Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Chemical Challenges
• Soil sodicity
• Deterioration of soil structure (defloculation
or dispersion of soil particles results in
restricted water movement into soil, lower
aeration, lower seedling emergence, and
lower root elongation)
Environmental Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Biological Challenges
• Invasive Species
• Competition from highly competition invasive plants
(noxious and non-noxious weeds)
• Grazing Animals
• Over utilization by wildlife and domestic livestock
Other Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Improper Reclamation Techniques
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Inadequate seedbed preparation
Poor seed-soil contact
Lack of “safe sites” for seed germination & establishment
Seed distribution not uniform
Planting seed too deep
Seeding rates too low
Seeding wrong time of the year
Other Challenges to
Reclamation Success
Improper Species Selection and Seed Mixture Composition
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Species not adapted to site conditions
Cultivar or variety within a species not adapted
Use of species that have seed dormancy issues
Use of species that are difficult to establish or very slow growing
Formulating seed mixtures that over emphasize species that are
difficult to establish or are highly aggressive
Overcoming Challenges for
Reclamation Success
• Select species adapted to soil texture
• Eliminate soil compaction by ripping or scarifying
• Rock fragments are difficult to remove, if percent is high, then
considering adding amendments to increase WHC
• Control erosion with mulch and reduce slope angle and length
• Cover saline soils or use only salt tolerant species
• Cover sodic soils or use only sodium tolerant species
• Control invasive species
Overcoming Challenges for
Reclamation Success
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Use of fencing to exclude large herbivores
Rough seedbed is superior to a smooth seedbed
Implement quality controls during seeding
Seed prior to the period of greatest precipitation or period of
most reliable precipitation (this varies by region)
• Select species and cultivars that are adapted to site
conditions.
• If seed supplies are coming from native collections, only use
seed to that has been collected from environments similar to
where planting will occur
Overcoming Challenges for
Reclamation Success
• Avoid or minimize the use of slow growing species
• Avoid or minimize the use of species with seed dormancy issues
• Formulate seed mixtures based on the ecological characteristics
of the species
• Implement monitoring programs to measure reclamation
success
Measuring Reclamation Success
• Short-term (Interim) Reclamation
• Difficult to define success by current standards
• Thresholds based on percent cover and restricted
timelines fail to address environmental variability
• Proper planning, implementation, and monitoring should
be basis for determining short-term success
• Final Reclamation
• Scientifically based standard that accounts for the
dynamic and variable nature of the environment in which
the disturbance has occurred
Measuring Reclamation Success
Successful reclamation can be achieved!
• Making intelligent
decisions
• Drawing on knowledge
base we already have
• Establishing realistic goals
and thresholds
• Avoiding costly errors
Questions?