Moose are an environmentally, economically, and culturally important game species. However, moose numbers have declined rapidly in the central portion of British Columbia. This decline could be related to widespread and rapid forest harvesting. We will study the impact of human-caused changes to forests on how moose select habitat and why they migrate. Monitoring moose numbers is also a critical part of managing their populations, especially given their current, rapid decline. Thus, we will compare three methods for estimating moose numbers.
Systematic Conservation Planning (SCP) is the idea that the practice of protecting lands should be examined on a broad scale and be holistic in nature. Available areas of land with conservation potential should be examined critically for whether they fit into a larger ecological network – either as a link between existing protected areas, or as an area that is ecologically significant on its own. This project is an application of SCP principles and tools for a specific geography – the Tsay Keh Dene Nation Territory in northcentral British Columbia, Canada.
Agricultural waste and public effluents often contain elevated levels of phosphorous and nitrogen that limit its ability to be directly repurposed as crop fertilizer or irrigation spray. Removal of soluble nutrients from waste water is difficult. Current treatment options have high investment costs and are often not well suited for smaller farm sizes common in Canada. This research intends to characterize the utility of a solid state absorbent material engineered by NPower Clean Tech Corporation that shows promise for removing anionic forms of phosphorous and nitrogen.
The Wells-Barkerville Community Forest (WBCF) is a small, 4300 ha forest in the BC interior wet-belt forest with important value economically and ecologically, and for contributing to the quality of life and the continued ability to attract tourists to the region.
Driven by heightened environmental awareness, the construction industry increasingly strives to utilize materials such as timber with a low-carbon footprint in their life cycle. High-strength mass-timber products, innovative ductile connections, and fast computer-numerically-controlled pre-fabrication, combined with changing legislation create better opportunities to also build tall timber structures. However, low ductility and limited tensile strength of timber are challenges for such buildings particularly in high seismic zones.
Since the introduction of radio and television, fans have had a connection to those they know in the media. These connections are called âparasocial relationshipsâ and they are one-sided relationships, usually between a fan and a celebrity, that is usually not face-to-face. With the advent of social media, any person, or company, can become a celebrity and gain fans.
The mountains of British Columbia store vast, but varying, amounts of water in winter snowpacks. Accurate estimates of snow water equivalent (SWE) in these mountains are critical for hydroelectric power generation and flood forecasting, but the current observation network is often insufficient. Working with both industry and academic partners, Mitacs interns will use airborne laser measurements of snow depth, satellite-based observations of snow cover, and ground-based snowpack measurements to reduce errors in river forecasting.
Driven by heightened environmental awareness, the construction industry increasingly strives to utilize materials such as timber with a low-carbon footprint in their life cycle. High-strength mass-timber products, innovative ductile connections, and fast computer-numerically-controlled pre-fabrication, combined with changing legislation create better opportunities to also build tall timber structures. However, low ductility and limited tensile strength of timber are challenges for such buildings particularly in high seismic zones.
The town of Fort Nelson has been hugely impacted economically with the drop in oil prices and cancellation of west-coast LNG export. Local companies and entrepreneurs are looking for other natural resources in an attempt to save the regions economy. Mindbody Networks Inc. has access to a variety of natural clay deposits distributed within the area that hold huge economic potential. In this research project, the suitability of this clay deposit for different industrial applications will be evaluated.
