Boreal Ecosystem Restoration and Assessment (BERA) Research Internship

The boreal zone of Alberta is fragmented by more than 1 million km of petroleum-exploration corridors. Known as seismic lines, these seemingly innocuous ~2-10m wide clearings influence a host of ecosystem processes and have been implicated in the decline of Threatened woodland caribou. With millions of dollars slated for future restoration programs designed to aid the recovery of woodland caribou populations in Alberta, we require targeted research that maximizes the efficiency and effectiveness of these efforts while minimizing unintended consequences. The purpose of this project is to develop remote-sensing tools and workflows that can supplement – or in some cases even replace – existing field-based procedures for restoration planning (deciding which lines require treatments) and assessment (monitoring the success of these treatments after they have been applied). Researchers from Canada (University of Calgary) and Germany (Ludwig Maximillian University of Munich) are collaborating on this research in the context of ABBY Net: the Alberta-Bavaria Research Network. The mission of ABBY-Net is to bring together researchers from Alberta, Canada and Bavaria, Germany who collaborate on interdisciplinary research and training for an improved understanding of the complex interactions in E³-Systems (Environment, Engineering and Socio-Economics) to facilitate energy systems transitions.

Faculty Supervisor:

Greg McDermid

Student:

Partner:

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München

Discipline:

Earth science

Sector:

Education

University:

University of Calgary

Program: