Reclaiming Canada Issue 2, 2009

Rec aiming Canada Living roofs ‘Green’ grows on city skylines, a trend on the west coast, begins to take root in the Maritimes

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Dryden celebrates its centennial year with a blooming makeover and is poised to enter a land reclamation competition.

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Rec aiming Canada

Table of Contents Issue 2 | 2009

Features 4

Downtown Revival

4

Earl’s Court Park blooms in Dryden.

6

Reclamation: Band-Aid solution?

Winnipeg’s Seine River land stewardship project answers cynics.

8

Trafficable Deposits

6

Last year’s ‘major’ directive is all business when it comes to tailings.

10

What’s dry is wet again Syncrude wetlands research project making sandy area moist again.

8 10

Waste not want not Pulp mill sludge makes for better growth in agriculture and remediation land.

16

C O V E R S TO RY:

Living Roofs

‘Green’ grows on city skylines.

16

Departments 3

Reclamation News HudBay re-starts operations in Snow Lake, Manitoba

3 20

Organization Profile I.W. Kuhn Environmental Ltd. credits staff and clients for decades of success.

ON THE COVER: The Vancouver Convention Centre has an impressive living roof, among other green features. Researchers and planners in Halifax plan to transform their city’s skyline, too.

Photo: Vancouver Convention Centre

20

1

Letter from the editor “A book, like a landscape, is a state of consciousness varying with readers” – Ernest Dimnet

T

he start of a new year calls for new beginnings. Hopeful people making resolutions, promising themselves that this year will be different; they will see the plan through. Though not everyone sets out the same goals, a safe assumption could be made that a common theme amongst them is self improvement. Whether that means incorporating a new fitness régime, eating more locally grown produce or getting a full nights rest, the end goal is typically to feel better inside and out.

The same idea applies to our current issue of Reclaiming Canada. We are looking ahead at 2010 with the hopes that Canada will revitalize itself and aim to become a greener, cleaner and more organic country. Featured in this issue are a few groups and communities that are doing just that. From Dryden’s Communities in Bloom award to St-Mary’s University and their green building movement in Halifax, these communities are leading the way in rejuvenating what once was dreary land.

Reclaiming Canada is published for you, the industry professional, with the intent to provide you with a national voice. If there is something that you think Reclaiming Canada should highlight, tell us about it! What are the essential issues you would like to see featured? Do you have industry insight to pass along? If you do, I would love to hear from you. Please email me at bburgoyne@lesterpublications.com to provide insight and feedback for an upcoming issue of Reclaiming Canada.

Rec aiming Canada Publisher Lester Communications Inc. 701 Henry Avenue Winnipeg, Manitoba R3E 1T9 Phone: 1-204-953-2189 Toll Free: 1-866-953-2189 Fax: 1-204-953-2184 www.lesterpublications.com President Jeff Lester Vice-President Sean Davis Editor Brigitte Burgoyne Account Executives Quinn Bogusky Kathy O’Halloran Louise Peterson Graphic Designers John Lyttle Myles O’Reilly

Brigitte Burgoyne Editor

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Reclamation News

In this department, Reclaiming Canada will provide information on the news and events that matter to the industry. If you have anything to report, contact the editor at 1-877-953-2588, or editor@lesterpublications.com

HudBay to Re-Start Chisel North Mine and Snow Lake Concentrator TORONTO, ONTARIO, Oct 30, 2009 (Marketwire via COMTEX News Network) – HudBay Minerals Inc. (“HudBay”, “the company”) (TSX:HBM) today announced that it will re-start operations at its Chisel North mine and concentrator in Snow Lake, Manitoba effective immediately, with full production expected in the second quarter of 2010. The re-start of operations at Snow Lake is expected to provide approximately 30,000 tonnes of zinc concentrate feed to the company’s Flin Flon zinc plant annually. The capital costs of the re-start are expected to be approximately CDN$7 million and operating costs are expected to be comparable to what they were prior to the suspension of operations earlier this year.

The company also announced today that it has entered into a hedge of approximately 50 per cent of the anticipated zinc production from the Chisel North mine at an average price of approximately US$1.01 per pound of zinc. This forward sale is intended to ensure that Chisel North remains economic at lower zinc prices, while providing unfettered upside for the remaining 50 per cent of its zinc production.

The Chisel North mine and Snow Lake concentrator have been on care and maintenance since the first quarter of 2009, due to depressed zinc prices at

“The re-start of our Snow Lake operations is exciting news for the company and the local community.”

— Peter R. Jones, chief executive officer of HudBay the time. Work will begin immediately to prepare both the mine and concentrator for the re-start. To facilitate this work, personnel and equipment will be redeployed from Flin Flon to Snow Lake.

The company also expects the re-start of operations to provide additional employment opportunities for some employees impacted by the closure of its copper smelter in 2010.

“The re-start of our Snow Lake operations is exciting news for the company and the local community,” said Peter R. Jones, chief executive officer of HudBay. “Re-starting this supply of domestic zinc concentrate is more economical than purchasing third-party concentrates.

Also, the benefit to the community in Snow Lake will be substantial as we expect to employ up to 100 people once full production is achieved over the next several months.”

The re-start of the Snow Lake operations will be carried out at the same time as the commencement of the previously announced Phase 1 exploration and development of the company’s Lalor deposit. HudBay expects the development of the ramp to the zinc-rich base Issue 2 | 2009

metals zone #10 to take about 30 months and, subject to receiving applicable regulatory approvals, produce approximately 1,200 tonnes of ore per day once completed. Production from Chisel North and the early production from Lalor will help provide a continuous feed of domestic zinc concentrate to the company’s Flin Flon zinc plant until Lalor reaches full production, which is expected in 2014.

HudBay Minerals Inc.: Strength to Build the Future HudBay Minerals Inc. (TSX:HBM) is a Canadian integrated mining company with assets in North and Central America principally focused on the discovery, production and marketing of base metals. The company’s objective is to maximize shareholder value through efficient operations, organic growth and accretive acquisitions, while maintaining its financial strength. A member of the S&P/TSX Composite Index and the S&P/TSX Global Mining Index, HudBay is committed to high standards of corporate governance and sustainability. n 3

Downtown Revival Earl’s Court Park blooms in Dryden

By Margaret Anne Fehr

T

here’s something about a makeover, extreme or otherwise, that seems to capture the collective imagination. From the before to after shots of home renovations TV shows, to the awkward duckling turned stunning swan personal transformation, to the two-left feet, can’t dance, don’task-me novice to ballroom floor super star, these real-life Cinderella stories seem to renew our faith in the merits of hard work, enthusiasm, and persistence in revealing an unexpected abundance of hidden potential.

Dryden, Ontario has been through a similar process as the city’s local downtown revitalization committee pooled its resources to transform a lacklustre vacant lot that was strategically located at the entrance to the town’s business corridor. The park was officially opened on Friday, June 23, 2006 and has become the premier destination spot and gathering place for citizens and visitors to downtown Dryden. Earl’s Court Park is now a lush, inviting park and meeting place complete with entertainment venue that presents an attractive, welcoming sight and creating an all-important positive first impression to motorists and pedestrians alike.

Now in 2010, Dryden’s centennial year, the local Communities in Bloom committee is poised to enter the site into a

4

A before photo shows the awkward duckling Dryden appeared to be before its transformation.

competition for Best Land Reclamation Site Award that is sponsored by the Canadian Communities in Bloom in partnership with the Butchart Gardens.

Communities in Bloom is a Canadian non-profit organization committed to fostering civic pride, environmental responsibility and beautification through community involvement and the challenge of a national program, with focus on the promotion and value of green spaces in urban settings.

The award, newly created in 2009, focuses on criteria that include the successful reclamation and restoration of any site that creates a new public park, public garden or green space and promotes Reclaiming Canada

horticulture and the benefits of green spaces.

John Borst, Chair of Communities in Bloom in Dryden says, “Last year, we intended to enter the competition but lacked the necessary manpower to submit an entry.” Borst vows that this year, Dryden will be in the running for the award. “It’s only fitting that we should be there considering how the community came together to design and beautify a piece of land that was mainly derelict and transformed it into such a vital community asset.”

Marjorie Larson, a life-long Dryden citizen, served as Manager of Parks and Grounds for the City of Dryden when

the first glimmer of an idea to make improvements to the downtown was first proposed back in the mid-90’s.

Larson recalls that a comprehensive plan was commissioned by the City of Dryden with a Winnipeg landscape architecture and planning firm, Hilderman Thomas Frank Cram, to compile a study which was to guide the local committees towards a new vision of Dryden’s downtown corridor.

Local businessman and philanthropist, Roy Wilson was a pivotal contributor of time and funds.

“With Roy’s instigation and vision, the city decided they wanted to do more.

Earl’s Court Park was one component of a larger project,” says Larson.

The final result, some years later, has fulfilled all the dedicated committee work along with the inevitable series of stops and starts that are part of making a community vision into a bona fide reality.

Larson, now retired, categorizes what she describes as a ‘narrow, barren gravel, weedy lot with no buildings” into a downtown site that is nothing short of amazing!

A downtown site that is nothing short of amazing

The park is very unique and inviting,” says Larson. “It was built from the ground up with lots of retaining walls of varying heights and it’s full of trees to give a lot of shady areas.”

Other features include round concrete picnic tables with built-in benches that are wheelchair accessible, an onsite washroom facility and a projecting octagonal roof outfitted with skylights that defines a performance site for musical performances, buskers and other entertainment activities. Adding a calming ambience is the eight-foot-tall water

feature constructed of staggered slabs of granite to create a waterfall effect with water being continually re-cycled into a cement holding compartment. Larson adds that park materials were chosen for their durability and minimal maintenance requirements.

It’s hard to imagine Dryden without the Earl’s Court Park adds Larson.

“People relax on the retaining wall edges, bring their lawn chairs, and use the tables to eat their lunch. When there’s an event held downtown now, it’s a huge drawing card.” n

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5

Reclamation: Band-Aid or genuine land stewardship?

F

or those in the area who had been used to turning the corner on the path that travels parallel to Winnipeg’s Seine River and coming upon another stand of mature, perhaps second-growth trees, last summer provided a bit of a shock, before the fencing and signage went up.

At that particular bend in the river, found in the St. Boniface neighbourhood, east of downtown, the trees and bushes, and just about everything else, had disappeared overnight. It was such a dramatic change in the landscape that people actually did double-takes upon encountering the scene. Many probably thought it was the site of another condo development being constructed; they were wrong. It was a land reclamation project.

If you ask a cynic whether or not land reclamation is or has become genuine land stewardship or whether it’s just a Band-Aid solution for companies looking

6

for an OK from a regulatory body, they might think it’s the latter. But perhaps one should look at the depth, cost and effort of particular land reclamation projects.

Take the Seine River project. It involved an area that had historically been the site of several generations of shingle manufacturing, a process with a high degree of toxicity. According to spokeswoman Lindsay Shepherd of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates, the firm that oversaw the project, “Approximately 140,000 metric tonnes of soil and sediment were removed. Soil beneath the Seine River, adjacent to the property, was also removed during 2009. We also worked with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the City of Winnipeg’s naturalist to develop a restoration plan for the property and the Seine River.”

The project was really conceived in the 1990s, when local residents noticed Reclaiming Canada

something wrong with their Seine – a namesake of the one in France but one of Winnipeg’s smaller (and more picturesque) waterways.

“There was an oily film on the top of the river,” said Denis DePape, vicepresident of Save Our Seine (SOS), the river’s own protection group, who played the role of witness in the project. “In the case of SOS, we pushed the regulators to having this dealt with.”

“It was the biggest remediation project in Manitoba history,” said SOS president David Watson. “To do this project they had to make an entirely new method for classifying the soil. They had seven different grades of polluted soil. They (the Manitoba government) will not tell us how much it cost.”

“And there’s a revegetation plan. There are dozens of different species that are involved, larger trees to grasses.”

SEINE RIVER PHOTO BY HÉLÈNE VILLENEUVE

by Jim Chliboyko

The project also involved the temporary rerouting of the Seine River.

That aforementioned cynic may have a case in point, if the reclamation company only drove in, dug up the soil and threw a few flowers down merely for the sake of appearance. But reclamation projects have arguably

says the reclamation work was done inhouse, with the help of contractors.

“We started reclamation shortly after we started mining, following up almost immediately,” said Greenhough.

This model, of attempting reclamation relatively shortly after mining, is a rather different one from the old standard, of

“You’re thinking, ‘Geez, I wonder if I’m doing the right thing,’ then you’re nominated for a prize by your regulator.” – George Greenhough,

SeIne rIVer Photo by hÉlÈne VIlleneUVe

manager of environmental and land services at Genesee

become increasingly more intricate and involved since the days of the rehabilitation of Sudbury’s desolate landscape, for instance.

Take the work done at the Genesee coal mine site near Edmonton, Alberta, which won the 2009 Alberta Chamber of Resources’(ACR) Major Reclamation Award.

“We started mining about 1988 and our land base out here could be described as the parkland area of Alberta,” said George Greenhough, an employee of the Capital Power Corporation (formerly part of Edmonton Power or EPCOR, and now a stand-alone entity), the company now responsible for the mine. Greenhough is manager of environmental and land services at Genesee.

“It’s rolling countryside interspersed with boreal forest,” he said. “It was primarily agricultural before it was mining.”

Greenhough decribed the area as a little bit of everything.

“Part of the reclaimed land touches on all aspects of agriculture. We have cereal crops and oil seed crops. We have alfalfa hay land and we also have pasture. We have a large community of cattle.”

“We replaced a meter of subsoil, 18 centimetres of topsoil. We’re getting very good results, equal to or better than yields from surrounding areas. At this point, we have over 1300 acres that have been reclaimed and topsoiled.”

The company didn’t wait for too much longer after the mine opened to begin the rehabilitation of the area. Greenhough

waiting 100 years, or waiting for moonscape conditions to develop, before doing something about it. It’s one of the ways in which reclamation has changed over time. Of course, these days both the government and the people it represents are also demanding a cleaner environment.

But reclamation may make smarter sense, as well, financially.

“Outstanding mine spoils are a liability,” said Greenhough. “Maybe the question is do you address that liability in currentyear dollars or in dollars 20 or 30 years down the road. At some point, the decision was made about using current-year dollars.”

“Over the course of 20 years in our reclamation our primary focus has been re-establishing farmland. That’s what our operating permits require, that we recreate agricultural land.”

Trickier work involves recreating wetlands and boreal forest, but even there

work is being done that is giving insight into the biology of these environments.

“One of the challenges is what are you doing about re-establishing the patches of boreal forest that were present before we mined. It’s proven to be challenging, so we have undertaken projects with the University of Alberta with aspen seedlings and live root transfer.

“The other challenge tossed out to us is the creation of wetlands. We’re looking at that and starting our planning. We’re learning how to place a wetland; we have lots of equipment to dig holes, but we have to learn how to put vegetation and native vegetation and get a biosystem reestablished. It’s not an insurmountable problem, but requires us to change our mindset.”

And there’s also another benefit besides the financial and environmental.

“Our previous company, EPCOR, built a pretty solid reputation on environmental issues. We’re doing the right thing on reclamation, which pays dividends with public relations. We established that with EPCOR and we’re making sure the new company remains a good corporate citizen.”

Of course, that same cynic may wonder about mining coal in the first place.

But humans need resources, and resource extraction has always been a messy process. If there’s any argument about whether land reclamation is genuine land stewardship, it’s this: reclamation work is finding ways in helping humans to be less messy, for lack of a better term, with their environment. And the industry is finding ways to actually advance the science behind reclamation.

Greenhough summed it up simply.

“You’re thinking, ‘Geez, I wonder if I’m doing the right thing,’ then you’re nominated for a prize by your regulator.” n

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Issue 2 | 2009

7

Tar sands oil excavation project north of Fort McMurray.

Last year’s ‘major’ directive is all business when it comes to tailings

by Jim Chliboyko

I

t’s called Directive 074, and Alberta’s Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) refers to it as “major.”

It certainly sounds major, asking for particular requirements for companies involved with “Oil Sands Mining Schemes,” including preparation of “tailings plans and report on tailings ponds annually, (reduction of) the accumulation of fluid tailings by capturing fines and placing them in a deposit that is trafficable and (specification of) dates for construction, use and closure of fluid tailings ponds deposits and file these dates with the ERCB by Sept. 30, 2009.”

“Companies have been working on this for decades, and they’ve yet to find a method that effective and commercially viable,” said Davis Sheremata, of ERCB Communications, specifically regarding capturing and handling of fines.

“Companies have been giving us targets of when tailings ponds will be restored.

So far none of those targets have been met.” “(The targets) were legally unenforceable when companies didn’t meet them.

8

We needed regulations that had teeth. So that was why in February 2009, we introduced Directive 074, which required companies to reduce and capture fines before they went into ponds, and to file

by Sept. 30, 2009, plans with firm dates for the abandonment of their tailings ponds.”

Sheremata said that all the companies filed with the ERCB and that, during the current review process, they’ve asked some companies for additional information.

The big question involves the second of the three aforementioned requirements; how companies involved in the oil sands will deal with the capturing and placing of tailings in a “deposit that is trafficable.”

“In the last 20 years, companies have been working on technologies trying to return tailings deposits to a trafficable surface that can be walked on, that can support vehicle traffic and begin the process of returning it to a natural state,” said Sheremata. “Up until now, the primary method was consolidating tailings, by mixing gypsum and other substances Reclaiming Canada

in to solidify it. The goal is to get all the solid mass to head to the bottom and thicken, but we have found it’s taken longer for the material to separate itself.”

Part of the intention of Directive 074 is to get companies to regard their tailings – and ponds (which now cover an estimated 130 square kilometers of Alberta) – as more of a priority. Sheremata likens it to the regulations in the 1990s involving the practice of gas flaring.

“When companies realized they had to reduce the flaring of gas, we got immediate results,” said Sheremata. “We saved millions and millions of cubic meters of gas from being released into the atmosphere.”

“The big goal is the cultural shift; we can’t let tailings accumulate. We need to begin to address this. Once companies realize that this needs to be a priority, they can achieve results very quickly.”

And some results are evidently being achieved. Sheremata points to Suncor’s recent work with something they call their Tailings Reduction Operations (TRO). Basically, it involves “speeding up the consolidation” of middle layer

Photo by Gregory Melle

Trafficable Deposits

Photo by Gord McKenna

Photo by Gregory Melle

of tailings ponds, the mixture of clay particles and water (mature fine tailings– MFT), and turning it into “a soil-like deposit that can be re-vegetated and reclaimed.”

Specifically, says Suncor, “MFT is mixed with a polymer flocculent, then deposited in thin layers over sand beaches with shallow slopes.” An added polymer binds with the clay particles in the MFT, allowing the water to immediately separate from the clay.

According to company literature, “the resulting product is a dry material that is capable of being reclaimed in place or moved to another location for final reclamation. This drying process occurs over a matter of weeks, allowing for more rapid reclamation activities to occur.” The dry material is then excavated and, according to a short film on the Suncor website, that same material has been used in construction material. This process speeds things up from years to weeks.

“We’ll be able to reclaim behind our mining much faster,” said Kimberly N o r d b y e , S u n c o r ’s M a n a g e r o f Stakeholder Relations/Tarsands on the film on the Suncor website. “So instead of having to wait for a pond to settle, you will then be able to dry the MFT right away and reclaim right behind you.

You’re looking at a change from 40 years to reclaim a tailings pond, down to reclamation starting at seven to ten years.”

While Directive 074 sounds heavy, the situation isn’t necessarily an adversarial one. According to the directive, the ERCB says that they will work with companies,

An aerial photograph of Fort McMurray – an oil sands mining town in Alberta.

that it “recognizes the need for flexibility and will develop ‘project-specific requirements’ after assessing companies’ plans.”

The other goal of the directive is that it will give Albertans actual enforceable dates for their tailings strategies, as well as demanding yearly progress.

“Those are dates the companies will, for the first time in Alberta history, have to stick to, or they will face enforcement action from ERCB,” said Sheremata.

“September 30 of this year is the first

target the companies are going to hit, and we’ll know which companies are going to be in compliance.”

For those not in compliance, there are options such as audits, the shutting down of facilities, the refusal of applications and other measures that will impact how companies do their business.

Sheremata sounds hopeful, though.

“When something needs to happen, companies apply their time and ingenuity to it and they solve it,” he said. n

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Issue 2 | 2009

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What ’s dry is

Syncrude wetlands research project making sandy area moist again

By Heather Hudson

S

loshing through the soft, wet ground, a mature moose and his mate lower their heads to gently tug at the abundant grasses, sedges, rushes and wildflowers that flood the area. The smell of rich peat soil fills the air and a legion of insects flit about in an attempt to elude the birds, frogs and other prey that call this lush fen home.

Though it sounds like a scene from a simpler time, it’s what an oil company is working to create as part of a $3.8 million wetlands research project in the Boreal Forest.

From the late 1970s through the year 2000, Syncrude, one of the largest producers of crude oil from Canada’s oil sands, pumped out countless tons from their former “East Mine,” leaving a gaping 70-metre hole in a 1,100-hectare area.

Natural wetlands were destroyed, wildlife evacuated and an entire ecosystem lost.

“Our vision for reclaiming the area we serve is to return it to the state in 12

which we found it before we disturbed it.

That means putting wetlands back into an area that held a lot of fens, marshes and bogs,” said Syncrude spokesperson Cheryl Robb.

As such, the wetlands research project has been under way for the last five years and will continue for a few more. Syncrude is collaborating with 25 researchers, five scientists and 20 graduate students from five Canadian universities on the project, which focuses on 16 different wetlands projects.

“It has been very enlightening to the academic community to see how committed industry is to the success of environmental initiatives,” said Dr. Jan Ciborowski, a researcher from the University of Windsor, one of the participating universities.

Part of creating an entire ecosystem from scratch involves comparing water sources and types of materials that are present in the soils and examining it to understand Reclaiming Canada

what needs to be done to reclaim it back to wetland. Researchers are also contrasting other wetlands based on age, water sources and the amount of organic material present in the sediments. Using different combinations of mining materials and stored topsoil as well as various re-vegetation strategies, they are gaining an understanding of which factors might help the wetlands mature most quickly.

An integral part of the project involves creating sustainable drainage basins that will function long into the future. The five-year wetland study began with the placement of live wetland peat material varying in depths of 30 centimetres, 50 centimetres and one metre. One of the objectives was to determine what depth they need to salvage for optimal reclamation results. Syncrude researchers even designed and built special tools to remove the material from one location and place it in another without disturbing the plant growth already established.

s wet again For the first time in an oil sand, Syncrude is reestablishing a fen from scratch on a 17-hectare portion of land.

The fen will be established by placing peat and vegetation material, recovered from future mining areas, over a layer of composite tailings and sand.

According to the Geological Survey of Canada, peatlands are essential to the global environment because they retain, purify and deliver fresh water, store carbon, absorb pollutants and support numerous species of plants and wildlife.

“The Boreal Forest is a great carbon sink. It’s great from a greenhouse gas perspective and really important to the atmosphere that we restore this area,” said Robb.

Construction began in 2008 and is expected to be complete by 2012.

Since mining stopped in 2000, work has focused on filling the mine pit back up to ground level. The fill is composed of tailings sand and composite tailings material, which are clay particles originally pumped out of the hole mixed with gypsum and tailings sand.

“Currently, we are in the process of shaping the land. Then we will place the peat soil-mineral mix on top,” said Robb.

“The timing is such that the soil is placed in the winter months and in the summer we will commission a survey of a sample of the area where the soil was placed to ensure it is at the correct depth.

As always, we report this information to the Alberta government.”

Nothing will be planted in the fen until the spring of 2012 but because its creation is the first of its kind in the region, researchers are ensuring that the land is hospitable and sustainable to invite plant and wildlife into the area.

Before the Alberta government will provide a reclamation certificate, Syncrude must prove that the reclaimed area sustains vegetation and wildlife to the same capacity that was in the region before the area was disturbed.

Robb says they fully expect to receive certification, noting that Syncrude is one of the top 50 R&D spenders in Canada with an annual research budget of about $50 million. It spent more than $100 million on its reclamation efforts last year and expects to spend the same this year.

“We’ve reclaimed roughly a quarter of the land we’ve disturbed. To date, more than five million trees and shrubs have been planted on more than 4,600 hectares of reclaimed land since operations began in 1978.”

The Alberta government requires a “closure plan” before any land can be disturbed and Syncrude has an extensive one for the wetlands project. This longterm plan details exactly how the land will be restored, including how rivers, lakes and fens will connect to create a new ecosystem. They consulted with area First Nations members who were specific

Issue 2 | 2009

“Our vision for reclaiming the area we serve is to return it to the state in which we found it before we disturbed it. That means putting wetlands back into an area that held a lot of fens, marshes and bogs.”

– Syncrude spokesperson Cheryl Robb

about their desire for the inclusion of particular plant species they use for cultural and medicinal purposes. Other members of the community were also given an opportunity to provide input.

“It’s important to create areas that attract the wildlife that was there before,” said Robb.

Driving by the site of the former East Mine today, you’ll be greeted by hectares and hectares of soft sand. But if you slow down and squint a little, you might hear the call of a bird and see the hint of a lush, green – and very wet – fen. n

Marila Environmental Inc. is a skilled technical company dedicated to developing and implementing cost-effective environmental solutions for its clients in a safe and reliable manner.

Based in central Alberta, Marila specializes in reclamation and remediation of well sites and associated facilities for the upstream oil & gas industry.

P.O. Box 249, Donalda, AB T0B 1H0 Phone: 403-740-3221 Fax: 403-883-2583 www.marila.ca

13

Waste not want not Pulp mill sludge makes for better growth in agriculture, remediation land

By Heather Hudson

E

very good gardener knows the satisfaction of using organic waste to create new growth.

But did you know the pulp and paper industry in western Canada can boast that feeling too?

For almost 20 years Alberta Innovates Technology Futures (formerly the Alberta Research Council) has been using waste sludges from mechanical pulp mills – up to 100,000 tons annually – on agricultural land. The result has been substantial savings in capital costs and greenhouse gas emissions.

“In our work with industrial waste, our emphasis was always to use it wherever possible in a positive way rather than just disposal. Our work with pulp mills has been no different,” said soil scientist Dr. Terry Macyk.

When the company began working with Alberta’s mechanical pulp and paper mills in 1991, the sludges were being incinerated or put in landfills. Macyk and other researchers immediately began investigating a more productive use of the material.

“We had to prove the sludges were environmentally acceptable – to the mills, to the regulatory agencies and, of course, to the public because, initially, virtually all sludge produced by mechanical mills was going onto agricultural land.”

Since then, the waste material has also been used in well-site, old road and gravel bit reclamations. Today, they are exploring the use of pulp mill sludge for remediation of oil-contaminated sites in upstream oil and gas and creating valueadded horticultural products.

Why does it work?

Alberta Innovates Technology Futures has worked mainly with three mechanical pulp mills in Alberta: the Alberta Newsprint Company, Miller Western Forest Products Ltd. and Slave Lake Pulp Corp.

Pulp mill waste works well because it’s highly organic and contains some 14

“Areas where we used one application of sludge 10 years ago are still showing excellent growth compared to what we would call a control or a no-sludge application area.”

– Dr. Terry Macyk, Alberta Innovates Technology Futures valuable nutrients, including nitrogen and a small amount of phosphorous.

“The physical, organic or carbon component of it is really good in terms of soil amelioration or amendment when it comes to things like physical properties.

For example, if you have a real fine-textured material that’s been compacted, adding the sludge really opens it up in terms of porosity.”

It also works well with sandy soil because the sludge helps hold moisture.

“Holding water is critical in some reclamation situations where you may go for extended periods without precipitation. The sludge material is going to really give you that moisture reservoir to keep the plants going during that difficult time.”

Over the years, they’ve seen bigger trees growing faster in the eastern slopes on areas where the sludge was used, particularly in areas with inferior soil material. In disturbed road locations, trees growing alongside the road where sludge was applied are growing better than the adjacent, undisturbed trees.

Macyk recalls using the sludge to reclaim a coal mine. Today, vegetation growth is superior in areas where sludge was used and where it wasn’t.

“Areas where we used one application of sludge 10 years ago are still showing excellent growth compared to what we would call a control or a no-sludge application area.”

Reclaiming Canada

How does it work?

From the beginning, Alberta Innovates Technology Futures’ researchers had several experimental sites located in various locations associated with the three mills they were working with. Using a small-scale plot, they would evaluate and report the data while setting up the kind of equipment that would be required to spread the sludge.

“It was very tightly controlled with measurements, pre-application and post-application… we still follow some of them. It would then become a decision as to whether the companies would go to full scale implementation of the technique,” said Macyk. In most cases, it was a go.

However, the cost of transporting sludge has been a barrier. Because it is composed of a significant amount of water, the economics of moving such heavy, dense material is a consideration.

A cost/benefit analysis must be undertaken for projects that aren’t in close proximity to a mill.

Who pays for it? Originally, the mills were paying the transportation costs.

Today, that’s not necessarily the case.

“When the project first started we didn’t anticipate it to be this successful. The mills had a cost in building landfills and incineration, so they initially underwrote the cost of transportation. It’s a little different now. The expectation is that the person reclaiming or remediating would pay that cost.”

Forests with sludge-amended treatments are thriving even 20 years later.

Researchers expect sludge can benefit agriculture in the long term, too.

Looking forward

With so much success in this area, Alberta Innovates Technology Futures is pursuing studies to quantify the increased storage of CO2 that results from the application of pulp mill sludges to reforested areas and agricultural soils. This research is intended to establish carbon credits and help the forest industry meet its greenhouse gas commitments.

“The beauty of sludge application is that you increase your yields agriculturally quite substantially. We’ve also been able to demonstrate just how much more

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carbon you can store a) in soil and b) in vegetation cover by applying the sludge.”

It appears to be a win/win for farmers and mill companies alike. For example, one application (done once every four or five years) adds 50 bone dry tons of carbon per hectare. Plus, the farmers get credit for minimizing tillage.

The advantages of recycling pulp mill sludge appear to be almost limitless. Macyk credits the slow, steady and meticulous approach.

“The key thing is that whatever we have done with this material has been monitored or evaluated quite intensively

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over a period of time; we’re not drawing final conclusions on one or two or three years of work, we’re looking at the long term.

“When we did this work in forest reclamation, a lot of people said, we’ll see a response or improvement for a year or two and then it’ll disappear. The bottom line is it’s 18 years later and the trees are still doing a heck of a lot better in those sludge-amended treatments. We’re pretty confident that that’s going to be there for a long time to come.”

For more information about the program, visit www.arc.ab.ca. n

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15

Cove r S t o ry

‘Green’ grows on city skylines

By Margaret Anne Fehr

F

rom microcosm to macrocosm, the fruits of the research conducted at St. Mary’s University in Halifax are showing that reclamation isn’t only a function of megaprojects where large tracts of scarified land are being rejuvenated to a naturally verdant state but that reclamation of rooftop spaces can add significant moderating affects to the urban environment.

Since 2008, Dr. Jeremy Lundholm Ph.D. and Associate Professor of

16

Biology and Environmental Studies have headed up the Elite Green Roof Research Team on a rooftop of St. Mary’s University. Here, they have been collecting data to shine a light on how the conversion of institutional and commercial building rooftops into green roofs can benefit the urban environment by introducing a natural element to city skyscrapers and megamall big box stores’ roofscapes.

Dr. Lundholm’s research is unique in another respect; the plants that he and Reclaiming Canada

his team grow on the green roofs are chosen from native Maritime species.

“Essentially we’ve tested about 20 species so far on the roof and we’ve had good success with probably 15 to 17 of them.

We’d like to test more because there’s hundreds more candidacies that we think would work.”

Dr. Lundholm is tracking the recent by-law that goes into effect in Toronto that requires and governs the construction of green roofs effective Jan. 31, 2010.

The new Green Roof Bylaw applies to all

new building permit applications made after Jan. 31, 2010 for residential, commercial, and institutional developments.

One of the reasons this is being done in Toronto is primarily for the urban heat island effect says Dr. Lundholm. “There have been a number of modeling studies that show if you cover X amount of your roof tops with greenery, you can reduce the urban temperature. The kind of legislation that’s been put together in Toronto has been primarily to promote greener roof regions because it’s going to

save a lot of money and even save lives.

It gets much hotter in the city, obviously, than it does in the countryside.”

“Any time the outside temperature goes above 18 degrees Celsius for any institutional or commercial building, it results in the necessity to spend money to cool the building or people inside are going to be uncomfortable if a cooling method hasn’t been set up.”

The situation in Halifax is markedly different. “We don’t have much of an urban heat island effect in Halifax. It’s Issue 2 | 2009

hard to quantify because of the way our coast line works, but if it does exist, it’s very small.”

“We still have building cooling issues and certainly, at a building level, greener can still make a difference.

That’s one of the things we’re trying to prove and quantify and we’ve done that. We’ve been studying the effects that green roofs can have during the winter and we do have some evidence that there are winter benefits, but it’s not official yet.”

17

Photo: Vancouver Convention Centre

The green roof phenomenon is catching on from coast to coast. The Vancouver Convention Centre boasts a living roof, seawater heating and cooling, on-site water treatment, and fish habitat built into the foundation of its West Building.

The living roof on the Academy of Sciences in San Francisco shows how this green trend has taken off in southern parts of the United States.

The big issues surrounding retrofitting of green roofs are the structural capacities to accommodate more weight. That explains why most of the green roofs in Halifax are almost exclusively on new buildings.

Dr. Lundholm adds that his team’s research deals with plants that can survive in shallow soils. “If you have two feet of soil for example you can grow just about anything including trees.

There are examples of green roofs in Halifax between 5 to 15 years old that have trees on them. That’s easy to do but you have to build them so that they can handle that amount of weight.”

Green roofs are largely in its infancy here in Canada. Dr. Lundholm sees the trend catching on more in the wealthier parts of the country like the west coast of BC. “It’s certainly caught on in Ontario and it’s taking off in the United States especially in the southern areas because of the heat. There’s also more of an emphasis on storm water management and that’s another major thing that green roofs do.”

‘Green roofs’ or ‘green anything’ referred only to paint colours or the colour of money back in the early 1970s when the Halifax

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“Nowadays, central to our development planning is our open space plan for our waterfront.”

– Eric Burchill, present Director of Planning and Development for the Waterfront Development Corporations Ltd. Waterfront Development Corporation was formed with the mandate to replace and revive the Halifax waterfront that had been in a state of decline with derelict docks and abandoned warehouses blighting the waterfront view and limiting public accessibility.

Eric Burchill, present Director of Planning and Development for the Waterfront Development Corporations Ltd says “We are one of the older waterfront developments in North America, and have been around for over 30 years. We get used as a case study in a lot of other developments across the continent.”

In the first phase of its development, the Halifax waterfront open spaces used hardscapes like timber board walks, timber wharfs or traditional hardscape for open spaces. “The reason we did that was to maximize the utility of the space for all four seasons.”

“We don’t tend to get into large green space developments largely because the city is well provided with other green space like the Citadel and the Halifax Commons area that are in close proximity, as well as the public gardens that are well-known in Halifax as a managed green space by the municipality.”

Reclaiming Canada

Photo: Travis Crawford

Cove r S t o ry

Green roof researchers and planners hope to see Halifax’s historic waterfront skyline change — from the top down.

“Nowadays, central to our development planning is our open space plan for our waterfront. We do have an open space plan in particular for the Halifax Waterfront and it drives a lot of our approach to the development as we proceed. But, we don’t have any structures that incorporate green roofs at the moment.”

Burchill adds that there are no fully green roofs downtown but there are some spots that incorporate urban rooftop gardens and some of the hotels use them to supply their restaurants.

Current projects in the planning stage include Bedford Basin, an area identified in the Halifax Regional Municipality plans as a growth node and representing the conceptual plan for the next 20 to 30 years. “We’re looking at a range of environmental sustainable technologies including green roofs,” says Burchill.

T h e Wa t e r f r o n t D e v e l o p m e n t Corporation owns an infill site of 38 acres, one of four parcels of land in the area. “Central to it is looking at a range of green technologies on a neighbourhood scale that could be incorporated into the development like a central heating plant, storm water run-off, multi-permeable surfacing in the open spaces as well as the potential for green roofs to reduce heating and cooling requirements. Nothing concrete yet but the intent is to look at

a range of those options to be incorporated into it.”

Burchill sums up. “It’s an interesting time for the organization and we’re

always looking at ways to tweak our development plan to be more environmentally sustainable in our open space plan as well as our built structures.” n

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January 28 – 29, 2010 | Calgary Join us this January to learn about new regulatory developments across Western Canada that will impact your industry and municipality. You will hear about best practices for liability management and risk-based remediation, as well as case studies showcasing leadership, innovation and environmental sustainability. It’s an event you can’t afford to miss!

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19

Orga ni z at i o n Pr o fi l e

I.W. Kuhn Environmental: A leader on the cutting edge

By Kenton Smith

W

orking hard to stay on the cutting edge – this is how I.W. Kuhn Environmental Ltd. has become a national leader in reclamation and remediation. That’s according to Roger Didychuk, the company’s vice president in corporate development, who adds that it doesn’t hurt to cultivate awareness of the latest innovations in the field.

“It’s extremely important to stay appraised of the latest technologies and regulations, both industry and government,” says Didychuk. Indeed, this way of thinking may be said to summarize the history of the company since it was founded more than 25 years ago.

I.W. Kuhn was established as a leasesite construction company in 1984 by Irwin Kuhn, Didychuk’s father-in-law.

But perhaps the major turning point in the company’s history was in 1990, when it expanded into seeding and lease-site reclamation.

As Didychuk explains, there was recognition on the company’s part that with changes in industry and government regulations, demand for reclamation services was ever increasing – and few contractors were in fact offering those needed services.

What I.W. Kuhn’s leadership saw was an opportunity to meet the new demand and carve out a prominent niche, as well as cultivate the ever-increasing need for environmentally sustainable practices in today’s world.

Hence, in approximately 1992, I.W. Kuhn expanded further, this time into remediation and pipeline reclamation.

Since then, it has established itself as a full service environmental contractor.

20

“Our goal is to give the client what he needs, not force him to settle with whatever we’ve got.”

– Vice-President Corporate Development Roger Didychuk Perhaps the final stage in this transition was the re-naming of the company to I.W. Kuhn Environmental in 2004.

A major part of the company’s operations today concerns producing quality compost, intended for use as an absorbent material for inward drilling. As detailed on the company’s website, the company is also dedicated to utilizing compost for various purposes such as feedlot manure management and urban waste management.

To all these ends, I.W. Kuhn has been applying its patented microenfractionator technology, originally used primarily for soil remediation by aerating contaminated soil. The company first acquired the already-patented technology when it purchased a business in 2001; it picked up two machines as part of that detail, later expanding the number to three in total. The technology itself remains a closely guarded secret.

The other major part of I.W. Kuhn’s present operation is pipeline reclamation, to which there are of course multiple facets: re-vegetation, erosion control, tree crossings, seeding cover crop and native grasses and soil preparation. This aspect of the company’s business involves various projects scattered or stretched across the prairies, such as one pipeline Reclaiming Canada

extending all the way from Alberta to southwestern Manitoba.

Consequently, the company’s operations must be highly adaptable to varying geographical conditions and soil types across a wide range of the Canadian landscape. Particularly challenging for reclamation are erodible lands such as sand hills; similarly, the grass range of southern Alberta has proven demanding on account of the lighter soil textures.

This is where the company’s expertise and equipment knowledge comes in, says Didychuk. “Project superintendents have to know what to use where,” he says. This is also where the company’s vast array of dedicated equipment becomes critical.

According to Didychuk, in the beginning, the company possessed merely a couple of Cat bulldozers. Today, it utilizes several hundred pieces of equipment, including a variety of seeding technology required for various soil types.

“Our goal is to give the client what he needs, not force him to settle with whatever we’ve got,” Didychuk declared.

The key is bringing the greatest degree of expertise to the table. To this end, I.W. Kuhn Environmental works closely with Aboriginal communities mostly form northern Alberta, to tap their expertise.

It was in 1996 that these relationships were first forged on Alliance Pipeline projects that both I.W. Kuhn and various Aboriginal communities were involved with. Since then, the company has wanted to continue utilizing those communities’ human and business resources; the company employs a full-time Aboriginal liaison.

“These communities always have people with a great deal of knowledge about the land,” Didychuk says. “They bring so

much to any project, and we always want to work with them.”

It’s no surprise then that business is growing every year considering the he other key factor in the company’s success; the partners involved in the business: Jarrod Kuhn, Jordan Kuhn, Todd Turner and vice president Trevor Hippel.

“We’re a young, vibrant group,” Didychuk says, managing to palpably convey a sense of that vibrancy over the

phone. He adds that his partners bring both youth and experience to bear – a rare combination. For that matter, I.W. Kuhn is very much a family affair, run by four brothers – or, more precisely, two brothers and two brothers-in-law.

“We’re pretty energized when it comes to management,” he declares: they’re always working to stay on top of things.

And most certainly, they’re always looking forward to future challenges. n

Index to Advertisers Alliance Pipeline Ltd..................................... Inside Front Cover

Marila Environmental Inc....................................................... 13

Blue Ridge Environmental ........................... Inside Front Cover

North Shore Environmental Consultants Inc............................................Outside Back Cover

Eco-Log Eris............................................................................ 5 Environmental Soil Services Corp......................................... 18 Ernst Conservation Seeds........................................................ 2 I. W. Kuhn Environmental Ltd........................................... 10-11 Iron Horse Earthworks..............................................................7 JSK Consulting Ltd.................................................................. 9

NorthWind Land Resources Inc...................... inide Front Cover Pioneer Professional Services Group.................................... 15 SRK Consulting............................................ Inside Front Cover Western Canadian Consulting Inc................. Inside Front Cover Western Canada Remediation and Reclamation for Contaminated Sites...................................... 19

North Shore Environmental Consultants is a progressive environmental company based in Sherwood Park and Calgary, Alberta. North Shore offers cost efficient and effective solutions to the complex environmental challenges faced by today’s industries.

Whether it be upstream oil and gas reclamation and remediation, reclamation of borrow excavations or major oilfield construction projects, North Shore delivers results that satisfy the particular needs of both the client and regulators.

North Shore provides services to clients in all eco-regions of Alberta and into North Eastern British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and NWT.

North Shore has extensive experience and provides services in: • • • • • • • • • •

Coordination and supervision of large or small scale reclamation programs Management of large scale drilling programs in cultivated, green zone and environmentally sensitive areas Completion of Environmental Field Reports through to well site reclamation certification (Green zone) Phase I, II, and III Environmental Site Assessments as applies to Alberta Environmental Reclamation Certification process Salt contamination assessment and remediation Spill impact assessment and remediation Pre-construction Environmental Assessments and recommendations Pipeline Environmental Supervision/Inspection Pipeline Environmental Co-ordination Pipeline Pre-Construction Environmental Assessments and recommendations • Pipeline Post-Construction Environmental Assessments and recommendations • Reclamation of Oil Sands Exploration Wells (OSE) and submission of the OSE application • Corporate consulting for small to midsize Oil Companies on ARO, LLR and development of Environmental Programs #143, 201 Kaska Rd. Sherwood Park, AB T8A 2J6 Contact: Darren Cherniak, B.Sc., P.Ag. Phone: 780-467-3354 • Fax: 780-464-9622 Email: dcherniak@northshoreenv.com #120, 3132 118 Ave. Calgary, AB T2Z 3X1 Contact: Kelly Zadko, B.Sc., P.Ag. Phone: 403-228-3095 • Fax: 403-723-3095 Email: kzadko@northshoreenv.com www.northshoreenv.com