Grant: Engage Grants Program

The extraction and transportation of oil and gas is an important industry in Canada, creating jobs and revenuefor the country and providing necessary resources for society. A critical aspect of the oil and gas industry isecosystem restoration following from disturbance along pipeline corridors. Ecological restoration is adeveloping field of science that is ideally positioned to provide the knowledge tools for successful recovery ofdisturbed lands. Our proposal tests genotypic variation in four native grass species to maximize successfulrecovery of native grassland on Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain Pipeline in British Columbia. We willmeasure plant growth, plant morphology and genetic differentiation of genotypes of the four species in twocommon gardens, one in south-central BC and the other in north-central BC. Our results will lead tospecies-specific and genotype-specific seed selection for grassland restoration. This research is critical becauseit will be done before the potential twinning of the Trans Mountain Pipeline. By studying restoration now wehave the best chance of successful reclamation upon future disturbance.