Foothills restoration forum Foothills restoration forum

FRF Annual Fall Information Session

2018 Annual Fall Information Session

Claresholm Community Hall – November 15, 2018       

Thank you for attending this years information session! This year’s FRF Fall session gathered a variety of industry and grassland stakeholders that exchanged current information on grassland restoration and conservation through a variety of presentations and mini updates.

These are the major topics that were covered:

  •  Innovative programs and legislation for renewable resources and affected landowners
  •  Updates on recovery in hard hit areas affected by fire
  •  Innovative grassland management of aspen encroachment and rangeland health
  • Discussion of new legislation affecting development in grasslands and wetlands
  •  Landowner management to maintain grassland resilience and productivity and much more!

For more information about this and to inquire about next year, please reach out to Donna at corpirate@shaw.ca.

Range Health Assessment Training

2018 Range Health Assessment Training – September 13, 2018

Designed for students, agrologists, ecologists, land owners, regulators, planners, reclamation practitioners and anyone interested in learning more about native grassland ecosystems.

Native Grasslands are healthy when production, soil stability, capture and release of water, nutrient cycling and functional diversity of native plants are performing well. Measuring the status of these key functions is the foundation of monitoring rangeland health.

This course offers field-based training on common plant identification, use of soils and landscape mapping (AGRASID and GVI) in relation to Alberta’s Range Plant Community Guides and Range Health Assessment Manuals. Designed to classify and assess grassland plant communities, these tools are critical for pre‐site assessments, reclamation design and restoration of native grassland.

Purchasing online is not available. Please contact Donna Watt at corpirate@shaw.ca or 403-563-8925 to enquire.

Instructor

How to Use the Range Plant Community Guides and Recovery Strategies Guides for Project and Reclamation Planning in Grasslands

Target Audience

Designed for students, agrologists, ecologists, land owners, regulators, planners, reclamation practitioners and anyone interested in learning more about native grassland ecosystems.

This course will provide valuable context to interpret the results of data collected in the upcoming AEP Conservation Assessments – Strategic Siting and Pre-disturbance Site Assessments for Industrial Activities on Native Grasslands.

Learning Objectives

  • Gain a basic understanding of the ecosystem classification concepts for the Grassland and Parkland Range Plant Community Guides.
  • Learn how to navigate through the guides to link site conditions, soils and determine plant communities. Participants will practice on data sets for each of the two classification systems.
  • Overview of disturbance risk assessments and strategic siting for grassland plant communities
  • Work through development of appropriate mitigation and restoration strategies, linked to types of disturbance, for each plant community discussed.

Purchasing online is not available. Please contact Donna Watt at corpirate@shaw.ca or 403-563-8925 to enquire.

 

Evolving Energy and Climate on the Grasslands

Evolving Energy and Climate on the Grasslands

The FRF annual information session gathers a variety of industry and grassland stakeholders to exchange current information on grassland restoration and conservation through ‘open mike’ project updates & mini presentations. Featured presentations on our 2017 agenda are:

    • A Thousand Years of Variability in Grassland Climate – Dr. David Sauchyn and Dr. Mary Vetter, University of Regina
    • Agriculture in the Crossroads of Grassland Loss and Restoration – Dr. Marian Weber, InnoTech Alberta
    • Grassland Management in the Municipal District of Taber- Brian Peers
    • Producer Management and Industrial Disturbance Influences on Grassland Seed Banks in Alberta – – Lysandra Pile, PhD candidate
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  • Conservation Assessments – When and Where They Apply – Amanda Miller, AEP
  • Siting Renewable Energy Projects to Protect Wildlife Habitat – Kristin Cline AEP
  • Knowing Your Public Lands Approval Clauses in Native Grasslands – Susan McGillivray, AEP
  • Certificates of Analysis versus Certified Seed – What is the difference?

Many thanks to our speakers, sponsors and participants.

Stay tuned for our next Information Session in 2018!

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