Simon Landhausser makes the point that reclamation has usually been supported by colonization from adjoining natural landscapes. However, in the oil sands, large scale reclamation mimics the natural reclamation of glaciation or large scale landslides. In these cases, even with the replacement of species present before mining, there is no aaurance that recalamtion will result in the landscape present before mining. He then builds the basics of how vegetation is a long term reflection of climate, topgraphy and soil physical and chemical properties. He then outlines the challenges of getting to resiliency in reclaimed boreal landscapes.
Dr. Simon Landhausser is associate professor of forest land reclamation and applied forest ecology with the Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta. His presentation was part of a seminar on "Resiliency of Reclaimed Boreal Forest Landscapes", Jan 22, 2013, sponsored by OSRIN and the Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta..
