Bowater Mersey Paper Co. - Forest Watershed Research Center

Bowater Mersey Paper Co.
Wet Areas Mapping (WAM)
Prepared by: Allan Smith
235,000 ha Freehold
Mersey Woodlands
SFMN - Gatineau
WAM Usage:
Harvest area delineation and timing of entry
Ephemeral stream location
Road location
Soil type determination
Silviculture prescriptions
SFMN - Gatineau
Harvest area
delineation,
including optimum
location for
corridors, is
facilitated by WAM.
Entry of blocks
containing wet areas
is prescribed for dry
or frozen times of
year
SFMN - Gatineau
4
Flow accumulation channels
are mapped on all operating
plans provided to
harvesting, silviculture and
road building contractors
enabling them to identify
the most likely locations
where streams will be
encountered.
SFMN - Gatineau
5
Planned
road
locations
are chosen
to optimize
dry land
routes
SFMN - Gatineau
6
Much of our area is of the
same soil formation, so
soil moisture is often the
only thing that
differentiates soil type in
the provincial Forest
Ecosystem Classification
system
SFMN - Gatineau
7
Line Transect – Site Prepared
Three Corner Lake
Site Prepared
bS- 200,000 seeds /ha
E39
E36E35
E37
E34
E38
#
Plots -Stocking
Surface Moisture
Germinants /ha
#
#
#
#
4%
#
#
E33
E32
#
E31E30 E29 E28
#
#
#
#
21%
0.03
0
0.03
SFMN - Gatineau
0.06 Kilometers
Depth To Water Table (m)
20+
15 - 20
10 - 15
7.5 - 10
5 - 7.5
2.5 - 5
1 - 2.5
0.5 - 1
0 - 0.5
A U.N.B. student’s
thesis
correlated
germination success
after aerial seeding
with surface
moisture content
N
8
We now use the WAM to help
select those areas suitable for
aerial seeding, a cost
effective regeneration
method.
SFMN - Gatineau
9
History
First became aware of depth-to-watertable mapping
project in N.B. through the Pockwock/Bowater
Watershed Project in N.S. in the fall of 2003
Formation of Committee in N.S. involving federal and
provincial gov’t organizations and industry in June,
2004
Contract with Nexfor/Bowater Forest Watershed
Research Center at U.N.B in winter of 2004/5
administered by the Nova Forest Alliance & funded by
partners
First iteration of mapping delivered in the spring of
2006
Field verification and feedback to U.N.B from partners
through summer/fall of 2006
Final product delivered spring of 2007
SFMN - Gatineau
Going Forward
WAM to be used in creating nutrient budget model for
N.S. re: stand biomass removal eligibility
WAM is being used as an input for an ecosite mapping
project for N.S.
WAM is used as a planning tool extensively in the
province and is available on-line at the N.S. DNR
website
SFMN - Gatineau