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Skip to Search Results- 1Collins, Catherine
- 1Collins, Catherine Elizabeth Victoria
- 1Frederick, Kurt R.
- 1Howell, Daniel Mark
- 1MacKenzie, Dean D
- 1Murata, Alison P
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Influence of Amendments and Soil Depth on Available Nutrients and Microbial Dynamics in Contrasting Topsoil Materials Used for Oil Sands Reclamation
DownloadFall 2015
As of December 2013, the cumulative area disturbed by oil sands mining in NE Alberta was 896 km2 out of an estimated final footprint of 4,800 km2 – all of which will require reclamation. Expensive handling costs and scarce soil resources necessitate judicious management and application of...
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Interactions Between Host Trees, Bacteria, and Fungi: Impacts on Mountain Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) Reproduction
DownloadFall 2012
Warming winter trends due to climate change have allowed for a range expansion of the mountain pine beetle, and the beetle now threatens Canada’s economically and ecologically important jack pine forests. The beetle’s success in jack pine trees will depend upon successful colonization of the...
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Long Term Dynamics And Potential Remediation Of Fine Textured Soils And Ground Water Contaminated With Chlorinated Organic Compounds And Salts
DownloadFall 2019
Contamination of land, water, and air is a widespread concern often associated with anthropogenic activities. Remediation of contaminated sites is necessary to minimize negative impacts on human health and the environment and allow for safe, productive use of land. Although contaminated sites...
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Methane Production and Emission Mitigation in Oil Sands Tailings Concurrent with Hydrocarbon Degradation under Nitrogen Limited Conditions
DownloadFall 2020
Alberta’s oil sands generate large volumes of tailings from bitumen ore processing. These tailings ponds produce biogenic methane, which can be measured across 60-80% of the tailings surface. Based on current surface area data and emissions studies, tailings ponds could account for 8% of Canada’s...
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Fall 2013
Collins, Catherine Elizabeth Victoria
Surface mining for bitumen extraction results in production of tailings that are deposited into large ponds. Tailings in the ponds support diverse microbial communities capable of metabolizing organic compounds and producing biogenic gases (methane, CH4 and carbon dioxide, CO2). Because of low...
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Spring 2013
A major barrier to reclamation after oil sands mining is lack of commercially available, diverse native plant seeds and propagules for revegetation. Potential of LFH (forest floor material) developed on coarse textured soil for establishing native plants and how salvage, placement and storage...
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Fall 2020
Oil sands mining is a significant disturbance in the Canadian boreal forest. One objective for reclamation after mining is to create a self-sustaining ecosystem, which includes establishing a native plant community. For this thesis, study one evaluates the different plant assembly mechanisms,...
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Productivity and carbon accumulation potential of transferred biofilms in reclaimed oil sands-affected wetlands
DownloadSpring 2011
Biofilms are significant contributors to primary production, nutrient cycling, bio-stabilization and the food web of wetland ecosystems. Photoautotrophic biomass (PB) and primary production (PP) were determined for biofilms exposed to various treatments and materials in wetlands near Fort...
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The ecology of boreal forest floor microbial communities in relation to environmental factors
DownloadFall 2012
Soil microbial communities in boreal forests are structured by complex interactions among many factors operating simultaneously on large and small spatial scales. Of particular note in the boreal mixedwood, the microbial communities under trembling aspen and white spruce forest floors are...