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British Columbia Mine Reclamation Symposium

Soil bioengineering techniques for riparian restoration Polster, D. F. (David Franklin), 1952-

Abstract

Soil bioengineering is the use of living plant materials to perform some engineering function. Soil bioengineering techniques can be used to treat eroding banks, excess gravel and unstable slopes and can provide a finished product that treats the problem as well as providing appropriate riparian vegetation. The natural successional process associated with development of a healthy, functioning riparian vegetation cover is the model that is used to design repair systems that encourage restoration of riparian values. By providing a living, growing system for repair of damaged sites, possibly with wood and rock, the repair can contribute to living riparian area. Soil bioengineering systems have been used to treat a variety of degraded riparian areas. Live bank protection can be used to form defensive walls of vegetation along the eroding banks of rivers, streams and ponds. Live palisades can be used to re-establish riparian forests quickly. Live gravel bar staking can be used to treat areas where excessive gravel deposits from up-slope erosion threatens downstream channel morphology. Wattle fences, live pole drains, live smiles and a variety of other techniques can be used to treat bank instabilities. This paper presents descriptions of where soil bioengineering treatments have been used for riparian restoration. Examples are drawn from over twenty years of experience by the author. Paper presented at "High Elevation Mine Reclamation" conference sponsored by the Canadian Land Reclamation Association and the B.C. Technical and Research Committee on Reclamation. September 9-13, 2002, Dawson Creek, B.C.

Item Metadata

Title
Soil bioengineering techniques for riparian restoration
Creator
Polster, D. F. (David Franklin), 1952-
Contributor
British Columbia Mine Reclamation Symposium; University of British Columbia. Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering
Date Issued
2002
Description
Soil bioengineering is the use of living plant materials to perform some engineering function. Soil bioengineering techniques can be used to treat eroding banks, excess gravel and unstable slopes and can provide a finished product that treats the problem as well as providing appropriate riparian vegetation. The natural successional process associated with development of a healthy, functioning riparian vegetation cover is the model that is used to design repair systems that encourage restoration of riparian values. By providing a living, growing system for repair of damaged sites, possibly with wood and rock, the repair can contribute to living riparian area. Soil bioengineering systems have been used to treat a variety of degraded riparian areas. Live bank protection can be used to form defensive walls of vegetation along the eroding banks of rivers, streams and ponds. Live palisades can be used to re-establish riparian forests quickly. Live gravel bar staking can be used to treat areas where excessive gravel deposits from up-slope erosion threatens downstream channel morphology. Wattle fences, live pole drains, live smiles and a variety of other techniques can be used to treat bank instabilities. This paper presents descriptions of where soil bioengineering treatments have been used for riparian restoration. Examples are drawn from over twenty years of experience by the author. Paper presented at "High Elevation Mine Reclamation" conference sponsored by the Canadian Land Reclamation Association and the B.C. Technical and Research Committee on Reclamation. September 9-13, 2002, Dawson Creek, B.C.
Extent
1072503 bytes
Genre
Conference Paper
Type
Text
File Format
application/pdf
Language
eng
Date Available
2009-06-17
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
DOI
10.14288/1.0042418
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/9421
Affiliation
Non UBC
Peer Review Status
Unreviewed
Scholarly Level
Other
Copyright Holder
British Columbia Technical and Research Committee on Reclamation
Rights URI
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International