Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) engaged our team to design a compensation habitat in Burrard Inlet, using innovative tools in kelp reforestation to augment an artificial underwater reef.
Globally, kelp reforestation is a hot topic. These marine forests provide a habitat for a wide range of marine organisms and contribute to a sense of identity for those who have used it for generations as medicine, food and material.
Kelp maintains ecological balance and resilience, and the long-term reforestation of kelp beds can help to offset carbon emissions and potentially reduce the severity of effects created by climate change.
The challenge
Recognizing the importance of kelp in the area, our client contracted Ausenco to design and build an artificial underwater reef to mitigate construction impacts. As one of the first in BC to formally incorporate kelp seeding into a federal Fisheries Act Authorization, this project requires specific marine expertise, thorough logistical planning to overcome unfavorable weather conditions, and close monitoring of the growing kelps needs.
The better way
To design and build an artificial underwater reef, our team collected reproductive kelp patches in Vancouver and transported them to the Canadian Kelp Resources lab in Bamfield. A couple of months later we returned the baby kelp to Vancouver by ferry, courier, and floatplane. Routing the kelps travels with Lady Rose Marine Services in Bamfield, Ace Couriers in Nanaimo, Harbour Air in Vancouver, and Tsawwassen Shuttles Inc. in Tsawwassen.
Our specialists coordinated logistics, assessing the timing of shipment options to best suit the kelp. Monitoring their growth cycle to align with project timing, 18 spools of bull kelp and 18 spools of sugar kelp were successfully produced and divided. During transit, the kelp was also kept at optimal temperatures, ranging between 4 to 14 degrees Celsius.
Upon arrival at the eastern Burrard Inlet, our dive team immediately deployed the kelp on to in-house fabricated anchors and lines, lowering it into the balmy 7-degree ocean water, and strategically placing the kelp lines around the reef. The multi-faceted habitat complex, designed by Ausenco's coastal engineers and marine biologists, was finished in December with deep and shallow rock reefs, clam bench, and oyster shell enhanced mudflats, revitalizing the ocean habitat.
Outcomes and achievements
This high-profile and marquee endeavor reduces the time between construction and fully functioning offsetting habitats, creating cost-saving and environmental benefits. Providing juvenile salmon with shelter and food as they grow and migrate, it’s the first of its kind in Burrard Inlet.