Galiano Island has seen more than its share of clearcut logging over the decades, but now the Galiano Conservancy is leading the way on restoration of one of the most endangered ecosystems in Canada – Coastal Douglas Fir.
Over the past two decades the Galiano Conservancy Association has focused on addressing issues of biodiversity loss and environmental sustainability on Galiano Island, the second largest of BC’s Southern Gulf Islands. These efforts include a unique restoration project with a goal of helping to transform one of theisland’s degraded forest plantations into a healthy, resilient and connected forest ecosystem.
Galiano’s position on the lee side of the Vancouver Island Mountain range combined with the moderating influence of the ocean lead to a mild and relatively dry climate. The Island’s forests are characteristic of the Coastal Douglas Fir Biogeoclimatic Zone (CDF), an ecological classification that has recently been ranked as imperiled (a high risk of extinction) both provincially and globally. The CDF has the highest density of species of conservation concern in British Columbia. This conservation challenge is further intensified when considering the future impacts of climate change and has led to the CDF being identified as BC’s highest priority for conservation.
Logging in its various forms and intensities has been a constant presence on Galiano Island for thousands of years. Qwxwulwi’s, the Penelakut name for the restoration site, embodies the full spectrum of logging history. Over half of the island was operated as a commercial tree farm until the late 1980s, and though the island today has a relatively intact forest landscape, much of this forest shows the history of industrial timber extraction. From patchy clearings of high-grade logging from the 1900’s, clearcut logging in the 1970s and 80s to the monoculture planting of Douglas Fir seedlings.
The industrial cycle was broken in 1998 when the Galiano Conservancy recognized the potential of the site to provide connectivity at the landscape scale and purchased the property for restoration. The removal of all vegetation from the site, the devastation to the forest floor and the establishment of a uniform single-aged, single-species plantation have set the forest on a trajectory where biodiversity and ecosystem processes function on a minimal level.
A forest restoration plan was prepared in 2002, and two years later restoration treatments were initiated to help shift the plantation’s successional trajectory towards a healthy mature forest. After completing a detailed inventory of the plantation and comparing its ecological condition with nearby mature forest and some of the last remaining old-growth patches in our region, we devised a suite of restoration treatments. The goal was not the re-creation of the forest that existed prior to industrial logging, but the re-establishing of a healthier, more diverse, and resilient forest ecosystem.
5 Years Later
The plantation has responded to restoration treatments with an increase in species richness and biomass. The moss layer was the first to respond to the increase in light resulting from thinning treatments. The grasses and herbs followed quickly, along with a flourish of shoots branching off of red alder stems. Salal, oceanspray and other shrubby species have been slower to respond; however, patches of these species are beginning to emerge and are expected to expand throughout the stand over the next 5 years. Structurally, the restored areas of the plantation resemble a more natural condition with a mosaic or patchy distribution of dominant Douglas Fir trees, a revitalized sub-canopy of broadleaf trees and conifer saplings, wildlife trees of varying diameter throughout the site, and coarse woody debris across the forest floor. This newly created structural complexity equates to greater habitat diversity and availability, adding to the site’s potential for supporting biodiversity.
A study of available soil nutrients found that levels of key soil minerals in the restoration site were more similar to those in an adjacent mature forest stand than in the untreated plantation. This study suggests that the restoration work increases microbial activity, creating a healthy soil system that more closely resembles a natural mature forest system. Data from the monitoring program on this site indicates that ecological restoration has clearly increased the structural, compositional and functional diversity of the Douglas-fir plantation.
While restoration treatments at this site are benefiting the local ecology, it is the educational component of the project that reaches beyond Galiano’s shoreline. Site tours and opportunities for in-depth study are offered to students and professionals from around the world. Forest restoration theory and techniques are also the focus of an ongoing youth educational program. The program incorporates hands-on restoration activities that provide students with a positive connection to the natural world. The Conservancy is now piloting programs that engage students in restoration projects in their home communities after visiting our site on Galiano.
~
Thinning treatments maximize diversity of vegetation and forest structure.
Culling plantation Douglas-fir trees creates gaps in the canopy allowing more light to reach the forest floor. This promotes growth of mosses, grasses, shrubs and other tree species. Any natural elements such as a red alder tree, a patch of salal or a small area of undisturbed soil around a stump that remain within the plantation are viewed as ‘anchors’ of diversity and provide a guide for choosing which plantation trees to keep and which to cull.
Preliminary studies looking only at the vegetation have indicated that treatments are carbon neutral in the short-term but will likely increase carbon sequestration over the long-term. Researchers have also begun to examine the effects of restoration treatments on carbon sequestration in the soils.
Dispersing slash diversifies the forest floor and creates habitat. Using a 5-ton chain hoist for lift and a cable and pulley system for horizontal movement, rotting slash from windrows is dispersed across the barren forest floor. The organic material provides habitat for a variety of plants and wildlife, creates soil conditions conducive for the growth of mycorrhizal fungi and functions as a moisture sink during periods of summer drought. The unique, hand-powered, portable restoration system minimizes further damage to the site.
***
For more information or to inquire about tours and educational programs contact: Galiano Conservancy Association RR#1 Sturdies Bay Road, Galiano Island, BC V0N 1P0 restoration@galianoconservancy.ca Phone: 250-539-2424
Excerpted from the brochure by Galiano Conservancy.
