Fescue research takes root at Glenbow Ranch Park
Shell donates $230,000 to study native grasslands
The Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation plans to expand its research on the use of fescue grasses in land reclamation projects, following the announcement of a new partnership on Monday.
Shell’s donation of $230,000 to the foundation for the creation of the Shell Foothills Fescue Research Institute is a “great leap forward” for fescue research, according to Andy Crooks, the foundation’s chief executive.
Rough fescue grasses are native to Alberta and provide many natural benefits including carbon sequestration. Their deep roots, which can extend as far as 120 centimetres underground, also improve soil stability and protect against drought.
“It’s a huge environmental positive,” Crooks said.
According to the foundation, rough fescue is part of an endangered ecosystem. The 1,435-hectare Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park encompasses one of the largest remaining areas of native grasslands in the province.
Just 17 per cent of Alberta Foothills fescue grassland remains, says the Nature Conservancy of Canada.
The park foundation has been monitoring fescue at Glenbow Ranch for the past three years to determine how fescue can assist in land reclamation, Crooks said. The first research sites have been in the park’s own construction areas around bathrooms, pathways and parking lots.
“When we constructed all the stuff in the park, that disturbed the soil,” he explained. “We’re using plugs and seeds, different types of native fescue with different types of ground cover and different types of treatment.”
Crooks said the foundation has already established a plan to expand its testing programs.
“We’re developing two areas of the park which will become controlled fescue laboratories,” Crooks said. “We’ll have monitoring equipment for soil, sun and moisture, and really track the performance of these fescue over a long period of time.”
Crooks said he hopes to pass on what the new institute learns from the fescue labo- ratories to industrial partners such as Shell for use at well sites and pipelines. He also plans to promote the use of fescues for lawns near the park because it requires next to no water.
“They look great, and they give a really Western feel to the landscape,” he noted.
Shell will collaborate with the foundation on research for the institute, said Louis Auger, Shell’s vice-president of production, north.
Auger said the proximity of Glenbow Ranch to the company’s Jumping Pound gas complex contributed to Shell’s decision to sponsor the research institute.
“Rural communities are critical to our success and our thriving in the business,” he said. “Fescue and grasslands in that area are very important to our neighbours, so that makes it very important to us.”