Collaborative Bull Kelp Restoration Project in northern Salish Sea, BC Canada
Presentation Abstract
Bull kelp, Nereocystis luetkeana, has declined widely in recent decades in central Strait of Georgia (northern Salish Sea) mainly due to herbivore grazing and prolonged periods of elevated temperatures (>16C). The Nile Creek Enhancement Society started a project in 2011 to study local ocean conditions at a natural kelp bed (south Denman I.) and at a kelp restoration site (Maude Reef, Hornby I.) where culture techniques are being applied to research and re-establish bull kelp. . A kelp culture grid (30m x 30m) was installed at Maude Reef site. Four years of study on kelp growout and monitoring of the restoration site in comparison with the natural kelp bed have been conducted. Diver observations and data-logged temperature and light intensity measurements at two depths at each site have been recorded. In 2015, with support from Pacific Salmon Foundation, the project was expanded in collaboration with Project Watershed Society by adding a second experimental site in northern Baynes Sound. Additional environmental data from multi-parameter sonde casts have been collected at the study sites. The project was conducted during one of the warmest spring and summer periods ever recorded locally and provided an opportunity to study the effects of temperature stress and herbivore grazing as limitations to bull kelp distribution in an important area of the Salish Sea.Further experimentation with kelp restoration methods will allow further improvement and refinement of restoration techniques, especially in addressing the need for adaptation to warming conditions in the Salish Sea. The identification and propagation of bull kelp plants with tolerance of warm water (>16 C) is a leading approach for future research. Recently we have obtained sori and produced “seed” based on kelp from Sansum Narrows (S. Gulf Islands) to compare growth and survival with kelp originating from sori collected at Campbell River.
Session Title
Kelp and Eelgrass
Conference Track
Habitat
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2016 : Vancouver, B.C.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
2016 12:00 AM
End Date
2016 12:00 AM
Location
2016SSEC
Type of Presentation
Oral
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Nereocystis luetkeana--Georgia, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.); Nereocystis luetkeana--Transplanting--Georgia, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.); Restoration ecology--Georgia, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.)
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Georgia, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Collaborative Bull Kelp Restoration Project in northern Salish Sea, BC Canada
2016SSEC
Bull kelp, Nereocystis luetkeana, has declined widely in recent decades in central Strait of Georgia (northern Salish Sea) mainly due to herbivore grazing and prolonged periods of elevated temperatures (>16C). The Nile Creek Enhancement Society started a project in 2011 to study local ocean conditions at a natural kelp bed (south Denman I.) and at a kelp restoration site (Maude Reef, Hornby I.) where culture techniques are being applied to research and re-establish bull kelp. . A kelp culture grid (30m x 30m) was installed at Maude Reef site. Four years of study on kelp growout and monitoring of the restoration site in comparison with the natural kelp bed have been conducted. Diver observations and data-logged temperature and light intensity measurements at two depths at each site have been recorded. In 2015, with support from Pacific Salmon Foundation, the project was expanded in collaboration with Project Watershed Society by adding a second experimental site in northern Baynes Sound. Additional environmental data from multi-parameter sonde casts have been collected at the study sites. The project was conducted during one of the warmest spring and summer periods ever recorded locally and provided an opportunity to study the effects of temperature stress and herbivore grazing as limitations to bull kelp distribution in an important area of the Salish Sea.Further experimentation with kelp restoration methods will allow further improvement and refinement of restoration techniques, especially in addressing the need for adaptation to warming conditions in the Salish Sea. The identification and propagation of bull kelp plants with tolerance of warm water (>16 C) is a leading approach for future research. Recently we have obtained sori and produced “seed” based on kelp from Sansum Narrows (S. Gulf Islands) to compare growth and survival with kelp originating from sori collected at Campbell River.
