Revitalizing Drastically Disturbed Lands

Land use activities including mineral extraction, timber harvest, public recreation and waste disposal often have extensive impacts to the natural landscape. Ecosystems and geomorphic processes may be significantly altered as a result of the duration and intensity of these activities. The multi-disciplinary backgrounds of Brightwater's technical staff in forestry, geology, landscape architecture and chemistry are especially suited to the assessment and restoration of such disturbed sites.

Applications and related services include:

Mine Reclamation: Surface mining can result in some of the most difficult revegetation problems, which frequently lead to more persistent difficulties with soil erosion and sediment control. Rather than continue a cycle of re-fertilizing, re-seeding and replanting, Brightwater can develop site specific strategies to achieve permenant stabilization and reforestation with little or no maintenance requirements. While the most effective strategies are incorporated into initial reclamation plans, Abandoned Mine Lands and other problem sites can be restored with specialized agronomic practices and by using the right plant materials and establishment techniques.

In addition, changes to the landscape that may be anticipated from mining activities can have unforeseen impacts to aquatic resources. Brightwater can provide consultation to protect streams and wetlands from potentially accelerated geomorphic process rates that may result from changes in valley geometry, surface and subsurface hydrology.

Acid Rock Discharge Abatement: Mining operations and highway construction projects can create conditions that generate groundwater discharges that have a low pH and elevated levels of acidity, sulfates, iron, and other metal contaminants. These pollutants can be lethal to trout and other fishes, and the associated precipitates can smother the substrates of receiving streams, effectively eliminating benthic macro-invertebrate populations. Traditional chemical treatment methods are expensive, labor intensive, and require perpetual maintenance and sludge disposal. Recently, alternative technologies have been developed to utilize bio-chemical processes that occur naturally in wetlands. These Passive Treatment Technologies greatly reduce treatment costs and land requirements. Brightwater has the specialized experience to thoroughly evaluate discharge chemistry and design passive treatment systems to ameliorate acid drainage problems. We have designed wetland systems to function for up to forty years with very limited maintenance needs.

Reforestation and Afforestation: Restoring forest habitat can be a relatively simple or complex proposition. Brightwater has the expertise to develop site specific tree planting programs that consider site characteristics, landowner objectives, cost constraints, and regulatory requirements. Our extensive experience has provided a comprehensive knowledge of site preparation, plant materials and establishment methods, as well as a nationwide network of vendors to meet the objectives of any project.

Dredae Spoil Disposal: Another major challenge in the field of habitat restoration, the maintenance of waterways generates huge amounts of spoil material that must go somewhere. Brightwater can locate appropriate disposal sites and develop plans to protect existing resources while creating diverse landscapes that incorporate wetlands, forests and grasslands. Our understanding of soil chemistry and agronomic practices can be applied to successfully establish vegetation on spoil materials that are typically inhospitable to conventional seeding and planting practices.