Silvatech Land Use Land Use Study

This project provides a high-level summary of a study that applied a strategic, spatially explicit cumulative effects model to assess alternative development scenarios within the Foster Creek EIA boundary. The study aimed to balance project economics with minimizing ecological impacts through science-based decision-making. It identified key management opportunities, including corridor pre-planning, footprint reduction, targeted reclamation, and nodal pattern design. Findings also revealed that the project footprint’s “zone of influence” extends up to three times beyond the footprint itself.

Footprint management opportunities appear to rest in three key categories: 1) The magnitude – the amount or location of footprint, 2) The duration – the amount of time the footprint affects the landscape, and 3) The residual impacts – the time to and degree of reclamation success. Optimal project economics and reduced ecological impacts can be achieved by using alternative management approaches. These include front end network design and a reclamation and enhanced mitigation strategies.