The Red River Basin Commission supported Netley-Libau Marsh Restoration Project continues to make headway in restoring the marsh at the south end of Lake Winnipeg to what historically exited. It is the largest freshwater coastal wetland in North America, and over the last century has seen major vegetation degradation with more than 10,000 acres being lost.
"With this loss of vegetation, we have seen declines in habitat quality for birds, fish, mammals, and amphibians," explained Project Manager Chris Adams. "Our main goal is to bring back more plant growth in the marsh, because plants form the foundation of the ecosystem. And although there are a lot of seeds in the sediment of the marsh, the environment is too stressful for them to grow and survive, because the water has become too deep and too wavy for plants to grow."
The project is an interdisciplinary partnership between a variety of different organizations, with input from the University of Manitoba, government and private sector stakeholders, watershed districts, as well as Indigenous partners, which all share goals of restoring the marsh, and bringing back some of what existed historically.
"A few years ago, we began exploring the idea of designing biodegradable restoration structures that would reduce stress on plants by trapping sediment and sheltering plants from wave action," said Adams. "We built these structures last year, and are monitoring them over two years to assess sediment trapping and plant growth. This year’s low water levels have prevented water from flowing through the baffles, so we haven’t had an opportunity to trap sediment yet. The only times that the structures have been underwater is during wave storms."
Results already being seen
Adams noted, even with the low water levels, the project is seeing results.
"Despite the lack of new sediment, we have seen substantial plant growth in areas sheltered by our structures," he said while noting final evaluation of the pilot project will occur at the end of next year. "The plants are taller, denser, and more diverse than in other comparable locations. It is exciting to see that our structures are already leading to new plant growth, purely by providing shelter from wave action."
Alongside the marsh restoration, the project has also provided several research opportunities including sediment core analysis to reconstruct the history of changes to the marsh, environmental DNA analysis and whether zebra mussels are becoming established in the marsh.
You can learn more about those aspects of the Netley-Libau Marsh Restoration Project by listening to the latest Ripple Effect, brought to you by the Red River Basin Commission.