Date of Award

2016

Publisher

North Dakota State University

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Awarded

Master of Science (MS)

Program

Range Science

Department

School of Natural Resource Sciences

College

Agriculture, Food Systems and Natural Resources

Faculty Advisor

Limb, Ryan F.

Description

Brine is a by-product of oil and gas extraction that can have profound impacts on soil chemistry and vegetation assemblages when discharged onto the soil surface. Brine spill remediation aims to remove or minimize the saturated paste electrical conductivity (ECe) to levels suitable for plant growth. My research focused on evaluating ECe and plant parameters on topsoil excavation and chemical amendment sites, and examining brine thresholds of several native grasses. Halophytic grasses had a higher brine threshold between 18.6 and 34.6 dS m-1 whereas glycophytic grasses exhibited a lower threshold (9.70 and 18.6 dS m-1). Halophytes examined in this study may aid in revegetating salt-affected sites. Soil ECe was not different (p ≥ 0.05) between remediation techniques to the 60 cm depth. Functional plant groups were also not different (p ≥ 0.05) between remediation techniques. Both techniques were successful at reducing soil ECe to facilitate natural and assisted vegetation recovery.

Rights

NDSU policy 190.6.2

Rights Link

https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/policy/190.pdf

Handle Identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/10365/27965

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