Goal 15 - Institutional Stewardship Initiatives

Institutional Stewardship Initiatives

Augustana Miquelon Lake Research Station

The Beaver Hills are a distinct geography just east of Edmonton that encompass Augustana Campus (located in Camrose, AB). The 1,500 km2 moraine supports a rich, mixed-wood forest, kettle lakes and thriving wetlands. This island within the dominant aspen parkland supports a wide variety of wildlife alongside five rural municipalities. In 2016, UNESCO designated the Beaver Hills a biosphere, a region where people live and work in harmony with nature.

Nestled in Miquelon Lake Provincial Park, the Augustana Miquelon Lake Research Station is a facility with classroom, lab, office and event and residence space. Given its sensitive location, the station has adopted a strong model for environmentally responsible management and made significant investments in waste reduction, renewable energy and water conservation. Faculty use the station as a base for research into how environmental, social, health and agricultural domains intersect and affect one another in increasingly industrialized, urbanized and ecologically sensitive landscapes.

City of Edmonton Drainage Services Bylaw

The U of A Utilities Group operates (North Campus) or manages (remaining campuses) the storm and sanitary system for the university; wastewater is then sent for treatment at local municipal facilities. Wastewater treatment is subject to bylaw 18093 (drainage bylaw). Water quality standards and guidelines ensure the protection of ecosystems, wildlife and human health.

Forest Reserve

The University of Alberta has reserved approximately eight hectares of land on the south bank of the North Saskatchewan River adjacent to North Campus. Setting aside this land from development maintains an unbroken length of the river valley and helps to preserve wildlife habitat and biodiversity in the heart of the city.

Integrated Pest Management Program

The university has 118 hectares of grounds and gardens, of which 81 per cent is under an Integrated Pest Management program (IPM). IPM strives to reduce reliance on pesticides and to integrate preventative measures and alternative control technologies.

Space planning

The North Campus Open Space Plan incorporates biodiversity protection throughout by  providing a number of sustainable landscape strategies that help direct site planning and design, choice of landscape materials, vegetation renewal, safety and security, operations and maintenance, and water management. Under its strategy for urban forest management, the plan calls for native plant restoration and the creation of new biodiverse habitats on North Campus.

The Sector 12: Campus Planning and Design Guidelines advocate for sustainable design and embrace the natural features of South Campus land. Using archival aerial photography, the design augments the land’s original natural ecological features to support wildlife diversity, including the creation of wildlife corridors between South Campus and the North Saskatchewan River Valley.

Species at Risk

The University of Alberta, in accordance with the Species at Risk Act (SARA), works to identify, monitor and protect threatened and endangered species with habitats in areas affected by the operation of the university. 

Mattheis Research Ranch Range Health Assessment

The University of Alberta owns and operates the Mattheis Research Ranch. Western Sky Land Trust, an Alberta based land trust, hired Tannas Conservation Services in 2023, to provide a report on range health at the Mattheis Research Ranch and identify any vulnerable and rare plant species within the ranch. The Tannas Conservation Services used occurrence data for rare vascular plants taken from the Alberta Conservation Information Management System (ACIMS) species rankings. The assessment deduced that the property contains several at-risk species.

U of A Botanic Garden’s Green School

In the award-winning Green School program at the University of Alberta Botanic Garden, children in grades 4-8 are immersed in the natural world for five consecutive school days. With a philosophy of “slow education,” children have time to observe, hear, smell and touch the natural world. Many first-time participants are “nature starved” and have never been in close contact with the natural world. An appreciation of the natural world, and their relationship to it, leads students to an understanding of the importance of conservation and biodiversity. Green School sows seeds that participants and their communities will reap for years to come.

World Environment Day

World Environment Day is an annual day to celebrate nature and focus on conservation issues. The University of Alberta participates with events designed to get staff and summer students outdoors and engaged in conservation. Past events have included sustainable cooking classes, yoga and garden parties, walking tours, bicycle tune-ups, live expert Q&As and knowledge-building workshops.