A new method for restoring ditches in peatlands: ditch filling with fiber bales

Abstract

Ditching is a common practice to dewater wetlands, including peatlands, and ditch blocking is a common method for restoring wetlands because substrate is often unavailable for filling the ditches. However, filling has many advantages compared to blocking ditches. Our goal was to test whether ditches could be filled in a Colorado sloping fen (Chattanooga Fen) using bales created from shredded aspen (Populus tremuloides) tree‐fiber. We monitored water table levels before and after we filled two ditches (combined length of approximately 165 m × 3 m wide) as well as an undisturbed reference portion of Chattanooga fen. The reference site had stable water tables that rarely dropped more than 20 cm below the soil surface. The ditches had been dewatering large areas of the fen for at least 100 years. Filling the ditches with fiber bales resulted in a water table increase between 2 and 22 cm in an area up to 150 m below the ditch. Native sedges now cover the area where we filled the ditches, with no erosion or compression/settling of the ground observed and no water backing up behind the filled ditches. Filling the ditches with shredded fiber bales is a good option for restoration in wilderness areas, or areas lacking peat or mineral soil fill because it is a natural material that is easily transported and placed in the ditches.

Effect of Subirrigation and Silicon Antitranspirant Application on Biomass Yield and Carbon Dioxide Balance of a Three-Cut Meadow

“…Therefore, it is rational to raise groundwater levels by subsoil irrigation to a level where the balance of carbon dioxide exchange between the soil and the atmosphere would be sustainable [19]. However, it should also be noted that re-moistening of soils causes direct changes in the composition of vegetation, reflecting new, more humid conditions, increasing biodiversity, restoring carbon cycle processes, and resuming carbon accumulation [20][21][22][23].…”

Wood chip soil amendments in restored wetlands affect plant growth by reducing compaction and increasing dissolved phenolics

“…Small peatland ditches, less than a meter deep and a few meters wide, have been restored effectively by complete filling (Armstrong et al ; Grand‐Clement et al ; Chimner et al , ). Significant challenges complicate scaling up the complete gully fill technique to larger multimeter deep and tens‐of‐meters wide erosion features: (1) obtaining and transporting large volumes of heavy soil is expensive and (2) the massive vehicles required to place the fill in the gully cause soil compaction.…”

Peat Volume Loss in the Ditches of Northern Minnesota

“…Some ditches, for example those north of Upper Red Lake, may prove to be all but inaccessible to the machinery that would be required for large-scale restoration. Trees that have colonized the de-watered margins of ditches have recently been used as ditch fill (Myers, 2015), presenting a readily available solution to the issue of sourcing and transport of fill material, which can be a significant cost in peatland restoration (Chimner et al, 2018). Using landscape-and site-level indicators to identify and prioritize peatland restoration opportunities, land managers will be able to explore cost effective mitigation strategies (Griscom et al, 2017).…”