AliciaMcKelvey

TrixieMahayag

MatthewOpdyke(2013)

WINGFIELDPINES
WETLANDREHABILITATIONCASESTUDY

Introduction

In2001AlleghenyLandTrust,anonprofitorganizationwhosemissionitistoconserveandstewardlandsthatsupport
thescenic,recreationalandenvironmentalwellbeingofcommunitiesinAlleghenyCounty,Pennsylvania,purchased
WingfieldPinesnearBridgeville.Themanagementplanofthepropertycalledfortheestablishmentofawetland
treatmentsystemtoreduceironlevelsinwatereffluentfromanabandonedminepriortodischargingintoChartiers
Creek.ChartiersCreekflowsintotheMonongahelaRivernearPittsburghandisknowntobepollutedbynumerous
abandonedmines,industryandagriculture.

AlleghenyLandTrustobtainedagrantfromthePennsylvaniaDepartmentofEnvironmentalProtectiontoinstallthe
treatmentsystem,withtheprovisionthatthelandtrustwouldenhancewetlandhabitatonaportionoftheproperty.This
casestudyinvestigatestheprocessofrehabilitatingthewetlandatthesouthernendofthepropertyaspartofthe
agreementwiththeDepartmentofEnvironmentalProtection.

Background
WingfieldPinesisan80acreparceloffloodplainandwetlandsalongthebanks
ofChartiersCreek.Between1968and1983WingfieldPineswasoperatedasa
swimclubandgolfcourse,whichwasabandonedafter1983duetofrequent
floodingandeconomicpressures.Anincreaseinextremefloodeventsalong
ChartiersCreekhasrenewedinterestintheecologicalservicesoffloodplains
andwetlandstomitigatefloodwaters.Inaninterviewofa
neighboringlandowner,theownerstatedthatpartsofthe
southernendofthepropertywerefloodedeveryspring.
Theadjacentpictureshowsthefloodedpropertyfollowing
HurricaneIvanin2004.

Previoussiteusesincludeagricultureandstripminingforcoal.Stripmining
removesallthesurfacesoilandrockatopthedesiredmineralsource(coal).
Afterthesitewasstripminedin1948,approximatelytwotofivefeetoftopsoil
wasplacedovertheremainingcoalreserves.Anenvironmentalscientist
interviewedforthecasestudyexpressedconcernthatcoalreserveswereonly
twofeetbeneaththetopsoilinsomelocations."Isthereenoughtopsoilfor
maturetreestoestablishandwillplantgrowthbeaffectedbyheavymetalsbeing
releasedintothetopsoil"wasoneconcernstatedbythescientist.

WingfieldPinesislocated15milessouthofPittsburghandliesinadeepvalley,
surroundedbybluffridgesandsteepslopes,whichrise70100feetinelevation.
SuburbanneighborhoodsoccupytheeasternridgesontheoppositesideofChartiersCreekoverlookingthesite.
BoyceMayviewPark,a438acrepropertyisadjacenttothesouthandeastofWingfieldPines.Theparkincludesa
regionalenvironmentalcenter,severalsoccerandbaseballfieldsandacommunitycenter.

In2009apassivewetlandtreatmentsystemwasinstalledatthenorthernendoftheproperty.Thesystemconsistedofa
seriesofsettlingtanksorganizedintheshapeofapiethatwouldallowirontosettleoutfromtheundergroundmine
effluentpriortoenteringChartiersCreek.Thetreatmentsystemdisplacedapproximately1.25acresofwetlandhabitat.

AlleghenyLandTrustproposedtheenhancementofthesouthernwetlandareatocompensateforthedisplacedwetland.
Thesouthernwetlandcoversapproximately20acres.

Questionstobeansweredbeforeproceedingtothenextsectionofthecasestudy.
1.WhatisyouropinionontheDepartmentofEnvironmentalProtection'spolicythatifawetlandisfilledinor
developedthelandownermayconstructareplacementwetlandelsewhere?Underwhatconditionsdoesthispolicy
worktoprotectwetlandsandwhendoesitfail?

Replacingthedevelopedwetlandworksforthemaintenanceandorbalanceofthebiologicalnichethatresides
withinit.Developingawetlandcouldcosthabitatlossofnumerousorganisms,thus,replacingitwouldhelprejuvenate
andnourishtheorganismsthatusedtoresideonthelastone.Theonlywaywethinkthepolicywouldfailisiftheland
tryingtobereplacedisnotofequallandareatothewetlandtobe.

ResearchQuestion.Assumetheenvironmentalscientistwascorrectthatsometreesandshrubswouldhave
difficultygrowingonthesite.Providealistofatleastfivetreesandthreeshrubsthatcouldbeplantedtoenhance
thewetland,giventheconstraintsontopsoildepthandpotentialforheavymetalsinthesoil.Defendyourchoices
andprovidethereferencesthatsupportyourchoiceoftreesandshrubs.

*Blacklocust(Robiniapseudoacacia)
*blackalder(Alnusglutinosa)
*NorthernRedOak(Quercusrubra)
*BurOak(Quercusmacrocarpa)
*PinOak(Quercuspalustris)

MissouriDepartmentofNaturalResources
LandReclamationProgram
Ashby,W.Clark,andWillisG.Vogel.TreePlantingintheMidwest:AHandbook.CoalResearchCenter,SouthernIllinoisUniversity,
CarbondaleIllinois,1992.
(http://www.dnr.mo.gov/pubs/pub2084.htm)

Buttonbush(Cephalanthusoccidentalis)
Poisonivy(Toxicodendronradicans)
wingedsumac(Rhuscopallina)


RevegetatingtheSouthernWetland
In2009communityvolunteersandPointParkUniversitystudents,
organizedbyAlleghenyLandTrustandalocalconsultingfirm,planted
smallsaplingsinthesouthernwetland.Thetypesofsaplingsandthe
resultsoftheirsurvivalareprovidedinthetablebelow.Thewetland
indicatorstatuscolumnpredictsinwhathabitatthesaplingsaremost
suitedforgrowing.Forexample,facultativeuplandsuggeststhesapling
isbestsuitedforgrowinginuplandhabitatsindrysoilconditions.
Facultativewetlandsuggeststhesaplingisbestsuitedforgrowingin
wetlandsandalongstreamsinwetsoilconditions.Facultativesuggests
thesaplingcangrowinbothuplandandwetlandhabitats.

TypeofSapling
Acerrubrum,
RedMaple
Acersaccharinum,
SilverMaple
Caryacordiformis,
BitternutHickory
Nyssasylvatica,
BlackGum
Quercusbicolor,
SwampWhiteOak

#Planted

#Survivingin
2010

#Survivingin
2011

#Survivingin
2012

Wetland
IndicatorStatus

10

facultative

facultative

facultative
wetland

facultative
wetland
facultative
upland

Questiontobeansweredbeforeproceedingtothenextsectionofthecasestudy.
ResearchQuestion.Reviewthesaplingsplantedinthetableaboveandtheirsurvivorship.Provideanexplanation
ofwhysomesaplingsdidpoorly.Considertheirwetlandindicatorstatusandecologicalsuccession.Assumethat
thesoilconditionwasequalforallsaplingsbuttheirtoleranceleveltosoildisturbancesmaybedifferent.Provide
thereferencesofyoursources.

Acerrubrum,
RedMaple
30%mortalityrate.70%survivalrate.Thisspeciesdidwellbecauseithasmediumtohightolerancerateforsoil
disturbances.ItcanliveinsoilwiththePHminimum4.7andPHmaximumof7.3.Acerrubrumhasthehighesttolerance
toacidicsoilswhichweassumetheSouthernWetlandtobelikesinceitislocatednearbyabandonedminesites,and
thereforeoutlivesotherspeciesthatdonotmeetsuchconditions.

Acersaccharinum,
SilverMaple
40%mortalityrate.60%survivalrate.Thisspeciesdidokay.ItcantolerateapHdifferencebetween4.0and
7.3.However,itcannottoleratealackofwaterandtoomuchsaltcontentinthesoil.

Caryacordiformis,
BitternutHickory
100%mortalityrateby2012.20%survivalratein2010to0%in2012.bitternuthickoryisintoleranttoshade,and
issusceptibletocompetition,especiallyagainstanoldertree.(SilvicsofNorthAmerica,2011,USDAForestService)


Nyssasylvatica,
BlackGum
100%mortalityratethroughallthestudyyears.TheBlackGumhadaverynarrowpHrangethatwasonly
between4.5and6.0.Itdidnotadapttofinetexturedsoils.Ithasaverylowanaerobictolerance.

Quercusbicolor,
SwampWhiteOak
40%mortalityratethroughallthestudyyears.TheSwampWhiteOakhasalowdroughttolerance.ItspHrange
isalsonarrowrangingfrom4.3to6.5.ItsC:Ntoleranceisalsolow.

SurveyingHerbaceousPlantandSaplingEstablishmentintheSouthernWetland
Samplingofherbaceousplants,whichlackwoodystems,andsaplingsandshrubsbeganin2009andoccursevery
summerattenpermanentsamplingplotsrandomlyplacedthroughoutthesouthernwetland.Ateachplot,allherbsare
identifiedandthepercentgroundthattheycoverisestimatedwithina1squaremetergrid(1mx
1m).Saplingsandshrubsareidentifiedandcountedwithina400squaremetergrid(20mx20m).Saplingsandshrubs
havewoodystemswithadiameterlessthan8cm.

Thetableonthenextpagesummarizestheherbdatacollectedbetween2009and2012.Theherbspeciesidentified
duringthesurveyhavebeengroupedintocategoriesoffloweringherbs,sedgesandrushes,grassesandinvasive
species.Individualsgroupedintoinvasivespeciesmayalsobeincludedinthefloweringherbandgrasscategories.
InvasivespeciesaredefinedasspeciesthatwerenotfoundinNorthAmericabeforeEuropeansettlement.Many
invasivespeciesoutcompetenativesanddisrupttheecologicalfoodweb.Thedatainthetableareimportancevalues,
whichisanestimateofdominancegiveninpercentages.Forexample,anherbwithanimportancevalueof50%
suggeststhathalfoftheplantcommunityismadeupofthatherb.

Therewaslittlechangeinthediversityofspeciesbetween2009and2011,averaging22species.Thediversity
increasedin2012to28species.Thedominantfloweringherbswerecreepingjenny(Lysimachianummularia)
accountingfor44%ofherbs,purpleloosestrife(Lythrumsalicaria)accountingfor9%andCanadagoldenrod
(Solidagoaltissima)accountingfor6%.Thedominantsedgesandrusheswerefoxsedge(Carexvulpinoidea)
accountingfor39%ofsedgesandrushesandbluntbroomsedge(Carextribuloides)accountingfor32%.The
dominantgrasseswerereedcanarygrass(Phalarisarundinacea),nimblewill(Muhlenbergiaschreberi)andan
unidentifiedspeciesofgrasseachaccountingforapproximately29%ofgrasses.Thedominantinvasivespecieswere
creepingjennyaccountingfor68%ofinvasivesandpurpleloosestrifeaccountingfor14%.

2009photographsofthreedifferentsamplingplotsinthesouthernwetlandarea.

2012photographsofthesamethreesamplingplotsinthesouthernwetlandarea.

HerbCategory
FloweringHerbs
SedgesandRushes
Grasses
InvasiveSpecies

2009
ImportanceValue
44
31
13
25

2010
ImportanceValue
52
30
19
31

2011
ImportanceValue
51
26
23
47

2012
ImportanceValue
59
19
21
39

Questionstobeansweredbeforeproceedingtothenextsectionofthecasestudy.
Whenanalyzingecologicaldataitisbeneficialtoplotthedatabeforediscussinganytrendsoroutliers.Plotthe
datafromthetableusingaverticalbarchart.Theherbcategoryisthedependentvariablethatbelongsonthe

xaxisandtheimportancevalueistheindependentvariablethatbelongsontheyaxis.Insteadofplottingfour
differentgraphsforeachyear,plotagroupedverticalbarchart.Labelthexandyaxessothatanoutside
readercaninterpretthegraph.

Discussanytrendsoroutliersthatareevidentfromthegraph.

*Floweringherbshavebeenincreasinginimportancevalueovertime
*Sedgesandrushesaredecreasinginimportancevalueastimepasses
*Grassesarestagnantthelastcoupleofyears
*Invasivespeciesreachedthepeakofitsimportancevalueinyear2011.

ResearchQuestion.Notethatthedominanceofinvasivespecieshasincreasedfrom2009to2012.The
overwhelminglydominantinvasiveiscreepingjenny.Researchthelifecycleofthisherbandprovideamethod
ofmanagingtheinvasive.Providethereferencesofyoursources.

CreepingJenny(LysimachianummulariaL.)
Grow in humus-rich soil, can tolerate moist and dry soils and full sun or partial shade.
Propagate by stem cuttings in spring. - Green Life Universe

AnativeofEurasia,creepingyellowloosestriferarelyproducesseedsinNorthAmerica,relyinginsteadon
vegetativegrowthandtheabilitytoformmats.NewEnglandWildFlowerSociety

Thisplantspeciesgerminatesbysimplyplacingapartofitsplantsteminanappropriatemediumsuchassoil(dryorwet).
IsuggestgettingridofallthepartsofthisplantentirelyandnotleaveasinglesteminthegroundIfnotdonecorrectly,it
wouldfurtherpropagateandencourageitsgrowthevenmore.

Thedensityofsaplingsandshrubsinthepermanentsamplingplotsincreasedfrom2010to2012(samplingmethods
changedin2010,sodatafrom2009isnotcomparabletothelateryears).Thedensitieswere1,461saplingsandshrubs
per400m2in2010,1,604in2011and2,384in2012.Thenumberofspeciesofsaplingsandshrubswere18in2010
andaveraged27in2011and2012.Thedominantspecieswereboxelder(Acernegundo)accountingfor22%of
shrubsandsaplings,easterncottonwood(Populusdeltoides)accountingfor17%andAmericanelm(Ulmus
americana)accountingfor15%.

Questionstobeansweredbeforeproceedingtothenextsectionofthecasestudy.
Theinformationprovidedintheprecedingparagraphincludesdensityandthenumberofspecies.Definethe
differencebetweenthetwoparametersanddiscusswhyeachisimportanttoincludeinreportsonbiological
surveys.

Densityisdeterminedbythenumberofplantsrootedwithineachquadratwhilethenumberofspeciesis
countinghowevermanyofthesamespeciesispresentinallthequadrants.

MatthewW.FidelibusandRobertT.F.MacAller
October1993

Itisimportantbecauserelyingononlyoneofthesaidparameterscouldbemisleadingtothereaders.Given
bothparameters,thereaderwouldhavethecorrectperceptionofthedominanceofthespeciesintheparticular
givenarea.

Discusswhythedensityandnumberofspeciesofsaplingsandshrubshasincreasedfrom2010to2012.

Thesaplingsandshrubslikeboxelderreproducebothsexuallyandsexually,thiswouldgivethisspecificspecies
theadvantagetopropagateanddominatewithinashortspanoftime.

ResearchQuestion.Thedominantspeciesofsaplingsandshrubswereboxelder,easterncottonwoodand
Americanelm.VisittheU.S.DepartmentofAgricultureNaturalResourcesConservationServicewebsite
(plants.usda.gov/java/)todeterminethewetlandindicatorstatusofeachsapling.Recordthestatuses.In
addition,discusswhythesethreesaplingsinparticulararedominatingthewetland.Tohelpyouanswerthislast
question,considerhowplantcommunitieschangeduringecologicalsuccession.

Boxelder:

AridWest

FACW

AtlanticandGulfCoastalPlain

FAC

EasternMountainsandPiedmont

FAC

GreatPlains

FAC

Midwest

FAC

NorthCentral&Northeast

FAC

WesternMountains,Valleys,andCoast

FAC

Easterncottonwood:
AridWest

FAC

AtlanticandGulfCoastalPlain

FAC

EasternMountainsandPiedmont

FAC

GreatPlains

FAC

Midwest

FAC

NorthCentral&Northeast

FAC

WesternMountains,Valleys,andCoast

FAC

Americanelm


AridWest

FAC

AtlanticandGulfCoastalPlain

FAC

EasternMountainsandPiedmont

FACW

GreatPlains

FAC

Midwest

FACW

NorthCentral&Northeast

FACW

WesternMountains,Valleys,andCoast

FAC

Onereasontheyaredominatingthewetlandisbecauseofthetypeofsoilthewetlandmayhave.Ifitisafloodplain
forest,forexample,itmayhaveacomplexcomposedofayoungsoilformedinalluviumandBremersiltyclayloam
andapoorlydrainedsoilalsoformedinalluvium("WetlandPlantsandPlantCommunitiesofMinnesotaand
Wisconsin."NPWRC.U.S.DepartmentoftheInterior/U.S.GeologicalSurvey,02Feb.2013.Web.30Sept.2014.)

Conclusionquestions.
Inadditiontosurveyingherbsandsaplingsandshrubsinpermanentsamplingplots,whatotherparameters
wouldyourecommendstudyingtogetacomprehensivepictureoftherehabilitationofthesouthernwetland.
Withinthe20acrewetlandareatherearealsotwosmallponds,whichcoverapproximatelyhalfanacreeach.
Foreachadditionalparameteryourecommend,provideamethodofmeasurement.

We(AliciaandTrixie)suggestthatweuseparameters,Densityofspecies,andnumberofspecies.Tomeasure
theDensityofspecieswewouldDividethe20acrewetlandintoquadrantsandcalculatethepercentage
dominanceofeachspecies.Next,wewouldsimplycountthenumberofsuccessfulgrowthsofeachspeciesand
recordthem.

Giventheresultsofthesurveydataonherbsandsaplingsandshrubs,doyoubelievethatAlleghenyLandTrust
isdoingasufficientjobinrehabilitatingthewetland.IfAlleghenyLandTrustweregivenalimitedbudgetof
$5,000ayeartospendonnaturalizingthewetlandhowwouldyourecommendallocatingthefunds?

$1,000onvolunteerappreciation.LittletokensandservicesforwhoevervolunteerinregeneratingtheWetland.
Thiswouldhopefullymakethevolunteersappreciatedandwouldwanttohelpmoreandevenencouragefriends
tojoin.
Therestofthemoneyshouldbedividedonthematerialsandequipmentsneededtosuccessfullycultivatethe
givenland.

GigaPantechnologyisanewwayofrecordingimagesofsamplingsites.Arobotissetontopofatripodand
directsadigitalcameratocapturemultiplepictures,whicharethenstitchedtogethertoformahighresolution
panoramicimage.Thetechnologyallowsuserstozoomintodifferentpartsoftheimageinmoredetailthana
singlepicture.VisittheGigaPanwebsiteathttp://gigapan.com/gigapans/134137,whichshowsaGigaPan
imageofoneofthesamplingsites.Theimageshouldlookliketheonebelow.Notethattherearesnapshotsat
thebottomofthepicture.Clickoneachsnapshottogettheimagetozoomintoacloseup.Thenmoveyour
cursoroverthesymbolbeneaththesnapshottolearnabouttheplant.Answerthefollowingquestions.

A.Whichofthesnapshotsareinvasivespecies?

Snapshot#3oftheCurlydock.Snapshot#4ofthePurpleloosestrife.Snapshot#6oftheCrownvetch.
Snapshot#7oftheCreepingjenny

B.Havesedgesincreasedordecreasedindensityinrecentyearsandwhy?

Theyhavedecreasedinrecentyearsbecauseofbeingreplacedbyinvasivespeciesandreedcanarygrass,a
rapidlygrowinggrass.

C.Whatistherecommendedmethodforcontrollingcreepingjenny?


Theonlywaytocontrolcreepingjennyistoperformacontrolledburninthefallwhencreepingjennyisstill
greenbutalltheotherherbshavealreadydiedoff.

7.VisitthefollowingGigaPanwebsitetolearnaboutsaplingsandtreessurveyedatWingfieldPines:
http://gigapan.com/gigapans/134133.Answerthefollowingquestionsafterexaminingthesnapshots.

A.WhatisthemostabundantsaplingatWingfieldPines?
boxelderisthemostabundantsapling

B.Howdoyoutellthedifferencebetweenawhiteashandagreenash?

Theleavesofagreenasharegreenonthebottomandtheleavesofawhiteasharewhiteonthe
bottom.Greenashtreesarealsoconfinedtowetterenvironments.Thewhiteashtreesismore
widespread.

C.Americansycamoretreeshavebeendatedusingaprocesscalleddendrochronology.Howoldarethe
maturetreesandwhatfactorshavecontrolledtheirgrowth.

approximately50yearsold
Climatechangeandcompetitionbetweentreeshavegreatlyaffecttheirsize.

MatthewOpdykeJuly,2013