SPROUT Research Priorities

Through extensive research and interviewing of professionals in environmental and horticultural fields, the following five areas have been identified as priorities for Oregon and the Northwest. SPROUT’s efforts will not be limited to these areas but will focus around them initially.

Wetlands / Wastewater Remediation

• Wetlands are productive ecosystems, improving the quality of water that flows through them by filtering out impurities, actively degrading waste, and removing pollutants through plant uptake. The root systems of wetland plants such as reeds, bulrushes, and cattails do much of the work; providing surface area for beneficial bacterial growth, filtration of solids, nutrient uptake, and oxygen infiltration. There is growing interest in the use of engineered or constructed wetlands that utilize the natural wetland processes of vegetation, soils, and microbial activity to assist in treating wastewater. These wetland treatment options can be quite cost effective while reducing the water quality impacts on the local watershed.

Phytoremediation

• Phytoremediation is the emerging technology of using plants to extract, degrade, contain or immobilize contaminants in soil, groundwater, or surface water. Some plants are particularly good at uptake or processing of certain kinds of contaminants. Specific mechanisms of phytoremediation include:
  
• Extraction of contaminants from soil or groundwater, through their uptake and storage in the plant’s shoots, leaves, or roots. Contaminants, usually metals, are concentrated in the plant tissue and then the plant is harvested and removed from the site. In the future, plant extraction may also be a method for mining and recycling the metal.
  
• Degradation of contaminants, particularly organic compounds such as PCP’s, through uptake and metabolism by the plant. Through the natural plant process the chemical makeup of the compound is changed to a less toxic form. In some cases, volatile contaminants are released into the air through plant transpiration.
  
• Containment or Immobilization of contaminants, through their uptake into the root zone, even if the plant or tree is itself not removed. Some tree species, for example, take up large amounts of water and hydraulic control of contaminated groundwater can be achieved through the sheer amount of water consumption by the plants.

Urban Water Management and Ecoscaping

• In recent years, this has become an increasing area of interest in the Pacific Northwest, with the tremendous population growth in the Puget Sound and Portland metro areas, and with the growing recognition of urban growth impacts on salmon and stream restoration. The new field of “low impact development” uses engineered green space to intercept, store, or transport stormwater- particularly important for the recharge of our groundwater resources; to sequester air pollutants such as excess carbon; or to filter industrial run-off contaminants. Techniques used in stormwater management include raingardens planted close to downspouts or other outlets of concentrated stormwater run-off; green roofs which greatly reduce an urban development’s impervious surface area while slowing down the run-off that is left; and vegetated swales that act as biofilters for pollutants washing off buildings and streets. Other plants for green spaces have the ability to withstand drought and provide an attractive and functional urban landscape without intensive use of water, fertilizers, or pesticides, further reducing the impacts of urban development on water/ air quality and stream habitat.

Native Plant Restoration and Invasive Species Control

• Restoring native plant communities can be an environmental end in itself- the creation of fundamental habitat for native wildlife. Also, the use of native plants in managed landscapes can reduce the need for extensive resource input, such as fertilizer, pesticides, water, etc., because native plants are often better adapted to the climate of the area. One major challenge with native plant restoration is competition from invasive species. Invasive plants are usually non-native species, can grow and spread very quickly to crowd or kill other plant populations, often have negative impacts on local resources (by drying up water sources or poisoning animal herds), and are often difficult to control with conventional methods.

Riparian Area Restoration

• We are quickly learning the importance of riparian corridors in protecting water quantities and qualities. Vegetated corridors (with native vegetation, that is!) keep temperatures in streams cool for fish health and minimal evaporation loss of water; filter or contain run-off pollutants; provide erosion control of stream banks; help minimize the easy transport/ spread of invasive plant seeds and fragments to other areas; and link together habitat conservation fragments.
  
  
  

Results from the Sustainable Plant Workshop
October 7, 2004

With a recycled wastewater wetland at its back, a green roof in its backyard, and barley straw fighting back against the algae in its ponds, SPROut (Sustainable Plant Research and Outreach) pushes forward with its agenda to solve environmental problems with plants. The professional community was invited to a Workshop on October 7, 2004 focused around research priorities. Over 130 people, in professions ranging from city planners to environmental consultants and engineers to environmental educators to park/open space managers to wetland and university scientists to nursery growers to innovative entrepreneurs attended the day-long workshop at The Oregon Garden. Government agencies that participated included Natural Resources Conservation Service, Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon Dept. of Agriculture, Soil/Water Conservation Districts, US Dept of Agriculture- Agricultural Research Service, and Metro Regional Government.

Off to a running start with a welcome by Oregon Garden Board member Rick Gustafson, the Workshop proceeded with a SPROut introduction by Thayne Dutson, Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences at OSU. Rene Kane (Oregon State University) and Renee Stoops (SPROut Coordinator) offered a slide show of current research projects in the Pacific Northwest, and Kane presented her Literature Review titled “The Green Fuse”, which covers available information on environmental uses of plants. Mark Madison (CH2M Hill) and Louis Licht (Ecolotree) offered an extensive presentation on phytoremediation capabilities- the abilities of plants to remove contaminants from soil, water, or air. The Keynote Presentation of the morning was by Sarah Spear Cooke, Wetlands Ecologist with 18 years experience. She has taught at the University of Washington and at Portland State University; runs her own company called Cooke Scientific Services; and is the principal author and editor of “A Field Guide to the Common Wetland Plants of Western Washington and Northwestern Oregon”. Her presentation titled “Opportunities for Using Plants to Attain a More Sustainable Environment” inspired many workshop participants to re-examine approaches to the hydrologic aspects of their projects.

The afternoon was dedicated to discussion groups focused around five themes: wetlands and wastewater; phytoremediation; urban stormwater management and ecoscaping; native plant restoration and invasive species control; and riparian restoration. Discussions were guided by local experts in these topics, to reach some professional consensus on the prioritization of research needs. Ray William, from the horticulture department at OSU, led a group synthesis at the end of the day, and there were definitely some common priorities that emerged from all the discussion groups.

Most groups agreed that we need a better understanding of the plants themselves, their individual characteristics such as their range of function, their hydrology requirements, and invasive tendencies. Economic analysis was also important to most groups- being able to quantify the costs, benefits, and effectiveness of using low-tech solutions with plants over other engineered, mechanical, or chemical solutions. Increasing public awareness with education and demonstration was considered very important by Workshop participants, and The Oregon Garden is well poised to use its site, its visitor base, and its partnerships with academic institutions to fulfill this need. The importance of water found its way into many discussions, and site-specific considerations such as scale, design, management, and survival rates demonstrated a need for specific answers to specific problems.

Equally informative, however, were the underlying differences between discussion groups. While the native plant supporters tend to classify plants by geographic distribution, either current /invasive or historic/native, the phytoremediation practitioners prefer to classify plants by function, i.e. which plants are good at removing which contaminants from the soil. And the riparian and wetland scientists often classify plants by their hydrologic requirements- the depth and duration of water that a plant can survive. Some of the discussion groups viewed plants as the final product in/of themselves, such as for genetic diversity or native wildlife habitat. Other groups viewed plants as a tool/means by which to achieve a specific outcome, such as pollution control or maximizing small land-use to achieve clean water. Knowing how to integrate multiple goals with varying impacts was a challenge for everyone. In some cases, there appeared to be a need for more extensive communication routes between growers of plant material and land managers/practitioners. Issues of supply/demand; genetic source stock, invasive potential, and varying care requirements for different forms of nursery propagation were all raised. To begin to address this, SPROut is planning to offer a non-credit course, in partnership with Chemeketa Community College, focused around horticultural skills for environmental restoration project leaders. Look for this course in April, 2005!

SPROut has used the results of the workshop discussions to construct an RFP that targets the research priorities identified at this workshop. Small grants will be available from SPROut in time for the 2005 summer season. Given the vibrancy of the Workshop discussions, it was clear that the interest among professionals in using plant-based solutions to address environmental challenges is high.