AI Enabled, Long-Range BVLOS Drone Surveillance for Wildfire Monitoring and Agriculture
Drones are becoming an essential tool in agriculture across Alberta. They are increasingly used for seeding and weed management, reducing the need for large, emission-heavy machinery. These drones offer environmental advantages and present significant economic opportunities for Alberta’s farmers through smart farming practices. AIRMarket is utilizing Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drones to detect,…
Wildfire Monitoring and Methane Detection from Space via High-resolution Hyperspectral Satellites
Wyvern is innovating environmental monitoring through its hyperspectral imaging (HSI) satellites. The Edmonton space company currently utilizes three satellites, capturing data across various spectral bands. This capability allows Wyvern to identify distinct chemical and physical properties of the Earth’s surface, similar to performing spectroscopy from space. The captured data enables analytics for commercial and environmental…
BIOSALIX: Mine reclamation using and organic residuals to augment soil quality and underpin a cleantech economy through short rotation willow feedstock production
Reclaiming Mined Land, Utilizing Biosolids Waste, and Producing Biomass Feedstock Approved for funding through ERA’s Partnership Intake Program in 2019, Sylvis demonstrated their approach to improving soil and reclaiming old coal mines, while also producing biomass for feedstock. By completion in 2023, the project demonstrated proof-of-concept of the BIOSALIX mine reclamation system by utilizing municipal…
Advanced multitemporal modelling and optimisation of CO2 Transport, utilisation and Storage Networks
ACTION will establish how an efficient infrastructure, connecting CO2 sources with CO2 geological storage and non-geological utilisation options, can be developed as part of regional decarbonization efforts. It will research and develop a multitemporal integrated assessment model that will support stakeholders in the planning and designing large-scale, flexible CO2 transport, utilization, and storage networks, and…
Calibration and Demonstration of Aerial Methane Imaging for Efficient, Wide-Area Methane Emissions Detection
Kairos Aerospace has developed a technology to rapidly and cost-effectively locate and quantify methane releases over large areas. Early and accurate detection will enable directed repair of major methane leaks from a variety of sources. The project will demonstrate and validate its aerial methane imaging and quantification platform in Alberta.
Satellite-Aircraft Hybrid Detection and Quantification of Methane Emissions
GHGSat has partnered with COSIA, Schlumberger, Encana, GreenPath, and others in Alberta to develop and demonstrate a Calgary-based Aircraft-Satellite hybrid methane detection and quantification system. The two-tiered satellite/aircraft approach will enable screening and detection of large leaks from diffuse or point sources from orbit, followed by more detailed imaging and quantification by aircraft surveys that…
Proof-of-Concept Testing: Software to Quantify Methane Emission Rates in Real-Time
Minnich and Scotto has partnered with Alberta-based Boreal Laser to develop a methane quantification package that will enable existing laser-based sensors to be used in conjunction with AERMOD, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Guideline air quality dispersion model, to convert methane concentrations to real-time calculation of leak rates. The algorithm will enhance the capability of existing sensors and enable the modeling tool…
Incorporating Wetland Carbon Values into Spatially Explicit Tools to Inform Land Use Decisions
Wetlands are some of the most productive ecosystems on the planet, and as a result store approximately 25 – 35 percent of the world’s terrestrial carbon. Their value as carbon sinks means it is important to determine the amount of carbon currently stored in remaining wetlands, and to be able to predict potential carbon losses…
Cement Industry Low Carbon Fuel Implementation
Reducing Emissions in the Cement Industry The cement industry is a large emitter of carbon dioxide, accounting for nearly eight per cent of global emissions, and this research, funded through ERA’s Biological and Adaptation Program in 2017, provided a framework for replacing high-carbon intensity fuels with alternative low-carbon fuels (ALCFs), such as waste streams, in…
South Saskatchewan River Basin (SSRB)
With continuing population and economic growth comes a demand not only for more water but also for improved environmental management. This initiative assisted communities in adapting to existing and future climate variability, while identifying opportunities for environmental improvement and economic growth. It also explored improvements in water storage and infrastructure, as well as the timing…
