Off-Highway vehicles are widely used on these seismic lines and can hamper vegetative re-growth because of ongoing physical damage and compaction. Understanding where motorized activity may be impeding regeneration of seismic lines will help to prioritize restoration. To target restoration efforts, our objective was to use field and GIS data to determine factors that best explained levels of motorized ATV use on seismic lines. The study was focused within the ranges of two boreal caribou herds (Little Smoky, Chinchaga), and three central mountain caribou herds (A La Peche, Redrock Prairie Creek, Narraway).

  • ATV use was driven by local topography and vegetation attributes of seismic lines that facilitated ease-of-travel.
  • In the northern boreal landscape (Chinchaga), ATV use was most common in dry areas with a large industrial footprint.
  • In highly disturbed areas of the foothills (Little Smoky, A La Peche), ATV use increased in areas with low vegetation heights, dryer soils, and closer to forest harvest, while in less disturbed areas of the foothills (Redrock Prairie Creek, Narraway), motorized activity decreased with seismic line density, slope, and white-tailed deer abundance, and increased with distance to roads.
  • We generated predictive maps of motorized activity identifying 21,777 km of seismic lines where active restoration could expedite regeneration
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