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Comparison of translocation methods to conserve metallophyte communities in the Southeastern D.R. Congo

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Abstract

In southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, unique metallophyte communities supporting numerous endemic species occurred on the highly mineralized copper cobalt (Cu–Co) hills throughout the province. These hills are economically valuable mineral reserves; mining activities represent therefore a threat to the long-term persistence of these communities. Ex situ conservation program was set up by a mining company to rescue and conserve the diversity of Cu–Co communities until restoration activities are initiated. Two kinds of Cu–Co communities: the steppe and the steppic savanna, were translocated using topsoil spreading and whole-turf translocation. In this study, we assessed the effectiveness of these two techniques in conserving Cu–Co communities and their potential use in future restoration programs. More than 2 years after the translocation, whole-turf translocation appeared to be the better technique for ex situ conservation of endemic Cu–Co species. Not only did whole-turf successfully translocate numerous target species that were not present in the topsoil areas, but it also resulted in fewer ruderal and non-target species compared to topsoil spreading. Topsoil spreading recorded low seedling emergence from seed bank due to large proportions of dormant seeds or the absence of a seed bank, especially for the steppic savanna. Restoration of the steppe is currently more successful than for steppic savanna where the lack of dominant and structuring species likely contributed to divergence in species composition compared to reference ecosystem. Our study stresses the fact that tropical old-growth grasslands, which require probably several centuries to assemble, are difficult to restore or translocate.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the company Tenke Fungurume Mining (TFM) for all the logistic and financial support to conduct this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. BIOSE—Biosystem Engineering Department, Biodiversity and Landscape Unit, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liege, 2 Passage des Déportés, Gembloux, 5030, Belgium

    Soizig Le Stradic, Maxime Séleck, Julie Lebrun, Sylvain Boisson & Grégory Mahy

  2. Tenke Fungurume Mining SARL, Route de l’aéroport, Luano City, Lubumbashi, Katanga, Democratic Republic of Congo

    Guylain Handjila

  3. Hydrogeochimical Interactions Soil-Environment (HydrISE) Unit, Polytechnic Institute LaSalle Beauvais (ISAB-IGAL), 15 rue Pierre Waguet, Beauvais, 60026, France

    Michel-Pierre Faucon

  4. Freeport-McMoRan Inc., 1600 East Hanley Blvd, Oro Valley, AZ, 85737, USA

    Terrence Enk

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  1. Soizig Le Stradic
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  2. Maxime Séleck
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  3. Julie Lebrun
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  4. Sylvain Boisson
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  5. Guylain Handjila
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  6. Michel-Pierre Faucon
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  7. Terrence Enk
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  8. Grégory Mahy
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Correspondence to Soizig Le Stradic.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Appendix 1

a) Global view of the original Kavifwafwaulu Cu-Co outcrop with details on b) the steppe and c) the steppic savanna. (PDF 513 kb)

Appendix 2

Design of topsoil spreading experimentation. On top, depths of subsoil and topsoil layers are represented on a transversal section schema. At the bottom, aerial view of the two topsoil stripes spread on the waste dump. (PDF 21 kb)

Appendix 3

Pictures of the different steps of the topsoil spreading experimentation, a) delimitation of the area where topsoil was collected; b) the first 20cm of topsoil layer was stripped with a bulldozer and c) stored at the edge of the area for a short time, d) around 50 cm of subsoil was also stripped with a bulldozer; e) topsoil and subsoil were loaded and transferred to the waste dump and spread (first the subsoil and then the topsoil); f) topsoils from the steppe and the steppic savanna were spread on strips of 10m x 75m and 13m x 75m respectively in August 2011, g) topsoil spreading in February 2012 and h) topsoil spreading in May 2014. (PDF 810 kb)

Appendix 4

Design of whole-turf translocation experimentation. On top, depth of subsoil and topsoil layers are represented on a transversal section scheme. At the bottom, aerial view of the area where whole vegetation turves were established. (PDF 20 kb)

Appendix 5

Pictures of the different steps of the whole-turf translocation, a) delimitation of the area where vegetation mats were collected; b) the receptor site consisted in a fallow where the local upper soil layer was excavated and a layer of subsoil from the donor site, Kavifwafwaulu, was spread; c) and d) vegetation turfs were extracted at the donor site using a backhoe; e) vegetation turfs were brought to the receptor site by truck, f) unloaded and set in place manually; g) vegetation mats from steppe were set in a strip of 40m x 6m and a strip of 40m x 34m for the steppic savanna vegetation mats between September 2010 to January 2011, h) whole-turf translocation in March 2013. (PDF 1193 kb)

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Le Stradic, S., Séleck, M., Lebrun, J. et al. Comparison of translocation methods to conserve metallophyte communities in the Southeastern D.R. Congo. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23, 13681–13692 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5548-6

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