Invasive Plant Cover - Waterton Lakes - Conservation and Restoration Project (Fescue)

Only 2.1% of the Foothills Parkland ecoregion is protected within any federal or provincial park in Canada. Waterton Lakes National Park (WLNP) is the only national park where this scenic and biologically diverse ecoregion is protected. Scarcity of fire and lack of bison grazing have contributed to encroachment of aspen forest and homogenization of the fescue grassland. This area also has the highest occurrence of non-native invasive plants. As part of WLNP's Conservation and Restoration (CORE) project (Rescue the Fescue), an early detection rapid response system for new high priority invasive plant infestations has been implemented, along with an inventory and control protocols for known infestations. A monitoring program is in place to assess if we are meeting our goal of a 10% reduction in the cover of priority invasive non-native plants by 2019. Measurements are based on a visual assessment of the percent foliar cover of each species in the plot.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Last Updated April 17, 2026, 21:51 (UTC)
Created April 17, 2026, 21:51 (UTC)
contact_email robert.sissons@pc.gc.ca
contact_person {}
criticality_level ["educators", "nongovernmental_organizations", "scientists", "students"]
data_dictionary []
geographic_scope []
open_canada_collection primary
open_canada_date_published 2017-10-01 00:00:00
open_canada_keywords {"fr": ["forêt parc des contreforts", "prairie de fétuques", "plantes non indigènes envahissantes", "pourcentage de couvert foliaire", "couvert de plantes envahissantes", "Alberta"], "en": ["Foothills Parkland", "fescue grasslands", "non-native invasive plants", "percent foliar cover", "invasive plant cover", "Alberta"]}
open_canada_subject ["nature_and_environment"]
sensitivity_level unrestricted
title_fr Couvert de plantes envahissantes - Lacs-Waterton - projet de Conservation et de Restauration (fétuques)
update_frequency as_needed