[en] Sculpin populations in the Cheakamus River were affected by an accidental discharge of sodium hydroxide in 2005. Th product did not persist, but it caused a reduction in sculpin densities of nearly 98 per cent. The Cheakamus Ecosystem Restoration Technical Committee was created to assess the impacts of the spill and to promote the subsequent recovery of fish populations in the river. The Committee proposed a natural recovery strategy for sculpins, with a multi-year monitoring plan to assess sculpin abundance and recovery. The 2007 monitoring plan was revisited through adaptive management to include considerations such as spatial distribution, population structure and genetic diversity. Projects include monitoring of sculpin migration and investigations of population distinctiveness among neighbouring systems, as well as sampling different life stages. The monitoring plan has promoted the collaboration of multiple regulatory agencies, local government, the Squamish Nation, CN Railway and other stakeholders. It has fostered educational opportunities at the community level and has led to research involving microsatellite DNA analyses. Monitoring results are providing a better understanding of sculpin response and recovery as well as species ecology in the study area.

[en] The Terra Nova, Hibernia, White Rose and Hebron offshore fields are situated in an important fishing area at the edge of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. The offshore oil and gas industry must consider its potential effects on fisheries and the environment. This presentation discussed the potential scale and nature of any impacts at individual development sites. Most information from field and laboratory studies suggests that offshore impacts will likely be minimal with little potential for any impacts beyond individual rig sites. Fishery closure zones around rigs could occasionally act as nursery areas or marine protected areas. The authors noted that such general statements should be approached with caution given that some uncertainties remain about the effects of oil development, including the potential for chronic effects of produced water on fish and other biota. The presentation reviewed recent laboratory and field studies carried out under the Program of Energy Research and Development (PERD) to 2008. Industry Environmental Effects Management (EEM) programs in the Grand Banks are presently geared towards providing early warning of any impacts on fish health, fish quality, sediment toxicity, and primary productivity. EEM programs also help reveal new insights which are not possible through laboratory studies.

[en] A train derailment in August 2005 resulted in the release of about 149,500 litres of bunker C oil into Wabamun Lake, a lake which has been subject to ongoing contamination with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from multiple sources for decades. This study compared the pattern, frequency and severity of deformity in larvae of lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) and northern pike (Esox lucius) incubated in-situ in areas of Wabamun Lake exposed only to background PAH contamination as well as in areas exposed to PAHs from the oil spill. All sites in the lake had higher than normal incidences of deformity as observed in laboratory studies. At a small number of oil-exposed sites, lake whitefish showed higher incidences of some deformities and a tendency to exhibit deformities of higher severity than sites not exposed to oil. However, deformities in northern pike larvae were few and with relatively small differences among sites, and none that could be attributed to PAH exposure. Semipermeable membrane devices that were deployed with the eggs showed that northern pike embryos were exposed to higher concentrations of dissolved PAHs compared to lake whitefish, suggesting that uptake or sensitivity to PAHs is different between the 2 species.

[en] Reclaimed land in the Alberta oil sands mining area contains both reference and oil sands process-affected wetlands constructed using varying sediment compositions. The sediments derived from oil sands process materials (OSPM) may alter the biochemical reactions that take place and affect the sediment oxygen demand (SOD), which is a key factor that contributes to oxygen depletion. This presentation reported on a study in which SOD was measured in a suite of constructed wetlands of different ages, with or without OSPM and topsoil. The purpose of the study was to clarify the role of SOD in wetland function and in the reclamation process. Dissolved oxygen loggers were inserted into dome-shaped chambers on the sediment to measure changes in oxygen demand. Complementary measurements of respiration (CO₂ elution) were used to quantify the biological sediment oxygen demand (BSOD) component of SOD. The chemical sediment oxygen demand (CSOD) was then determined by subtraction from SOD. Wetlands reclaimed using OSPM are expected to have a lower BSOD to CSOD ratio than reference wetlands. Residual ammonia in OSPM sediments may react with sulphate and bind phosphorus. This reduces phosphorus bioavailability and may impede submergent macrophyte growth. As such, wetlands affected by CSOD will have fewer submerged macrophytes than BSOD dominant wetlands.

[en] The current environmental criteria for the maximum allowable levels of hydrocarbons resulting from an oil spill assume that all detectable hydrocarbons are petroleum hydrocarbons (PHC) and do not account for naturally-occurring biogenic hydrocarbons (BHC). As such, some soils may be wrongfully assessed as being PHC contaminated. A false identification could lead to unnecessary and costly bioremediation that is potentially disruptive to functioning ecosystems. This study is part of a larger project to differentiate between natural and petroleum F3 hydrocarbons in muskeg material that has been impacted by an oil spill. The toxicity of oil-contaminated muskeg was examined following biodegradation in laboratory microcosms. Preliminary acute toxicity tests using locally purchased Sphagnum peat moss contaminated with Federated Crude oil had no effect on the survival of earthworms (Eisenia andrei), but springtails (Orthonychiurus folsomi) were more sensitive. Earthworm and springtail reproduction bioassays and a Northern wheatgrass (Elymus lanceolatus) growth bioassay was used to test the crude-oil-contaminated peat. All 3 test species will be used to test for reduced toxicity following biodegradation of Federated Crude oil-contaminated muskeg from northern Alberta under simulated conditions.

[en] Exposure to aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) agonists in fish causes lethal disturbances in fish development, but the effects of acute AhR agonist exposure on the cardiovascular system and deformities remain unclear. This study addressed this issue by performing a series of experiments on zebrafish (Danio rerio). The authors hypothesized that genes needed for cardiovascular regulation (PTGS) would exhibit a stronger link to deformities than detoxification enzymes (CYPs). Zebrafish eggs were exposed aqueously until 4 days post-fertilization (dpf) to the AhR agonists benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) or 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzop-dioxin (TCDD) alone and in combination with the putative AhR antagonists resveratrol or alpha-naphthoflavone (ANF). Gene expression was measured using real-time, reverse transcriptase PCR in zebrafish at 5 and 10 dpf. Although the mortalities did not differ considerably among groups at 10 dpf, the deformities increased significantly after BaP-ANF at 5 dpf and after BaP at 10 dpf, but not after TCDD treatment. CYP and PTGS isozymes exhibited small, but statistically significant changes at 5 dpf. By 10 dpf, the expression returned to control values. In general, CYP1A and PTGS-1 expression at 5 dpf were positively correlated with deformities, while all other genes were negatively correlated with deformities. It was concluded that changes in CYP1A, CYP1C2, and PTGS-1 gene expression at 5 dpf are associated with developmental deformities, but additional work is needed to determine which has the most important mechanistic link.

[en] A train derailment in August 2005 resulted in the release of Bunker C heavy fuel oil into the waters of Wabamun Lake. Alberta Environment issued an Environmental Protection Order requiring CN Railway to prepare a long-term plan to monitor the effects of the spilled oil on the aquatic environment. To date, monitoring has included assessments of potential effects on plankton, benthic invertebrate, emergent vegetation, and fish communities. Approximately 2,000 sediment grabs were collected for chemistry, toxicity, and benthic invertebrate analysis. In addition 700 litres of water were collected for chemistry and toxicity analyses and the biomass of 40 kg of emergent vegetation was measured. Analytical techniques included a variety of laboratory and field experiments. Nearly 200 semi-permeable membrane devices were deployed to measure exposure to hydrocarbons. An in situ assessment of larval fish development was conducted on 4,000 whitefish and 12,000 northern pike eggs. Testimony from the initial, intensive studies was integrated into a single framework. Follow-up studies were then conducted to identify the potential effects of the oil spill. The oil spill did not cause wide-scale effects in Wabamun Lake according to the study results.

[en] This workshop on aquatic and environmental toxicology covered topics from basic aquatic toxicology to applications in environmental monitoring and protecting the health of aquatic ecosystems. It addressed issues regarding the development of regulations and guidelines, and the development of sediment and water quality criteria. The workshop emphasized an informal exchange of ideas and knowledge on the topics among interested persons from industry, governments and universities. The principles, current problems and approaches in aquatic toxicology and the biological effect on biota were also discussed. The sessions were entitled: environmental effects monitoring; endocrine modulating substances; metal, coal and diamond mining; mechanistic aspects of metal toxicity; genomics, proteomics and metabolomics in aquatic ecotoxicology; northern and Arctic ecosystems; oil sands research; general aquatic toxicology; barriers to biological recovery in metal contaminated sites; pesticides and other agricultural stressors; tools to assess toxicity and bioavailability in support of risk assessment; pharmaceuticals and personal care products; novel biological test methods; ecological risk assessment; national agri-environmental standards initiative; corroborating, extrapolating and predicting adverse effects between laboratory and field; cumulative effects assessment; advances in environmental chemistry; nanotoxicology; and sensory systems. The workshop featured 195 presentations, of which 31 have been catalogued separately for inclusion in this database.

[en] Naphthenic acids (NAs) are the primary toxic constituents of oil sands process-affected waters (OSPW). This presentation reported on a series of in vitro studies that were initiated to evaluate potential endocrine modulating effects of OSPW and their constituent NAs. The H295R steroidogenesis bioassay was used to examine the impact of OSPW and NA on 52 steroidogenesis. In particular, dose-response and time course studies were conducted to evaluate the impact of OSPW and NAs on testosterone and estradiol production. Aromatase activity and transcript abundance of the key 11 steroidogenic enzymes were also quantified to complement analysis of hormone levels. The MVLN trans-activation assay was used to test the estrogenicity/anti-estrogenicity of OSPW and NAs. In vitro cell viability and apoptosis (live-dead) caused by OSPW and NAs was quantified by the MTS reduction and caspase-3/7 activity in H295R and MVLN cells.

[en] Bioindicators or health effect indicators can be a valuable reconnaissance tool for addressing concerns on the part of the fishing industry and public interests regarding any potential impacts of pollutants on fish stocks. American plaice (Hippoglossoides platessoides) was initially chosen by the oil industry as an indicator species for Environmental Effects Monitoring (EEM) programs in the Grand Banks of Newfoundland because it is an important commercial flatfish. This presentation reported on fish health studies carried out at the Terra Nova development site before and after release of produced waters, which began in 2003. These studies represented 1 component of the overall Terra Nova EEM program. Fish were collected near the development area and in a reference area 20 km away. A broad range of health effect indicators were studied, including fish condition, visible skin and organ lesions, levels of mixed-function oxygenase (MFO) enzymes, haematology and an array of 19 histopathological indices in liver and gills. These indicators have been widely used in laboratory and field investigations with various fish species. A slight elevation of MFO enzyme activity was observed in fish from the development area in 2002, before release of produced water. In 2006, other indices were similar between the development and reference area. It was concluded that the overall results do not indicate any project effects.