Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Deposition in the Snowpack of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region of Alberta, Canada

Cho, S.; Sharma, Khushboo; Brassard, Brian W.; Hazewinkel, Roderick O.

doi:10.1007/s11270-014-1910-4

Cited by 56 publications

(43 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…This allowed assessment of temporal trends of PAC deposition by comparison with the results from samples collected in 2008 at the same locations (Kelly et al 2009). Sampling in 2012 followed the transects used by Cho et al (2014), while in 2013 and 2014 a gridded design was implemented to optimize spatial interpolation methods and the resulting spatial deposition maps (Manzano et al 2016a).…”

Section: Snowmentioning

confidence: 99%

Air synthesis review: polycyclic aromatic compounds in the oil sands region

et al. 2018

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This air synthesis review presents the current state of knowledge on the sources, fates, and effects for polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) and related chemicals released to air in the oil sands region (OSR) in Alberta, Canada. Through the implementation of the Joint Canada–Alberta Oil Sands Monitoring Program in 2012 a vast amount of new information on PACs has been acquired through directed monitoring and research projects and reported to the scientific community and public. This new knowledge addresses questions related to cumulative effects and informs the sustainable management of the oil sands resource while helping to identify gaps in understanding and priorities for future work. As a result of this air synthesis review on PACs, the following topics have been identified as new science priorities: (i) improving emissions reporting to better account for fugitive mining emissions of PACs that includes a broader range of PACs beyond the conventional polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) including, inter alia, alkylated-PAHs (alk-PAHs), dibenzothiophene (DBT), alk-DBTs, nitro-PAHs, oxy-PAHs including quinones and thia- and aza-arenes; (ii) improving information on the ambient concentrations, long-range transport, and atmospheric deposition of these broader classes of PACs and their release (with co-contaminants) from different types of mining activities; (iii) further optimizing electricity-free and cost-effective approaches for assessing PAC deposition (e.g., snow sampling, lichens, passive ambient sampling) spatially across the OSR and downwind regions; (iv) designing projects that integrate monitoring efforts with source attribution models and ecosystem health studies to improve understanding of sources, receptors, and effects; (v) further optimizing natural deposition archives (e.g., sediment, peat, tree rings) and advanced forensic techniques (e.g., isotope analysis, marker compounds) to provide better understanding of sources of PACs in the OSR over space and time; (vi) conducting process research to improve model capabilities for simulating atmospheric chemistry of PACs and assessing exposure to wildlife and humans; and (vii) developing tools and integrated strategies for assessing cumulative risk to wildlife and humans by accounting for the toxicity of the mixture of chemicals in air rather than on a single compound basis.

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Section: Snowmentioning

confidence: 99%

Air synthesis review: polycyclic aromatic compounds in the oil sands region

et al. 2018

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“…First, the concentrations of contaminants used in the present study were based on levels of metals and alkyl‐PAHs found in melted snow, which are much lower than the total levels of these pollutants released into the environment and deposited onto water bodies, soils, and vegetation . Second, industrial emissions of other metals (not only Pb, Cd, and Hg) and PAHs (not only alkyl‐PAHs) are occurring at levels similar to or higher than those previously detected, following similar deposition patterns , thus increasing the complexity of inorganic and organic contaminants available to wildlife. Experimental studies cannot account for other unidentified contaminants and stressors that would be present under field conditions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Sublethal health effects in laboratory rodents from environmentally relevant exposures to oil sands contaminants

Rodríguez-Estival

North

Smits

2015

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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Increasing activity of oil sands extraction and processing in northern Alberta is marked by ongoing controversy about the nature and extent of associated environmental impacts. Bitumen contains a mixture of toxic chemicals, including metals and residual polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), whose release into the environment poses a distinct risk to the surrounding environment, plus wildlife and human health. In the present study, the authors evaluated several subclinical biomarkers of exposure and effect to mixtures of metals (Pb, Cd, and Hg) and/or PAHs (3 alkylated forms) at environmentally relevant concentrations (100-fold and 10-fold higher than the maximum dissolved concentrations found in snow, to simulate a worst-case scenario), using laboratory mice as a model for future studies of small mammals in the wild. Both metals and alkyl-PAHs exposure were associated with 1) increased relative liver, kidney, and spleen size; 2) alterations in the homeostasis of the antioxidant vitamins A and E in liver; and 3) compromised glutathione redox status in testes, with results also indicating synergistic interactions from co-exposure. The combination of morphometric and oxidative stress biomarkers provide reliable and sensitive measures of the response to contaminant exposure in a mammalian model, suggesting associated physiological costs. Based on the present experimental study, the authors propose that wild small mammals will prove to be valuable sentinel species reflecting sublethal health effects from oil sands-related contaminants. The present study's results also present a basis for the interpretation of future field data.

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“…Beyond 10 km, the deposition appears to be uniform and the shape of the pattern ( Figure S3.11) implies that there may be limited directional dependence on deposition amount. However, a more detailed analysis of the decrease in deposition with direction using a Lagrangian trajectory model suggested that regional wind patterns and the intensity of PAC emissions play a role (Cho et al 2014). Although dependent upon sampling design, Figure 15 suggests that PACs could be spreading further toward the north and south compared with the east and west (Cho et al 2014).…”

Section: Integration Of Air Component Findings-two Examplesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, a more detailed analysis of the decrease in deposition with direction using a Lagrangian trajectory model suggested that regional wind patterns and the intensity of PAC emissions play a role (Cho et al 2014). Although dependent upon sampling design, Figure 15 suggests that PACs could be spreading further toward the north and south compared with the east and west (Cho et al 2014). Although the greater spread to the north would be in the direction of the PAD, all measurements of PACs that far north (150-200 km) find that PAC loadings in the PAD are in the same range as found at remote sites in western U.S. national parks (Landers et al 2010).…”

Section: Integration Of Air Component Findings-two Examplesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Total mass of the sum of PAHs deposited with distance from the oil sands operations. Case 1 (dotted line) uses the data from only the north and south transect sites, case 2 (dashed line) uses data from only the west and east transect sites, and case 3 (solid line) used data from all transect sites (Cho et al 2014;Harner et al 2018).…”

Section: Atmospheric Deposition Patterns Of Mercury and Trace Metalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Advances in science and applications of air pollution monitoring: A case study on oil sands monitoring targeting ecosystem protection

Brook

Cober

Freemark

et al. 2019

Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association

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The potential environmental impact of air pollutants emitted from the oil sands industry in Alberta, Canada, has received considerable attention. The mining and processing of bitumen to produce synthetic crude oil, and the waste products associated with this activity, lead to significant emissions of gaseous and particle air pollutants. Deposition of pollutants occurs locally (i.e., near the sources) and also potentially at distances downwind, depending upon each pollutant's chemical and physical properties and meteorological conditions. The Joint Oil Sands Monitoring Program (JOSM) was initiated in 2012 by the Government of Canada and the Province of Alberta to enhance or improve monitoring of pollutants and their potential impacts. In support of JOSM, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) undertook a significant research effort via three components: the Air, Water, and Wildlife components, which were implemented to better estimate baseline conditions related to levels of pollutants in the air and water, amounts of deposition, and exposures experienced by the biota. The criteria air contaminants (e.g., nitrogen oxides [NO x ], sulfur dioxide [SO 2 ], volatile organic compounds [VOCs], particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter <2.5 μm [PM 2.5 ]) and their secondary atmospheric products were of interest, as well as toxic compounds, particularly polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs), trace metals, and mercury (Hg). This critical review discusses the challenges of assessing ecosystem impacts and summarizes the major results of these efforts through approximately 2018. Focus is on the emissions to the air and the findings from the Air Component of the ECCC research and linkages to observations of contaminant levels in the surface waters in the region, in aquatic species, as well as in terrestrial and avian species. The existing evidence of impact on these species is briefly discussed, as is the potential for some of them to serve as sentinel species for the ongoing monitoring needed to better understand potential effects, their potential causes, and to detect future changes. Quantification of the atmospheric emissions of multiple pollutants needs to be improved, as does an understanding of the processes influencing fugitive emissions and local and regional deposition patterns. The influence of multiple stressors on biota exposure and response, from natural bitumen and forest fires to climate change, complicates the current ability to attribute effects to air emissions from the industry. However, there is growing evidence of the impact of current levels of PACs on some species, pointing to the need to improve the ability to predict PAC exposures and the key emission source involved. Although this critical review attempts to integrate some of the findings across the components, in terms of ECCC activities, increased coordination or integration of air, water, and wildlife research would enhance deeper scientific understanding. Improved understanding is needed in order to guide the development of longterm mon...

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Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Deposition in the Snowpack of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region of Alberta, Canada

Cited by 56 publications

References 36 publications

Air synthesis review: polycyclic aromatic compounds in the oil sands region

Air synthesis review: polycyclic aromatic compounds in the oil sands region

Sublethal health effects in laboratory rodents from environmentally relevant exposures to oil sands contaminants

Advances in science and applications of air pollution monitoring: A case study on oil sands monitoring targeting ecosystem protection

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