Preliminary measurement-based estimates of PAH emissions from oil sands tailings ponds

Galarneau, Elisabeth; Hollebone, Bruce P.; Yang, Zeyu; Schuster, Jasmin K.

doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2014.08.038

Cited by 68 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 15 publications

(15 reference statements)

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“…The Athabasca River is a significant source of water and sediment to the Peace‐Athabasca Delta (Timoney ) and, therefore, is important in terms of regulating possible riverine transport of contaminants to the delta. Large containment structures associated with oil sands development (i.e., tailings ponds) contain a mixture of metals and various organic compounds (e.g., naphthenic acids, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Allen ; Frank et al ; Galarneau et al ). Tailings ponds may act as a source of contaminants through seepage to groundwater or to the Athabasca River (Frank et al ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial trends in a biomagnifying contaminant: Application of amino acid compound–specific stable nitrogen isotope analysis to the interpretation of bird mercury levels

Dolgova

Popp

Courtoreille³

et al. 2018

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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Levels of biomagnifying contaminants are greatest in high-trophic level biota (e.g., predatory birds such as gulls). Gull eggs have been used to assess contaminant spatial patterns and sources, but such assessments must consider how organism trophic position may influence spatial inferences. Stable nitrogen isotopes (δ N) in bulk tissue are routinely used in this context. However, bulk δ N values are only useful if spatial differences in baseline δ N values are considered. Amino acid compound-specific stable nitrogen isotope analysis can generate estimates of baseline δ N values and trophic position from the same sample. In the present study, eggs (n = 428) of California (Larus californicus), herring (Larus argentatus smithsonianus), and ring-billed (Larus delawarensis) gulls were used to assess spatial patterns in mercury (Hg) availability in 12 western Canadian lakes located over 14 degrees of latitude, with amino acid compound-specific stable isotope analysis adjustment of egg Hg levels for trophic position. Mean trophic position-adjusted egg Hg levels (micrograms per gram, dry wt) were greatest at sites in receiving waters of the Athabasca River (X¯ = 0.70) compared to southern (X¯ = 0.39) and northern (X¯ = 0.50) regions. Research is required to investigate factors (e.g., local Hg released as a result of human activities, processes influencing Hg methylation) which may be responsible for greater Hg availability in the lower Athabasca River basin. However, it is clear that amino acid compound-specific stable isotope analysis is a valuable tool for assessing contaminant spatial patterns. Environ Toxicol Chem 2018;37:1466-1475. © 2018 SETAC.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial trends in a biomagnifying contaminant: Application of amino acid compound–specific stable nitrogen isotope analysis to the interpretation of bird mercury levels

Dolgova

Popp

Courtoreille³

et al. 2018

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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“…S1 of the Supplement. For (1) tailings ponds, the PAH emissions speciation was based on the study by Galarneau et al (2014a). This study reported emissions of 1069 kg yr −1 from tailings ponds for 13 PAH species during the JOSM field campaign (2010)(2011)(2012).…”

Section: Estimation Of Pac Emissions and Speciation Methodologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Quantifying the PAC emissions from the AOSR remains a significant challenge because of uncertainties in the emissions from oil sands production. A study estimated that PAH fluxes from tailings ponds were 4.6 times greater than the point source and fugitive emissions reported by the oil sands industry to the NPRI in 2012 (Galarneau et al, 2014a). Model simulations considering only direct air emissions underestimated phenanthrene, pyrene, and benzo(a)pyrene concentrations in air, water, soil, and foliage, whereas simulations including both direct air emissions and tailings pond emissions were more comparable to observations (Parajulee and Wania, 2014).…”

mentioning

confidence: 94%

“…In the JOSM-derived emissions database, several sources of data obtained from the JOSM program were used to estimate PAC emissions (i.e. PAH, alkylated PAH and DBT) including VOC emissions from oil sands mining areas and nonindustrial sources from the JOSM emissions database, tailings ponds emissions estimates (Galarneau et al, 2014a), and passive air concentrations (Schuster et al, 2015). The CALPUFF atmospheric dispersion model was then used to simulate PAC concentrations in the AOSR.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Emissions databases for polycyclic aromatic compounds in the Canadian Athabasca oil sands region – development using current knowledge and evaluation with passive sampling and air dispersion modelling data

Qiu¹,

Cheng

Yang³

et al. 2018

Atmos. Chem. Phys.

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Two speciated and spatially resolved emissions databases for polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) in the Athabasca oil sands region (AOSR) were developed. The first database was derived from volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions data provided by the Cumulative Environmental Management Association (CEMA) and the second database was derived from additional data collected within the Joint Canada-Alberta Oil Sands Monitoring (JOSM) program. CALPUFF modelling results for atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), alkylated PAHs, and dibenzothiophenes (DBTs), obtained using each of the emissions databases, are presented and compared with measurements from a passive air monitoring network. The JOSMderived emissions resulted in better model-measurement agreement in the total PAH concentrations and for most PAH species concentrations compared to results using CEMAderived emissions. At local sites near oil sands mines, the percent error of the model compared to observations decreased from 30 % using the CEMA-derived emissions to 17 % using the JOSM-derived emissions. The improvement at local sites was likely attributed to the inclusion of updated tailings pond emissions estimated from JOSM activities. In either the CEMA-derived or JOSM-derived emissions scenario, the model underestimated PAH concentrations by a factor of 3 at remote locations. Potential reasons for the disagreement include forest fire emissions, re-emissions of previously deposited PAHs, and long-range transport not con-sidered in the model. Alkylated PAH and DBT concentrations were also significantly underestimated. The CALPUFF model is expected to predict higher concentrations because of the limited chemistry and deposition modelling. Thus the model underestimation of PACs is likely due to gaps in the emissions database for these compounds and uncertainties in the methodology for estimating the emissions. Future work is required that focuses on improving the PAC emissions estimation and speciation methodologies and reducing the uncertainties in VOC emissions which are subsequently used in PAC emissions estimation.

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“…tailings ponds, contain a mixture of metals and various organic compounds (e.g. naphthenic acids, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) (Allen 2008;Frank et al 2014;Galarneau et al 2014). Tailings ponds may act as a source of contaminants through seepage to groundwater or to the Athabasca River .…”

Section: Assessment Of Spatial Trends In Thg Levels In Gull Eggs Frommentioning

confidence: 99%

Gull Eggs as Indicators of Mercury Bioavailability: Application of Amino Acid-Compound Specific Nitrogen Isotope Analysis

Dolgova¹

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Preliminary measurement-based estimates of PAH emissions from oil sands tailings ponds

Cited by 68 publications

References 15 publications

Spatial trends in a biomagnifying contaminant: Application of amino acid compound–specific stable nitrogen isotope analysis to the interpretation of bird mercury levels

Spatial trends in a biomagnifying contaminant: Application of amino acid compound–specific stable nitrogen isotope analysis to the interpretation of bird mercury levels

Emissions databases for polycyclic aromatic compounds in the Canadian Athabasca oil sands region – development using current knowledge and evaluation with passive sampling and air dispersion modelling data

Gull Eggs as Indicators of Mercury Bioavailability: Application of Amino Acid-Compound Specific Nitrogen Isotope Analysis

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