scholarly journals The discontinuity of environmental effects monitoring in the Lower Athabasca region of Alberta, Canada: institutional challenges to long-term monitoring and cumulative effects management

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua G. Cronmiller ◽  
Bram F. Noble
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Environmental Monitoring ◽  
Environmental Effects ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Institutional Arrangements ◽  
Cumulative Effects ◽  
Regulatory Decision ◽  
Monitoring Programs

Long-term regional environmental monitoring, coupled with shorter-term and more localized monitoring carried out under regulatory permitting processes, is foundational to identifying, understanding, and effectively managing cumulative environmental effects. However, monitoring programs that emerge to support cumulative effects science are often short-lived initiatives or disconnected from land use planning and regulatory decision making. This paper examines the history and evolution of environmental monitoring in the Lower Athabasca region of Alberta, Canada, and the enabling and constraining influences of institutional arrangements. Methods involved a review of regional-scale monitoring programs based on an analysis of monitoring agency mandates, performance reports, and external program reviews, supplemented by discussions with monitoring program or agency key informants to triangulate results. Results show that monitoring to support cumulative effects understanding in the Lower Athabasca has advanced considerably, especially since the mid-1990s, but its relevance to, and impact on, cumulative effects management and decision making has been stifled by institutional arrangements. Monitoring has been episodic, reflecting shifting priorities and competing mandates; criticized by stakeholders based on concerns about transparency, credibility, influence over decision making; and characterized by short-lived commitments by the agencies involved. This has generated significant uncertainty about the stability of institutional arrangements to support long-term environmental monitoring, and tensions between the need for scientific autonomy for credible science whilst ensuring the pursuit of monitoring questions that are relevant to the day-to-day needs of regulatory decision makers. Regional monitoring programs require, at a minimum, clear vision and agreed-upon monitoring questions that are of scientific and management value, meaningful and balanced stakeholder engagement, and a clear governance process to ensure credibility and influence of monitoring results on decision making.

Environmental monitoring programs: recognising the importance of conservation values

2013 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 480
Author(s):  
Andrew Smith
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Monitoring ◽  
Control Charts ◽  
Joint Venture ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Oil Field ◽  
Environmental Harm ◽  
Statistical Control ◽  
Monitoring Programs ◽  
Conservation Values

The Gorgon Project will develop the Gorgon and Jansz-Io gas fields, located in the Greater Gorgon area, about 130 km off the northwest coast of WA. It includes the construction of a 15 million tonne per annum (mtpa) LNG plant on Barrow Island and a domestic gas plant with the capacity to provide 300 terajoules per day to supply gas to WA. Barrow Island—where Gorgon will be located—is an internationally significant nature reserve and the site of Australia’s largest onshore operating oil field for the past 45 years. As a world-class example of environmental management, it has shown that conservation and development can successfully co-exist. Recognising the importance of Barrow Island’s conservation values, the terrestrial and subterranean environmental monitoring program encompasses key ecological elements on Barrow Island including birds, mammals, subterranean fauna, vegetation, and surface water and land forms. These elements are monitored in relation to the potential impact from environmental stressors identified during pre-construction environmental impact assessments. Here, the author describes the monitoring surveys conducted during the year as appropriate according to the element being considered. All surveys are executed using the Gorgon Project field mobilisation and deployment process, a stringent and dedicated system that ensures all essential health and safety processes are in place and adhered to. Each element is monitored for signs of positive or negative impact across Barrow Island with comparisons made between the pre-determined Terrestrial Disturbance Footprint (TDF) and areas outside of the TDF in which the Gorgon Project is committed to causing zero environmental harm. Statistical control charts and tiered response triggers based on standard deviations are used to inform management decisions about potential environmental effects attributable to the Gorgon Project. A continuous review process is in place to ensure all monitoring programs are scientifically robust and use up-to-date methodologies. Monitoring reports are used to assess the validity of each program and supplementary programs aimed at addressing gaps in existing knowledge are started as and when needed. A reporting framework is in place to ensure regulatory authorities are informed and collaborations are sought to advance overall understanding of the ecology and biology of Barrow Island fauna and flora. The Gorgon Project is operated by an Australian subsidiary of Chevron and is a joint venture of the Australian subsidiaries of Chevron (about 47%), ExxonMobil (25%), Shell (25%), Osaka Gas (1.25%), Tokyo Gas (1%) and Chubu Electric Power (0.417%).

scholarly journals Principles and Challenges for Multi-Stakeholder Development of Focused, Tiered, and Triggered, Adaptive Monitoring Programs for Aquatic Environments

Diversity ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 155
Author(s):  
Kelly R. Munkittrick ◽  
Tim J. Arciszewski ◽  
Michelle A. Gray
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Effects ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Aquatic Environments ◽  
Paper Mills ◽  
Monitoring Programs ◽  
Adaptive Monitoring ◽  
Working Groups ◽  
Multi Stakeholder ◽  
Environmental Effects Monitoring

In Canada, there is almost 30 years of experience in developing tiered and triggered adaptive monitoring programs focused on looking at whether environmental concerns remain when pulp and paper mills, or metal mines, are in compliance with their discharge limits. These environmental effects monitoring programs were based on nationally standardized designs. Many of the programs have been developed through multi-stakeholder working groups, and the evolution of the program faced repeated frictions and differing opinions on how to design environmental monitoring programs. This paper describes key guidance to work through the initial steps in program design, and includes scientific advice based on lessons learned from the development of the Canadian aquatic environmental effects monitoring program.

scholarly journals Isotopic evidence of increasing water abundance and lake hydrological change in Old Crow Flats, Yukon, Canada

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. 124024
Author(s):  
Lauren A MacDonald ◽  
Kevin W Turner ◽  
Ian McDonald ◽  
Mitchell L Kay ◽  
Roland I Hall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Isotope Composition ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Additive Models ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Wildlife Habitat ◽  
Ecosystem Monitoring ◽  
International Polar Year ◽  
Monitoring Programs ◽  
Old Crow Flats

Abstract Lake-rich northern permafrost landscapes are sensitive to changing climate conditions, but ability to track real-time and potentially multiple hydrological responses (e.g. lake expansion, drawdown, drainage) is challenging due to absence of long-term, sustainable monitoring programs in these remote locations. Old Crow Flats (OCF), Yukon, is a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance where concerns about low water levels and their consequences for wildlife habitat and traditional ways of life prompted multidisciplinary studies during the International Polar Year (2007–2008) and led to the establishment of an aquatic ecosystem monitoring program. Here, we report water isotope data from 14 representative thermokarst lakes in OCF, the foundation of the monitoring program, and time-series of derived metrics including the isotope composition of input waters and evaporation-to-inflow ratios for a 13 year period (2007–2019). Although the lakes spanned multiple hydrological categories (i.e. rainfall-, snowmelt- and evaporation-dominated) based on initial surveys, well-defined trends from application of generalized additive models and meteorological records reveal that lakes have become increasingly influenced by rainfall, and potentially waters from thawing permafrost. These sources of input have led to more positive lake water balances. Given the documented role of rainfall in causing thermokarst lake drainage events in OCF and elsewhere, we anticipate increased vulnerability of lateral water export from OCF. This study demonstrates the value of long-term isotope-based monitoring programs for identifying hydrological consequences of climate change in lake-rich permafrost landscapes.

scholarly journals EVOS and the Prince William Sound Long Term Environmental Monitoring Program

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
James R. Payne ◽  
William B. Driskell ◽  
David Janka ◽  
Lisa Ka'aihue ◽  
Joe Banta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Monitoring ◽  
Ballast Water ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Advisory Council ◽  
Prince William Sound ◽  
Mussel Tissue ◽  
Weathered Oil ◽  
Diesel Spill

ABSTRACT Following the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS), the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council began the Long-Term Environmental Monitoring Program (LTEMP) in 1993 to track oil hydrocarbon chemistry of recovering sediments and mussel tissues along the path of the spill in Prince William Sound (PWS) and across the Northern Gulf of Alaska (NGOA) region. The program also samples sites near the Alyeska Marine Terminal (AMT) within Port Valdez, primarily to monitor tanker operations and the resulting treatment and discharge of oil-contaminated tanker ballast water. Over the last 28 years, the program has documented EVOS oil's disappearance at the spill-impacted sites (albeit buried oil still exists at a few unique sheltered locations in PWS). Within the Port, a few tanker- and diesel-spill incidents have been documented over the years, but all were minor and with recovery times of < 1 yr. Of highest concern has been the permitted chronic release of weathered oil from tankers' ballast-water that is treated and discharged at the Alyeska Marine Terminal (AMT). In earlier years (1980s–90s), with discharge volumes reaching 17–18 MGD, up to a barrel of finely dispersed weathered oil would be released into the fjord daily. Over the last two decades, total petrogenic inputs (TPAH43) into the Port have declined as measured in the monitored mussels and sediments. This trend reflects a combination of decreased Alaska North Slope (ANS) oil production and thus, less tanker traffic, plus less ballast from the transition to double-hulled tankers with segregated ballast tanks, and improved treatment-facility efficiency in removing PAH. From the 2018 collections, mussel-tissue hydrocarbon concentrations from all eleven LTEMP stations (within Port Valdez as well as PWS and NGOA regions) were below method detection limits and similar to laboratory blanks (TPAH43 < 44 ng/g dry wt.). At these low background levels, elevated TPAH values from a minor 2020 spill incident at the Terminal were easily detected at all three Port Valdez stations.

Time series of long-term annual fluxes in the streamwater of nine forest catchments from the Swedish environmental monitoring program (PMK 5)

2003 ◽  
Vol 310 (1-3) ◽  
pp. 113-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Fölster ◽  
Kevin Bishop ◽  
Pavel Krám ◽  
Hans Kvarnäs ◽  
Anders Wilander
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Environmental Monitoring ◽  
Monitoring Program

scholarly journals Long-term changes in the species and functional diversity of a fine sand macrobenthic community in the English Channel

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lise Bacouillard ◽  
Noémie Baux ◽  
Jean-Claude Dauvin ◽  
Nicolas Desroy ◽  
Katja Juliana Geiger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Community Structure ◽  
Functional Diversity ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Diversity Indices ◽  
Population Fluctuations ◽  
Α Diversity ◽  
Long Term Changes ◽  
Functional Diversity Indices

In the eastern Bay of Seine, which is a representative area of coastal zones exposed to numerous anthropogenic disturbances, data from a long-term monitoring program of the benthic macrofauna based on a framework of 60 stations sampled during 7 cruises from 1988 to 2016 were used to investigate the link between species and functional diversity at different scales and assess how long-term changes in the community structure may have altered the ecosystem functioning. To cover the different facets of α-diversity, a selection of species and functional diversity indices were calculated and the links between these metrics were determined from a Principal Component Analysis. The β-diversity was analysed by applying multivariate methods on both species and traits composition matrices. Population fluctuations of a few very abundant species led to the major variations observed in the structure of the community in both taxonomic and functional aspects. A certain redundancy was found among species and functional diversity indices in terms of richness, evenness and heterogeneity. Likewise, at regional scale, similar patterns were reported on the spatial structure of the community in terms of species and trait composition. These patterns persist over time suggesting that the community structure and its functioning are rather resilient.

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