Potential interactive effects of diluted bitumen and UV on juvenile fathead minnows from the IISD-ELA Freshwater Oil Spill Remediation Study (FOReSt)
Citation:
Michaleski, S., V. Langlois, L. Timlick, M. Barron, G. Tomy, K. Jeffries, AND V. Palace. Potential interactive effects of diluted bitumen and UV on juvenile fathead minnows from the IISD-ELA Freshwater Oil Spill Remediation Study (FOReSt). SETAC North America, Toronto, Ontario, CANADA, November 03 - 07, 2019.
Impact/Purpose:
The purpose of this presentation is to summarize collaborative research on sunlight and oil spill interactions. The impact of the presentation is that it presents new science to an international audience in the area of sunlight-oil interactions. The work is impactful because (1) the oil being studied is diluted bitumen (dilbit) which is an emerging environmental concern because of spills in U.S. waters and relatively unknown fate and effects, and (2) this research brings new information critical to understanding and responding to spills in freshwater systems.
Description:
Potential environmental impacts of oil spills are a concern for the Canadian public and the oil industry. Optimizing methods to treat residual oil that remains after an oil spill cleanup and to assess the potential impacts of residual oil in impacted freshwater systems are both high priorities. In 2018, the International Institute for Sustainable Development-Experimental Lakes Area (IISD-ELA) began a collaborative program to examine the efficacy of minimally invasive remediation methods for residual bitumen and conventional heavy crude oil in the freshwater shoreline environments. In 2018, model oil spills in contained shoreline environments (15X2.5m) were used to examine the efficiency of immediate oil recovery and then to compare degradation of residual oil via Monitored Natural Recovery (MNR). Results from the 2018 pilot study were used to design a larger study being performed in 2019 that focuses on comparing the efficacy of oil removal using nutrient additions, a shoreline cleaner and engineered floating wetlands relative to MNR. As part of these studies the effects of residual diluted bitumen on fathead minnow development and deformity rates were evaluated. Because exposure to UV radiation can potentiate the toxicity of certain compounds in residual oil by up to 100-fold, we conducted a paired test exposing fathead minnows to water from enclosures treated with model spills of diluted bitumen with and without UV radiation.