Tree swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) nest boxes are installed in oil sands area and in reference locations to monitor contaminant levels and impacts on tree swallow nestlings. The exposure to tree swallow nestlings to air-borne oil sands-related contaminants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is assessed using passive air samplers. Measures of avian health are examined in relation to location of sampling and contaminants measured.

Waterfowl and mammals harvested and trapped at various locations in the oil sands region and in reference locations are assessed for contaminant burdens and toxicology. Wildlife samples are obtained from local hunters and trappers. Tissue samples are analysed for concentrations of oil sands-related contaminants (heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and naphthenic acids). Dead and moribund birds collected from tailing ponds are also evaluated for levels and effects of contaminants.

Data are contaminants in tissue of caged mussels put in the river for 3 weeks at about 25 stations located on the Canadian and US side of the river. The main objective of the study is to identify contaminant sources, or source areas requiring more detailed follow-up investigations, based on the level  of contaminants in the mussels. Compounds monitored include: * organochlorinated pesticides * Polychlorinated biphenyls * dioxins/furan * chlorinated benzenes * Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons * industrial organic compounds

The health of individual amphibians, amphibian populations, and their wetland habitats are monitored in the oil sands region and at reference locations. Contaminants assessments are done at all sites. Amphibians developing near oil sands activities may be exposed to concentrations of oil sands-related contaminants, through air emissions as well as water contamination. The focus of field investigations is to evaluate the health of wild amphibian populations at varying distances from oil sands operations. Wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus) populations are being studied in Alberta, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories in order to examine the relationship of proximity to oil sands activities and to prevalence of infectious diseases, malformation rates, endocrine and stress responses, genotoxicity, and concentrations of heavy metals, naphthenic acids and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Plant health assessments and vegetation surveys are undertaken at both terrestrial and wetland sites in the oil sands region and in reference areas. Plant monitoring is being conducted for biodiversity and contaminants, and because plants are important both as wildlife habitat and as traditional-use species. Plant and soil samples are collected at monitoring sites near and at varying distances from oil sands operations. Plant tissues are being examined for levels of naphthenic acids (NAs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heavy metals. Plant indicator species include Vaccinium spp. (blueberry), Ledum groenlandicum (Labrador tea), Arctostaphyllos uva-ursi (common bearberry), and Cornus canadensis (bunchberry). Soil samples from riparian banks and boreal forest locations are also collected for greenhouse studies. These experiments evaluate the uptake, distribution, and toxicity of the contaminants in plant tissue.

Aquatic bird eggs are being collected for contaminants analysis. Egg collections in the Peace-Athabasca Delta area support Parks Canada’s activities at Wood Buffalo National Park and the multi-stakeholder Peace-Athabasca Ecosystem Monitoring Program. This monitoring activity employs repeated censuses of birds and builds on initial egg collections made in 2009 from Egg Island (Lake Athabasca) and Wood Buffalo National Park, with the goal of evaluating contaminant burdens, contaminant sources and changes in sources through time. Egg samples are collected from colonial waterbirds California Gulls (Larus californicus), Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus), Ring-billed Gulls (Larus delawarensis), Caspian Terns (Hydroprogne caspia) and Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) and insectivorous birds Bank Swallows (Riparia riparia), Cliff Swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) and Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) to monitor health and contaminant levels of aquatic and terrestrial birds in the oil sands region and in reference areas. The samples collected are analysed for oil sands-related contaminants including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and metals such as mercury (Hg) and arsenic (As).

The locations of wells that have been drilled for oil production, gas or salt resources or for underground storage of hydrocarbons. This data can be used for land use and resource management, emergency management, as well as compliance and enforcement in the petroleum industry. The Data is collected on an on-going basis and maintained in the Ontario Petroleum Data System (OPDS).

Land Plats illustrate in map view the oil or gas Spacing Areas delimited in a pool, and names the geological formation in which the pool is recognised. Land Plats are the sole official record of where the Director of PandNG Titles Branch recognizes a pool of hydrocarbons to exist for the purpose of administering oil and gas title

Stormwater ponds are artificial structures that are critical components of stormwater management systems in many Canadian cities. They serve to prevent flooding of urban areas during excess rainfall. Stormwater ponds also contribute to environmental health by allowing the settlement of dirt and solids from stormwater to the bottom of the pond. As a result, the sediments of stormwater ponds can become enriched with potentially harmful contaminants. The health risks posed to anglers by contact with stormwater and sediments and consumption of fish from stormwater ponds are not well characterized. The City of Lacombe (Alberta) is a municipality with two stormwater ponds stocked with sterile fish for angling. Alberta Health collected water, sediment and fish from these two ponds over two seasons (fall 2010 and spring 2011) and analyzed the samples for a suite of contaminants. Water samples were collected from three sites at each pond and three depths for each site (n=40; nine samples plus one replicate sample per pond per season). Sediment samples were collected from the same three sites at each pond (n=12; three samples per pond per season). Fish samples (rainbow trout) were collected in fall 2010 (n=18; eight from East Pond and ten from Len Thompson Pond). For the contaminant analysis, all samples (water, sediment and fish) were tested for parent and alkylated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Additionally, water samples were tested for routine chemicals, trace metals, pesticides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and fish muscle tissue was tested for total mercury.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Maritime Science Branch has collected grain size data from sediment and water column samples using bottle samples, sediment cores, and sediment grabs as part of numerous research projects not only in the Atlantic provinces, but also worldwide. The data collected by DFO focuses on the fine grained (<1mm) particles as these are both a source of food and means of contaminant transport. Grain size data are used to study the fate and distribution of complimentary chemistries like heavy metals, pesticides, hydrocarbons, aquaculture waste as well as a variety of physical processes such as the resuspension and transport of sediment.