Assessing the contribution of combustion-derived contaminants to a remote subarctic environment from traffic on the Tibbitt to Contwoyto winter road (Northwest Territories, Canada) ...

• Main Authors: Korosi, Jennifer B, Eickmeyer, David C, Thienpont, Joshua R, Palmer, Michael J, Kimpe, Linda E, Blais, Jules M
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: My University 2016
• Subjects: Boreal forest; Diesel emissions; Lakes; Polycyclic aromatic compounds; Tundra; Wildfire; Air Pollutants; Northwest Territories; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; Vehicle Emissions; Environmental Monitoring; Arctic; Canada; Nunavut; Yellowknife; Subarctic
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.20381/ruor-29162; https://ruor.uottawa.ca/handle/10393/44956

Remote mining operations in Canada's Northwest Territories and Nunavut are supported by a 600 km winter road, which spans the transition from subarctic boreal forest in Yellowknife to low Arctic tundra. Each year, thousands of truckloads of fuel, large equipment, and other heavy loads are hauled up the winter road. We investigated whether diesel emissions from commercial truck traffic is a major source of metals and polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) to aquatic ecosystems along the winter road. In March 2014, at the end of the hauling season, we collected integrated snow samples, water, and sediment from nine lakes located along the winter road, as well as from six lakes located within the city of Yellowknife. Examination of PAC composition and diagnostic ratios in snow samples showed that wildfires are an important source of PACs to lakes along the winter road, while anthropogenic sources are more prevalent in snow from Yellowknife lakes. Concentrations of PACs, including those associated with diesel ...