| Assessing inputs of contaminants in the upper Ottawa River near the town of Témiscaming, Québec | |
| By Arbour, Camilla |
Source: library.utoronto |
4/1/2020 |
|
|
|
The upper part of the Ottawa River Watershed has long been a part of the lives of Indigenous Peoples, and early settlers. Defining the border between Ontario and Québec, the river has been impacted by human activities including forestry, agriculture, mining, and ore and timber processing. Environmental quality was surveyed through inventories of aquatic invertebrates and assessment of general environmental metrics, including dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity and temperature, followed by more targeted assessment of contaminants in water and sediment. Water quality was generally within acceptable limits in terms of the concentrations of known toxic substances, except for aluminum, copper, iron, pH and total suspended solids which exceeded federal and provincial guidelines established for the protection of aquatic life. |
|
|
The sediment was seriously contaminated in lac aux Brochets on Gordon Creek, and offshore from the pulp and paper (P&P) industrial landfills and nearby train tracks, with arsenic, chromium, copper, iron, nickel, total phosphorus, lead and zinc all exceeding the interim and established Provincial and Federal guidelines for the lowest level for the protection of aquatic life. Manganese exceeded (Quebec) Provincial guidelines for severe level effects, showing significant pulses offshore train tracks and industrial landfills. Further downriver, leachate from a municipal landfill, and excess nutrients from forestry activities upstream in Fournier Creek affected water and sediment quality. General metrics of the physico-chemical environment were reliable predictors of areas showing elevated metal contamination in sediment and water; surveys of aquatic invertebrates were less reliable. Suggestions are offered regarding the control of contaminant releases from landfill wastes, and procedures that could reduce current and future industrial discharges. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|