Base de données de recherche des TNO

Régions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region

étiquettes: contaminants, ringed seal

Objectif(s): To analyze temporal and spatial trends of mercury, other metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), and new chemicals of concern in ringed seals using annual collections across Inuit Nunangat, look at environmental factors that contribute to contaminants, and communicate results to northern communities.

Description du projet: This licence has been issued for the scientific research application No. 6035. The objectives of the project are to 1) analyze temporal and spatial trends of mercury, other metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), and new chemicals of concern in ringed seals using annual collections across Inuit Nunangat, 2) Evaluate relationships between contaminants in ringed seals and changing environmental factors such as decreases in sea ice, 3) Provide information on contaminants to each participating community, the Nunavut and Northwest Territories regional contaminants committees (RCC), the Nunatsiavut Government research advisory committee, the Nunatsiavut department of health and social development, the Government of Nunavut department of health, the NWT health and social services department, and Health Canada and 4) Communicate results on contaminants in ringed seals to the participating northern communities, the general public, and the scientific community. Ringed seals (20 per site) and their associated biodata on length, girth, blubber thickness at the sternum, sex, and weight (if possible) will be collected at the four sites by the local hunters during their subsistence harvest. The Sachs Harbour Hunters and Trappers Committee (HTC) will be coordinating the sample collection in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (see the attached Community engagement form). Sampling kits and instructions (in Inuktitut and English) will be provided by the scientists to collect and store the tissues; scientists will coordinate the contaminant analyses and will not be attending sampling. Samples will be shipped to Environment and Climate Change Canada for chemical analyses. As required for ringed seals under the NCP Blueprint, 2024-2025 and 2026-2027 will focus on legacy Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs; analyses via Xevo-APGC-MSMS) including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD), and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF). The year 2025-2026 will be a non-POP year (schedule B) and halogenated flame retardants (HFR; GC-HRMS), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), current use pesticides, polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCN), and UV stabilizers will be measured (UPLC-MS/MS). Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCP) will be analyzed using the same extracts as for the medium-chain (MCCP; GC-Orbitrap MS) which are part of the chemicals of emerging Arctic concern (Schedule C). Every year, MCCP, and long-chain PFAS (LC/MS/MS) will be investigated in liver. Multi-elements (including mercury; ICP-MS) will be analyzed in liver and muscle samples. We will also explore rare earth elements and elements from the platinum group in a few liver samples from each site. The laboratories involved in this study take part each year to the NCP QA program and International inter-calibration studies. The government laboratories are accredited by the Canadian Association for Laboratory Accreditation (CALA) under ISO/IEC 17025. Certified reference materials (e.g. NIST 1946 or 1947 lake trout) and analytical blanks will be frequently run during analyses to ensure the quality of data. Moreover, age, sex, stable isotopes (muscle) and fatty acids (blubber) will be analyzed and determined. Gastrointestinal tracks from seals in Nunatsiavut will be kept by the Nunatsiavut Research Centre to investigate microplastics; stomachs from Sachs Harbour will be used to assess diets of seals. A subset of the muscle samples will be analyzed annually for carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes by the University of Waterloo (Environmental Isotope lab, ON) and blubber for fatty acids (McGill University, QC). These results will inform us on the feeding ecology of animals at the different locations and will help interpret the year-to-year variation in contaminant levels in ringed seals. Aging of ringed seals will be performed by Matson Laboratories (Milltown, MT) using teeth. Sex will be determined based on the co-amplification of a DNA segment from the sex chromosome (Wildlife Genomics, BC). In 2024-2027, communications with the HTO/HTA/HTC of Arviat, Resolute Bay, Sachs Harbour, and the Nunatsiavut Government will be done by phone and email. Lay progress reports (e.g., posters, one-pagers, or pamphlets as preferred by partners) of the project will be sent at the end of the year to each participating communities in English and Inuktitut after revision by Regional Contaminants Committees. We will organize annual in-person visits to the communities and organize workshops in the schools and activities in the community (e.g. open-house, community feast). In 2024-2025, Arviat will be visited, and activities will be planned at the high school; contacts have already been made with the school personnel. We will aim at organizing visits in collaboration with other NCP Principal Investigators (e.g. polar bear project) to widen the subjects of discussion with youth, Elders, and community members. We wish to visit Resolute Bay in 2025-2026 as well as Nain and Sachs Harbour in 2026-2027 with the same vision of sharing information, listening to concerns/ideas, answering questions, and engaging youth in science. This project has been presented to multiple regional organizations and support was provided by: Sachs Harbour Hunters and Trappers Committee (engagement form attached) Arviat Hunters and Trappers Organization Resolute Bay Hunters and Trappers Association Nunatsiavut Government Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (letter of support attached) Fisheries and Joint Management Committee (letter of support attached) Inuvialuit Game Council (letter of support attached) The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from: February 20 - December 31, 2025