Regions: North Slave Region
Tags: water quality, biology, metals, sediment, aquatic ecology, bathymetry, benthic invertebrates, burbot, whitefish, lake trout, northern pike
| Principal Investigator: | McGurk, Michael (3) |
| Licence Number: | 13854 |
| Organization: | Rescan Environmental Services Ltd. |
| Licensed Year(s): |
2005
2004
|
| Issued: | Jun 14, 2005 |
| Project Team: | Christel Leonhardt (Environmental Scientist, Rescan), Wade Brunham (Bathymetric Specialist, Rescan), Brett van Poorten (Environmnetal Scientist, Rescan), Soren Jensen (Environmental Engineer, Rescan), Stephen Ban (Bathymetric Specialist, Rescan), Jonathan Olsen (Environmental Scientist, Rescan) |
Project Description: The researchers will measure water quality, aquatic ecology and the status of fish populations in ponds and lakes along the proposed discharge route of mine water from the Colomac Mine (North Pond, L-Shaped Lake, Paddle Lake, Lake 315, and Lower Lake) and compare those data with data collected from reference lakes (Steeves Lake, Baton Lake, and Spanner Lake). Work will include taking three samples of water, sediment, phytoplankton, and benthic invertebrates from each waterbody and catching fish from the ponds and lakes with gillnets. The bathymetry of L-Shaped Lake will also be measured. All fish will be counted, identified to species, and non-destructive aging structures (e.g., scales) will be taken. Some fish will be sacrificed for tissue samples for measurement of metals concentrations. The rest of the fish will be released live back to their ponds. No tagging will be done. The researchers expect to catch lake trout, northern pike, lake whitefish, longnose sucker, burbot, slimy sculpin and lake chub. No more than 100 fish will be sampled from each waterbody. Gillnet sets will be short (1 hour) to minimize mortality. The research team will fly to the Colomac Gold Mine and stay at the mine camp. Some Tlicho people of Rae-Edzo will be hired as cooks, heavy equipment operators, camp security, etc. Transportation to and from the site will be via a float plane. While on-site, trails from the camp to the ponds and lakes will be used. These trails are accessible by truck or ATV. Work on the ponds and lakes will be conducted from small skiffs present at the camp. Results of the study will be communicated in a project report submitted to Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC). The study will be conducted at ponds and lakes near the Colomac Gold Mine, 50 km northwest of Wekweti. The research will be completed during a period of 7 to 10 days between July 1 and September 30, 2005.
