NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Sahtu Settlement Area

Tags: contaminants, mercury, biology, bioaccumulation, fish

Objective(s): To obtain current information about the health of some subsistence predatory fish in ten commonly used lakes by residents of the Sahtu Settlement Area.

Project Description: This study will provide current information about the health of some subsistence predatory fish in ten commonly used lakes by residents of the Sahtu Settlement Area (SSA). This investigation may help to identify alternative sources of fish from lakes not impacted to the degree as seen in Kelly Lake. A future, far more thorough study of mercury abundance and bio-magnification trends may also result from this investigation. Three teams of two people each will collect fish with gill nets of varying size from six lakes. The teams will consist of local people from three communities including Norman Wells, Tulita and Deline. The Norman Wells team will set nets in Hodgson (Jackfish) Lake, Lennie Lake and Kelly Lake; Tulita will sample Stewart Lake and Tate Lake; Deline will harvest Lac Ste. Each lake sample will consist of a minimum of 20 fish representing three age/length classes that will help determine bioaccumulation rates within each population. Total mercury in tissue analyses will be performed by Flett Research Ltd., Winnipeg, Manitoba. The four target fish-eating species include Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush), Walleye (Sander vitreus), Northern Pike (Esox lucius), and Inconnu (Stenodus leucichthys). Harvests will focus on one major fish type known to occur in abundance in each lake. All additional fish that are harvested will be curated for future studies. This project will provide current information about the health of some subsistence predatory fish in six commonly used lakes by residents of the SSA. This investigation may help to identify alternative sources of fish from lakes not impacted to the degree as seen in Kelly Lake and Lac Ste Therese. This project will provide current information about the health of some subsistence predatory fish in six commonly used lakes by residents of the SSA. A final report outlining the results will be completed by March 31, 2011. Prior to this, the Sahtu Renewable Resources Board (SRRB) will facilitate public meetings in all five Sahtu communities with the assistance of the GNWT Department of Health and Social Services and provide plain language handouts that explain the results of this study with respect to each community. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from February 11, 2011 to March 31, 2011.