NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Gwich'in Settlement Area

Tags: physical sciences, arctic lakes, benthic invertebrates, aquatic invertebrates, highway

Objective(s): To determine if changes in water quality caused by road dust affects invertebrate communities (bugs and waterfleas) in roadside lakes, and to examine if the type of roadside vegetation influences the transport of road dust to aquatic habitats.

Project Description: This licence has been issued for the scientific research application No.4966. The purpose of the proposed project is to improve the understanding of the effects of road development on lakes in Canada’s north. To achieve this purpose, the research team will pursue two objectives: 1) to determine if changes in water quality caused by road dust affects invertebrate communities (bugs and waterfleas) in roadside lakes; and 2) to examine if the type of roadside vegetation influences the transport of road dust to aquatic habitats. The project will advance the understanding of the cumulative impacts from human activities by examining the impacts of one of the most common and persistent types of development in the Northwest Territories: roadways. Existing roadways such as the Dempster Highway and the Inuvik Tuktoyaktuk Highway affect thousands of lakes, and continued expansion of the highway system in the Northwest Territories (e.g. Mackenzie Valley Highway) has the potential to impact thousands more. While there have been studies of the impacts of road dust on plants, insects, water quality, and algae, we are unaware of any studies on bugs and waterfleas living in Gwich’in and Inuvialuit lakes. Bugs and waterfleas are important members of lake food webs, as they recycle nutrients and transfer energy from primary producers (algae) to larger organisms such as fish. Therefore, it is important to understand how roadways may impact these important members of the lower food web. The research team will provide region-specific information on how roadways might impact aquatic habitats. For example, if boreal vegetation acts as a better barrier to the spread of road dust in comparison with tundra shrubs, then road developments may impact a larger number of lakes in Tundra habitats than in those further south. This information will be valuable for management boards such as the Gwich'in Land and Water Board as they assess the impacts of new developments in the region on aquatic ecosystems. The study area will be centered around Inuvik, with study lakes selected within 80 km of the town along the Dempster and Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highways. The research team will collect water, bugs, and waterfleas from 30 lakes along the highways. The lakes will be selected from the following distance categories based on how far they are located from the roadway: 0-300 m, 300-600 m, and 600-1000 m. Five random lakes were selected from each distance category in both the Gwich'in and Inuvialuit regions. The distance categories were selected based on water quality results from a previous study. When selecting study lakes, care will be taken to ensure that the lakes have similar physical properties (surface area and watershed area), so that the effects of road dust will be comparable. Bug samples will be collected using standardized techniques published by the Ontario Benthic Biodiversity Monitoring Network. Three collections will be done on each lake by wading into each lake and kicking the bottom to dislodge bugs and capturing them using small D-framed nets. Each collection will be done for ten minutes at a random location along the shoreline of each lake. Three waterflea collections will also be done on each lake by pulling a mesh net through a small volume of the water. A small amount of shoreline water (500 mL) will be collected for analysis of water quality. An electronic meter will also be used to collect water quality data (pH, conductivity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, and chlorophyll-a). While at each site the team will also look at the shoreline vegetation and collect information on the amount of road dust present. Shoreline vegetation will be classified into three categories: 1) primarily shrubs (tundra); 2) mixed shrubs and trees (transition); or 3) primarily trees (boreal). To estimate the amount of road dust reaching lakes, we will collect leaves from the common dwarf birch (Betula nana) at each site and follow protocols in the lab to quantify the dust on the surface of the leaves. Engagement of local communities: The research team have contacted the Renewable Resource Council (RRC) and the Hunter and Trapper Committee (HTC) in Inuvik, as well as the RRC in Tsiigehtchic. The team have provided each organization with a one-page summary of the project and have requested feedback. During the last three years the research team have had the assistance of twelve environmental monitors as part of work for the previous project. These monitors have contributed significantly to the success of the field program, so the team will again have the assistance of environmental monitors from the communities to assist with the research. These monitors will be trained in all aspects of the sampling protocols, including collecting bathymetric data, water quality samples, and invertebrate samples. If there is interest from these monitors, the team will also involve them in aspects of the data analysis and interpretation. Community members that participate in the project will be acknowledged in all presentations and publications resulting from the work on the project. The research team will disseminating results to local communities using a mixture of in-person meetings and written annual reports. The team also attended northern meetings such as the Northwest Territories Water Stewardship Strategy Workshop and the NWT CIMP Environmental Research and Monitoring Workshop. Therefore, the team propose to take the same approach for this project. When results are available, the team will contact the RRCs and HTCs to ask if they would like to schedule a meeting or would prefer a written report summarizing the results (or both). Graduate students involved in the project will be encouraged to attend a northern meeting to discuss the results of the study. After completion of the project, data will be uploaded to the Northwest Territories Discovery Portal so that it is publicly available. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from July 15, 2021 to September 7, 2021.