Paleolimnological tools for assessing the impact of road salt contamination on eastern Canadian lakes

用于评估道路盐污染对加拿大东部湖泊影响的古湖泊学工具

• 批准号: RGPIN-2018-05329
• 负责人: Patterson, Tim
• 金额: $ 2.62万
• 依托单位: Carleton University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2018
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2018-01-01 至 2019-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=661737
• 关键词: Paleolimnological; tools; assessing; impact; road

Salt contamination of fresh water lakes as the result of runoff from the application of winter de-icing salts to roads and other infrastructure presents a significant environmental challenge. This is a major issue in eastern Canada where road salt has been in wide spread use since the 1940s. Rock salt (NaCl) is the most commonly applied de-icer because of its cost effectiveness, and suitability for the regional climate (effective to -18°C). Road salt runoff damage is cumulative, and as levels of salinity increase in lakes aquatic species diversity and abundances decline, which can lead to ecological collapse and altered water quality. Despite the environmental impact of the application of NaCl it's use is tolerated, as a result of deicing leading to a significant (88%) reduction in road accidents and fatalities. Regular monitoring of the impacts of road salt on aquatic communities and salt-damaged drinking water supplies is critical to gain a full understanding of the pathways and lifespan of these contaminants in the environment and to develop strategies to restore the environment to pre-disturbance (natural) conditions. Such monitoring is costly and salinity measurements may be subject to sizable daily fluctuations, which can influence results. ******The research aim is to develop a novel, widely applicable and cost effective technique of monitoring salt contamination in lakes, using microscopic Arcellinida (shelled amoeba), that are widely present in lake sediments, which have been shown to have a quantifiable sensitivity to road salt contamination. The research will initially focus road salt contamination on lakes in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), where winter road salt application is particularly high (220t/km on 400 series highways and 30t/km on regional roads). The overarching objectives of the research program will be to: quantify the relationships between specific Arcellinida taxa and key road-salt related water property and sediment-based geochemical variables in a large set of lakes from the GTA and elsewhere in eastern Canada; use the distributional dataset to develop an arcellinidan ‘Salt Contamination Index' (SCI) that can be readily applied to lake surficial sediments throughout the region to categorize salt damage; and use the distributional SCI training set to determine the cumulative impact of road salt contamination on lake ecosystems through analysis of cores spanning from baseline non-road salt impacted conditions of the early 20th century to present. ******The innovative approach proposed for development of the SCI will result in a cost-effective way to assess the cumulative impacts of salt contamination on lake aquatic ecosystems across the landscape and through time. This information will support efforts by policy makers and stakeholders to strategically manage the impact of road salt contamination, and will contribute to a valuable integrative training program for HQP.**

淡水湖泊的盐污染是由于冬季去冰盐到道路和其他基础设施的径流而引起的，这是一个重大的环境挑战。这是加拿大东部的一个主要问题，自1940年代以来，道路盐就已经广泛使用。岩盐（NaCl）是最常用的脱水剂，因为其成本效益和对区域气候的适用性（有效至-18°C）。道路盐径流损害是累积的，并且随着湖泊水平物种多样性和抽象下降的盐分水平的增加，这可能导致生态崩溃和水质改变。尽管使用NACL的环境影响，但由于除法导致道路事故和死亡人数的大幅减少，但使用了它的使用。定期监测道路盐对水生群落和盐损伤饮用水供应的影响对于完全了解环境中这些污染物的途径和寿命至关重要，并制定策略以恢复环境以恢复前扰动（自然）条件。这种监测是昂贵的，盐度测量可能会受到相当大的每日波动的影响，这可能会影响结果。 *****研究的目的是开发一种新型，广泛适用且具有成本效益的技术，以使用微观Arcellinida（壳的Amoeba）（被壳体）在湖泊沉积物中广泛存在，以监测湖泊中的盐污染，这些技术已被证明对道路盐污染具有可量化的敏感性。该研究最初将把公路盐污染集中在大多伦多地区（GTA）的湖泊上，该湖泊的施用量特别高（400系列高速公路上的220吨/公里，区域道路上的30t/km）。研究计划的总体物体将是：量化特定的Arcellinida分类单元与关键道路盐相关的水财产与基于沉积物的地球化学变量之间的关系，来自GTA和加拿大东部其他地方的大型湖泊；使用分布数据集开发一个Arcellinidan的“盐污染指数”（SCI），可以轻松地将其应用于整个地区的湖水表面沉积物中，以分类盐损伤；并使用分配SCI训练集来确定道路盐污染对湖泊生态系统的累积影响，通过分析基线非道路盐的核心影响20世纪初期的条件。 *****提出的用于开发SCI的创新方法将产生一种成本效益的方式，以评估盐污染对整个景观湖水生态系统的累积影响。这些信息将支持政策制定者和利益相关者在战略上管理道路盐污染的影响的努力，并将为HQP的有价值的综合培训计划做出贡献。**