An evaluation of enhanced geotextile layer in permeable pavement to improve stormwater infiltration and attenuation

This paper reports on an evaluation of the properties of a novel structure known as OASIS® which was designed at Coventry University as an enhancement of the commercially available geotextiles when incorporated in the permeable pavement system (PPS). The impact on the hydraulic behaviour of a PPS was analysed through the study of infiltration rate, throughout the PPS and time required to reach the steady-state stage behaviour of the water within the PPS, under extreme rainfall intensities of 100 mm/hr, 200 mm/hr and 400 mm/hr, corresponding to a 100-year return period rainfall over a duration of 15 min in different parts of the world. The result indicated that the novel structure provides an extra benefit when incorporated in PPSs, delaying peak flow of a rainfall event by retaining and storing great volumes of water within its structure. These additional benefits are especially important under extreme rainfall events

Scientific Review for the Identification of Critical Habitat for Woodland Caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou), Boreal Population, in Canada

Woodland Caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou), Boreal Population (herein referred to as boreal caribou), are formally listed as Threatened under the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA). The Act requires the Minister of Environment to prepare a Recovery Strategy for the species that includes, to the extent possible and based upon the best available information, an identifi cation of its Critical Habitat and/or, if there is insuffi cient information available, a Schedule of Studies to determine that information. In August 2007, Environment Canada (EC) launched a science-based review with the mandate to identify Critical Habitat to the extent possible, using the best available science and/or prepare a Schedule of Studies

A Literature Review of Nutrient Management-Related Best management Practices used in the Lake Winnipeg Basin

This literature review aims to provide a resource for quantifying reductions in phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) that contribute to nutrient pollution in Lake Winnipeg. Water quality has deteriorated in the lake due to multiple sources of excessive nutrients in the watershed that have increased the frequency and magnitude of algal blooms, including toxic Cyanobacteria or blue-green algae blooms. This has both direct and indirect consequences on not only the biological health of Lake Winnipeg, but has economic, recreation and tourism repercussions as well. Targets have been set to restore conditions that are similar to those from the 1990s, before occurrences of algal blooms had doubled in frequency and size (Schindler, Hecky & McCullough, 2012). Optimal targets of annual total P and N concentrations of Lake Winnipeg have been set as 4,850 and 62,140 tonnes, respectively (Manitoba Conservation and Water Stewardship, 2015). As the tenth largest freshwater lake in the world, Lake Winnipeg has a watershed area of almost one million km2, spanning over four Canadian provinces and four American states (Wassenaar & Rao, 2012). To achieve the target concentrations, ten percent reductions in both P and N loading in the Winnipeg, Saskatchewan and Dauphin River watersheds is required, with a fifty percent reduction in P loading and a thirty percent reduction in N loading in the Red River watershed (Manitoba Conservation and Water Stewardship, 2015). It will require multi-jurisdictional cooperation and involvement to achieve such targets. The Lake Winnipeg Basin Initiative (LWBI) is the Government of Canada’s response to address nutrient pollution issues in Lake Winnipeg. The LWBI aims to engage citizens, scientists and domestic and international partners in actions to restore the ecological health of Lake Winnipeg, reduce nutrient pollution and improve water quality. The LWBI provides support for high-impact, stakeholder-based projects that improve the health of the watershed through the Lake Winnipeg Basin Stewardship Fund (LWBSF). Examples of projects funded by the LWBSF include: implementation of Best Management Practices (BMPs) that reduce rural or urban non-point sources of nutrients (e.g. water retention projects, conservation tillage, riparian enhancements, nutrient management and recovery projects); wetland conservation and restoration; development of innovative technologies that reduce nutrient loading from municipal wastewater systems or other point source discharges; cattle fencing and alternative watering systems. The LWBSF requires successful applicants to provide information as to how effective their project was in reducing nutrients. Ideally that information is based on water quality monitoring of nutrient concentrations conducted before and after implementation of their project. Unfortunately for many stakeholder-led projects water quality data is not produced due to the lack of capacity to conduct such monitoring. In those cases, nutrient reductions are estimated based on values derived from the scientific literature. In the past, estimates derived from the Phosphorus Reduction Calculation Report developed by Environment Canada’s Lake Simcoe Clean-up Fund were used in the Lake Winnipeg program (Sealock, 2011). The objective of this report is to provide nutrient reduction estimates based on research conducted primarily in the Lake Winnipeg Basin (LWB) that more accurately reflects the hydroclimatic and soil conditions and then can be used to help quantify the impact of the implementation of projects funded by the LWBSF on nutrient loading in the LWB

Where Land Meets Water: Understanding Wetlands of the Great Lakes

This publication summarizes the current state of knowledge about Great Lakes coastal wetlands based on the information presented at the Millennium Wetland Event symposium. Information on wetland development and classification, summaries of wetland vegetation communities, and details of the fish and wildlife species that use Great Lakes coastal wetlands as habitat are all found within the following pages. Wetland conservation initiatives and some of the challenges of performing wetland science in such a large and diverse environment are also highlighted

Land-Based Pollution in the Arctic Ocean: Canadian Actions in a Regional and Global Context

The occurrence of high concentrations of anthropogenic contaminants in the Arctic environment has been a concern for many years. The present overview of the current threats of pollutants from atmospheric, oceanic, river, and local pathways uses results from recent national, pan-Arctic, and international reports to emphasize the need to address issues arising from climate change, particularly the effect of changing weather patterns on contaminant transportation via both waterways and the atmosphere. Regional and international actions over the past two decades attempting to manage pollutants in the Arctic environment from landbased sources have produced recommendations that focus primarily on increasing cooperation in research and monitoring activities, not only among the Arctic governments themselves, but also including the interests and resources of non-polar countries. Our Canadian perspective on the domestic and circumpolar context of the issue, with regard to mechanisms exerting immediate control on the spread of contaminants, describes national programs and policies that are important to the Canadian North and to the Arctic community as a whole. All levels of Canadian government, as well as foreign governments, have joined in working towards safeguarding the Arctic and other marine environments. Prioritization of concerns is an important approach to tackling the numerous current issues related to the spread of contaminants in the Arctic environment. The government needs to give increased priority to the North, and that action needs to be taken in partnership with local communities and pursued at the regional, national, and international levels.La présence de fortes concentrations de contaminants anthropogéniques dans l’environnement arctique est une source d’inquiétude depuis des années. Le présent aperçu des menaces actuelles découlant des polluants provenant de l’atmosphère, des océans, des fleuves et rivières ainsi que de la région s’appuie sur les résultats de récents rapports d’envergure nationale, panarctique et internationale pour faire ressortir la nécessité de résoudre les enjeux résultant du changement climatique, plus particulièrement l’effet de la situation météorologique changeante sur le transport des contaminants, tant par les cours d’eau que par l’atmosphère. Ces vingt dernières années, les mesures prises à l’échelle régionale et internationale pour tenter de gérer les polluants de sources terrestres dans l’environnement arctique ont donné lieu à des recommandations qui visent principalement une coopération accrue sur le plan des activités de recherche et de surveillance, non seulement au sein des gouvernements arctiques mêmes, mais aussi en faisant appel aux intérêts et aux ressources des pays non polaires. Notre perspective canadienne sur le contexte intérieur et circumpolaire à propos de cette question, en ce qui a trait aux mécanismes qui exercent un contrôle immédiat sur la propagation des contaminants, décrit des politiques et des programmes nationaux qui sont importants aux yeux des collectivités du Nord canadien et de l’Arctique dans l’ensemble. Tous les échelons de gouvernement canadien, de même que de gouvernements étrangers, travaillent de concert pour protéger l’environnement de l’Arctique et d’autres environnements marins. La priorisation des préoccupations constitue une manière importante de s’attaquer aux nombreux enjeux actuels relatifs à la propagation des contaminants dans l’environnement arctique. Le gouvernement doit accorder une priorité accrue au Nord, et cela doit se faire en collaboration avec les collectivités de la région, en plus de s’étendre aux échelons régionaux, nationaux et internationaux

The state of Canada's climate: Monitoring variability and change

Many regions of the world have experienced a net warming of the atmosphere over the past century. Evidence suggests that this warming may be due to more than just average natural variability in climate. It coincides with measured increases in concentrations of certain atmospheric gases, such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, which can potentially enhance the natural "greenhouse effect" of the atmosphere. Although human activities are thought to be responsible for most of this rise in concentrations of greenhouse gases, it is not yet possible to offer a rigorous proof of this association. A number of approaches may, in time, be able to provide such proof, and trend analysis of climate elements and their derivatives is one of the most promising. In 1992, a State of the Environment Report (SOE Report No. 92-2) on temperature change in Canada attempted to answer the questions "What is happening?" and "Why is it happening?" It reported long-term trends towards higher annual temperatures in most regions of Canada. The report showed that Canadian mean daily air temperatures had risen by approximately 1.1°C over the 1895-1991 period compared with global temperature increases of about half that amount. The greatest increases were in the western and northwestern regions of Canada in the extreme northeastern regions of the country, the trend over the past half-century was slightly downward. The present report, another contribution of the Atmospheric Environment Service to the State of the Environment Report Series, introduces an additional question: "Why is it significant?" The answer is complex and incomplete, as research continues, but some provisional suggestions are made. The report's theme is climate variability and change. It expands on past discussions of temperature by considering seasonal and daily patterns of long-term temperature change. It indicates that the greatest rises have occurred in winter and spring and during the nighttime hours. Lake ice data are also examined, providing corroboration of temperature trend patterns. This analysis shows that there has been an average shortening of the winter ice season (by about a week), mostly attributable to earlier spring breakups. The report also examines Canadian trends in precipitation and cloudiness, two other climate elements that are significant to the understanding of global climate change. On a national scale, precipitation has been increasing since 1948. Considered regionally, the increases have been primarily over eastern and northern Canada. Elsewhere there is no trend or even a slight downward trend, as in the Prairie climate region. Since the 1950s, cloudiness, too, has been on the increase, with the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence climate region experiencing the greatest increases, in spring, in summer, and particularly in the fall. By contrast, the Pacific coast region has experienced a significant decrease in the fall. The areas that have had the greatest temperature increases (in western Canada) have not experienced proportional. increases in precipitation but are receiving more cloudiness. This may be a result of increased evaporation, as also seems to be the case in eastern regions, where there has been increasing precipitation with much lower temperature increases. These studies have not progressed far enough to furnish more certain evidence of cause and effect, but it can be said that none of the regional trends in climate is unexplainable in physical terms. Understanding long-term changes in climate depends not only upon a variety of physical evidence, but also on natural indicators such as plant and animal behaviour. This State of the Environment Report establishes a base for further multi-element analyses intended to broaden the factual foundation and increase our understanding of how global change can affect Canada

Lake Winnipeg Basin Indicator Series

Environmental indicators are measurements of the condition of an ecosystem, or the state of its health. They condense complex environmental data into understandable information, and can help show progress towards targets or goals. Examples of indicators include: descriptions of observed conditions within the lake, such as water quality conditions, other ecosystem conditions, such as the health of the fishery, watershed indicators, such as status of wetlands in the basi

Syngenetic sand veins and anti-syngenetic sand wedges, Tuktoyaktuk Coastlands, western Arctic Canada

Sand-sheet deposits of full-glacial age in the Tuktoyaktuk Coastlands, western Arctic Canada, contain syngenetic sand veins 1-21 cm wide and sometimes exceeding 9 m in height. Their tall and narrow, chimney-like morphology differs from that of known syngenetic ice wedges and indicates an unusually close balance between the rate of sand-sheet aggradation and the frequency of thermal-contraction cracking. The sand sheets also contain rejuvenated (syngenetic) sand wedges that have grown upward from an erosion surface. By contrast, sand sheets of postglacial age contain few or sometimes no intraformational sand veins and wedges, suggesting that the climatic conditions were unfavourable for thermal-contraction cracking. Beneath a postglacial sand sheet near Johnson Bay, sand wedges with unusually wide tops (3.9 m) extend down from a prominent erosion surface. The wedges grew vertically downward during deflation of the ground surface, and represent anti-syngenetic wedges. The distribution of sand veins and wedges within the sand sheets indicates that the existence of continuous permafrost during sand-sheet aggradation can be inferred confidently only during full-glacial conditions