Environmental Geoscience Program - 2009-2014

Acting Program Manager: Michael Parsons

Priority questions

How can we differentiate the influences of natural geological processes from the environmental impacts of natural resource developments?

Can new geoscience methods be developed to enable federal regulators to account for natural geological processes in their decision making regarding ecosystem risk management?

Projects – Metal Mining

Remediation of Gold Mines

Project leader: Michael Parsons

Design appropriate remediation strategies for arsenic-rich historical gold mine tailings to reduce ecosystem and human health risks, and develop general guidelines that can be used to optimize the management of high-arsenic mine wastes.

Funding: Earth Sciences Sector

Tools for Metal Mining Environmental Impact Assessment

Project leader: Alexandre Desbarats

Conduct geochemistry and hydrogeology research to support sustainable development of new mineral resources. In particular, activities include the development of models to predict the sources, transport and fate of contaminants, and of protocols to assess background conditions in regions subject to mineral development.

Funding: Earth Sciences Sector

NRCan Collaborators: Minerals and Metals Sector

Environmental Impact Assessment in the Northern Environment

Project leader: Sharon Smith

Research is conducted on methodologies for assessing natural physical environmental conditions, landscape processes and the ecosystem cycling of metals to facilitate environmental impact assessments for Northern mineral development.

Funding: Earth Sciences Sector

Projects – Energy

Coal and Oil Sands Resources Environmental Sustainability

Project leader: Martine M. Savard

Activities use geoscience to fill knowledge gaps to improve the efficiency of remediation efforts in the oil sands region, and develop approaches to quantify and limit contamination from the extraction and use of bitumen and coal. 

Funding: Earth Sciences Sector, Energy Sector (Clean Energy Fund) and other government departments (OGD)

NRCan Collaborators: Minerals and Metals Sector and Canadian Forest Service

Northern Energy Development

Project leader: Sharon Smith

Development of methods to assess permafrost, terrain sensitivity and landslide susceptibility conditions in the pipeline corridor in southern Yukon through new field investigations, analyses and syntheses to support decisions regarding environmental management.

Funding: Earth Sciences Sector, Energy Sector (Program of Energy Research and Development)

Shale Gas and Oil

Project leader: Denis Lavoie

Innovative environmental research is conducted on induced seismicity and groundwater management to improve the competitiveness and environmental performance of shale gas and oil developments in Canada.

Funding: Earth Sciences Sector, Energy Sector (ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative)

NRCan Collaborators: Minerals and Metals Sector

Carbon Capture and Storage

Project leader: Don White

Design, adapt and test tools to enable measurement, monitoring and verification of the underground saline formation storage of liquid carbon dioxide (CO₂). This research is being carried out at the first fully integrated, commercial-scale, saline formation storage project in Canada (the Aquistore Project in Saskatchewan).

Funding: Earth Sciences Sector and Energy Sector (Program of Energy Research and Development and ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative)

NRCan Collaborators: Energy Sector