Spatial footprint of particulate pollutants around active and restored mines: bryophyte growth and bioaccumulation

Post-doctoral Project of Mélanie Jean

Director: Nicole Fenton (UQAT-FIR)
Collaborator: Benoit Plante (UQAT-RIME)

Mining activities are increasingly found in remote locations, often prized for their pristine landscapes and biodiversity. Mine impacts, however, are not limited to the area of operation due to dust and particulate pollution around open pits, dry tailings ponds, and access roads. The footprint of a mine can thus vary according to its life cycle and the type of surrounding ecosystem. Bryophytes have often been used in environmental monitoring studies because of their bioaccumulation capacity. The objectives of this project are to determine:

1. Background levels of pollution in the boreal forest of western Quebec;
2. How the interactions between the distance to the mine, the type of ecosystem, and the life cycle phase of the mine influence the spatial extent of pollution;
3. The impact of accumulated metals on bryophyte growth.

Moss Pleurozium schreberi will be used as it is one of the most common bryophytes in the boreal forest and has been used extensively in bioaccumulation studies. Samples will be taken at increasing distances around four mine sites at different development stages (planned, active, closing, and closed) and in a variety of ecosystem types (coniferous and deciduous forests, wetlands). At each site, a composite sample of P. schreberi will be harvested and analyzed for potential metals and pollutants, and growth monitoring of this moss species will be conducted for one year. The results will be compared to data collected from six undisturbed reference transects. The results of this project will help develop strategies to limit the footprint of mines in the boreal landscape.