Better Planning for Better Protection: Analysis of Vulnerable Components of the St. Lawrence in the Event of an Oil Spill

2019-04-18

Christine Desjardins

An oil spill is an unpredictable and damaging event, sometimes even catastrophic. When a spill occurs, responders have a host of issues to deal with, ranging from protecting human health and species at risk to marine safety, in a very brief span of time. Good planning and a strong network of collaborators are the keys to a successful response. That is why Fisheries and Oceans Canada has been involved for over two years in supporting teams responsible for planning for and responding to oil spills in Quebec.

One issue is protecting aquatic species. Focusing on protecting the most vulnerable species seems to be a logical choice, but identifying them is far from easy given the incredible diversity of the St. Lawrence’s flora and fauna. Identifying these species is our team’s objective in conducting a vulnerability analysis of the St. Lawrence’s biological components. The work was completed with a peer review at the Maurice Lamontagne Institute in January 2017 involving around 30 participants from science and environmental incident response backgrounds.

The vulnerability analysis was conducted for estuarine and marine species that frequent a section of the St. Lawrence where there is heavy maritime traffic, extending from Québec to Anticosti Island. The analysis covered over 1000 species, categorized into over 300 taxonomic groups split into algae and plants, invertebrates, fish and marine mammals. Using criteria related to exposure and resilience, the vulnerability level of each group was assessed. Just over 40% of the taxonomic groups assessed were identified as having a high level of vulnerability. The first life stages, eggs and larvae, were considered vulnerable from the outset and did not need to be assessed.

The work was carried out as part of the World Class Tanker Safety Initiative (2014-2017) and is continuing under the Oceans Protection Plan (OPP). Our team is now working on making operational tools to support responders: mapping the vulnerable components of the aquatic environment and creating issue sheets and biological calendars.