December 2014
Volume 1, Issue 1
The Flow
News from the Peace-Athabasca Delta Ecological Monitoring Program
Welcome to the PADEMP newsletter
Welcome to the first edition of “The Flow” - the
newsletter of the PeaceAthabasca Delta Ecological
Monitoring Program
(PADEMP). The PeaceAthabasca Delta (PAD),
located in north-eastern
Alberta where the Peace
and Athabasca Rivers
meet at the western end
of Lake Athabasca, is one
of the world's largest
freshwater deltas. It is a
Ramsar Wetland of International Importance, and
is one of the features that
contribute to Wood Buffalo National Park's status
as a World Heritage Site
(80% of the delta lies
within WBNP).
PADEMP was established by Parks Canada
in 2008 to monitor the
cumulative effects of regional development and
climate change on the
health of the PAD. Members include Aboriginal,
federal, provincial, and
territorial governments
and environmental nongovernment organizations.
PADEMP’s mandate is to
develop and implement a
long-term ecological monitoring program that will
evaluate and communicate the state of the delta.
Both Western Science and
Traditional Ecological
Knowledge are being used
in program development
In this issue:
and implementation, and
in the interpretation of
monitoring results.
Every few months
we hope to bring you stories about the delta, profiles of the people that
make the delta home, results from those that are
studying the area, and
other news and views related to the delta.
This first issue is
dedicated to the memory
of Willie Courtoreille, a
Mikisew Cree First Nation
elder who was a strong,
articulate and respectful
advocate for the traditional knowledge of his people
and the protection of the
Peace-Athabasca Delta.
 Welcome to the
PADEMP newsletter
 Spring flooding replenishes wetlands
 Muskrat update
 News and Views
Willie Courtoreille—a lifelong defender of the Peace-Athabasca Delta
On December 10, 2013 the
Mikisew Cree First Nation
(MCFN) lost a long-time
Councillor, PADEMP supporter and beloved Elder,
Willie Courtoreille.
Willie was born on
February 16, 1940 and
grew up in the bush surrounded by the love of his
parents, John James and
Veronica, as well as his
step –parent Therese and
his many brothers and
sisters.
Willie Courtoreille in the 1970s.
Willie was hired by Parks
Canada at 16 to work on
the fire crew
and soon
moved up to
act as a fire
crew instructor,
and then as
part of the fire
management
team. He was
ultimately hired
on year round
to do park patrols and main-
tenance.
During the winter
months Willie was an active trapper.
Willie began politics
as a MCFN Councillor in
2007 and spent 7 years on
council. He joined
PADEMP in 2008. He was a
fountain of wisdom about
the land, water, animals
and fish in the traditional
territories of the Mikisew
Cree and fought hard to
ensure the wisdom and
values of his people were
protected and preserved.
Page 2
2014 spring flood replenishes Delta wetlands
For the first time
since 1997, spring ice jams
on the Peace and Athabasca Rivers created a
major spring flood in the
delta .
This was a very
exciting event because the
health of the delta depends on periodic spring
flood events (every 6-9
years, according to Traditional Knowledge), and
this hadn’t happened for a
very long-time due to the
effect of flow regulation
and climate change (see
News and Views, p.4).
The ice jam on the
Peace River established
itself in early May and
lasted for over a week. The
downstream end was anchored on the Slave River
at 30th baseline, and the
head of the jam extended
upstream as far as Burnt
Thumb. Water levels
breached the banks of the
Peace River in many areas,
creating overland flooding.
Flows reversed on most
Ice jams on the Peace and Slave Rivers backed up water and caused extensive flooding in
the delta for the first time since 1997.
channels south of the Peace
(Sweetgrass River, Claire
River, Baril River, Quatre
Fourches, Revillon Coupé
and Rivière des Rochers),
carrying flood waters into
adjacent wetlands and further into Lake Claire, and
Mamawi and Baril Lakes.
There was notable
flooding in the area around
Egg Lake, Jerry’s Lake, and
Pushup Lake, resulting from
a small ice jam that formed
on the Quatre Fourches
River. As water levels in the
larger lakes rose, wetlands
on the margins of the lakes
flooded too. At the same
time, ice jams and high water along the Athabasca
River flooded large areas
south of Lake Mamawi, between the Embarras and
Egg Lake, dry for many years, received water in the 2014.spring flood.
Athabasca Rivers, and along
the delta reach of the Athabasca River and its channels.
Flows from the Athabasca
River contributed to higher
lake levels as well, with high
Peace River water levels
preventing any drainage to
the north.
Parks Canada, Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada and BC Hydro conducted activities to
document the flood. These
included aerial and groundbased observations of flood
extent and water levels,
water sampling to trace
flood water source, and remote sensing.
In the near future, this
information will be brought
together to further assess
the flood’s extent and fully
describe the conditions that
created it. Ongoing monitoring using both western science and Traditional Knowledge will help us understand
the impact of this flood on
delta ecology.
Page 3
Volume 1, Issue 1
Muskrat numbers in the PAD rising after spring flood
In December 2014, participants in the annual
PADEMP muskrat count
found that muskrat numbers may be on the rise!
We counted an average of
30 houses per basin (ten
times last winter’s average
of three houses per basin!)
across 24 lakes in the PAD.
 How is the relative
abundance of muskrat
changing over time?
 Is there a difference in
muskrat abundance
between basins receiving water from the Athabasca River and those
that do not?
 How long does it take
muskrats to re-establish
after floods?
 Is there a difference in
water quality between
productive and unproductive basins?
How are we doing it?
Ground Survey:
Park staff, trappers and
David Campbell, left, Archie Antoine and Ross Campbell pose with a huge rat house in the delta.
land-users began by identifying basins where trappers
used to find lots of muskrat.
Crews count active houses
and pushups at the same
Parks Canada and community observers fly over the
same muskrat basins. They
count houses and pushups
from air in late winter to
120
muskrat houses per basin
Muskrat can tell us about
the health of the delta
ecosystem. They play a key
cultural and ecological
role, and are sensitive to
changing water levels. In
recent years, Traditional
Knowledge Holders
pointed out that many
lakes where they used to
trap muskrat were empty.
In 2012, community
members, trappers, and
Knowledge Holders from
Fort Chipewyan identified
questions they have been
working with PADEMP to
answer:
100
80
60
Dec. 2014
40
20
0
1972
1977
1982
1987
1992
1997
2002
2007
2012
Year
Numbers of muskrat houses in the PAD fell sharply from 1977-1998 but can
rise after years with big floods such as 1972, 1974, 1997 and 2014.
basins twice every year: in
early and late winter. This
gives us an idea of how
many muskrats are able to
survive the winter. While
we’re at the basins, we
measure depth of snow,
ice, and water, and vegetation composition of houses
and pushups.
Aerial Survey: Every year,
estimate changes in muskrat
numbers over time.
Findings so far...
On December 1-4, 2014, we
counted 715 muskrat houses
and 575 pushups at 24 lakes
in the PAD. Lakes with muskrat have more water on average than those without. This
confirms that water levels
are important in determining
which basins can support
muskrat in the PAD.
What’s next?
1) Our muskrat study is in its
fourth year, but we know
from elders that muskrat
numbers used to be much
higher. Can we translate this
knowledge into a traditional
baseline for muskrat numbers in the PAD?
2) In spring of 2014, water
levels were higher in the PAD
than they have been since
the floods of 1997. Is this
what caused muskrat numbers to increase, and will
numbers stay high?
3) In December 2014, we had
high school students from
Fort Chipewyan involved in
the muskrat study. By involving youth in the surveys, we
hope to help connect youth
and elders on the land.
News and Views
Mercury in Gull and Tern Eggs
A report published in 2013 identified
a trend toward increasing levels of
mercury in gull and tern eggs collected from Mamawi Lake and Lake
Athabasca. This suggests that mercury
levels could be increasing in the delta
area. Additional research is being undertaken to better understand the
source, levels and trends of mercury
in the area. For more information,
contact Craig Hebert, Environment
Canada, at 613-998-6693, or
craig.hebert@ec.gc.ca
Hebert, C. E., D. Campbell, R.
Kindopp, S. Macmillan, P. Martin,
E. Neugebauer, L. Patterson and
J. Shatford. 2013. Mercury trends
in colonial water bird eggs downstream of the Oil Sands Region of
Alberta, Canada. Environmental
Science & Technology 47 (20):
11785-11792.
Gull and Tern Egg Advisory
In May 2014, Alberta Health issued an
advisory regarding the consumption
of gull and tern eggs from Lake
Mamawi and Lake Athabasca. The
advisory was based on results of the
study above about mercury levels in
these eggs. The advisory identifies
weekly consumption limits for children, pregnant women and adults,
but if fish are regularly consumed
from these lakes then no gull or tern
eggs should be eaten by anybody. The
advisory can be found at:
mywildalberta.com/Hunting/
SafetyProcedures/
GullAndTernEggConsumptionAdvisory.aspx
Is Oil Sands Development Increasing
Contaminant Levels in the Lower
Athabasca Region?
Scientists studied sediment cores taken from 5 lakes near the main oil
sands development area and from
one lake further away. They found
that contaminant (PAH) levels in these
lakes have been rising since the 1960s,
and concluded that the development
and refining of oil sands plays a role in
this trend. They also determined that
climate change is driving significant
ecological change in these lakes, and
that the combination of the PAH trends
with predicted climate change effects
is creating “great potential for Athabasca oil sands ecosystems to experience marked changes in their function
and ecological organization”.
Kurek, J., J.L. Kirk, D.C.G. Muir, X.
Wang, M.S. Evans, and J.P. Smol.
2013. Legacy of a half-century of
oil sands development recorded by
lake ecosystems. Proc. Natl. Acad.
Sciences online. 6pp.
Delta Drying: what’s the cause - flow
regulation or climate?
Dr. Spyros Beltaos is one of Canada’s
leading experts on river ice processes.
His recent report examines a longstanding question: is the delta drying
trend observed since construction of
the W.A. C. Bennett Dam due to flow
regulation by the dam or due to climate? He concludes that both play a
big role, but that Peace River flow
regulation by the Bennett Dam has the
larger effect.
Beltaos, S., Comparing the impacts
of regulation and climate on icejam flooding of the PeaceAthabasca Delta, Cold Reg. Sci.
Technol. (2014)
BC Hydro’s Site C Project Approved
On October 14th, 2014, the federal and
provincial governments approved the
Site C Hydroelectric project. If built,
Site C will be the third hydroelectric
facility on the Peace River. More details can be found on the Canadian Environmental Assessment Registry at:
http://www.ceaa.gc.ca/050/documenteng.cfm?document=100283.
PADEMP Members
PADEMP Members
 Mikisew Cree First
Nation
 Athabasca Chipewyan
First Nation (Observer)
 Fort Chipewyan Metis
Association
 Salt River First Nation
 Smith’s Landing First
Nation
 Fort Smith Metis
Association
 Katl’odeeche First Nation
 Hay River Metis
Association
 Deninu’Kue First Nation
 Fort Resolution Metis
Association
 Little Red River Cree First
Nation
 Parks Canada – Wood
Buffalo National Park
 Environment Canada
 Fisheries and Oceans
Canada
 Government of the NWT
– Environment and
Natural Resources
 Alberta Environment and
Sustainable Resource
Development
 Ducks Unlimited
 World Wildlife Fund
Contact us
Phone: (780) 697-3662
Email:
padempmail@gmail.com
Web: www.pademp.com