Source partitioning of metal contaminants using isotope ratios

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Contamination of aquatic resources by trace metals is a consequence of Canada's resource-based economy.  Both industry and government continue to seek ways to minimize the quantity and impact of these releases.  However, once released to the environment it becomes difficult to ascertain the amount of contamination coming from various sources. This leads to regulatory difficulties and disputes about the appropriate means of mitigation, particularly where a different strategy would be used, depending on the source.  This project is designed to overcome some of these limitations. We will examine the variations in stable isotope ratios in several ecosystems and relate them to differences in sources. We will also examine othersources of variation in isotope ratios, primarily biological in origin. It will be necessary to understand the biological sources of variation to permit determination of sources of metals on the basis of isotope ratios measured in aquatic systems.  We anticipate that this project will be the starting point in the development of predictive methods for source partitioning based on measurement of variations in isotope ratios.