Terms of Reference

Evaluation of the Reference Condition Approach for Yukon Placer Mining

Regional Science Response Process – Pacific Region

July 2018
Nanaimo, British Columbia

Chairperson: Lisa Christensen

Context

Since 2008, Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Fisheries Protection Program (DFO FPP; Yukon Placer Unit) and its partners, including the Yukon Government, rely on the Adaptive Management Framework (YPAHWG 2008a) implemented by the Yukon Placer Secretariat to manage placer mining activity in the Yukon.  Founded on principles of adaptive management and incorporating a risk-based approach to decision-making, the Fish Habitat Management System (FHMS) is intended to balance the objectives of a sustainable Yukon placer mining industry with the conservation and protection of fish and fish habitat.

A set of protocols has been designed to guide the FHMS. These are the Aquatic Health Monitoring Protocol (YPAHWG 2008b), the Water Quality Objectives Monitoring Protocol and the Economic Health Monitoring Protocol.  DFO and the Yukon Government are responsible for implementing the Aquatic Health Monitoring Protocol; designed to assess how effective the management system is for maintaining aquatic health for fish and fish habitat, and to generate monitoring results which will be used in the adaptive management framework assessment and adjustment phases.

As part of the FHMS, in the 2000’s, the Reference Condition Approach (RCA) was selected by Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Yukon Government, in consultation with first nations and industry, to help assess and monitor aquatic health; and the Canadian Aquatic Biomonitoring Network (CABIN) as the warehouse used to store and analyze the Yukon placer RCA dataset (Reynoldson and Bailey, 2013; Reynoldson and Baily, 2014; Reynoldson et al. 2016). This RCA approach uses benthic invertebrates as an ecosystem indicator of aquatic health, and aquatic health as a surrogate for the health of fish and fish habitat. In an effort to improve its reliability, the RCA model has undergone several revisions, the most recent in 2013.  Overall however, DFO FPP has recently identified concerns about the reliability of the (Yukon 2013) RCA model (Yukon Placer Unit, 2018).  Given that the RCA results are used to inform adaptive management, and to make regulatory decisions under the Fisheries Act, it is important that DFO FPP is able to determine with confidence, if the aquatic health of streams exposed to placer mining activity is being maintained or improved over time.

DFO Fisheries Protection Program has requested that DFO Science Branch evaluate the suitability of the Reference Condition Approach (RCA), and provide guidance regarding its adequacy to inform regulatory decisions for placer mining in the Yukon. The advice arising from this Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) Science Response Process (SRP) will be used to inform DFO FPP on the effectiveness of the RCA model in detecting changes in aquatic health in streams exposed to placer mining activity.

Objective

The specific objectives of this review are to:

1. Evaluate whether the RCA is a suitable method for evaluating the effects of placer mining activity on the aquatic health of fish and fish habitat.
1. Review the RCA and the BEAST (Benthic Assessment of SedimenT) model used by CABIN, in relation to the objectives outlined in the Aquatic Health Monitoring Protocol (AHMP).
2. Evaluate the strengths and limitations of the current approach. 
2. Evaluate the performance of the current (Yukon 2013) RCA Model.
1. Review the error rates of the current model and compare those to other applications of the RCA approach.
2. Discuss trade-offs between error rates and regulatory decisions.
3. Review alternative modeling approaches for benthic invertebrate data and discuss options for improving model error rates.
3. Evaluate sampling design and protocol.
1. Summarize spatial and temporal variation of existing invertebrate data collected under the AHMP.
2. Discuss how spatial and temporal variation can inform site selection, monitoring frequency, and adaptive management.
3. Evaluate CABIN sampling protocol used in the AHMP and identify sources of sampling error or bias.
4. Evaluate current predictor variables used in the Yukon 2013 RCA model and statistical procedures for selecting predictor variables.
1. Review the role of predictor variables in the modelling approach.
2. Assess the utility of current predictor variables.
3. Compare the approach to predictor variable selection with standard statistical procedures for predictor selection.

Expected Publications

• Science Response

Expected Participation

• Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Science Branch Pacific Region
• DFO Fisheries Protection Program, Ecosystem Management Branch Pacific Region

References

Reynoldson, T.B., and Bailey, J.L. 2013. Revision of the Yukon CABIN Invertebrate Bioassessment Model using 2004-12 Reference Site Data. 75 pgs.

Reynoldson, T.B., and Bailey, J.L. 2013. Model Name: Yukon 2013. Reference Model Supporting Documentation for CABIN Analytical Tools. 11pgs.

Reynoldson, T.B., Bailey, R.C., and Bailey, J.L. A Review of the Yukon Placer Mining Aquatic Health Monitoring Protocol Implementation. 2016. 99pgs.

Yukon Placer Aquatic Health Working Group. 2008a. Fish Habitat Management System for Yukon Placer Mining: Adaptive Management Framework. 16pgs.

Yukon Placer Aquatic Health Working Group. 2008b. Fish Habitat Management System for Yukon Placer Mining: Aquatic Health Monitoring Protocol. 19pgs.

Yukon Placer Unit, 2018. Review of the 2013 Yukon RCA Model. 12pgs.