Terms of Reference

Status Report on the Knowledge of the Fate and Behaviour of Diluted Bitumen in the Aquatic Ecosystems

National Peer Review – National Capital Region

April 19 and 20, 2017
Ottawa, Ontario

Chairperson: Gilles Olivier

Context

Effective spill response depends on good scientific understanding of the fate and behaviour of the petroleum product in the environment (e.g., movement and changes in physical properties and chemical composition of the oil that influence its environmental persistence and potential biological effects). Bitumen is a heavy crude oil being produced from Alberta oil sands that is diluted with lighter oil to enable its transport by pipeline. Information about the fate, behaviour, biological effects, and mitigation techniques for diluted bitumen is crucial to effective regulatory decision making, and for emergency planning and response.

As part of the Marine Safety System, investments have been made within Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and Natural Resources Canada to conduct research on diluted bitumen behaviour when spilled in aquatic environments and climate conditions found across Canada.

Objectives

The overarching objective is to summarize what has been learnt about the the fate, behaviour, biological effects, and mitigation techniques for diluted bitumen to inform future work and direction, as well as communicate the results to the public. Areas of uncertainty and knowledge gaps will be identified in order to inform a research agenda for future work. 

Specific questions to address at the meeting include:

• What is diluted bitumen and how does its composition vary between gathering lines within Alberta, and transmission pipelines that carry diluted bitumen out of Alberta?
• What do we know about diluted bitumen behaviour when spilled under which defined conditions? What environmental conditions or other factors influence their behaviour when spilled?
  • Real-world spill experience (e.g. Kalamazoo, MI spill, Gogama, ON spills, North Saskatchewan River, SK spill, etc.)
  • Results of laboratory and meso-scale studies
• What do we know about the effectiveness of response options to treat diluted bitumen spills? What environmental conditions or other factors influence their effectiveness?
  • Are conventional crude oil spill response countermeasures effective for diluted bitumen spills?
  • Is the countermeasure “time window-of-opportunity” for diluted bitumen different than for conventional crudes?
• Are the products currently being tested a fair representation of what is being transported throughout Canada?
• What are the priority gaps in knowledge related to diluted bitumen, and what are their implications for spill response and recovery?
• Compare the relative risks of diluted bitumen to conventional crudes if spilled into ecologically sensitive areas under which defined conditions?
• What analytical methods need to be updated to improve their accuracy and precision for predicting crude behavior including heavy oils?
• How do responders access GOC knowledge to obtain the information needed during a spill event?
• How can GOC scientists obtain samples and technical information from spill events to benchmark tank- and lab-scale results? 

Expected Publications

• Science Advisory Report
• Proceedings

Expected Participation

• Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) (e.g., Ecosystems and Oceans Science, and Ecosystems and Fisheries Management)
• Other Federal Government experts (e.g., Natural Resources Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada)
• Academia or Academics
• Industry
• Other invited experts