Grant: Strategic Projects - Group

There is potential to apply nanotechnology to almost every sector of industry, including consumer products, agriculture, health care and transportation, as well as bioremediation and water treatment. However, during the manufacture and use of nanomaterials (NMs), they will be released into the environment where they may produce adverse environmental impacts. While nanotechnology has the potential to produce many societal benefits, it should also be a priority to better understand the risks posed to aquatic organisms by NMs released into the environment. Several international jurisdictions have already recognized the need to support research in this area and have identified research priorities, including the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the US Environmental Protection Agency, the European Union, and the U.K. This proposal outlines a research program that will focus on evaluating the fate and effects of engineered NMs once they are released into the aquatic environment. In addition, the research team will evaluate current methods for assessing the ecological risks of NMs released into the aquatic environment and will make recommendations for appropriate methods for exposure and effects assessment. This research program will be conducted by a multidisciplinary group of academic researchers located at Trent University, the University of Ottawa and the University of Alberta. Aspects of this work will be supported through in-kind contributions and technical support from the NRC National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT) in Edmonton, Alberta, Dow Corning Corporation and Environment Canada.