Grant: Research Tools and Instruments

A YSI Ecomapper autonomous underwater vehicle equipped with a 6-beam Doppler Velocity Log (DVL) is requested. This small autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is equipped with a sensor array for characterizing key lake physical and chemical parameters. The research programs supported are dedicated to the collaborative investigation of the biogeochemistry and freshwater ecology of subarctic freshwater lakes to better understand the controls on the spatial variability in mercury levels in fish, and to evaluate the impact of climate change. In the regions of interest in Canada's north, there is little to no data about fundamental parameters that affect fish mercury, such as water temperature, pH, or even lake depth. This research is conducted in lakes and watersheds in remote locations, requiring elaborate logistics (e.g. float planes) to access sites, sometimes only once. This means that there are limited opportunities (sometimes only one visit) to collect critical data needed to understand the spatial and temporal variability of physical and chemical parameters that affect mercury in fish. It also makes the acquisition of more intensive data such as lake bathymetry (a map of lake depth) impossible in many cases. The YSI Ecomapper instrument will provide essential data in support of these research initiatives. What differentiates it from a conventional water quality sensor package such as that in a conventional sonde is that it is effectively a self-propelled and self-guided mini-submarine, capable of three-dimensional mapping of water quality parameters. In addition to this, it is able to acquire detailed bathymetry data (lake bottom topography). which is critical data to determine lake volumes, turnover times, fish habitat, and lake stratification; all critical information needed for understanding fish ecology and mercury bioaccumulation. This instrument can acquire this data without the need for boat support, and can be delivered to lakes on foot, if needed, creating unprecedented opportunities to acquire information about remote northern lakes that currently do not exist. This state-of-the-science instrument will be used to train an estimated six highly qualified university personnel per year, and collaborating government scientists in the Northwest Territories will also have access. Three to four First Nations field assistants and technicians who work every year with the applicants will gain valuable experience with next-generation environmental monitoring approaches, and First Nations youth will be exposed to this exciting technology annually as part of a summer science outreach program that the applicants contribute to in the Deh cho region of the Northwest Territories.