Regional Aquatics Monitoring Program (RAMP) - Joint Oil Sands Monitoring Plan Update

Nov 16 2012

As the new environmental monitoring system in the oil sands region continues to evolve, RAMP is providing support to the transition process, while continuing to maintain, and integrate, its current monitoring activities with the direction being taken by the Joint Oil Sands Monitoring (JOSM) Plan.

In the past year, RAMP has actively participated in planning and technical sessions with representatives of provincial and federal bodies including the following meetings:

Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development’s (ESRD) internal Hydromet management meetings
ESRD and Water Survey of Canada planning meeting
JOSM Plan water quality and sediment planning meeting
ESRD and Water Survey of Canada joint oil sands integrated planning meeting
Federal-Provincial Oil Sands Laboratory Workshop
JOSM Plan fish planning meeting
JOSM Plan benthos/fish planning meeting

Throughout this process RAMP has been pursuing the goal of harmonizing and integrating our long-standing and data-rich program with the JOSM Plan. During the evolutionary process of the JOSM Plan, RAMP has taken the following actions:

Invited to participate in working groups for benthos and fish formed by Environment Canada and ESRD
Collaborated on benthic, water quality, sediment and fish field work with Environment Canada and ESRD
Provided monitoring station information to Environment Canada and ESRD, outlining alignment with stations in the JOSM Plan
Aligned water quality collection variables with the recommendations of the JOSM Plan

RAMP will continue to support and be engaged in the creation of a new monitoring system for the Athabasca oil sands region, through continued sharing of information and data, and knowledge-sharing regarding the logistics of field programs and oil sands area information. We will also review the recommendations of our peer review to assess activities being addressed, or to be addressed, by RAMP or the JOSM Plan.

During the transition period to the new monitoring system, RAMP will continue with its aquatic monitoring programs. We will continue to make our data available to government and to the public via the RAMP website at www.ramp-alberta.org.