News Category: News
Fin fish aquaculture in coastal British Columbia waters 
Sharon DeDominicis, RPBio
Sharon DeDominicis is the Environmental Sustainability Manager for Marine Harvest Canada, the largest salmon aquaculture company in British Columbia and the world. She has a
Bachelor of Science degree (Ecology) from the University of Calgary and has been a Registered Professional Biologist since 1991 (Province of Alberta, then British Columbia). Over her 25 year career she has authored more than 200 environmental impact assessments for a variety of resource sectors, focusing exclusively on aquaculture since 2001. In addition to managing provincial and federal regulatory compliance, she represents Marine Harvest Canada on several technical advisory boards, including the British Columbia Salmon
Farmers Technical Working Group and the Province of British Columbia Finfish Aquaculture Waste Control Regulation Advisory Group, and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Monitoring, Inspection and Auditing Technical Committee. Scope of work includes active engagement with environmental groups such as the Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform (CAAR), World Wildlife Fund and First Nation collaborative projects, and collaborative projects with academia and government researchers. Sharon has been the recipient of several awards including the Outstanding Woman of Honor – Aquaculture Sector (2007) from the Women of Resource Communities, and has been nominated for environmental manager of the year (Aquaculture Sector) in 2007 and 2008.
Question 1. What do you think are the key issues surrounding open water fin fish aquaculture (fish farming) on B.C.’s coast?
From the perspective of a professional biologist working in the fin-fish aquaculture sector, I see three overarching challenges for the sector: business related (meeting global demands
for the product), biological performance (stock health, environmental impacts), and public perception. Effectively reducing public concern related to environmental impacts associated with fish farming is critical for the success of the industry. Salmon farming needs to incorporate a variety of ideological perspectives to focus on environmental solutions, engage public interests and communicate well to secure its social license.
The global demand for finfish and shellfish is growing by about 9 percent a year (FOC 2009) applying considerable pressure to the world’s capture fisheries. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, by 2005 75% of the world’s capture fisheries were at – or near – their maximum harvest rates (http://www.fao.org/docrep/009/a0699e/A069 9E05.htm ). Aquaculture is an important part of the world’s food supply and by 2020 will likely provide quantities of fish comparable to wild fisheries. Canada, with the world’s
longest coastline, has a huge potential for aquaculture, yet in 2006 it ranked 23rd among world aquaculture producers and contributed less than 0.3% of the total global output (FOC
2009).
Modern salmon culture in the Pacific region includes stock enhancement, farming and ranching – tracing its origins to hatchery technology developed to mitigate stock impacts to Pacific Northwest riverine systems, from anthropogenic activities such as the construction of hydroelectric dams. This eventually evolved into enhancement and ranching programs that currently release more than 5 billion fry into the wild environment from Canada, Russia, Japan and the United States every year (Beamish et al. 1997). Many of these fish are later captured by commercial and recreational fishermen as ‘wild’ salmon. Up to 80 % of the juvenile coho salmon in southern BC coastal waters have been attributed to enhancement projects (Noakes et al. 2000). Commercial salmon farming shares the same genesis and much of the same technology; the main difference being, the stock is held captive throughout its life cycle.
From an animal husbandry perspective, raising stock in an uncontrolled environment such as marine areas requires extensive knowledge of the ocean and health requirements of the
species or stock. Over the past 30 years, considerable strides in understanding ocean hydrodynamics, marine chemistry, phytoplankton, salmonid pathogens (viral and bacterial), external parasites, marine engineering and infrastructure have been made. Fish health research has provided techniques for rapid disease diagnosis and treatment. Vaccines have been developed for the most common bacterial (and even for some viral) agents. Advances in adult salmon fish health management and nutrition along with success in maintaining healthy, disease free stocks of fish have been well documented in the animal science literature. Unfortunately, because this is such a specialized industry, substantive improvements in marine husbandry are not well understood and/or well known, particularly by the general public or by the salmon enhancement sector. Reducing stock mortality during occasional periods of critically low dissolved oxygen and/or during harmful algae blooms continues to be a principal challenge facing the Pacific coast industry.
It is appropriate for the public to hold any industry or sector accountable for any negative impacts to public resources used in the course of their operations – in this case ocean ater, the soils beneath the cages and wild fisheries resources. At the same time it is important these same citizen interests be made aware of the management actions taken to address these issues and the progress made towards mitigation/reduction/elimination of these concerns. The inability to effectively communicate technological and environmental gains has been a marked failure of the industry. For example the view presented by some sources and widely covered by the media holds that sea lice from farmed salmon are a significant factor in the disappearance of Fraser River sockeye salmon. Yet, even a superficial examination of the state of knowledge here reveals much information that questions this assertion. This includes: i) no research has yet demonstrated sea lice infestation to cause morbidity or mortality to juvenile sockeye salmon; ii) the weight of research findings into the impact of sea lice on wild pink salmon feared to be significant, even leading to extinction, have not found an effect at the population level (BC PSF 2009); iii) salmon farms can currently control the numbers of sea lice on their stocks to ensure that they remain at or below the ambient levels in the marine environment; and iv) the species of sea lice most commonly reported on juvenile sockeye (Caligus clemensi) is not specific to salmon and has a low abundance on farmed salmon. While this information may provide balance when reviewed and understood in its totality, the message most frequently offered by mainstream media is that of uncontrolled harm.
Question 2. Where do you think there is room for improvement in regards to fish farm management in coastal British Columbia by all sectors involved?
Industry success will be determined by its economic, social and environmental sustainability. Economic and environmental sustainability require regulatory certainty and consistency, science and innovation. Political stability is fundamental to build industry and public confidence. The British Columbian aquaculture industry is currently experiencing a change in regulatory authority following a British Columbia Supreme Court (BCSC) decision in February 2009 that ruled that the activity of aquaculture is a fishery which falls under exclusive federal jurisdiction pursuant to sub-section 91(12) of the Constitution Act, 1867 – Sea Coast and Inland Fisheries. In 2008, the federal government announced of a $70 million 5-year plan to support aquaculture innovation ($25 million), improve governance ($13 million), advance regulatory science ($22 million) and facilitate certification and market access ($10 million) (DFO October 2008).
Management of the sector is likely to improve with an expanded focus on collaboration amongst First Nations, environmental groups, governments, academics, industry, local communities and interested parties. Emergence of this approach to governance can be demonstrated in examples such as the Framework for Dialogue agreement struck between the Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform (CAAR) and Marine Harvest Canada (MHC) in January 2006. The agreement provides opportunities for discussion around a number of matters of mutual interest including collaborative research on sea lice, sustainable technology innovation and public communication. Demonstrated value of the relationship is evidenced in the joint support of a Coordinated Area Management Plan (CAMP) for the Broughton Archipelago, where salmon production is coordinated to create fallow routes for juvenile wild salmon migrating from their natal streams. A key element of CAMP is the establishment of a collaborative monitoring/research program to ascertain the effectiveness/biological utility of the out migration corridors and related management activities.
Progressive industries recognize the value in investments in innovation. Although there are currently no viable commercial-scale closed containment systems for rearing salmon operating anywhere in the world, advances in technology may make closed containment systems viable in the future. We have completed a number of pilot projects here in British Columbia and continue to invest in joint ventures and studies to measure success and weigh all environmental factors. Two problem areas with current closed containment systems are the use of fossil fuels to maintain water temperature, growing conditions and associated fish health impacts. For a report analyzing more than 40 closed containment systems from around the world please see http://www.dfompo.gc.ca/csas/Csas/Publications/SARAS/2008/2008_001_e.htm
Question 3. Can you suggest specific measure or steps which can be taken to resolve this debate before another decade goes by?
Unfortunately, at present, the dialogue on the risks and benefits of farming fish is mired in polarized debate with positional language and accusations serving as the foundation for discussion rather than development of science-based discussions. Historical evidence suggests that it often takes decades for applied science to resolve issues, especially with regard to emerging industries and technologies. As information builds the debate continues on finer and finer areas of knowledge, and the initial hypotheses continually evolve and refine.
Growth of the Canadian aquaculture sector has been slow compared to other jurisdictions largely due to divergent opinions on the sustainability of the newly emerging agribusiness. The differing opinions arise in part from the newness of the industry along the coastline (where fish harvesting has been dominated by wild and enhanced stock capture) and also due to the lack of locally relevant science assessing the potential impacts of the industry. In 1984 there were 10 salmon farms operating on the British Columbia coast, by 1988 there were 101 salmon farming companies and 118 active farms (Peter Robson 2006). By 1992, about half of the companies had disappeared from the coast due to technical challenges growing the stock, financial instability, poor site selection and a drop in salmon prices in the marketplace. The rapid growth in the industry occurred in the absence of a coordinated regulatory system. Increasing public concerns about the effects of the industry on the marine environment and on other coastal users led to a provincially mandated moratorium on expansion in 1986 and again in 1995 while complex multi-stakeholder environmental assessments of the industry were completed (Gillespie Enquiry 1986, Salmon Aquaculture Review 1997).
There have been three science-based reviews of the industry: Gillespie Enquiry, SAR, and the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 2001. The
over-arching conclusion was that the salmon farming industry, at the time of review, presented a low overall risk to the environment. Continued regulatory and public focus on aquaculture led to the broader based Legislative Assembly of British Columbia Special Committee on Sustainable Aquaculture (November 2005 to May 2007) and another sciencebased review conducted by the Pacific Salmon Forum (December 2004 to January 2009) http://www.pacificsalmonforum.ca
In response to continuing public uncertainty provincial and federal regulatory agencies have adopted a precautionary approach to managing the industry – while investing considerable resources into research projects to further the body of BC specific science. Research includes studies on sea lice, benthic monitoring, feed conversion ratios, fish health, and closed
containment systems. A list of studies can be found at http://www.salmonfarmers.org/studies_and_publications.php or on government websites (DFO, Ministry of Environment, MAL).
Management of the fish farm industry has been in a evolving since farms first appeared on the coast. The British Columbia salmon farming industry is subject to 52 separate provincial and federal statutes, regulations, policies and guidelines, as well as numerous municipal and regional district land use and development regulatory instruments. A regulatory comparison chart can be found at http://www.al.gov.bc.ca/fisheries/Finfish/cabinet/Summary_Table_BCWorld_Aqua_Regs.pdf
Since 2003 the industry has been monitoring and reporting sea lice information to government authorities as part of a broader program known as the Provincial Sea Lice Management Strategy. The results are publically available on the MAL website (http://www.al.gov.bc.ca/ahc/fish_health/sealice_monitoring_results.htm ) and at some company websites (example, http://www.marineharvestcanada.com ). In addition to regular monitoring, treatment trigger levels were established in 2003 which are comparable to other international jurisdictions. Serious health and growth performance issues associated with sea lice infestations have plagued the salmon farming industries in Europe and eastern North America. This has not been the case in either Japan or Canada’s west coast (Johnson et al. 2004). Heavy infestations resulting in mortality or damage to farmed Pacific or Atlantic salmon stocks from sea lice infections are rare in BC.
Over the past 7 years (2003-2010) our knowledge of sea lice biology (life history, distribution, abundances, tolerances) and the susceptibility and resistance of salmonids to lice has substantially improved. Significant findings relevant to the BC situation are listed below.
1. There are several different species of sea lice that infect salmonids in the marine waters of British Columbia, the two most common are Lepeophtheirus salmonis and Caligus clemensi. Most of the ‘sea lice debate’ focuses on the interactions between farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), juvenile Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) and L. salmonis.
2. Recent studies have found significant genetic differences between Pacific and Atlantic L. salmonis, suggesting the two groups may be different species, which may explain the different clinical presentation of sea lice impacts in farmed salmon internationally (Todd et al 2004; Yazawa et al 2008).
3. Resistance to sea lice varies between salmon species. Studies report that when Pink salmon weighing less than 25g were exposed to > 200 L. salmonis/salmon about
50% became infected but there was no death or signs of sickness and within 3 weeks post infection most of the infected fish had shed the lice. By contrast, 100% of Atlantic salmon became infected, and died or were seriously sick within 12 days post infection when similarly infected (50g fish) (Ross et al 2000; Jones et al 2007; Wagner et al 2007; Jones et. al 2008).
4. Pink salmon appear to be highly resistant to sea lice infections. In fact, very little mortality was associated with laboratory studies on fish larger than 0.7g (Jones et al 2008b). It has been estimated that Pink salmon immunity to sea lice is fully developed by the time Pink salmon are less than 1.0 grams in size and appears to coincide with changes to the
skin, including the start of scale development (Jones et al 2008b).
5. Both laboratory and field studies have demonstrated the ability of Pink salmon to shed lice. One study found that this ability was not compromised even when salmon were held on reduced ration to the point that they were smaller and skinnier than the controls (Jones et al 2008a).
6. Recent research by Fisheries and Oceans Canada has shown that the proportion of wild Pink salmon juveniles at risk from sea lice declined from 4.5% to 0% between 2005 and 2009 in the Broughton Archipelago region. In the spring of 2008, there were no recorded lethal infections of L. salmonis on Pink salmon less than 0.7 grams in this region (lethal size thresholds based on published trials). In 2009, similar observations show that no Pink salmon less than 0.7 grams were at risk to L. salmonis.
7. When wild juvenile pinks were surveyed off the north coast of BC, (a region devoid of salmon farms) prevalence of all lice on the wild salmon was found to be over 13% (i.e. 13% of fish carried lice), and intensity averaged 1.2 lice/fish. C. clemensi were more predominant than L. salmonis (Gottesfeld et al. 2005). Similar results were found in wild juvenile pink salmon surveyed in the midcoast of BC, another region with a few salmon farms. In this region, prevalence and intensity were 18% and 2 lice per fish respectively (Butterworth et al. 2007). However in this study more L. salmonis than C. clemensi were observed.
8. Farming companies continue to refine management techniques in response to research results. Sea lice management (monitoring and treatment) is intensified during the critical outmigration period when wild salmon are at their smallest (March – May). There has been a steady decrease in farm sea lice numbers since 2007 in the Broughton (http://www.agf.gov.bc.ca/ahc/fish_health/sealice_monitoring_results.htm ).
9. Management practices and production tonnage in the Broughton Archipelago have been relatively consistent from 2003-2009, yet pink salmon returns continue to be as variable as they have been historically (http://www.pac.dfompo.gc.ca/science/aquaculture/pinksalmon-saumonrose/resultsresultats/index-eng.htm ).
10. Peak pink salmon returns occurred in 2009 in the Broughton (and elsewhere along the coastline). Historical highs were also reported 1975, 1993 and 2001 in the archipelago. Conversely, historical lows were reported 1953, 1969, 1991 and 2002 (http://www-ops2.pac.dfompo.gc.ca/xnet/content/salmon/sc stad/bulletins.htm ).
11. Even with all the monitoring and management, the farms are administering very few treatments (normally no more than 1.5 treatments/crop cycle) (Dr. Sonja Saksida personal communication; http://www.marineharvestcanada.com )
Question 4. How would you suggest ways in which biology professionals can become better informed and involved in addressing fish farm issues?
Websites and blogs devoted to salmon farming issues tend to be either pro (example: company or farming association sites http://www.marineharvestcanada.com ) or con (example: http://www.farmedanddangerous.org) regarding the issues of concern and progress made to address concerns. Frequent reviews of these sources will make an interested biologist
aware of the current state of debate around salmon farming but may be repetitious with respect to narrow source material or may not provide the desired level of information
balance. The recent report by Pacific Salmon Forum with its appendix of research findings is a timely and concise reference http://www.pacificsalmonforum.ca. Of course, a good source of information can be colleagues working directly in the field.
Much of the BC environmental impact research has been conducted by biologists who are CAB members and enquiries made through the APB list serve may elicit private responses and communication with professionals who were directly involved in the field work and data analysis. Similarly many of those given the responsibility for monitoring the performance of this industry to the targets and thresholds established in regulations for environmental sustainability are CAB professionals.
Employment opportunities exist through various avenues including government, universities, advocacy groups and industry. Institutions and agencies involved with salmon aquaculture include but are not limited to: Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, University of British Columbia, University of Victoria, Vancouver Island University, Center for Aquatic Health Sciences (Campbell River) and the Pacific Salmon Foundation. Opportunities for upgrade training in salmon aquaculture are available through many post secondary teaching institutions.
Salmon farm tours are available each year from July to September through the BC Salmon Farmers Association http://www.salmonfarmers.org/tours.php
Formal Dialogues provide another opportunity for biology professionals and multiple stakeholders to work towards common goals and understanding. These dialogues also allow interested parties to contribute to global initiatives that are working to build a more accountable, and therefore stronger, salmon farming industry. Such is the case with salmon
aquaculture’s involvement with the World Wildlife Fund’s Salmon Aquaculture Dialogue (http://www.worldwildlife.org/what/globalmarkets/aquaculture/dialoguessalmon.html) and Global Aquaculture Alliance’s Global Aquaculture Standard.
Question 5. How do you envision fish farming being part of the future economic, environmental and social fabric of BC’s coast?
Farmed salmon is already British Columbia’s largest agricultural export, employing over 6,000 people in production and supply and services (Price Waterhouse Coopers 2008 report). http://proxy.baremetal.com/salmonfarmers.org/attachments/2008_IndustryProfile_PWC.pdf
Future developments will build upon the current 80,000 metric tonne annual production base and allow fish farming in British Columbia to achieve its full potential of contributing 150,000 to 200,000 tonnes to domestic and international markets. At this scale of production, BC would see benefit from the expansion of associated spin off industries such as net and cage manufacturing as well as boat building.
In British Columbia, net-pen based salmon farming has demonstrated that it can contribute as a desirable component of the modern coastal economy and form a cornerstone of survival for remote communities. The Kitasoo Xai’xais First Nations and Marine Harvest have celebrated a decade of cooperative success bringing significant benefit to the community of Klemtu and representing a positive model for other First Nations groups in coastal BC. The Quatsino and Kwakiutl First Nations have also experienced similar successes with salmon aquaculture.
Continued focus on problem solving through innovation will likely realize further reductions in the risks of stock mortality and improved environmental management. Similarly, advancements leading to reduced costs of operation will allow the advent of closed system aquaculture or full recirculation plants that will be located near sources of three phase electricity and likely closer to larger population centers.
Species diversification remains an area of strong interest in BC aquaculture with the potential for several high value species still in the experimental stages. Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (where more than 1 species is grown together) is currently emerging on the coast.
References:
Beamish, R.J., Mahnken, C., Neville, C.M. 1997. Hatchery and wild production of Pacific salmon in relation to large-scale natural shifts in the productivity of the marine
environment. ICES Journal of Marine Science 54: 1200-1215.
BC Pacific Salmon Forum. 2009. BC Pacific Salmon Forum Final Report & and Recommendations to the Government of British Columbia January 2009.
Butterworth,K.G., Cubitt, K.F., McKinley, R.S. 2007. The prevalence, density and impact of Lepeophtheirus salmonis (Kroyer) infestations on juvenile pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) from the central coast of British Columbia, Canada. Fisheries Research 91: 35-41.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada. 2009. Federal BC Aquaculture Regulation & Strategic Action Plan Initiative. Discussion Document. Prepared by Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
November 2009.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada. 2008. Sustainable Aquaculture Initiative. http://www.dfompo.gc.ca/aquaculture/sustainabledurable/sustainable-durable-eng.htm
Gottesfeld, A.S., Ryan T., Rolston D., Proctor B. 2005. Sea lice and Pink salmon smolts on the North Coast of British Columbia. Retrieved January 20, 2008 from
http://www.skeenafisheries.ca/Publication_04-05_salmon_& Sea_lice_report.pdf .
Johnson, S.C., Treasurer, J.W., Bravo, S., Nagasawa, K., Kabata, Z. 2004 A review of the impact of parasitic copepods on marine aquaculture. Zoological Studies 43: 299-243.
Jones, S.R.M, Fast, M.D., Johnson, S.C., Groman, D.B. 2007. Differential rejections of sea lice by pink and chum salmon: disease consequences and expression of
proinflammatory genes. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 75: 229-239.
Jones, S.R.M., Fast, M.D., Johnson, S.C. 2008. Influence of reduced feed ration on Lepeophtheirus salmonis infestation and inflammatory gene expression in juvenile
pink salmon. Journal of Aquatic Animal Health 20: 103-109.
Jones, S.R.M., Kim, E., Bennett, W. 2008b. Early development of resistance to the salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis (Koyer) in juvenile pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha (Walbaum). Journal of Fish Diseases 31: 1365-2761.
Noakes, D.J., Beamish, R.J., Sweeting, R., King, J. 2000. Changing the balance: interactions between hatchery and wild Pacific coho salmon in the presence of regime shifts. North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission Bulletin 2: 155-164.
Peter A. Robson. 2006. Salmon Farming – The Whole Story. Heritage House Publishing Company Ltd. Surrey BC. 271pgs.
Ross, N.W., Firth K.J., Wang Al, Burka J.F., Johnson, S.C. 2000. Changes in hydrolytic enzyme activities of Naïve Atlantic salmon Salmo salar skin mucus due to infection with the salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis and cortisol implantation. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 41: 43-51.
Todd, C.D., Walker, A.M., Ritchie, M.G., Graves, J.A., Walker, A.F. 2004. Population genetic differentiation of sea lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) parasitic on Atlantic and Pacific salmonids: analysis of microsatellite DNA variation among wild and farmed hosts. Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 61: 1176-1190.
Wagner, G.N., Fast, M.D., Johnson, S.C. 2008. Physiology and immunology of Lepeophtheirus salmonis infections of salmonids. Trends in Parasitology Volume 24 No. 4.
Yazawa, R., Yasuike, M., Leong, J., vonSchalburg, K.R., Cooper, G.A., Beetz-Sargent, M., Robb, Al, Davidson, W.S., Jones, S.R.M., Koop, B.F. 2008. EST and Microchondrial DAN sequences support a distinct Pacific form of salmon louse, Lepeophtheirus salmonis. Marine Biotechnology 10: 741-749.
BioNews Vol 20, No. 1, pp. 14-19
Reptile predates dinosaurs by eons
Fossils of 240 million-year-old creature found in East Africa
By Amy Husser, Vancouver Sun, March 4, 2010 p. B4
A new “dinosaurlike” creature discovered recently in East Africa roamed the earth 10 million years earlier than its already ancient cousins, suggesting dinosaurs and their close relatives may have originated much earlier than previously believed.
The new specimen, known as Asilisaurus Kongwe—meaning ancient ancestor lizard—was a four-legged animal measuring one to three metres long and one-half to one metre high from the hips, with a beaklike lower jaw and triangular teeth. It weighed between nine and 30 kilograms.
It was likely an herbivore or omnivore, which may have offered an “evolutionary advantage” since ecosystems can support greater numbers of plant-eaters.
The fossils of at least 12 of these creatures were discovered in 2007 in Ruhuhu Valley of southern Tanzania, but the findings of the six-person team of researchers—including one Canadian—will be first published in this week’s edition of the journal Nature.
“If dinosaurs were equal to humans, then asilisaurus would be a chimp,” explained lead author Sterling Nesbitt. “So, it doesn’t share all of the features humans share, but it shares many, many of them.”
The researchers suggest the asilisaurus lived 240 million years ago—about 10 million years before the oldest known dinosaurs existed—placing its origin in the middle Triassic period instead of the upper Triassic, but still long before the subsequent Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, when dinosaurs ruled the earth before extinction.
“It definitely shows that there were lots of non-dinosaurian creatures that lived around the same time as the first dinosaurs,” said Linda Tsuji, a Mississauga, Ont., native who is completing a doctoral degree at Humboldt University in Berlin.
“It shows how diverse the world was at this time in terms of these kinds of reptiles,” she added. “It could have been that dinosaurs existed along with a whole bunch of other similar creatures or reptiles, but dinosaurs, in the end, became the dominant creatures in the upper Triassic [period] and into the Jurassic.”
Asilisaurus is part of a dinosaurlike sister group known as silesaurs, only first discovered in 2003, and the closest known relative to dinosaurs. Silesaurs and dinosaurs lived side by side during much of the Triassic period.
Nesbitt said tracing the lineage of the newly found creatures could potentially help to fill in some blanks in the family tree since the findings show some branches “outside of dinosauria” may have split off.
Judges Needed for Canada-Wide Science Fair
Up to 750 volunteers will be part of the picture when Peterborough experiences an explosion of originality, inspiration, and inquisitiveness as Canada’s talented science students congregate 90 minutes north-east of Toronto for the 49 th annual Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF) from May 15 – 23, 2010.
Organizers are still looking for 500 judges and 250 other volunteers to assist in this unique opportunity for Peterborough to host Canada’s brightest young students as they compete for up to $1 million in prizes in the premiere science fair in the country.
“Judging takes place over a one and half day period,” said Mark Dzurko, co-chair of the organizing committee. “So we need 500 judges during a concentrated period of time. Teachers, professors, engineers, people with backgrounds in the sciences are the type of people we need to contact us now. An important goal of the event is to promote youth education as well as the passion and enthusiasm of science. Our young Canadian scientists are the next generation of innovators and this is an amazing event to give confidence and support their interest.”
Hosted by the Peterborough Regional Science Fair, together with partnerships from various sponsors, the Canada Wide Science Fair 2010 will be held at Trent University and the Evinrude Centre in the City of Peterborough.
During the week, students in Grades seven to 12 from all provinces and territories will showcase projects for judges, local schoolchildren and the public. The students not only compete for close to $1 million in scholarships and grants, but they also foster friendships with fellow students from across the country. The public will be able to meet the students and view their projects.
Participants in the CWSF are finalists from 100 regional fairs that were held across the country. They compete in a variety of categories, including life sciences, health sciences, physical sciences, biotechnology, engineering, computer science and the recently added environmental innovation category.
For more details, please visit http://www.cwsf2010.ca .
For further information, please contact Gina Collins or Mark Dzurko, co-chairs, 2010 Canada-Wide Science Fair organizing committee at (705) 748-1011, ext. 7762
Galaxy merger mirrors early days of universe
Imagine finding a living dinosaur in your backyard.
Astronomers have found the astronomical equivalent of prehistoric life in our intergalactic backyard: small, ancient galaxies that have waited 10 billion years to come together.
These “late bloomers” are on their way to building a large elliptical galaxy.
“We found the oldest stars in a few ancient globular star clusters that date back to about 10 billion years ago. Therefore, we know the system has been around for a while,” says University of Western Ontario astronomer Sarah Gallagher, leader of the Hubble Space Telescope study.
“Most other dwarf galaxies like these interacted billions of years ago, but these galaxies are just coming together for the first time. This encounter has been going on for at most a few hundred million years, the blink of an eye in cosmic history.
“It is an extremely rare local example of what we think was a quite common event in the distant universe.”
The study will appear in the February issue of The Astronomical Journal.
Such encounters between dwarf galaxies are normally seen billions of light-years away and therefore occurred billions of years ago. But these galaxies, members of Hickson Compact Group 31, are relatively nearby, only 166 million light-years away.
New Hubble images of this foursome offer a window into the universe’s formative years when the buildup of large galaxies from smaller building blocks was common.
Astronomers have known for decades that these dwarf galaxies are gravitationally tugging on each other. Their classical spiral shapes have been stretched like taffy, pulling out long streamers of gas and dust. The brightest object in the Hubble image is actually two colliding galaxies.
The entire system is aglow with a firestorm of star birth, triggered when hydrogen gas is compressed by the close encounters between the galaxies and collapses to form stars.
The Hubble observations have added important clues to the story of this interacting group, allowing astronomers to determine when the encounter began and to predict a future merger.
Everywhere the astronomers looked in this group they found batches of infant star clusters and regions brimming with star birth. The entire system is rich in hydrogen gas, the stuff of which stars are made.
Gallagher and her team used Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys to resolve the youngest and brightest of those clusters, which allowed them to calculate the clusters’ ages, trace the star-formation history, and determine that the galaxies are undergoing the final stages of galaxy assembly.
The analysis was bolstered by infrared data from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope and ultraviolet observations from the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) and NASA’s Swift satellite. Those data helped the astronomers measure the total amount of star formation in the system.
“Hubble has the sharpness to resolve individual star clusters, which allowed us to age-date the clusters,” Gallagher adds.
Hubble reveals that the brightest clusters, hefty groups each holding at least 100,000 stars, are less than 10 million years old. The stars are feeding off of plenty of gas. A measurement of the gas content shows that very little has been used up—further proof that the “galactic fireworks” seen in the images are a recent event. The group has about five times as much hydrogen gas as our Milky Way Galaxy.
“This is a clear example of a group of galaxies on their way toward a merger because there is so much gas that is going to mix everything up,” Gallagher says.
“The galaxies are relatively small, comparable in size to the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way. Their velocities, measured from previous studies, show that they are moving very slowly relative to each other, just 134,000 miles an hour (60 kilometres a second). So it’s hard to imagine how this system wouldn’t wind up as a single elliptical galaxy in another billion years.”
Adds team member Pat Durrell of Youngstown State University: “The four small galaxies are extremely close together, within 75,000 light-years of each other—we could fit them all within our Milky Way.”
Why did the galaxies wait so long to interact?
Perhaps, says Gallagher, because the system resides in a lower-density region of the universe, the equivalent of a rural village. Getting together took billions of years longer than for galaxies in denser areas.
Hickson Compact Group 31 is one of 100 compact galaxy groups catalogued by Canadian astronomer Paul Hickson.
Gallagher’s science team consists of Pat Durrell (Youngstown State University), Debra Elmegreen (Vassar College), Rupali Chandar (University of Toledo), Jayanne English (University of Manitoba), Jane Charlton, Caryl Gronwal, and Jason Young (Penn State), Panayiotis Tzanavaris (NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center), Kelsey Johnson (University of Virginia), Claudia Mendes de Oliveira (University of Sao Paulo), Brad Whitmore (STScI), Ann Hornschemeier (NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center), Aparna Maybhate (STScI), and Ann Zabludoff (University of Arizona).
Dr. Sue Baldwin at UBC leading $1.6 million genomics project
Dr. Sue Baldwin at UBC is leading the $1.6 million project, The Development of Genomic Tools for Monitoring and Improving Passive Mitigation of Mine Drainage. The research aims to harness the potential of microbes naturally present in mine bioremediation to help improve strategies for cleaning up contaminated mine sites.
Summary
Mine drainage and other waste waters are potential sources of contamination for many different aquatic environments. This research group will characterize the complex microbial communities during bioremediation of mining waste water by using metagenomic profiles of the microorganisms at mine drainage sites. Current waste water treatment methods require large scale chemical treatment of both metal leaching (ML) and acid rock drainage (ARD) in order for mining to be environmentally sustainable.
Bioremediation provides an alternative to chemical treatments because microbial consortia are effective in reducing metals to less toxic forms or to sequester metals as part of their detoxification mechanism. In particular, sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) are effective in bioremediation of mine drainage. However, SRB rely on other members of a diverse microbial community to provide them with carbon compounds and other nutrients needed to survive. Therefore, understanding the complex interactions of the microbial community is essential to implement effective bioremediation and passive treatment systems. The research group will track existing consortia over time and in changing environmental conditions to monitor the effect of different variables on microbial community composition.
This research can improve the passive treatment of water where naturally occurring biological processes are harnessed to detoxify contaminated water.
More on the Science
When mine rock is exposed to both air and water the metals within can cause ARD and ML that are significant contaminants to the water supplies downstream of mining sites. The current method of dealing with both ARD and ML generates a toxic sludge and requires expensive chemical plants to decontaminate the metals. Bioremediation strategies decrease the cost of treatment as well as drastically improve the effectiveness in dealing with both ARD and ML. However, current methods to monitor the effectiveness of bioremediation and the associated microbial communities are inaccurate.
In order to fully understand the complex interactions of microbial flora at bioremediation sites the group will perform metagenomic and phylogenetic profiles of the communities using microarray technology. They will assess both the diversity of the different types of microbial species as well as the impact of changing environments on community composition.
The most important microorganisms for bioremediation of mining drainage are SRB that live in anaerobic environments and produce sulfide. The sulfide produced then reacts with metals in the water to form insoluble precipitates, thus effectively removing metals and neutralizing the sulfates in the mine drainage. These SRB co-exist in microbial communities that have complex biochemical interactions and rely on each other to supply the necessary nutrients. In particular, SRB require other microorganisms to degrade complex carbon compounds into simpler sources of electrons for their metabolism. Other microorganisms such as iron-reducing bacteria are antagonistic to SRB metabolism and interfere with effective bioremediation strategies.
The balance and composition of microbial communities at bioremediation sites needs to be accurately assessed in order to fully implement effective passive treatment strategies. The effect of changing environments on the composition of microbial communities is another important variable to monitor in order to fully understand the dynamic interactions within consortia at bioremediation sites.
Dr. Sally Aitken Wins Canadian Forestry Scientific Achievement Award
Dr. Sally Aitken from UBC received the Canadian Forestry Scientific Achievement Award for 2009. Created in 1980, this award recognizes unique and outstanding accomplishment in forestry research in Canada. Its objective is to encourage excellence in forest research.
Weight training improves cognitive function in seniors
Weight-bearing exercises may help minimize cognitive decline and impaired mobility in seniors, according to a new study conducted by the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility at Vancouver Coastal Health and the University of British Columbia.
The study, published today in the Archives of Internal Medicine, is one of the first randomized controlled trials of progressively intensive resistance training in senior women. Led by Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose, researcher at the Centre and assistant professor in the Faculty of Medicine at UBC, the research team found that 12 months of once-weekly or twice-weekly resistance training improved executive cognitive function in senior women aged 65 to 75 years old. Executive cognitive functions are cognitive abilities necessary for independent living.
“We were able to demonstrate that simple training with weights that seniors can easily handle improved ability to make accurate decisions quickly,” says Liu-Ambrose, who is also a researcher at the Brain Research Centre at UBC and Vancouver Coastal Health. “Additionally, we found that the exercises led to increased walking speed, a predictor of considerable reduction in mortality.”
Previous studies have shown that aerobic exercise training, such as walking or swimming enhances brain and cognitive function. However, seniors with limited mobility are unable to benefit from this type of exercise.
Until now, the benefits of resistance training, which is an attractive alternative type of exercise for seniors with limited mobility, on cognitive function has received little investigation. Liu-Ambrose is one of few researchers in Canada investigating the role of targeted resistance training in promoting mobility and cognitive in seniors.
Cognitive decline among seniors is a pressing health care issue and it is a key risk factor for falls. Approximately 30 per cent of B.C. seniors experience a fall each year and fall-related hip fractures account for more than 4,000 injures each year at a cost of $75 Million to the health care system.
The number of seniors in B.C. is expected to increase by 220 per cent by 2031, representing 23.5 per cent of B.C. population. Effective strategies to prevent cognitive decline are essential to improving quality of life for older British Columbians and to save the health care system millions in associated costs.
“At the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility we focus on research that will have a positive impact on the health of people in B.C. and Canada,” says Heather McKay, centre director and professor in the Faculty of Medicine at UBC. “Dr. Liu-Ambrose’s research provides a clear illustration of relatively simple interventions with a profound and immediate impact on the mobility and quality of life of older adults.”
Results from this study are available for immediate adoption by senior women seeking to improve their health as the doses of resistance training used meet the recommended criteria provided by the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for seniors.
Support for this research has been provided by a Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Establishment Grant, the Vancouver Foundation, and the BC Medical Services Foundation.
SCWIST remembers honorary member Joe Quan
Joe Dick Quan, honorary member of SCWIST passed away January 30, 2010. He was an early supporter of women in science and actively supported SCWIST from its starting days. Born in Vancouver on May 18, 1931, he graduated from UBC with a degree in commerce in 1955. His career spanned many areas including founding Customcolour Labs, real estate and being a Notary Public. He was active in the Grand Chapter of the Royal Arch Masons of BC and the Yukon and he was a founder and secretary of Keystone of Life.
He leaves his wife, Hilda Lei Ching, his sons Walter, Tom and Andy and their families. He is also survived by his brother Dick and good friend George Tanco. At his memorial service, his sons described his great love of life, his generosity and kindness. He was a loving father who taught his sons to be be considerate, polite and respectful.
Hilda and Joe were married for 49 years, a life full of adventures, travel and good friendships. He was proud to attend International meetings on women in science as Hilda’s spouse. He was a community leader and role model for many. We will miss him and his unique personality.
Trent Ph.D. Grad Reveals N. Atlantic Right Whale Endangered Not Only Because of Post—Basque Whaling
Dr. Brenna McLeod part of research team that discovered original population of rare whale smaller than first thought
Dr. Brenna McLeod, a recent Ph.D. graduate of the Environmental and Life Sciences program at Trent University, and Dr. Bradley White, chair of Biology, are part of a research team gaining much attention after a new study of ancient whale bones revealed that, although fewer than 450 North Atlantic right whales remain in the western North Atlantic, the demise of the species in this region is not only related to whaling in the 17th – 20th centuries, but might also be due to a pre-whaling event that limited genetic diversity in the species.
The study, recently published in the journal Conservation Genetics, was conducted during Dr. McLeod’s Ph.D. term at Trent under the supervision of Dr. White. Research was conducted in the Natural Resources DNA Profiling & Forensic Centre (NRDPFC) labs in Trent’s state-of-the-art DNA Building. The ancient DNA work was also done in Trent Anthropology professor Dr. Anne Keenleyside’s palaeo-DNA lab facility.
“The research conducted by Dr. McLeod was made possible by the DNA infrastructure obtained with a CFI grant to a group of Biology faculty and MNR scientists. This equipment together with the palaeo-DNA facilities of Trent’s Department of Anthropology provided a unique opportunity to study this highly endangered species,” says Dr. White. “The DNA Centre also holds the archive of DNA from 70 per cent of the species that has been collected over a period of 25 years with the close collaboration of the New England Aquarium in Boston.”
Typically perceived as a species that was once abundant and successful in the North Atlantic Ocean, the North Atlantic right whale in the Western North Atlantic was always assumed to have suffered a large population reduction because of 16th century Basque whalers. The discovery in 1978 of a 16th century Basque whaling galleon by historian Dr. Selma Barkham offered the first chance to test these assumptions.
The new study, which examines genetic characteristics of a single right whale bone recovered from the galleon that had sunk in the harbour of Red bay in 1565, is significant for today because it demonstrates that the right whale has had low levels of genetic diversity for far longer than had been thought.
“We were able to successfully extract DNA from these bones, as well as from bones that had been sitting on shore for over 400 years at long-forgotten 16th century Basque whaling stations scattered along the shores of Quebec and Labrador. We examined 218 whale bones in total to identify their species of origin and found that 217 were bowhead whale and only one was a right whale,” Dr. McLeod says. “There was no evidence of a right whale targeted hunt by the Basques in the Western North Atlantic!”
Today, recovery of the rare and endangered North Atlantic right whale is limited by several intrinsic and extrinsic factors – the combination of which makes it very difficult to predict the future survival of the species, and to assess the degree to which any particular factors are having an impact.
“Overall, our studies suggest that the North Atlantic right whale had a smaller historical (pre-commercial whaling) population size and has had low levels of genetic diversity for longer than has been thought. Both of these characteristics have now been shown to pre-date commercial exploitation of the species. This is a big surprise given what was previously thought,” explains Dr. McLeod, who is now teaching at Saint Mary’s University in Nova Scotia. “Humans are certainly responsible for the endangered status of the species – there is no doubt that the right whale was hunted in the eastern and western North Atlantic, and reduced to today’s critically low numbers, however the size of the overall population decrease was not as large as was previously thought. The removal of a substantial Basque whaling impact in the western North Atlantic suggests that the overall scale of the population reduction is smaller than was previously suggested.”
Donate blood with SCWIST!
SCWIST has recently joined the Partners for Life program with Canadian Blood Services. We have committed to promoting this great program and encouraging our Board, staff and members to donate blood.
Donating blood is simple to do and only takes about one hour of your time. Each donation can help save three lives and donors are eligible to give blood every 56 days. Can’t donate? Recruit a friend or family member to donate on your behalf!
Your donations are automatically counted towards our yearly pledged goal once you register as a SCWIST donor. To register with us please go to https://www.blood.ca/Web/PFL.nsf/Member?openform&Lang=E&SFDS=S&cURL;=/Web/PFL.nsf/French?OpenPage&Category=Forms and enter our Partner ID# soci010593 (4 letters, 6 digits), your name, phone number, date of birth and donor card number if you already have one.
There are numerous blood clinics available. Locations can be found online at http://www.blood.ca/centreapps/clinics/InetClinics.nsf/CVSE?OpenForm&CloseMenu;.
To book an appointment call 1-888-2DONATE (236-6283). Blood, it’s in you to give.
Confidence Helps Boost Teenage Girls’ Math Skills
MONDAY, Jan. 11 (HealthDay News)—Girls are as good as boys at math, but boys have more confidence in their math abilities, according to researchers who analyzed international data.
The finding that girls worldwide have less confidence in their math abilities may help explain why females are less likely than males to pursue careers in math, engineering, science and technology, wrote study author Nicole Else-Quest, a psychology professor at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, and colleagues.
The researchers found that girls in countries where gender equity is more common are more likely to have higher scores on math assessment tests. Girls were also more likely to do better in math and to have more confidence in their math skills if they lived in countries with more women in research-related positions, the study authors noted.
“Stereotypes about female inferiority in mathematics are a distinct contrast to the actual scientific data. These results show that girls will perform at the same level as the boys when they are given the right educational tools and have visible female role models excelling in mathematics,” Else-Quest said in a news release from the American Psychological Association.
For this study, the researchers analyzed data on 493,495 students from 69 countries, aged 14 to 16, who took part in two studies, the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study and the Program for International Student Assessment.
“This meta-analysis shows us that while the quality of instruction and curriculum affects children’s learning, so do the value that schools, teachers and families place on girls’ learning math. Girls are likely to perform as well as boys when they are encouraged to succeed,” Else-Quest said.
The study is published in the January issue of the journal Psychological Bulletin
—Robert Preidt
Source: http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=110308
View the article Cross-National Patterns of Gender Differences in Mathematics: A Meta-Analysis here
Girls May Learn Math Anxiety from Female Teachers
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID
Globe and Mail January 26, 2010, p. L4
WASHINGTON (AP)—Little girls may learn to fear math from the women who are their earliest teachers. Despite gains in recent years, women still trail men in some areas of math achievement, and the question of why has provoked controversy. Now, a study of first- and second-graders suggests what may be part of the answer: Female elementary school teachers who are concerned about their own math skills could be passing that along to the little girls they teach.
Young students tend to model themselves after adults of the same sex, and having a female teacher who is anxious about math may reinforce the stereotype that boys are better at math than girls, explained Sian L. Beilock, an associate professor in psychology at the University of Chicago.
Beilock and colleagues studied 52 boys and 65 girls who in classes taught by 17 different teachers. Ninety percent of U.S. elementary school teachers are women, as were all of those in this study.
Student math ability was not related to teacher math anxiety at the start of the school year, the researchers report in Tuesday’s edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
But by the end of the year, the more anxious teachers were about their own math skills, the more likely their female students – but not the boys – were to agree that “boys are good at math and girls are good at reading.”
In addition, the girls who answered that way scored lower on math tests than either the classes’ boys or the girls who had not developed a belief in the stereotype, the researchers found.
“It’s actually surprising in a way, and not. People have had a hunch that teachers could impact the students in this way, but didn’t know how it might do so in gender-specific fashion,” Beilock said in a telephone interview.
Beilock, who studies how anxieties and stress can affect people’s performance, noted that other research has indicated that elementary education majors at the college level have the highest levels of math anxiety of any college major.
“We wanted to see how that impacted their performance,” she said.
After seeing the results, the researchers recommended that the math requirements for obtaining an elementary education teaching degree be rethought.
“If the next generation of teachers – especially elementary school teachers – is going to teach their students effectively, more care needs to be taken to develop both strong math skills and positive math attitudes in these educators,” the researchers wrote.
Janet S. Hyde, a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, called the study a “great paper, very clever research.”
“It squares with an impression I’ve had for a long time,” said Hyde, who was not part of the research team.
Hyde was lead author of a 2008 study showing women gaining on men in math skills but still lagging significantly in areas such as physics and engineering.
Girls who grow up believing females lack math skills wind up avoiding harder math classes, Hyde noted.
“It keeps girls and women out of a lot of careers, particularly high-prestige, lucrative careers in science and technology,” she said.
Beilock did note that not all of the girls in classrooms with math-anxious teachers fell prey to the stereotype, but “teachers are one source,” she said.
Teacher math anxiety was measured on a 25-question test about situations that made them anxious, such as reading a cash register receipt or studying for a math test. A separate test checked the math skills of the teachers, who worked in a large Midwestern urban school district.
Student math skills were tested in the first three months of the school year and again in the last two months of the year.
The research was funded by the National Science Foundation.
