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Ecotoxicity of Snowpack Collected from Selected Sites in Québec, Canada

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Abstract

Sampling was conducted at seven sites on, and at varying distances adjacent to, the Island of Montréal (Québec, Canada), and as far as 1,100 km away in Northern Québec, to explore the hazard potential of snowpacks in remote, rural, and urban environments. Ecotoxic effects of melted snow were ascertained with a suite of small-scale bioassays representing several aquatic taxonomic groups (bacteria, micro-algae, micro-invertebrates, fish liver cells) as well as with biomarker measurements determined with a rainbow trout primary hepatocyte (RTPH) assay. Bioassays undertaken with the cnidarian Hydra attenuata and RTPH cell assays, and to a lesser extent with the micro-alga Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, proved particularly sensitive to infer the presence of bio-available pollutants in snow samples collected from all sites, thereby suggesting their contamination (at least) via atmospheric sources. Furthermore, biomarker responses indicated that snow samples presumably included metals (free Zn biomarker), organics (CYP 1A1 biomarker), estrogens (alkali-labile phosphate biomarker) as well as chemicals capable of causing oxidative stress (LPO biomarker), depending on the site being considered. Overall, effects data acquired during this preliminary investigation on the ecotoxicity of snowpacks submit that adverse impact toward aquatic biota is conceivable at some sites during spring meltdown. Because snow has a recognized affinity for sequestering solids and contaminants of atmospheric origin, future studies aimed at identifying sources and chemicals implicated in observed effects are legitimate endeavors.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by Environment Canada. Special thanks are extended to Conrad Beauvais and Michel Arseneau for snow sampling.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fluvial Ecosystems Research, Aquatic Ecosystem Protection Research Division, Water Science and Technology Directorate, Environment Canada, 105 McGill Street, Montréal, Québec, H2Y 2E7, Canada

    François Gagné, Laurier Poissant & Christian Blaise

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  1. François Gagné
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  2. Laurier Poissant
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  3. Christian Blaise
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Correspondence to Christian Blaise.

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Gagné, F., Poissant, L. & Blaise, C. Ecotoxicity of Snowpack Collected from Selected Sites in Québec, Canada. Water Air Soil Pollut 201, 121–133 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-008-9932-4

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