Biodiversity assessment in the Oil Sands region, northeastern Alberta, Canada

Abstract

The Oil Sands region of northeastern Alberta contains the world's largest reserves of oil, in the form of tar-sand. In the Oil Sands region, a large number of environmental impact assessments (EIAs) have been completed for approximately 20 oil sands projects in the past two decades. The EIA process here is unique, in that stakeholders in the region (First Nations, industry representatives, scientists, and residents) have selected indicators of ecological health of the area, including biodiversity. This paper discusses the process of biodiversity assessment using the indicators selected by stakeholders in relation to the overall goals to maintain biodiversity in the region.

Keywords:

• Oil Sands
• environmental impact assessment
• cumulative effects
• stakeholders
• reclamation
• closure
• residual effects
• biodiversity
• mitigation