Having only started my graduate studies in September 2019, I quickly jumped at the chance to participate in fieldwork. Landing in Québec City on November 23rd, I spent the next 5 days cruising along the north shore of the St. Lawrence River with a colleague from Environment and Climate Change Canada. Our fieldwork involved the deployment of passive air samplers (PAS) in various population-based locations classified as either urban, industrial, small town, or village areas. This sampler deployment is involved with my graduate project, fondly referred to as “The Whale Project,” and aims to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms for a man-made class of contaminants known as perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS).
(Context: Due to an ability to bioaccumulate and biomagnify, PFAS exposures have been associated with adverse health effects in both humans and wildlife. Studies examining PFAS contamination in aquatic food webs have exposed the risk they pose to apex predators such as seals, polar bears, and whales. Consequently, the 2018 Canadian federal budget provided funding for the protection and recovery of nationally at-risk whale populations. This research proposes to examine atmospheric sources of PFAS in those areas home to the St. Lawrence Estuary Belugas and the Southern Resident Killer Whales.)
In short, the samplers function as a filter pack assembly: at the bottom of a petri dish, a filter is sandwiched in between 2 rings with a second type of filter above it and a plastic ring at the top to keep the components firmly in place. A strip of Velcro is placed at the bottom of the petri dish which is then stuck to the roof of a weatherproof, capped housing setup. At five chosen sites, triplicates of these samplers were hung in trees – fingers crossed that they’re all still where I left them! Although this was relatively short for a field campaign, I truly am grateful for the opportunity I was given. This trip not only gave me firsthand experience of what it’s like to be in the field but also opened my eyes to the crazy amount of organization, teamwork, and enthusiasm needed to prepare for any sort of fieldwork. It was an added bonus that I was able to get in some sightseeing over the 5 days and see places that I never would have thought to travel to. Overall, this trip to Québec was the perfect introduction to fieldwork and I look forward to any and all future opportunities!
*Was the title of my daily, 60-second, snapchat “vlogs”
