Diane Orihel – The Conversation

A highway loops around a tailings pond at the Syncrude facility in Fort McMurray, Alta. The proximity of such toxic wastewater ponds to nature threatens its biodiversity. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

May 7, 2023

As Alberta’s oilsands continue leaking toxic wastewater, aquatic wildlife face new risks

Diane Orihel, Queen's University, Ontario; Chloe Robinson, Queen's University, Ontario, and Chris K. Elvidge, Carleton University

As toxic water continues to spill from tailings ponds across mining developments, decades of scientific research provides evidence of how wildlife will be affected.

Gathering at a scientific field station for a Water Ceremony led by the Women’s Council of Grand Council Treaty #3. (IISD-Experimental Lakes Area)

April 6, 2023

Weaving Indigenous and western ways of knowing can help Canada achieve its biodiversity goals

Lydia Johnson, Queen's University, Ontario and Diane Orihel, Queen's University, Ontario

Canada’s commitment to halt biodiversity loss can only be realized by weaving together Indigenous and non-Indigenous knowledge.

Scarecrows float in an oilsands tailings pond to keep birds from landing, in Fort McMurray, Alta., in June 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

September 16, 2020

New technology makes wastewater from the oilsands industry safer for fish

Diane Orihel, Queen's University, Ontario and Jessie Reynolds, Queen's University, Ontario

New regulations will allow oilsands companies to release 1.3 trillion litres of liquid waste into the Athabasca River in 2022. A new technology could clean the wastewater before it’s let go.

Air, water, land and wildlife are tainted with thousands of chemicals that we cannot see, smell or touch — and may not be considered a threat to wildlife. (Shutterstock)

November 27, 2019

Wildlife are exposed to more pollution than previously thought

Diane Orihel, Queen's University, Ontario

Scientists have a new approach to understanding how pollution threatens species at risk in Canada.

Plastics pile up at Thilafushi, an artificial island created as a landfill, in the Maldives. (Shutterstock)

April 18, 2019

Cities and countries aim to slash plastic waste within a decade

Chelsea Rochman, University of Toronto and Diane Orihel, Queen's University, Ontario

Without action, the amount of plastic waste produced globally could reach as much as 265 million tonnes per year by 2060.

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