Atmospheric Ammonia in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region

Webinar Presented By:  PhD Greg Wentworth, Atmospheric Scientist, Alberta Environment and Parks Department

Speaker Bio:  Greg Wentworth is a graduate from Wilfrid Laurier University with a BSc in Chemistry and from the University of Toronto.

He studies atmospheric chemistry, measuring chemicals, particularly ammonia, in the atmosphere to understand where they come from, how they react, and what impacts they have for air quality, ecosystem health, and climate change. His work has revealed the importance of some unorthodox ammonia sources: decomposing seabird feces in the high arctic, and evaporating dew.  To learn more about Greg Wentworth, click on his Profile

Abstract:  The Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) in northeastern Alberta is the largest of the three oil sands deposits in Canada. Environmental monitoring in the AOSR has been ongoing for decades and recent efforts have revealed potential ecological responses linked to nitrogen deposition at forest and wetland monitoring sites. Hence, it is important to understand the sources that introduce nitrogen to these ecosystems through atmospheric deposition. Approximately half of the nitrogen from deposition at these sites is reduced inorganic nitrogen (i.e., ammonia and ammonium). This talk reviews recent literature that helps identify the main regional sources of ammonia, and discusses future work that can further improve our understanding of ammonia sources. This talk will also emphasize the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in the field of environmental monitoring and science.

Registration:

Access through MyLS:  Chemistry and Biochemistry Seminar Series   or

If you are outside of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, please register a few days in advance for this meeting.

Zoom Link:  https://wilfrid-laurier.zoom.us/j/93207436021

Passcode:  231020