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The Pacific Shellfish Aquaculture Management Division (AMD) of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) requested recommendations regarding monitoring methodologies along with associated field and laboratory protocols that can be used by regulatory, industry and science personnel when carrying out environmental assessments. The sampling methods put forward in this report are intended to support a wide variety of approaches ranging from general areabased monitoring programs or local emerging issues associated with a significant knowledge gap. A suite of environmental variables that support bivalve aquaculture assessments was selected based on the following: 1) recommendations arising from government advisory processes and/or the scientific community; and 2) the ability of the indicator to detect potential shifts in ecosystem conditions and processes. The benthic variables selected include sediment texture, geochemical (e.g. organic, redox), macrofaunal, meiofaunal, and epifaunal attributes, while pelagic variables consist of both physical (temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, light) and biotic characteristics (phytoplankton, zooplankton). Relevant bivalve attributes include cultured and wild density, diversity, and condition indices. The pelagic and bivalve indicators represent a nutrient-seston-plankton-bivalve loop that can support a high-resolution, spatiallyexplicit, hydrodynamic-biogeochemical coupled model capable of evaluating ecological bivalve carrying capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Baynes Sound (BS), located in the waters of Georgia Strait, British Columbia (B.C.), is considered one of the most prolific production sites for bivalve culture in B.C. Bivalve production is influenced by a balance of water quality, hydrodynamics (bay flushing), and food supply (plankton). An ecological carrying capacity assessment is required to assess this balance, where mathematical models can integrate these complex interactions using a highresolution spatially-explicit model. The Finite Volume Community Ocean Model (FVCOM) was coupled with a Bivalve Culture Ecosystem Model (BiCEM) resorting to the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) to simulate bivalve physiology and their interactions with the ecosystem. These models were previously developed to address aquaculture issues in the Broughton Archipelago and Discovery Islands regions of B.C. The physical oceanographic conditions are simulated using FVCOM, analogous to previous aquaculture-motivated applications in the Broughton Archipelago and Discovery Islands. Both oceanographic observations and FVCOM outputs show a characteristic two-layered estuarine circulation over BS. This estuarine circulation appears to be strengthened or weakened by river run-off and atmospheric forcing on a seasonal scale and constitutes an overall key feature for the Sound's water inner circulation and exchange with the Strait of Georgia (SoG). The biogeochemical processes are simulated using BiCEM, which predicted that wind forcing, tidal mixing, and estuarine residual circulation contribute to the regular nutrient replenishment from the deep waters of the SoG, leading to high levels of pelagic primary productivity (phytoplankton). In turn, this phytoplankton productivity supports the potential for secondary production of zooplankton and bivalve culture. In general, the response of zooplankton and wild bivalve populations to the existing shellfish aquaculture activity indicates a system within the bounds of its ecological carrying capacity. Although the planned expansion of additional farm coverage and stock, currently under review, would impose an increased demand on the Sound's pelagic resources, the results do not indicate that the additional bivalve production could not be sustained. However, a precautionary approach should be considered with high-stocking scenarios and concentrated areas, such as, Fanny, Mud, and Deep Bays. Gradual aquaculture development in concert with proper monitoring of environmental and cultured shellfish conditions (Research Paper #2) in sensitive areas may provide sustainability of BS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat Research Document is the property of Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada as represented by the Minister of Fisheries & Oceans and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper describes the oceanographic and environmental conditions in the Discovery Islands area of British Columbia that are relevant to inform assessments of the risks to wild salmon populations due to pathogen transfer from salmon farms located in the Discovery Islands. Consequently, this paper mainly focuses on the oceanographic and environmental conditions expected to affect the persistence and dispersal of pathogens in the marine environment. The sources of information used to describe the environmental and oceanographic conditions in the Discovery Islands area include data collected from monitoring and research programs carried out by federal and provincial governments, academic institutions, environmental nongovernmental agencies, and by Atlantic Salmon farming companies. The current state of knowledge and associated knowledge gaps for oceanographic conditions such as water temperature, water salinity, dissolved oxygen and water currents in the Discovery Islands are included. Solar radiation and ultraviolet light as well as biota and suspended solids in the region are also reviewed. The Finite Volume Community Ocean Model (FVCOM) has been applied in the Discovery Islands to simulate the hydrodynamics in areas of aquaculture activities. This paper includes main conclusions from simulations conducted for April and July 2010, comparisons of observations and modelling simulations and representativeness of conditions observed in April and July 2010. Results from the passive particle tracking model used to simulate the trajectories and dispersion of particles in the water column in the Discovery Islands are also included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Atmosphere - Ocean (Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society) is the property of Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Atmosphere - Ocean (Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society) is the property of Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Atmosphere - Ocean (Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society) is the property of Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Atmosphere - Ocean (Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society) is the property of Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Atmosphere - Ocean (Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society) is the property of Canadian Meteorological & Oceanographic Society and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)