PARR-2010-M-11
Evaluate DEPOMOD or other depositional models in southwest New Brunswick to predict the zones and intensities of impacts around farm sites

Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Maritimes Habitat program is developing a Fisheries Act Authorization framework for managing the impacts of finfish aquaculture on fish habitat.  This framework will require the ability to estimate or predict the area and intensity of potential benthic impacts associated with proposed fish farm configurations and production levels.  Preliminary work has suggested that high spatial and temporal variation in sediment sulphides in the vicinity of fish farms challenges the ability of models, such as DEPOMOD, to predict these areas and the intensity of impact. This project will compare the observed patterns of sediment sulphide with predictions using DEPOMOD and consider other potential alternative approaches to DEPOMOD. 

Prinicipal investigator:  Blythe Chang, DFO St Andrews Biological Station, 531 Brandy Cove Rd, St Andrews, NB E5B 2H7; Tel: 506-529-5907; Email: blythe.chang@dfo-mpo.gc.ca; Fred Page, DFO St Andrews Biological Station, 531 Brandy Cove Rd, St Andrews, NB E5B 2H7; Tel: 506-529-5935; Email: fred.page@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Team members:  Randy Losier, DFO-Maritimes region; Paul McCurdy, DFO-Maritimes region