ASSESSING RISK TO CATTLE AND WILDLIFE OF EMISSIONS FROM NATURAL GAS-RELATED ACTIVITIES

In 2000, the Government of Alberta took the initiative to organize The Western Canada Study on Animal Health Effects Associated with Exposure to Emissions from Oil and Natural Gas Field Facilities (henceforth called “the Study”) to investigate allegations that reproduction in cattle and productivity in cow-calf operations had been adversely affected by emissions from oil and gas facilities. The Western Interprovincial Scientific Studies Association (WISSA) was set up to manage the study professionally but at arm’s length. The principal investigator for the Study was Dr. Cheryl Waldner, veterinary epidemiologist at the University of Saskatchewan. A Scientific Advisory Panel, which the author chaired, provided oversight to develop a strategy for the Study, to guide and monitor its implementation, for quality assurance, to ensure scientific integrity and to review data and assist in the interpretation of findings. The Study took six years, cost Can$17 million (provided by the provincial governments, the Canadian Petroleum Producers Association and the Alberta Beef Producers). The Study was designed to accomplish two important goals: 1) to determine if emissions downwind from oil and gas facilities influence the reproduction and health of cattle and wildlife in western Canada and 2) to provide new and economically useful information for cow-calf producers on factors affecting herd productivity and herd health. A tandem wildlife study was implemented using European starlings as an indicator species. The overall pattern of findings demonstrated no adverse effect of downwind exposure on animal health, although the Study found some associations that need to be interpreted carefully and better understood. Air quality in field locations compared favorably with other rural and with urban centers. The Study is the largest and most comprehensive study undertaken to date of beef cattle productivity in North America. Important design features of this Study included the innovative management structure, a secondary goal of improving herd management, a hypothesis-driven study protocol, and the unusually active role of science advisors. Emphasis in this presentation is on the study design, exposure assessment methodology and project management.