Tlicho Aquatic Ecosystem Monitoring Program (TAEMP) - Gameti 2017

The purpose of the Tlicho Aquatic Ecosystem Monitoring Program (TAEMP) is to continue a successful community-based aquatic monitoring program that meaningfully involves community members in conducting contaminants-related research. Through the collection of fish tissue, water, and sediment samples using science-based methods, the TAEMP helps to address the question: Are the fish safe to eat and is the water safe to drink? Tlicho community members are directly involved in monitoring, and both scientific and Tlicho knowledge are exchanged in appropriate community and on-the-land settings. The TAEMP rotates sampling through each of the four Tlicho communities, with sampling occurring in each community once every four years. The Program completed its initial baseline sampling phase with the conclusion of the 2014 camp near Whati, and in September 2015 the first round of comparative sampling began when the TAEMP returned to the community of Behchoko. The comparative sampling phase continued with a return to Rae Lakes near the community of Gameti in 2017, and provides a means of addressing community concerns related to changes in the environment and monitoring of trends over time. The main objectives of the TAEMP are to: i) Collaborate with Program partners: the Wekeezhii Renewable Resources Board (WRRB), Tlicho Government (TG) and Tlicho communities, the Wekeezhii Land and Water Board (WLWB), Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), and the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) Department of Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) and GNWT Department of Health and Social Services (HSS) in the long-term implementation of community-based environmental monitoring; ii) Develop long-term datasets for aquatic ecosystem monitoring in Wekeezhii (e.g. Mercury concentrations in Lake Trout tissue), and support concurrent monitoring initiatives (e.g. the Tlicho Governments Marian Watershed Stewardship Program, and the ENR-supported NWT-wide community-based water quality program); iii) Provide basic training and educational opportunities for Tlicho community members, including youth, harvesters, and elders; and, iv) Engage schools and youth in educational opportunities related to aquatic ecosystems and environmental monitoring.