The Challenge
The scale of Northern Alberta Tailings Ponds is enormous. According to the Alberta government, as of 2022, there were 1.39 trillion litres of fluid tailings (water + fine solids), and 417 billion litres of oil sands mining water. For continued oil sands mining, there is a constant need for fresh or recycled water, which will contribute to increasing volumes of wastewater generated from the mining process.
Among the organic compounds present in the OSPW, one of the most challenging environmental and regulatory issues the industry is faced with is Naphthenic Acids (NAs). NAs are the most abundant and toxic chemicals of concern, harming aquatic, wildlife, and human life which is raising concerns for surrounding communities.
For decades, the inability for Oil Sands operators to safely release tailings water has:
- Delayed land reclamation
- Increased Operators financial liabilities, and
- Intensified public scrutiny
- Increased Environmental Risk
Industry leaders understand the significance of this challenge, but current NA monitoring and remediation methods are expensive, slow, and impractical at this scale.
Regulators, communities, and investors are demanding solutions that are safe, scientifically sound, transparent, and sustainable.
Naphthenic Acids
- NAs are toxic, harming wetlands, wildlife, and human health.
- NAs are persistent in tailings ponds for decades, affecting aquatic life and ecosystems.
Water release regulations are coming soon
- Water quality targets will be tough to meet given the sheer scale and complexity of tailings ponds and local stakeholder concern.
- Traditional monitoring methods are slow, expensive, and impractical for frequent testing across large volumes of water.
- Industry must act now to prepare for compliance.
Comprehensive and long-term naphthenic acid monitoring is required now
- A baseline of current state of NA concentration prior to remediation proves remediation effectiveness.
- Ongoing NA testing will provide transparency, credibility, and trust to community stakeholders.
Delayed NA reclamation planning amplifies the problem
- Increased scrutiny from regulators and the public.
- Increased liability reputation risk.
- Increased risk of environmental or human health crisis.
Our Solutions
Luminous BioSolutions is a Canadian Environmental Technology Company who has developed an innovative approach to detecting and breaking down Naphthenic Acids in Alberta Oil Sands Tailings Ponds.
Our bioluminescent bacterial biosensors provide a fast, simple, cost-effective, and highly scalable method for monitoring NA levels and offering real-time insights that existing techniques cannot match.
How it works
- Rapid Detection: Our engineered bacteria detect naphthenic acids within minutes and emit light in the presence of NAs, providing an immediate, easy-to-read signal of contamination.
- Quantitative. The biosensors produce light in direct proportion to the concentration of NA in a sample.
- Specific and Sensitive: Our panel of NA biosensors detect key NA compounds within the complex NA mixtures that represent the major classes of NA compounds. The NA biosensors can detect the NA at the concentrations present in most tailings ponds (10 -120 mg/L).
- Scalable & Cost-Effective: Unlike expensive analytical chemistry methods that require weeks of processing, our biosensors allow high-throughput screening at a fraction of the cost.
Why this Matters
Current NA monitoring methods (i.e. Mass Spectrometry) are accurate but suffer from prohibitive costs, slow turnaround times, and limited sampling frequency. This results in low-resolution data, leaving industry and regulators blind to real-time changes.
Luminous biosensors solution allows Oil Sands operators to:
- Increase testing frequency across more locations throughout the water cycle, providing a higher-resolution map of NA concentrations.
- Track changes in near real-time, allowing for proactive management rather than reactive mitigation.
- Reduce environmental risk due to confident and comprehensive NA monitoring data.
For regulators and local communities, this means greater transparency and trust with clear, consistent data that ensures environmental safety.
Beyond Detection: NA Remediation
Remediation of NAs in Tailings Ponds is a daunting challenge, as NAs are toxic and persistent for decades.
Luminous BioSolutions are developing our bacterial solutions to accelerate remediation efforts by identifying naturally occurring bacteria that can efficiently break down NAs.
How this helps Oil Sands water reclamation:
- Constructed Wetlands: Our biosensors help identify and select microbial communities that can be used in wetlands to accelerate NA degradation.
- Bioaugmentation Strategies: We can scale up production of most effective bacteria and introduce them into treatment sites, dramatically improving NA breakdown rates.
- Continuous Monitoring: Unlike conventional approaches, which rely on infrequent lab tests, biosensors can provide ongoing feedback on remediation progress, ensuring treatment success.
This is game-changing for oil sands operators seeking cost-effective, scientifically sound reclamation strategies that align with evolving environmental regulations.
Data-Driven Environmental Management
It is impossible to make any informed decisions without an accurate monitoring process of NA concentrations in the tailings ponds and a method to track their removal. We have developed an NA monitoring and analytics platform that compiles NA test results in a data hub to provide:
- Real-time tracking of NA levels across multiple sites and throughout the water cycle.
- AI-powered trend analysis to predict problem areas before they escalate.
- Regulatory compliance support ensuring all monitoring data is easily visualized and accessible for audits and transparency, if required.
Combining biosensor screening with remediation and data analytics, operators, regulators, and stakeholders are empowered with actionable intelligence for better environmental management.
A Holistic Approach
The cost of inaction - both financial and reputational - is too high.
Our biosensors, remediation technologies and data analytics are new, innovative, practical, cost-effective, and scalable.
Adopting our strategies enables oil sands operators to improve their environmental performance, rebuild public trust, and accelerate responsible reclamation efforts.
We invite oil sands operators, regulators, and Indigenous, local communities’ environmental stakeholders and environmental engineering organizations to collaborate with us.
Contact us today to explore pilot projects and implementation opportunities.