Routes to Response: A Conceptual Framework to Detect the Effect of Oil Sands Industrial Activity on the Land

The Oil Sands Monitoring Program is assessing the environmental impacts of oil sands development at different spatial scales.  Monitoring in the Oil Sands Region operates under a consistent framework that identifies the major pressures, stressors, pathways, and responses that lead to environmental change. This framework guides the design for land-based biological monitoring — with a focus on wildlife monitoring — and helps identify where and how oil sands stressors affect different species of birds and mammals.

The framework connects environmental responses to natural and human pressures through a complex web of pathways. A conceptual model maps out the routes to response for the terrestrial monitoring component.