Creating opportunities at the Centre for Oil and Gas Research and Development Image of some of the instruments at COGRAD used to measure petroleum-based chemicals in the environment. Funding for the Centre was from Western Economic Diversification Canada (now Prairies Economic Development Canada).
The Centre for Oil and Gas Research and
environmental research. The Centre works
Development (COGRAD), located in the
closely with industry and/or government
Department of Chemistry at the Univer-
organizations to help support their envi-
sity of Manitoba, is an analytical facility
ronmental monitoring obligations.
committed to advancing the analyses and
The Centre recently augmented its op-
remediation of petroleum-based chemi-
erations to include research and develop-
cals in the environment.
Founded in
ment in the field of environmental DNA
2015 through funding from the Western
(eDNA). The technique relies on the use
Economic Diversification Canada (now
of molecular methods to measure cellular
Prairies Economic Development Canada,
material shed by organisms into aquatic
PrairiesCan), the Centre is an International
and terrestrial environments. With this
Organization for Standardization (ISO) ac-
approach, rapid, non-invasive screening
credited analytical laboratory. Because of
tools, complementary to traditional visual
the ISO-17025 accreditation, the Centre
taxonomy, can be used to monitor ecosys-
provides scientifically defensible analytical
tem biodiversity.
data to external clients. The Centre houses
Strategically situated at the University
state-of-the-art analytical instrumenta-
of Manitoba, the Centre attracts gradu-
tion used primarily to develop faster and
ate and undergraduate students keen to
more cost-efficient analytical means of
conduct research in the field of oil & gas
measuring petroleum-based compounds,
science. Student-led research at COGRAD
development of tools to delineate sources
encompass study areas of environmental
of crude-oil exposures, design of innova-
analytical chemistry, ecotoxicology, bio-
tion strategies to remediate and monitor
chemistry, eDNA, with hands on training
crude-oil components and forensic finger-
on the use of state-of-the-art instrumenta-
printing studies leading to new areas of
tion. Our research team encourages both
18
Manitoba Energy Review 2022
dependent and independent learning and the diversity of skills that are transferred to students and the unique ability to work in an ISO-accredited facility ensures that they are well equipped for the workplace. The Centre collaborates with scientists from Environment and Climate Change Canada on many student-led research projects at the master’s and PhD level focused on the general theme of understanding impacts and distribution of petroleum-based chemicals in the Canadian environment. We also have a longstanding collaboration with members of the Kivalliq Inuit Association (KIA) with a vision to combine traditional knowledge with western science to enhance protocols of field-based water sampling for eDNA analysis. For further information please visit our website: http://cogradmb.ca or contact Gregg Tomy (Gregg.tomy@umanitoba.ca) or Jorg Stetefeld (jorg.stetefeld@umanitoba.ca). v
