Reducing environmental footprint for lubricating oils at remote construction sites

The Canadian Boreal region, remote area, offers not only pristine landscapes and ecosystem services but also a wide range of natural resources for extraction. The construction industry, a large lubricant consumer, is present in the Boreal region and should reduce its footprint caused by used lubricant oils (ULOs). In Canada, a million litres of ULOs are not recovered through the regulatory framework. Unfortunately, remote conditions of the Boreal may discourage easy ULO collection and recovery. This thesis presents effective solutions to reduce ULO consumption. Laboratory analysis can reduce ULO generation by half and up to five times when coupled with in-depth filtration. The scientific literature was reviewed to provide greater understanding of ULOs, such as related composition, legislation, and toxicity. Recommendations are proposed to foster sustainable management in remote areas. Changes for the Canadian environmental laws, onsite handling procedures, and lubricant choice for construction activities are among the recommendations.

Author dc:creator

• LeFrancois, Simon-Mark

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Grundy, Steve
• Dodd, Matt
• Ling, Chris

• Environmental Fate Elements and PAHs
• In-Depth Filtration
• Lubricant Analysis
• Remote area
• Toxicology
• Used Lubricant Oil

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10170/759

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.viurrspace.ca/server/oai/request?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=dim&identifier=oai%3Anull%3A10170%2F759