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ABSTRACT. Sensitivity to anthropogenic disturbance in conjunction with slow population recovery has raised conservation concerns over impacts to raptor species from industrial development in pristine areas of their North American breeding range. We evaluated whether the presence of two diamond mines resulted in negative effects to nest use and hatch success of breeding falcons in the southern Arctic barren-grounds of the Northwest Territories. A total of 20 nest sites of Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) and Gyrfalcon (Falco rusticolus) breeding within 26 km of the Diavik and Ekati diamond mines were monitored annually during 1998 to 2010. The objective of the study was to test the effects of distance from mines, relative nest age, rainfall, small mammal abundance, and mine activity levels on nest occupancy and hatch rates. Model selection results indicated that nests that were older were more likely and consistently used than nests that were established more recently. A decrease in nest use associated with the mines was not detected. Hatch success was best explained by a positive association with distance from development and a negative trend over the study period, however, these effects were weak. Hatch success of nests within and beyond an estimated 5.9 km distance threshold was similar, and for nest sites within this distance was unrelated to annual changes in accumulated mine footprint area through time. Hatch success for nest sites near Diavik was unrelated to changes in this mine's activity through time. Although natural and anthropogenic effects were generally weak, the lines of evidence suggested that the observed patterns were more likely the result of natural factors operating at a regional scale than more localized effects from the activity of two diamond mines.RÉSUMÉ. Les répercussions du développement industriel dans des secteurs vierges de l'aire de nidification de rapaces en Amérique du Nord ont soulevé des préoccupations de conservation chez ce groupe d'oiseaux en raison de leur sensibilité aux perturbations anthropiques et du lent rétablissement de leurs populations. Nous avons évalué si la présence de deux mines de diamants avait des effets négatifs sur l'utilisation des nids et le succès d'éclosion des faucons qui nichent dans la toundra du Bas-Arctique des Territoires-du-Nord-Ouest. À cette fin, vingt sites de nidification de Faucon pèlerin (Falco peregrinus) et de Faucon gerfaut (Falco rusticolus) situés dans un rayon de 26 km des mines de diamants Diavik et Ekati ont été suivis de 1998 à 2010. L'objectif de cette étude était de tester les effets de la distance des nids aux mines, de l'âge relatif des nids, des précipitations, de l'abondance des petits mammifères et de l'intensité de l'activité minière sur l'utilisation des nids et le succès d'éclosion. Les résultats de la sélection de modèles ont indiqué que les nids les plus vieux avaient vraisemblablement plus de chance d'être utilisés et l'étaient plus régulièrement que les nids construits plus récemment. Aucune baisse de l'utilisatio...

Ammonium nitrate explosives are used in mining operations at Diavik Diamond Mines Inc. in the Northwest Territories, Canada. Residual nitrogen is washed into the mine pit and piped to a nearby retention pond where its removal is accomplished by microbial activity prior to a final water treatment step and release into the sub-Arctic lake, Lac de Gras. Microbial removal of ammonium in the retention pond is rapid during the brief ice-free summer, but often slows under ice cover that persists up to 9 months of the year. The aluminosilicate mineral zeolite was tested as an additive to retention pond water to increase rates of ammonium removal at 4°C. Water samples were collected across the length of the retention pond monthly over a year. The structure of the microbial community (bacteria, archaea, and eukarya), as determined by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis of PCR-amplified small subunit ribosomal RNA genes, was more stable during cold months than during July–September, when there was a marked phytoplankton bloom. Of the ammonia-oxidizing community, only bacterial amoA genes were consistently detected. Zeolite (10 g) was added to retention pond water (100 mL) amended with 5 mM ammonium and incubated at 12°C to encourage development of a nitrifying biofilm. The biofilm community was composed of different amoA phylotypes from those identified in gene clone libraries of native water samples. Zeolite biofilm was added to fresh water samples collected at different times of the year, resulting in a significant increase in laboratory measurements of potential nitrification activity at 4°C. A significant positive correlation between the amount of zeolite biofilm and potential nitrification activity was observed; rates were unaffected in incubations containing 1–20 mM ammonium. Addition of zeolite to retention ponds in cold environments could effectively increase nitrification rates year-round by concentrating active nitrifying biomass.

Recently, many parents, sportswriters, and social critics have expressed concern for young athletes being given participation trophies. They claim that it fosters a sense of entitlement and teaches youngsters that they do not need to earn rewards. I argue that youth sport participants should not be rewarded only for participation, but that they should be given opportunities for earing awards beyond mere victory. This is because a variety of values, such as symbolic meaning, challenge and risk, aesthetics, and high-quality relationships with teammates and opponents, deserve reward as well. I conclude that coaches and organizers should find ways to given tokens to most youth sport participants for achieving, or striving to achieve, these alternate values.Key words: youth sport, values, competition. ResumenRecientemente, padres, escritores deportivos y críticos sociales han expresado su preocupación porque se entreguen trofeos de participación a jóvenes atletas. Ellos afirman que esto fomenta la sensación de permisividad y enseña a los jóvenes que no necesitan ganar recompensas. Yo defiendo que los participantes en deporte para jóvenes no deberían ser premiados sólo por participar, pero se les deberían ofrecer más oportunidades para conseguir premios que van más allá de la victoria. Esto es porque una diversidad de valores, como el significado simbólico, el desafío y riesgo, la estética, y las relaciones de calidad entre compañeros también merecen ser premiados. Concluyo que los entrenadores y organizadores deberían encontrar caminos para premiar a los participantes más jóvenes por conseguir, o esforzarse por conseguir, estos valores alternativos.

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