Parks Canada: Protecting Canada's Underwater Heritage

Parks Canada administers National Marine Conservation Areas (NMCA) as part of a growing worldwide network of marine protected areas. They include submerged lands, the water above them, and any species found there, and may also take in wetlands, estuaries, islands, and other coastal lands.

Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area protects 10,000 square kilometers along the north shore of the largest freshwater lake by surface area in the world. Stretching from the Sleeping Giant peninsula near Thunder Bay, east to Bottle Point near Terrace Bay, and down to the American border, these waters are deep and cold. Weather can be unpredictable, and winters tend to be long and harsh.

These conditions make Dr. Lisa Sonnenburg’s job of locating, documenting, and protecting underwater cultural heritage in the NMCA more challenging. As the Cultural Resource Management Advisor for Lake Superior NMCA, she uses underwater ROVs to uncover traces of human history found along the rocky shore.

Addressing Challenges in Underwater Archaeology with ROVs

Before acquiring an ROV, Parks Canada faced significant challenges in accessing and documenting submerged heritage sites.

• Limited Diver Access: The extreme depths and frigid temperatures of Lake Superior significantly limit safe dive times, restricting the ability to conduct thorough investigations.
• Environmental Concerns: Older wreckage and industrial debris present unknown risks, including potential contamination from sunken train cars or other industrial materials.
• Remote Survey Locations: Many survey sites are difficult to reach by boat, making traditional survey methods inefficient or impossible.
• Lack of Real-Time Data: Previous methods relied heavily on sonar scans, which lacked the immediate visual confirmation that ROVs provide.
• Historical Data Gaps: The NMCA contains numerous submerged wreck sites with limited historical documentation, making it difficult to piece together an accurate historical record.

Traditional diving methods were often impractical due to depth, water temperature, and logistical constraints. Human divers are limited in endurance and face risks associated with cold-water exposure and strong underwater currents. Moreover, deploying manned expeditions in remote locations is resource-intensive and costly.

ROVs address these challenges by providing a compact, deployable solution that reduces reliance on divers while increasing efficiency and safety. Equipped with high-resolution cameras and sonar imaging, these vehicles allow archaeologists to explore submerged wrecks without the constraints of manual diving operations.

How Are ROVs Improving Underwater Archaeological Surveys in Lake Superior?

The ROVs used in these surveys are designed to operate in challenging underwater environments, offering high-resolution imaging and maneuverability suited for deep waters and difficult-to-reach remote locations.

Some key features include:

• High-Resolution Cameras: Capable of capturing detailed images and video in low-light conditions, essential for identifying artifacts and structural features on wreckage.
• Multi-Beam and Side-Scan Sonar: Provides detailed scans of underwater features, helping archaeologists map out sites before conducting close-up visual inspections.
• Maneuverability and Thruster Control: Advanced six-thruster configurations allow for precise navigation in strong currents and tight spaces, ensuring accurate surveys by maintaining stability while capturing detailed photo, video, or sonar footage of submerged wreckage..
• Environmental Sensors: Integrated sensors allow for precise depth and temperature readings, which are valuable for both archaeological and ecological assessments.
• Robotic Manipulators: Equipped with grabber arms, ROVs can retrieve small artifacts or conduct sediment sampling for further analysis. Equipped with robotic arms and sampling tools, ROVs can interact with underwater objects, assisting in the identification and documentation of historical artifacts, or conduct sediment sampling.
• Portable and Quick Deployment: Deep Trekker ROVs are compact and battery-operated, allowing them to be deployed rapidly from small boats or research vessels, making them an excellent tool for exploring remote locations within the NMCA.

How Does ROV Technology Support Community Engagement?

Residents from adjacent communities have strong and enduring ties to the lake and its related industries. Their memories and stories guide Sonnenburg, whose archaeological finds validate the oral histories and inform the stories Parks Canada shares about this treasured place. In some instances, ROVs are helping to fill in gaps in the historic records and bring to light old underwater scars, which have long since healed over on land.

For example, one of the important trans-Canadian railway lines closely follows Lake Superior’s north shore, and when something goes wrong on the tracks, it means trains often end up in the water. Sonnenburg is aware of at least two 'hot spots' in Lake Superior NMCA, where a combination of steep shorelines, sharp curves, and narrow passages have seen numerous derailments in the past 100 years.

What Role Do ROVs Play in Investigating Historical Train Wrecks?

One of Parks Canada’s most compelling uses of ROV technology has been the investigation of submerged train wrecks. Historical train wrecks present unique archaeological and environmental concerns. In 2008, a train carrying industrial supplies derailed, sending several cars into the lake. Even with modern means, two of the rail cars were considered too difficult to salvage and left in Lake Superior NMCA waters.

The train cars are now a popular destination for local divers. Parks Canada wanted to inspect the wreck to see if the cars were still intact and determine if there were any potential environmental concerns.

After finding traces of what looked like wreck debris on shore, Sonnenburg and her colleagues used the ROV to follow the debris trail into the water. Rather than leading to the intact rail cars, however, this trail led to stacked piles of unused rails, large pieces of wood, and even possible remnants of dock works from a much older train wreck. A newspaper article from 1916 mentioned a derailment in the same approximate location. Parks Canada plans to conduct further surveys to determine if this wreckage is from that derailment, while also monitoring the intact rail cars from the more recent derailment.

Using some historical photographs, Parks Canada pinpointed the location of another train wreck along another section of track between Nipigon and Red Rock. During an initial search of the area, submerged train wreckage was confirmed close to shore in just two meters of water. Further ROV surveys identified two separate freight car truck remains, potentially dating back to before 1920.

By using underwater ROV technology, Parks Canada can non-invasively study and monitor these wreck sites, preserving historical artifacts while assessing potential environmental concerns, such as structural degradation and possible contaminant leaching from older wreckage.

How Are ROVs Assisting in Environmental Monitoring Within the NMCA?

Beyond archaeology, Parks Canada is using ROVs to support environmental monitoring within the NMCA. ROV video footage is being analyzed to track the presence and spread of invasive species, such as zebra mussels and non-native fish species like smallmouth bass. These surveys also allow researchers to monitor wreck conditions and assess potential environmental hazards, such as the release of industrial contaminants from historical wreckage.

By combining archaeological research with ecological monitoring, Parks Canada is gaining a comprehensive understanding of the region’s underwater heritage while taking proactive steps to protect the lake’s ecosystem.

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