Thanks for the clarification.
In my research group we study the effects of naphthenic acids on fish and frogs. Naphthenic acids are the chemicals in tailings ponds. They are the major source of toxicity. They're not the only source of toxicity but the major source of toxicity.
We know that naphthenic acids break down very slowly. They're very persistent. We know that the concentrations of naphthenic acids in tailings ponds today are lethal. Organisms die within minutes to hours and sometimes days.
At lower concentrations, when we expose developing fish and frogs to these naphthenic acids, they have sublethal effects on reproduction, growth and behaviour. We see abnormalities in fish such as cardiac malformations. We see brain malformations. When we expose tadpoles, we see amphibians with deformed limbs.
What are the barriers to dealing with this issue? There doesn't seem to be the will, the framework or the push to actually do anything about this toxic waste that's been accumulating on the landscape for 50 years, and continues to accumulate.