Process water treatment is crucial for Canada's oil sands industry due to declining water quality from continuous recycling. Target pollutants like salinity, hardness, sulphate, chloride, and ammonia have increased over time, leading to concerns about scaling and corrosion. Naphthenic acids from bitumen extraction are the main source of toxicity in the water. While some naphthenic acids can be broken down, others may persist and cause long-term toxicity in reclaimed areas. The study establishes water treatment goals to guide the selection of treatment technologies.