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Teasing out the Effects of Natural Stressors at Chemically Contaminated Sites.

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Title: Teasing out the Effects of Natural Stressors at Chemically Contaminated Sites.
Authors: Nichols, Elizabeth R.1 (AUTHOR), Burton, G. Allen2,3 (AUTHOR) burtonal@umich.edu, Lavoie, Dan4 (AUTHOR), Tortomasi, Jon4 (AUTHOR), Cervi, Eduardo2 (AUTHOR), Hudson, Michelle5 (AUTHOR), Brown, Steve6 (AUTHOR)
Source: Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry. Jul2024, Vol. 43 Issue 7, p1524-1536. 13p.
Subjects: Hazardous waste sites, Settling basins, Toxicity testing, Sediment-water interfaces, Agricultural development, Lake restoration
Abstract: Aquatic ecosystems are often impacted by a multitude of stressors, many of which are introduced by a combination of anthropogenic activities such as agricultural development, urbanization, damming, and industrial discharge. Determining the primary stressors responsible for ecological impairments at a site can be complex and challenging; however, it is crucial for making informed management decisions. Improper diagnosis of an impaired system can lead to misguided attempts at remediation, which can be both time consuming and costly. We focused on the development, implementation, and evaluation of methodologies that, in combination, allowed us to identify the primary stressors. These included a four‐phase, weight‐of‐evidence (WOE) assessment including in situ Toxicity Identification and Evaluation (iTIE) testing, physicochemical and macrobenthos characterization, reciprocal sediment transplants, and laboratory and in situ toxicity testing. The contaminants of concern (COCs) at the site were elevated levels of ammonia, chloride, pH, and total dissolved solids in groundwater upwellings into a high‐quality waterway. Reciprocal transplants of site sediments and nearby reference sediments and traditional benthic sampling showed impaired benthic indices and multiple stations around a contaminated industrial settling basin. Impaired stations had elevated COCs in groundwaters but exhibited a steep vertical concentration gradient, with concentrations decreasing near the sediment–surface water interface. We describe Phase 4 of the study, which focused on teasing out the role of dissolved oxygen sags in benthic macroinvertebrate responses. Extensive submerged and emergent macrophytes, algae, and cyanobacteria co‐occurred at the impaired sites and increased throughout the summer. Laboratory testing suggested that ammonia and pH were possibly toxic at the sites, based on groundwater concentrations. The in situ toxicity testing, however, showed toxicity occurring even at stations with low levels of COCs concurrently with large diurnal fluxes in dissolved oxygen (DO). A final phase using a type of iTIE approach utilized limnocorrals with and without aeration and with in situ toxicity measures using Hyalella azteca. The Phase 4 assessment revealed that low DO levels were primarily responsible for impaired benthic communities, and COC upwellings were diluted at the sediment–water interface to nontoxic levels. These findings will allow for improved management decisions for more efficient and effective restoration activities. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;43:1524–1536. © 2024 SETAC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry is the property of Oxford University Press / USA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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DbLabel: Engineering Source
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  Data: Teasing out the Effects of Natural Stressors at Chemically Contaminated Sites.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Nichols%2C+Elizabeth+R%2E%22">Nichols, Elizabeth R.</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Burton%2C+G%2E+Allen%22">Burton, G. Allen</searchLink><relatesTo>2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> burtonal@umich.edu</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lavoie%2C+Dan%22">Lavoie, Dan</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Tortomasi%2C+Jon%22">Tortomasi, Jon</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Cervi%2C+Eduardo%22">Cervi, Eduardo</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hudson%2C+Michelle%22">Hudson, Michelle</searchLink><relatesTo>5</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Brown%2C+Steve%22">Brown, Steve</searchLink><relatesTo>6</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Environmental+Toxicology+%26+Chemistry%22">Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry</searchLink>. Jul2024, Vol. 43 Issue 7, p1524-1536. 13p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Hazardous+waste+sites%22">Hazardous waste sites</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Settling+basins%22">Settling basins</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Toxicity+testing%22">Toxicity testing</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sediment-water+interfaces%22">Sediment-water interfaces</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Agricultural+development%22">Agricultural development</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Lake+restoration%22">Lake restoration</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
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  Data: Aquatic ecosystems are often impacted by a multitude of stressors, many of which are introduced by a combination of anthropogenic activities such as agricultural development, urbanization, damming, and industrial discharge. Determining the primary stressors responsible for ecological impairments at a site can be complex and challenging; however, it is crucial for making informed management decisions. Improper diagnosis of an impaired system can lead to misguided attempts at remediation, which can be both time consuming and costly. We focused on the development, implementation, and evaluation of methodologies that, in combination, allowed us to identify the primary stressors. These included a four‐phase, weight‐of‐evidence (WOE) assessment including in situ Toxicity Identification and Evaluation (iTIE) testing, physicochemical and macrobenthos characterization, reciprocal sediment transplants, and laboratory and in situ toxicity testing. The contaminants of concern (COCs) at the site were elevated levels of ammonia, chloride, pH, and total dissolved solids in groundwater upwellings into a high‐quality waterway. Reciprocal transplants of site sediments and nearby reference sediments and traditional benthic sampling showed impaired benthic indices and multiple stations around a contaminated industrial settling basin. Impaired stations had elevated COCs in groundwaters but exhibited a steep vertical concentration gradient, with concentrations decreasing near the sediment–surface water interface. We describe Phase 4 of the study, which focused on teasing out the role of dissolved oxygen sags in benthic macroinvertebrate responses. Extensive submerged and emergent macrophytes, algae, and cyanobacteria co‐occurred at the impaired sites and increased throughout the summer. Laboratory testing suggested that ammonia and pH were possibly toxic at the sites, based on groundwater concentrations. The in situ toxicity testing, however, showed toxicity occurring even at stations with low levels of COCs concurrently with large diurnal fluxes in dissolved oxygen (DO). A final phase using a type of iTIE approach utilized limnocorrals with and without aeration and with in situ toxicity measures using Hyalella azteca. The Phase 4 assessment revealed that low DO levels were primarily responsible for impaired benthic communities, and COC upwellings were diluted at the sediment–water interface to nontoxic levels. These findings will allow for improved management decisions for more efficient and effective restoration activities. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;43:1524–1536. © 2024 SETAC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry is the property of Oxford University Press / USA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1002/etc.5873
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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      Pagination:
        PageCount: 13
        StartPage: 1524
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Hazardous waste sites
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Settling basins
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Toxicity testing
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Sediment-water interfaces
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Agricultural development
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Lake restoration
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Teasing out the Effects of Natural Stressors at Chemically Contaminated Sites.
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            NameFull: Nichols, Elizabeth R.
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            NameFull: Burton, G. Allen
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            – D: 01
              M: 07
              Text: Jul2024
              Type: published
              Y: 2024
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