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Mendes MP, Cupe-Flores B, Liber K. Sampling method and season influence selenium dynamics at the base of a boreal lake food chain. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2023; 234:116157. [PMID: 37196689 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.116157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 04/30/2023] [Accepted: 05/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Few studies have investigated the potential influence of sampling method and season on Se bioaccumulation at the base of the aquatic food chain. In particular, the effects of low water temperature associated with prolonged ice-cover periods on Se uptake by periphyton and further transfer to benthic macroinvertebrates (BMI) have been overlooked. Such information is crucial to help improve Se modelling and risk assessment at sites receiving continuous Se inputs. To date, this seems to be the first study to address these research questions. Here, we examined potential differences related to sampling methods (artificial substrates vs. grab samples) and seasons (summer vs. winter) on Se dynamics in the benthic food chain of a boreal lake (McClean Lake) receiving continuous low-level Se input from a Saskatchewan uranium milling operation. During summer 2019, water, sediment grab samples and artificial substrates were sampled from 8 sites with varying mill-treated effluent exposure. In winter 2021, water and sediment grab samples were sampled at 4 locations in McClean Lake. Water, sediment, and biological samples were subsequently analyzed for total Se concentrations. Enrichment functions (EF) in periphyton and trophic transfer factors (TTF) in BMI were calculated for both sampling methods and seasons. Periphyton collected with artificial substrates (Hester-Dendy samplers and glass plates) exhibited significantly higher mean Se concentrations (2.4 ± 1.5 μg/g d.w) than periphyton collected from the surface of sediment grab samples (1.1 ± 1.3 μg/g d.w). Selenium concentrations in periphyton sampled in winter (3.5 ± 1.0 μg/g d.w) were significantly greater than summer (1.1 ± 1.3 μg/g d.w). Nevertheless, Se bioaccumulation in BMI was similar between seasons, possibly suggesting that invertebrates are not actively feeding in winter. Further investigations are necessary to verify if peak Se bioaccumulation in BMI takes place in spring, coinciding with the reproductive and developmental windows of some fish species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maíra P Mendes
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | | | - Karsten Liber
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada; School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.
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Peixoto Mendes M, Cupe-Flores B, Panigrahi B, Liber K. Application of autonomous sensor technology to estimate selenium exposure and a site-specific selenium threshold in a Canadian boreal lake. INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT 2023; 19:395-411. [PMID: 35665593 DOI: 10.1002/ieam.4644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Revised: 05/16/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
There is an increasing trend in the use of real-time sensor technology to remotely monitor aquatic ecosystems. Commercially available probes, however, are currently not able to measure aqueous selenium (Se) concentrations. Because of the well-described bioaccumulation potential and associated toxicity of Se in oviparous vertebrates, it is crucial to monitor Se concentrations at sites receiving continuous effluent Se input. This study aimed to estimate Se concentrations in a boreal lake (McClean Lake) downstream from a Saskatchewan uranium mill using real-time electrical conductivity (EC) data measured by autonomous sensors. Additionally, this study aimed to derive a site-specific total aqueous Se (TSe) threshold based on Se concentrations in periphyton and benthic macroinvertebrates sampled from the same lake. To characterize effluent distribution within the lake, eight Smart Water (Libelium) sensor units were programmed to report EC and temperature for five and seven consecutive weeks in 2018 and 2019, respectively. In parallel, periphyton and benthic macroinvertebrates were sampled with Hester-Dendy's artificial substrate samplers (n = 4) at the same sites and subsequently analyzed for Se concentrations. Electrical conductivity was measured with a handheld field meter for sensor data validation and adjusted to the median lake water temperature (13 °C) registered for the deployment periods. Results demonstrated good accuracy of sensor readings relative to handheld field meter readings and the successful use of real-time EC in estimating TSe exposure (r = 0.87; r2 = 0.84). Linear regression equations derived for Se in detritivores versus Se in periphyton and Se in periphyton versus sensor-estimated TSe were used to estimate a site-specific TSe threshold of 0.7 µg/L (±0.2). Moreover, mean Se concentrations in periphyton (16.7 ± 4.4 µg/g dry weight [d.w.]) and benthic detritivores (6.0 ± 0.4 µg/g d.w.) from one of the exposure sites helped identify an area with potential for high Se bioaccumulation and toxicity in aquatic organisms in McClean Lake. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2023;19:395-411. © 2022 SETAC.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Karsten Liber
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
- School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
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Peixoto Mendes M, Cupe-Flores B, Liber K. Selenium Distribution and Trophic Transfer in the Periphyton-Benthic Macroinvertebrate Food Chain in Boreal Lakes Downstream from a Milling Operation. ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY 2022; 41:2181-2192. [PMID: 35770712 DOI: 10.1002/etc.5422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 06/09/2022] [Accepted: 06/26/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Selenium (Se) is an essential micronutrient with a narrow essentiality-toxicity range known to bioaccumulate in aquatic food webs. Selenium uptake and trophic transfer at the base of aquatic food chains represent a great source of uncertainty for Se risk assessment. The goal of the present study was to investigate Se distribution in water and sediment and its subsequent transfer into the periphyton-benthic macroinvertebrate (BMI) food chain in boreal lakes downstream from a Saskatchewan uranium mill. In particular, the present study aimed to assess potential differences in Se bioaccumulation patterns by BMI taxa to contribute to the current knowledge gap. During summer 2018 and 2019, water, sediment, periphyton, and BMI were sampled at two sites in Vulture Lake, seven sites in McClean Lake east basin, and one reference site in McClean Lake west basin. Periphyton and BMI taxa were sampled with artificial substrates (Hester-Dendy) deployed for 5 weeks in 2018 and 7 weeks in 2019; BMI were sorted into the lowest practical achievable taxonomic level and analyzed for total Se concentrations. At the diluted effluent exposure sites, Se concentrations in BMI ranged from 1.3 to 18.0 µg/g dry weight and from 0.3 to 49.3 µg/g dry weight in 2018 and 2019, respectively, whereas concentrations ranged from 0.01 to 3.5 µg/g dry weight at the reference site. Selenium concentrations in periphyton and some BMI taxa sampled near the effluent diffuser (Se < 1 µg/L) reached levels comparable to higher effluent exposure sites (Se > 2 µg/L). Despite differences in Se bioaccumulation among BMI taxa, an approximately one-to-one trophic transfer ratio was observed for benthic primary consumers and benthic predatory taxa. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:2181-2192. © 2022 SETAC.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Karsten Liber
- Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
- School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
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Ku P, Tsui MTK, Liu S, Corson KB, Williams AS, Monteverde MR, Woerndle GE, Hershey AE, Rublee PA. Examination of mercury contamination from a recent coal ash spill into the Dan River, North Carolina, United States. ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY 2021; 208:111469. [PMID: 33091769 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.111469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2020] [Revised: 10/05/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Coal ash spills occasionally occur due to the accidental failure of surface impoundments, and toxic metal-laden ash can pose a serious health threat to adjacent aquatic ecosystems. Here, we performed an investigation into longitudinal variations of mercury (Hg) contamination in the Dan River (North Carolina, United States) about 17 and 29 months after a February 2014 coal ash spill incident, in which the reported Hg concentrations in the spilled coal ash (210 ng/g) were 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than the river sediments (2-61 ng/g). We examined total Hg (THg) and methyl Hg (MeHg) in sediments from 0 to 65 km downstream of the spill, and found that most of the variations of THg and MeHg in surface sediments (0-16 cm) could be well accounted by the organic matter content and appeared to be not contaminated by Hg derived from coal ash. In examining MeHg bioaccumulation in invertebrates (aquatic and riparian) and fish in the Dan River and fish in a reservoir downstream of Dan River, we found no evidence of elevated MeHg bioaccumulation due to the 2014 coal ash spill. Thus, we concluded that Hg contamination from the coal ash spill is largely absent in the Dan River for both surface sediments and biota within the first three years of spill (until 2017), even though the majority of coal ash may be buried deeper in the sediment in the river channel and/or the downstream reservoir. Alternatively, the Hg associated with the coal ash is largely not bioavailable for extensive microbial Hg methylation. The findings provide useful insights into remediation strategies for this incident and other coal ash spills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peijia Ku
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
| | - Martin Tsz-Ki Tsui
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA.
| | - Songnian Liu
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
| | - Kimber B Corson
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
| | - Ashley S Williams
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
| | - Matthew R Monteverde
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
| | - Glenn E Woerndle
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
| | - Anne E Hershey
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
| | - Parke A Rublee
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA
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Bergmann M, Graça MAS. Bioaccumulation and Dispersion of Uranium by Freshwater Organisms. ARCHIVES OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION AND TOXICOLOGY 2020; 78:254-266. [PMID: 31650202 DOI: 10.1007/s00244-019-00677-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2019] [Accepted: 10/03/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Uranium is the heaviest naturally occurring element on Earth. Uranium mining may result in ground and surface water contamination with potential bioaccumulation and dispersion by aquatic invertebrates with aerial stages. We investigated the effects of uranium contamination at community level in terms of abundance, richness, the composition of invertebrate communities, and functional traits. We also investigated uranium mobility across aquatic food webs and its transfer to land via the emergence of aquatic insects. We sampled water, sediment, biofilm, macrophytes, aquatic invertebrates, adult insects, and spiders in the riparian zone across sites with a gradient of uranium concentrations in stream water (from 2.1 to 4.7 µg L-1) and sediments (from 10.4 to 41.8 µg g-1). Macroinvertebrate assemblages differed between sites with a higher diversity and predominance of Nemouridae and Baetidae at the reference site and low diversity and predominance of Chironomidae in sites with the highest uranium concentration. Uranium concentrations in producers and consumers increased linearly with uranium concentration in stream water and sediment (p < 0.05). The highest accumulation was found in litter (83.76 ± 5.42 µg g-1) and macrophytes (47.58 ± 6.93 µg g-1) in the most contaminated site. Uranium was highest in scrapers (14.30 ± 0.98 µg g-1), followed by shredders (12.96 ± 0.81 µg g-1) and engulfer predators (7.01 ± 1.3 µg g-1). Uranium in adults of aquatic insects in the riparian zone in all sites ranged from 0.25 to 2.90 µg g-1, whereas in spiders it ranged from 0.96 to 1.73 µg g-1, with no differences between sites (p > 0.05). There was a negative relationship between δ15N and uranium, suggesting there is no biomagnification along food webs. We concluded that uranium is accumulated by producers and consumers but not biomagnified nor dispersed to land with the emergence of aquatic insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa Bergmann
- MARE - Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, 3001-456, Coimbra, Portugal.
| | - Manuel A S Graça
- MARE - Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, 3001-456, Coimbra, Portugal
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Brandt JE, Simonin M, Di Giulio RT, Bernhardt ES. Beyond Selenium: Coal Combustion Residuals Lead to Multielement Enrichment in Receiving Lake Food Webs. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2019; 53:4119-4127. [PMID: 30893998 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.9b00324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Effluents from coal-fired power plant ash ponds are a major source of environmental contamination, annually loading more than a million metric tons of pollutants to aquatic ecosystems in the United States alone. Though this waste stream is characterized by elevated concentrations of numerous inorganic constituents, decades of previous research effort have focused on the ecotoxicological consequences of a single stressor: selenium. In this study, we compared concentrations of 10 trace elements among three North Carolina reservoirs with varying burdens following decades of coal combustion residual (CCR) inputs. Along this pollution gradient, we examined (1) environmental compartment-specific trace element enrichment relative to reference lake levels and (2) differences in CCR accumulation patterns among abiotic and biotic compartments. We report significant multivariate differences between CCR-receiving and reference lakes for surface water, pore water, sediment, and fish tissues as well as differences in CCR accumulation among North Carolina resident fish species. Multiple-element enrichment across receiving lake compartments additionally highlighted that CCR pollution is a mixtures contamination issue. Our results inform the ongoing discussion about effective regulation of impaired water bodies and identify important questions that might guide the monitoring of these systems as they recover.
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Freshwater Diatoms as Indicators of Combined Long-Term Mining and Urban Stressors in Junction Creek (Ontario, Canada). ENVIRONMENTS 2018. [DOI: 10.3390/environments5020030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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