Methodological advances to biomonitor water quality with transplanted aquatic mosses

Significance of moss pretreatments in active biomonitoring surveys

The present study examines the impact of pretreatment procedures on the metal concentrations in bags that are to be exposed. We examine Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb amounts in Sphagnum fallax and Dicranum polysetum mosses using atomic absorption spectrometry. The concentration of Hg was also determined using a mercury analyzer. Two sample preparation ways were tested (with and without rinsing) and their influence was evaluated by determining the coefficient of variation (CV). Chlorophyll content was also determined in mosses collected from three habitats (deep woodland, forest road, and wood lot). The results indicate, that the concentration of elements deposited in mosses depends on the species and the habitat where they were collected (ANOVA, p < 0.001). Rinsing of mosses reduces the CV for Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn and uniform the material prior to exposure (CV for the majority of metals <10%). Selected correlations were found for element concentrations with chlorophyll content. Photosynthetic activity of mosses decreased by about 80% during their one-month storage in the laboratory. Due to the varying concentration of metals in the collected samples, proper, and standardized preparation of mosses before exposure, they can be effectively used in active biomonitoring.

The significance of heterophasic ion exchange in active biomonitoring of heavy metal pollution of surface waters

We have carried out studies to examine the possibility of using biosorbents: the epigeic mosses Pleurozium schreberi (Willd. ex Brid.) Mitt., and the epiphytic lichens Hypogymnia physodes (L.) Nyl. in active biomonitoring of heavy metal pollution of surface waters. The dried sea algae Palmaria palmata (L.) Weber & Mohr were used as the third biosorbent. The studies were conducted in the waters of the Turawa Reservoir, a dam reservoir with a significant level of eutrophication in south-western Poland. Incremental concentrations of Mn, Ni, Zn, Cu, Cd, and Pb were determined in the exposed samples. It was shown that a 2-h exposure period increases the concentration of some metals in the exposed samples, even by as much as several hundred percent. High increments of nickel concentrations in the algae Palmaria palmata (mean: 0.0040 mg/g, with the initial concentration of c0 < 0.0016 in the algae) were noted, with negligible increments in concentrations of this metal in mosses and lichens. In contrast, mosses and lichens accumulated relatively high amounts of Cd (mean: 0.0033 mg/g, c0 = 0.00043 mg/g) and Pb (mean: 0.0243 mg/g, c0 = 0.0103 mg/g), respectively.

The Biological Monitoring as a Source of Information on Environmental Pollution with Heavy Metals

The influence of environmental pollution on living organisms has been known for a long time, but it was not until the second half of the twentieth century that methodical studies on the influence of anthropopressure on changes in ecosystems began. Living organisms began to be used as biological indicators of environmental pollution. Cyclical and quantitative studies of pollutant concentrations in bioaccumulators have become the basis of modern biological monitoring (biomonitoring) of environmental pollution. Biomonitoring studies are carried out with the passive method (passive biomonitoring), in which living organisms occurring in their natural environment are analysed, and with active methods (active biomonitoring), in which, for example, plants living in the environment with low pollution are transferred and displayed in more polluted ecosystems e.g. heavy metals. The analysis of trace elements, including heavy metals accumulated in algae, mosses and lichens used in biological monitoring provides a lot of information on, among others concentration and origin of pollutants and the directions of their spread. Biomonitoring is used to assess the level of contamination of selected ecosystems, as well as the impact of individual emitters on the environment. An important element in determining the concentrations of trace elements in biological material used in biomonitoring is the proper planning of the experiment, taking into account, among others: methods of collecting or exposing samples, selection of analytical methods and methods of evaluation and interpretation of results. The aim of the presented long-term research, conducted by the Research Team of the Institute of Biology of the University of Opole, was to show that analytical techniques using biota samples can provide reliable data on the past, present and future state of the environment. However, it should be remembered that in order for the results of biomonitoring studies to be reliable and comparable, the applied research methodologies should be consistent and repeatable. In the presented research, Palmaria palmata and Spirogyra sp. algae, Pleurozium schreberi mosses, Hypogymnia physodes and bark of deciduous trees were used. In samples of biological material by the method of atomic absorption spectrometry, the concentrations of heavy metals, including Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb, were determined. On the basis of the conducted research, it was unequivocally stated that the biomonitoring methods are a good complement to the classic methods of environmental quality assessment. The analysis of the elements accumulated in the biological material provides us with information about the quality of the examined ecosystems, the introduced pollutants and their potential sources. This information allows for the introduction of effective measures to improve the quality of the environment.

Accumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the devitalized aquatic moss Fontinalis antipyretica: From laboratory to field conditions

This work aims to test the feasibility of a Fontinalis antipyretica devitalized moss clone to uptake and accumulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from surface waters. To assess the capability of the devitalized clone to accumulate PAHs, in the laboratory, moss was placed in water and spiked with increasing concentrations of 16 PAHs, and under field conditions, the moss was transplanted to 22 sites of Galicia (Spain) rivers. In general, PAH concentrations in water samples were lower than the maximum allowable concentrations from Directive 2013/39/EU, so the sampling sites did not show water PAH contamination. The exponential accumulation kinetic in the laboratory trial highlights a good capability of the devitalized moss clone to accumulate total PAHs. In field experiments, the hydrogeological conditions and the low emission sources caused low concentrations of PAHs in the water system and, consequently, in the transplants, although an enrichment can be observed for several PAHs. Overall, the devitalized clone of F. antipyretica can uptake and accumulate PAHs in water and may be useful in bioremediation strategies.

Combined use of native and transplanted moss for post-mining characterization of metal(loid) river contamination

Abandoned mine sites are a cause of great environmental concern, being potential sources of toxic elements for adjacent aquatic ecosystems with intrinsic difficulties for their management (i.e. episodic nature of pollution, technical difficulties and high costs of monitoring, remoteness). Aquatic macrophytes can find effective application in these situations, providing cost-effective data for instream water quality assessment. In this study, native and transplanted specimens of the aquatic moss Platyhypnidium riparioides were used to evaluate metal(loid) contamination in a river receiving multiple acidic and metalliferous drainages from sulphide mineralized areas and derelict mines. Analysis of native P. riparioides thalli was used to identify, in the upland course of the river, the pattern of contamination (As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn) which was related to the geo-environmental features of the watershed and the nearby historical mining areas. Attenuation of metal(loid) availability in the lowland river, apparently due to eco-hydrological and physic-chemical processes, was also highlighted by spatial trends of concentrations data of native and transplanted moss. The latter, deployed for 21 days at specific stretches of the river and in a tributary hydrologically connected with a dismissed mine, supported the identification of point sources (i.e. mine effluents, metallurgical waste piles amassed on the banks of the river) and the reckoning of their quantitative impact on different segments of the watercourse. By exploring multi-elemental and native-to-transplant relationships, differences in metal(loid) accumulative capacities were recognized between sampled thalli and exposed moss bags in relation to the severity of the contamination. The observed discrepancy in the accumulation of As, Fe, Ni and Pb in highly contaminated areas between native and transplanted moss of P. riparioides raises questions on the possible competing mechanisms of element uptake and retention. These findings prompt studies to discern possible limitations of the transplanting moss technique under extreme stream-quality conditions.