Reach‐Scale Geomorphic and Biological Effects of Localized Streambank Armoring

Armoring of streambanks is a common management response to perceived threats to adjacent infrastructure from flooding or erosion. Despite their pervasiveness, effects of reach‐scale bank armoring have received less attention than those of channelization or watershed‐scale hydromodification. In this study, we explored mechanistic ecosystem responses to armoring by comparing conditions upstream, within, and downstream of six stream reaches with bank armoring in Southern California. Assessments were based on four common stream‐channel assessment methods: (1) traditional geomorphic measures, (2) the California Rapid Assessment Method for wetlands, (3) bioassessment with benthic macroinvertebrates, and (4) bioassessment with stream algae. Although physical responses varied among stream types (mountain, transitional, and lowland), armored segments generally had lower slopes, more and deeper pools and fewer riffles, and increased sediment deposition. Several armored segments exhibited channel incision and bank toe failure. All classes of biological indicators showed subtle, mechanistic responses to physical changes. However, extreme heterogeneity among sites, the presence of catchment‐scale disturbances, and low sample size made it difficult to ascribe observed patterns solely to channel armoring. The data suggest that species‐level or functional group‐level metrics may be more sensitive tools than integrative indices of biotic integrity to local‐scale effects.     

长江流域鄂西四河流大型底栖动物群落结构特征及水质生物学评价

鄂西水系是国家级水源保护区，也是湖北省重要的生态旅游区。为了解鄂西水生态健康状况，于2014年10月~2017年1月不同时段在宜昌国家可持续发展实验示范区卷桥河（J）、清江利川段（Q）、宜昌市水源地黄柏河（H）和丹江口入库河流天河郧西段（T）开展了底栖动物群落特征研究。研究表明：4个河段共采集到大型底栖动物5门8纲18目61科。基于底栖动物指示种耐污性及其丰度占比分析，表明J、Q和T三河流污染程度沿水流方向呈加重趋势，而H水体健康状况整体较好。运用FBI和SIGNAL底栖生物评价指数，显示四条河流健康程度沿水流方向均呈下降趋势，但H变化趋势平缓，结果表明H水体上下游均处于较健康状态，其他3条河流上游或源头水体健康状况良好，下游受到较重污染。对主要环境因子（TP、NH₃-N、COD_Mn和TN）做主成分分析表明，轴1的解释率达到65.1%，表明轴1可以有效表征主要环境压力梯度。FBI和SIGNAL指数与轴1线性拟合度均较高，表明二者在鄂西河流水生态健康评估中可作为快速生物评价指数。     

大型底栖动物快速评价指数BMWP在太子河流域的应用

大型底栖动物快速生物评价方法可快速判断河流在人为活动影响下的生态状况,对河流健康评价研究和河流保护与管理具有重要的意义。基于太子河46个样点的大型底栖动物监测数据,探讨大型底栖动物生物监测工作组(Biological Monitoring Working Party,BMWP)指数的适用性。采用方差分析研究了BMWP指数对重要水环境参数的响应程度,研究结果表明BMWP指数随地表水水质级别的降低呈显著地下降趋势。利用回归分析研究了BMWP指数与其他生物指数、生境状况的回归关系,结果显示BMWP指数与底栖动物香农多样性指数(R2=0.74)、底栖动物完整性指数(R2=0.85)以及生境质量评估指数(R2=0.60)均呈显著线性回归关系(p0.01),表明BMWP指数可以有效指示与反映不同河段的生物状况及其栖息地质量。利用BMWP指数对采样点进行的河流健康评价结果显示太子河46个采样点中,极好和良好的采样点占45.7%,一般的样点占21.7%,差和极差的样点为32.6%。BMWP指数对河流生态状况指示灵敏,能够准确反映河流健康状况。同时,野外监测、物种鉴定和指数计算简便,是河流健康评价中表征能力较强的快速生物评价指数。     

黄河干流全河段浮游植物群落特征与水质生物评价

为明晰水利工程修建后的黄河干流生态完整性与多样性状况,于2019年春季及秋季对黄河干流自源区至河口全河段浮游植物群落进行了调查.共鉴定浮游植物8门130属350种,春季（229种）和秋季（307种）物种数分别占总物种数的65.43%和87.71%,硅藻门和绿藻门均为两季浮游植物优势门类;春秋两季所有断面浮游植物密度及生物量平均值分别为162.39×10⁴cells/L、2.53mg/L和141.12×10⁴cells/L、3.04mg/L;根据多样性指数进行水质生物评价,秋季整体水质优于春季水质.受水库影响断面的浮游植物密度与生物量均大于临近自然河道断面;多年调节水库和年调节水库浮游植物现存量为库首>库中>库尾,不完全年调节水库则与之相反,日调节水库库区内三个断面差异不大.水质生物评价结果表明,黄河干流自源区至河口的污染程度逐渐增加.     

The Application of A Tiered Testing Approach to the Management of Dredged Sediments for Disposal at Sea in Canada

Canada, and other signatories to the London Convention 1972 on the prevention of marine pollution by dumping, are preparing to ratify a 1996 Protocol to this convention. Among the improvements to this international agreement, is a new process for the Assessment of Waste and Other Matter, which is to be adopted by signatory parties. the process includes a step in which material considered potentially acceptable for sea disposal must be characterized by chemical, physical and biological properties. Canada's interpretation and intended implementation of this characterization step is presented for the assessment of dredged sediments. This tiered testing approach involves using chemical screening limits for contaminants, and biological testing when screening levels are exceeded. Dredged material containing specified substances (e.g., cadmium, mercury, PAHs, PCBs, etc.) below or at screening levels would generally be considered of little environmental concern for disposal at sea. Wastes above the screening levels would require more detailed assessment before their suitability for disposal at sea could be determined.     

Status of Aquatic Bioassessment in U.S. EPA Region IX

U.S. EPA Region IX is supporting bioassessment programs in Arizona, California, Hawaii and Nevada using biocriteria program and Regional Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (R-EMAP) resources. These programs are designed to improve the state, tribal and regional ability to determine the status of water quality. Biocriteria program funds were used to coordinate with Arizona, California and Hawaii which resulted in these states establishing reference conditions and in developing biological indices. U.S. EPA Region IX has initiated R-EMAP projects in California and Nevada. These U.S. EPA Region IX sponsored programs have provided an opportunity to interact with the States and provide them with technical and management support. In Arizona, several projects are being conducted to develop the State's bioassessment program. These include the development of a rotational random monitoring program; a regional reference approach for macroinvertebrate bioassessments; ecoregion approach to testing and adoption of an alternate regional classification system; and development of warm-water and cold-water indices of biological integrity. The indices are projected to be used in the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) 2000 water quality assessment report. In California, an Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) has been developed for the Russian River Watershed using resources from U.S. EPA's Non-point Source (NPS) Program grants. A regional IBI is under development for certain water bodies in the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. Resources from the U.S. EPA Biocriteria program are being used to support the California Aquatic Bioassessment Workgroup (CABW) in conjunction with the California Department of Fish & Game (CDFG), and to support the Hawaii Department of Health (DoH) Bioassessment Program to refine biological metrics. In Nevada, R-EMAP resources are being used to create a baseline of aquatic information for the Humboldt River watershed. U.S. EPA Region IX is presently working with the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) to establish a Nevada Aquatic Bioassessment Workgroup. Future R-EMAP studies will occur in the Calleguas Creek watershed in Southern California, and in the Muddy and Virgin River watersheds in southern Nevada, and the Walker River watershed in eastern California and west-central Nevada.     

Impervious Surface Area as a Predictor of the Effects of Urbanization on Stream Insect Communities in Maine, U.S.A.

The influence of urbanization on stream insect communities was determined by comparing physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of streams draining 20 catchments with varyinglevels of urban land-cover in Maine (U.S.A). Percent total impervious surface area (PTIA), which was used to quantify urbanland-use, ranged from 1–31% among the study catchments.Taxonomic richness of stream insect communities showed an abruptdecline as PTIA increased above 6%. Streams draining catchmentswith PTIA < 6% had the highest levels of both total insect and EPT (Ephemeroptera + Plecoptera + Trichoptera) taxonomic richness. These streams contained insect communities with a totalrichness averaging 33 taxa in fall and 31 taxa in spring; EPT richness ranged from an average of 15 taxa in fall and 13 taxa inspring. In contrast, none of the streams draining catchments with6–27% PTIA had a total richness > 18 taxa or an EPT richness> 6 taxa. Insect communities in streams with PTIA > 6% were characterized by the absence of pollution-intolerant taxa. The distribution of more pollution-tolerant taxa (e.g.Acerpenna (Ephemeroptera); Paracapnia, Allocapnia (Plecoptera); Optioservus, Stenelmis (Coleoptera); Hydropsyche, Cheumatopsyche (Trichoptera)), however, showed little relation to PTIA. In contrast to the apparent threshold relationship between PTIA and insect taxonomic richness, both habitat qualityand water quality tended to decline as linear functions of PTIA.Our results indicate that, in Maine, an abrupt change in stream insect community structure occurs at a PTIA above a threshold ofapproximately 6% of total catchment area. The measurement of PTIA may provide a valuable tool for predicting thresholds for adverse effects of urbanization on the health of headwater streams in Maine.     

Methods development and use of macroinvertebrates as indicators of ecological conditions for streams in the Mid-Atlantic Highlands Region

The Mid-Atlantic Highlands Assessment (MAHA) included the sampling of macroinvertebrates from 424 wadeable stream sites to determine status and trends, biological conditions, and water quality in first through third order streams in the Mid-Atlantic Highlands Region (MAHR) of the United States in 1993–1995. We identified reference and impaired sites using water chemistry and habitat criteria and evaluated a set of candidate macroinvertebrate metrics using a stepwise process. This process examined several metric characteristics, including ability of metrics to discriminate reference and impaired sites, relative scope of impairment, correlations with chemical and habitat indicators of stream disturbance, redundancy with other metrics, and within-year variability. Metrics that performed well were compared with metrics currently being used by three states in the region: Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. Some of the metrics used by these states did not perform well when evaluated using regional data, while other metrics used by all three states in some form, specifically number of taxa, number of EPT taxa, and Hilsenhoff Biotic Index, performed well overall. Reasons for discrepancies between state and regional evaluations of metrics are explored. We also provide a set of metrics that, when used in combination, may provide a useful assessment of stream conditions in the MAHR.     

Use of Maryland Biological Stream Survey Data to Determine Effects of Agricultural Riparian Buffers on Measures of Biological Stream Health

This study was undertaken to determine the importance of riparian buffers to stream ecology in agricultural areas. The original Maryland Biological Stream Survey (MBSS) data set was partitioned to represent agricultural sites in Maryland's Coastal Plain and Piedmont regions. ANOVA, multiple linear regression (MLR), and CART regression tree models were developed using riparian and site catchment landscape characteristics. MBSS data were both stratified by physiographic region and analyzed as a combined data set. All models indicated that land management at the site was not the controlling factor for fish IBIs (FIBI) at that site and, hence, using FIBI to evaluate site-scale factors would not be a prudent procedure. Measures of instream habitat and location in the stream network were the dominant explanatory factors for FIBI models. Both CART and MLR models indicated that forest buffers were influential on benthic IBIs (BIBI). Explanatory variables reflected instream conditions, adjacent landscape influence, and chemistry in the Coastal Plains sites, all of which are relatively site specific. However, for Piedmont sites, hydrologic factors were important, in addition to adjacent landscape influence, and chemistry. Both Coastal Plain and Piedmont CART models identified several hydrologic factors, emphasizing the dominant control of hydrology on the physical habitat index (PHI). Riparian buffers were a secondary influence on PHI in the Coastal Plain, but not in the Piedmont. Between 40% and 70% of the variation in FIBI, BIBI, and PHI was explained by the “easily obtainable” variables available from the MBSS data set. While these are empirical results specific to Maryland, the general findings are of use to other locations where the establishment of forest buffers is considered as an aquatic ecosystem restoration measure.     

Comparison of macroinvertebrate sampling methods for nonwadeable streams

Bioassessment of nonwadeable streams in the United States is increasing, but methods for these systems are not as well-developed as for wadeable streams. In this study, we compared six macroinvertebrate field sampling methods for nonwadeable streams adapted from those used by three major programs: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program-Surface Waters, the U.S. Geological Surveys National Water Quality Assessment Program, and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, Division of Surface Water Biocriteria Program. We performed all six methods at 60 sites across four rivers and measured water chemistry and physical habitat at each site to assess abiotic conditon. Sites were divided into two groups: those influenced by navigational lock and dam structures (restricted flow, or RF) and those free-flowing or with lowhead dams (run-of-the-river, or ROR). Metrics based on passive Hester-Dendy artificial substrate samplers differed greatly from active sampling methods (i.e., using nets) but represented abiotic conditions well in both ROR and RF sites. Although metric values were similar across certain sampling methods, the metrics significantly correlated with abiotic variables varied among methods and between ROR and RF sites. These results emphasize that methods are not interchangeable, and the ability to detect certain stressors depends on sampling method.The U.S. Governments right to retain a non-exclusive, royalty free licence in and to any copyright is acknowledged.