Untersuchungen zum ökotoxikologischen Schädigungspotenzial und Erosionsrisiko von kontaminierten Sedimenten in staugeregelten Flüssen

Particle-bound pollutants accumulate in river-bottom sediments, a process which results in a significant decrease in the ecotoxicological availability of toxicants for the majority of aquatic organisms. Under normal hydrologic conditions, the release of contaminants from bottom sediments is usually of minor importance. In contrast, flood events may remobilize highly contaminated sediments via in-stream erosion. The objective of this study was to develop a combined ecotoxicological and hydraulic approach to elucidate the ecotoxicological implications associated with the risk of erosion of contaminated sediments. This integrated strategy was applied to the lock-regulated Neckar river in Southern Germany. Both the bottom-sediment cores and suspended matter from two intensive flood events were investigated. Sediment samples below an erosional unconformity showed a sharp increase in the ecotoxicological load. Moreover, it was found that major flood events (HQ₅ and higher) could possibly erode even very old, well-consolidated and highlycontaminated sediments. The suspended matter of the high discharge events investigated (return periods of 15 to 20 years) exerted significantly higher cytotoxicity and mutagenicity than a moderate flood with a 1-year return period. These findings support the conclusion that the observed ecotoxicological effects during major floods may at least in part be due to the in-stream erosion of highly contaminated bottom sediments.     

Flooding and the Distribution of Selected Metals in Floodplain Sediments in St. Maries, Idaho

The link between sediment contamination and flooding is not well established, since flooding may exacerbate problems by spreading pollutants throughout the floodplain, or alternatively may dilute contaminants in source areas. To determine the substance of such relationships, the pattern of sediment contamination was examined in a small Idaho town following flooding in 1996. Four heavy metals were tested, nickel, chromium, zinc and copper, in 97 soil samples obtained from sites across the floodplain of the St. Joe River. Flood history and land-uses at each sample site were noted. Results showed that contamination levels generally were not high, with flood areas having lower concentrations than non-flood areas. A stronger relationship could be argued for land-use, with higher concentrations of contamination associated with some industrial sites. High levels of contamination were also found in several samples taken from recreational areas. Further research looking at the potential sources of contamination in relation to characteristics of the flood hydrology would seem pertinent.     

Neue Aspekte in der Behandlung von Siedlungsabflüssen

The surface runoff from urban areas is one of the most important sources of pollutants emitted into surface waters. Suspended solids which act as a transport vehicle for many anthropogenic pollutants (e.?g. heavy metals, PAH) are a key factor in this regard. The development of efficient measures of storm water runoff treatment thus requires a further differentiation of suspended solids in a fine (clay and silt) and coarse (sand and gravel) fraction. Both fractions show distinctly different characteristics in pollutant loading, transport and retention on urban surfaces and sewer systems. The primary aim of storm water runoff treatment is the reduction of the fine particles which are always highly loaded with anthropogenic pollutants. In contrast the coarse particles are almost unpolluted especially if they have a low organic share. The widespread sedimentation tanks with surface loadings between 10 and 2?m/h are very inefficient. A significant, save and lasting reduction of the emitted load of fine particles requires a considerable reduction of the surface loads. That can be achieved with the installation of lamellar settler or the utilization of the very large volumes of flood management tanks frequently present in urban areas. Filtration plants are highly efficient but there application in urban areas is limited due to their high space demands.     

Beurteilung von Bodenkontaminationen mit Radioaktivität im Gebiet Hannover-List nach Maßstäben und Ansätzen der BBodSchV

Background, aim, and scope In the district List of Hanover (Lower Saxony) radioactive contaminations of the ground were detected at a site of a former chemical plant. Due to the lack of an ordinance regarding intervention regulations in the case of radioactive contaminations in Germany this situation had to be assessed on the basis of scales and methods of the German regulations concerning soil protection and contaminated sites. In particular it was necessary to develop methods and levels for the assessment of radioactive contaminations. Materials and methods Because radioactivity can be considered as a carcinogenic substance the methodical approaches of the BBodSchV for this group of substances were used in order to derive test thresholds for radioactive contaminations at children’s play areas, residential areas as well as parks and recreation facilities. Results For the assessment of radioactive soil contaminations with naturally occurring radionuclides at children’s play areas and residential areas the ingestion of soil is the decisive pathway of exposure. For children’s play areas a threshold level of 0.2?Bq/g for the sum U-238,max?+?Th-232,max was obtained. At areas with only impacts of ambient radiation from the contaminated ground test thresholds of 0.5?µSv/h are recommended. A special pathway is the migration of radon from the contaminated soil into basement floors of buildings. Taking into account the natural background levels of radon a concentration of 260?Bq/m³ is suggested as a test threshold in the framework of soil protection benchmarks. Discussion and conclusions will be described in Part 2 of the paper.     

Septic tank and agricultural non‐point source pollution within a rural watershed

This investigation addresses the problem of Non‐Point Source (NPS) pollution in the rural Lake Weatherford watershed in Parker County, Texas. This reservoir is the primary municipal water supply for the City of Weatherford, Texas. The principal method of wastewater disposal is the on‐site system or septic tanks for the small residential areas surrounding the reservoir.

Sources of NPS pollution of interest in this watershed include agricultural operations as well as the residential areas. These sites were identified with the aid of aerial photography and field investigation. Suspected NPS problems were substantiated through a sampling program involving chemical and biological testing of the reservoir. Results indicate that there is significant NPS pollution contamination of Lake Weatherford from agricultural sources and seepage from on‐site wastewater disposal systems. Excessive fecal coliform and fecal streptococcus counts (>500 bacteria/100 ml) were generally associated with rainfall events and several samples showed values > 100000 bacteria/100 ml. The fecal coliform/fecal streptococcus ratios indicated contamination from human sources, animal sources, and a combination of both. Nutrient concentrations fluctuated from quite low to high with ammonia as the most consistent problem. High ammonia values were also associated with rainfall events.     

Effects of simulated deposition of dredged material on structure of nematode assemblages – the role of contamination

 Certain criteria must be satisfied before a licence for the deposition of dredged material at sea in UK waters is issued. These relate to the chemical quality of the material, the quantity to be disposed of, its nature and origin, and its predicted impacts at the disposal site. Although chemical analyses of dredgings provide an indication of the relative degrees of contamination, they do not provide a measure of any resultant biological effects. A laboratory experiment was therefore designed to investigate the effects of the degree of contamination and the role of burial associated with the deposition of dredged material on the meiofauna. Estuarine nematode assemblages were exposed to the simulated deposition of uncontaminated, oxic intertidal mud and anoxic sediments from the Mersey and the Tees estuaries, both of which were contaminated with heavy metals. The sediments, which differed little in terms of grain size, were deposited in two different frequencies. Nematodes showed a clear species-specific response to the experimental treatments, depending on the frequency of deposition and the chemical quality of the deposited material (e.g. metal and oxygen concentrations). The response of nematode assemblages was mainly determined by the deposition frequency rather than the type of sediment or the degree of contamination. The deposition of sediment in one large dose at the beginning of the experiment caused more severe changes in assemblage structure than the same quantity deposited in several smaller doses. Although lower than in uncontaminated mud, relatively high migration and survival rates in the contaminated high-frequency treatments were observed. This may have been due to reduced bioavailability of metals and the tolerance of estuarine nematodes to both metal contamination and the deposition of small sediment volumes at regular intervals. The observed trends demonstrate the potential of small-scale laboratory experiments for testing the quality of contaminated dredged material at the licensing stage, i.e. prior to the issue of a disposal licence. Received: 11 February 2000 / Accepted: 26 June 2000     

Biozönotisches Testverfahren (PICT-Konzept)

Goal and Scope

A community test is introduced usingin situ periphyton communities and the pollution induced community tolerance for ecotoxicological testing. It was the aim of the study to evaluate the feasibility of the test for the assessment of xenobiotics and contaminated environmental aquatic samples.

Methods

The herbicides Isoproturon and Prometryn were tested using standardised microphytobenthic communities of differing contamination. A pulse-amplitude-modulated fluorescence based method was used to detect the impact of the herbicides on the photosynthetic system of the microalgae.

Results and Conclusions

Despite the variability of the ecosystem (samples were taken from different sites and varying taxonomy throughout a period of two months), the tests show high sensitivity and good reproduction features. EC₅₀ values of 0.025 mg L^?1 for Isoproturon and 0.016 mg L^?1 for Prometryn were evaluated. These effect concentrations ranged in the same order of magnitude as the results derived from cell reproduction inhibition tests withScenedesmus vacuolatus (0.029 mg L^?1 for Isoproturon and 0.012 mg L^?1 for Prometryn). For Isoproturon, the test was able to differentiate effect concentrations for single algal classes within natural communities. The test was used to assess a contaminated effluent entering a stream (Spittelwasser) in the region of Bitterfeld. The effluent originate from a local chemical industry site, where Prometryn was produced for 4 decades. According to the PICT-concept (pollution induced community tolerance), we hypothesed that periphyton taken downstream of the effluent was more tolerant to Prometryn than uncontaminated communities. It could be shown that the herbicide caused a shift in the concentration response relationships of communities from different contaminated sites, indicating the development of tolerance. We conclude that the test using periphyton communities and considering the development of tolerance is able to evaluate a causal analysis of chronic effects of pollutants on community level. The multi-species test usingin situ communities reflects a higher biological organisation level than a single species laboratory test.

Outlook

The PICT-concept could be used for ecological risk assessment of pollutants in the environment bridging the gap between single species laboratory testing and time consuming mesocosmos and field studies.     

西方国家工业污染场地管理经验及其对中国的借鉴

近年来,随着＂退二进三＂、＂退城进园＂和＂产业转移＂等政策的实施,中国几乎所有的大中城市正面临着重污染工业企业关闭和搬迁问题,城市出现大量工业遗留和遗弃场地。这些受污染的工业场地多存在较为严重的土壤、地表水和地下水污染;另外,工业污染场地的延迟再开发,会产生生活环境变差、就业机会减少、甚至社会不稳定因素增加等社会影响。所以,城市工业污染场地严重威胁着城市人居环境安全和公众健康,阻碍着城市建设和经济发展。面对工业污染场地目前存在的问题,国家及部分地方政府已针对污染场地的管理、修复及其再开发颁布了诸多文件和技术规范标准。然而,由于工业场地类型的多样性和环境管理学科的交叉性,中国城市工业污染场地的环境管理工作仍处于起步阶段,亟需完善。美国、英国和加拿大经过20~30年的发展已经在工业污染场地管理方面积累了丰富的经验,他们不仅在环境管理中体现了人体健康风险评估的理念,而且还立足本国实际出台了相关的法律法规,明确了污染场地的责任主体,实现了＂污染者付费＂的原则,同时还建立了各自的污染场地治理优先名录,实现了污染场地管理的信息化和网络化。本文鉴于对这些经验的比较分析,结合我国实际,就城市工业污染场地的环境管理提出了现阶段亟须解决的两大问题。首先,制定工业污染场地管理的专门法律,明确污染场地的责任主体。我国现有的与污染场地有关的国家法律法规,都比较笼统地提出了污染场地的利益相关方,缺乏具有可操作性的细则和威慑力的责任追究条款。对于我国这样地域辽阔、自然地理条件差异大、经济水平不均衡的国家来说,通过地方法律法规的建立明确污染场地的责任主体是一个重要的尝试。其次,构建污染场地健康风险评估系统。我国城市工业污染场地涉及诸多工业行业、污染类型繁多复杂。因此,在全国范围内对城市工业污染场地进行排查、建立优先污染场地名录是构建污染场地风险评估系统的重要内容。此外,我国现有的土壤质量标准和场地评估规范仍存在诸多缺陷,无法满足当前国家城市工业污染场地的管理需要。所以,完善场地评估的技术规范和相关标准将为污染场地风险评估系统的构建提供基础性保障。本文的论述和观点可为我国工业企业关停或搬迁遗留地的决策管理和污染场地管理体系的建立提供有意义的参考和借鉴。     

Accumulation and metal fluxes in the central Venice Lagoon during the last century

Samples from 18 short sediment cores were analyzed for major and trace metals (Al, Fe, Ca, K, Mg, Mn, Si, Ti, Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni, and Cr), ²¹⁰Pb, ¹³⁷Cs, total organic carbon, grain size, and mineralogical composition to find the record of major environmental changes, either natural or anthropogenic, and to establish their chronologies. Some sediments are characterized by nearly constant composition over time, but others clearly show signs of an increasing marine influence, as an increase of the carbonate contents, after the opening of the Malamocco-Marghera Canal in 1969. These changes sometimes obscure the real pattern of pollutants and tracers, which is revealed by normalization against Al. Zn is the most important contaminant, with concentration factors up to 9.3 times the background level, and the most contaminated sediments are those within a few kilometers from the industrial district of Porto Marghera. ²¹⁰Pb activity-depth profiles were used to calculate apparent accumulation rates that provide a basis for the assessment of metal fluxes. The sediments of several sites show a significant increase in anthropogenic metal contamination starting from the second decade of last century, with maximum inputs from 1930 to 1970. The decrease of heavy metal concentrations observed in surficial sediments of some sampling sites could be related to a recent reduction of pollutant inputs.     

Biologische Sanierung von Rüstungsaltlasten

Many sites of former ammunition plants are contaminated with the explosive 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, its derivatives and reduction products. Such nitroaromatic compounds have a high human and ecotoxic potential. Plant uptake of these organic pollutants is known and could be confirmed under field conditions. In this paper rhizospheric soil was analyzed to characterize the effect of vegetation on TNT-contaminated soil. Common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) were used as test plants. The experiments were performed on two areas with different TNT concentrations. The data reveal a significant decrease of extractable TNT in rhizospheric soil by a factor of 5 to 6 during the vegetation period. On the area with high TNT concentration, an enrichment of nitroaromatic compounds in root tissue was found compared to the rhizospheric soil. Aminodinitrotoluene could be confirmed as the primary pollutant in the root. These results refer to a potential application of plants to biological remediation of soil contaminated with ammunition-specific pollutants.     

Multiple antibiotic resistance patterns of rhizospheric bacteria isolated from Phragmites australis growing in constructed wetland for distillery effluent treatment

Susceptibility patterns of 12 different antibiotics were investigated against rhizospheric bacteria isolated from Phragmites australis from three different zones i.e. upper (0-5 cm), middle (5-10 cm), lower (10-15 cm) in constructed wetland system with and without distillery effluent. The major pollutants of distillery effluent were phenols, sulphide, heavy metals, and higher levels of biological oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD) etc. The antibiotic resistance properties of bacteria were correlated with the heavy metal tolerance (one of distillery pollutant). Twenty-two species from contaminated and seventeen species from non-contaminated site were tested by agar disc-diffusion method. The results revealed that more than 63% of total isolates were resistance towards one or more antibiotics tested from all the three different zones of contaminated sites. The multiple-drug resistance property was shown by total 8 isolates from effluent contaminated region out of which 3 isolates were from upper zone, 3 isolates from middle zone and 2 isolates were from lower zone. Results indicated that isolates from contaminated rhizosphere were found more resistant to antibiotics than isolates from non-contaminated rhizosphere. Further this study produces evidence suggesting that tolerance to antibiotics was acquired by isolates for the adaptation and detoxification of all the pollutants present in the effluent at contaminated site. This consequently facilitated the phytoremediation of effluent, which emerges the tolerance and increases resistance to antibiotics.     

Heavy metal contamination in river water and sediments of the Swarnamukhi River Basin,India: risk assessment and environmental implications

The concentration of heavy metals was analyzed each of 20 river water, suspended sediments and bed sediments along the stretch of Swarnamukhi River Basin. River water is not contaminated with heavy metals except Fe and Mn. Contamination factor in sediments shows considerable to very high degree contamination with Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn. The sources of these metals could be residential wastes, sewer outfall, fertilizers, pesticides (M-45 + carbondine) and traffic activities apart from natural weathering of granitic rocks present in the basin area. Principal component analyses indicate the interaction between metals in different media. The comparison of metals (Cu, Pb and Zn) in bed sediments of Swarnamukhi River with the Indian and world averages indicates that the values obtained in the basin are above the Indian averages and far below to the world averages. Average shale values and sediment quality guidelines point toward the enrichment and contamination of Cu, Cr, Pb and Zn to several fold leading to eco-toxicological risks in basin.     

城市室内环境多环芳烃污染与源的相关性

本实验选择了天津市４类典型室内环境和２处室外对照点，共１９个采样点。现场采样测定了１０种ＰＡＨｓ组成含量。结果显示，室内燃煤和室内吸烟是室内环境中多环芳烃排放的主要污染源。同作为对照的室外大气中多环芳烃组成和含量进行了对比，研究了室内环境不同污染源排放多环芳烃组成和含量的特征性。提出了室内燃煤污染同燃煤型室外大气源排放多环芳烃具有相似组成含量特征，而室内烟草烟雾污染源的多环芳烃组成含量特征则与室外     

疏水性有机污染物在土壤/沉积物中的赋存状态研究

土壤/沉积物是环境中有机污染物主要的汇,由于土壤-沉积物结构和性质的复杂性,有机污染物进入其中,会结合在不同的位点上,赋存状态发生分化,具有不同的物理流动性、生态风险和化学反应活性.对于土壤-沉积物中有机污染物吸附/解吸的研究是认识其赋存状态并预测其生态风险的重要手段.本文对于疏水性污染物吸附/解吸及赋存状态的国内外研...     

Lead pollution in East Trinidad resulting from lead recycling and smelting activities

Several problems of acute lead poisoning in children have been identified over the past three years in Trinidad. In all cases investigated so far, continual exposure to lead from battery recycling or from lead-smelter wastes have been found responsible. In East Trinidad, illicit dumping of lead wastes from such sources has resulted in several sites becoming heavily contaminated. Some of these sites are in environmentally sensitive areas, including rivers and wetlands, and require urgent remedial action. Results of monitoring studies at several of these sites show lead levels as high as 75% by weight. The potential for surface and ground water contamination exists, as evidenced by leaching of lead into surrounding areas.     

广东清远电子垃圾处理地沉积物对伸展摇蚊的慢性毒性效应

电子垃圾拆解引起的环境污染和生态风险已成为全球关注的热点问题,不适当的电子垃圾拆解过程造成处理区水体沉积物受到多类有机化合物和重金属污染,直接威胁生活在沉积物中的底栖动物。在典型电子垃圾处理地广东清远采集沉积物,测定样品中以烃类为主的色谱难分离混合物(unresolved complex mixture,UCM)的含量,开展伸展摇蚊全生命周期慢性毒性测试。结果表明,清远沉积物中的UCM浓度(0.08±0.01)%接近于这类污染物对伸展摇蚊的慢性半致死性效应浓度(0.073±0.022)%。同时发现清远沉积物对以摇蚊为代表的底栖无脊椎动物具有显著慢性毒性效应,且可通过测定UCM含量初步估算。这为开展以电子垃圾处理地沉积物为代表的,受到以麻醉作用为主要致毒机制的混合物污染的沉积物的毒性评价提供了一种有效方法。     

Hydrocarbon pollution of edible shellfish by an oil spill

A spill of 650,000 to 700,000 l of No. 2 fuel oil has contaminated the coastal areas of Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts (USA). Gas chromatography demonstrates the presence of this oil in the sediments of the affected area. Two months after the accident, essentially unchanged oil is still being released from the sediments. The presence of the same pollutant is demonstrated in whole oysters Crassostrea virginica and in the adductor muscle of the scallop Aequipecten irradians. A presumably biochemical modification leads to a gradual depletion of the straight chain and, to a lesser extent, of branched chain hydrocarbons. This does not result in detoxification, as the more toxic aromatic hydrocarbons are retained in the organisms several months after the accident. Scallops from an uncontaminated area contain hydrocarbons in lesser amounts and of very different molecular weight and type distribution; they are accountable entirely from biological sources.Contribution No. 2444 of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.     

莱州湾表层沉积物中重金属时空分布、污染来源及风险评价

运用污染风险评价标准和方法研究了2010年5月(春)、8月(夏)、10月(秋)和12月(冬)莱州湾表层沉积物中7种重金属污染物的时空分布特征、来源及生态风险。结果表明,表层沉积物中Cr、Zn和Pb含量均呈现春季低于其他季节特征,秋季Hg含量是其他季节的4倍,Cu、As和Pb含量无显著季节差异。表层沉积物中Cr、Cu、Zn、As和Cd最高值出现在莱州湾中部及小清河河口等西部水域,来源呈现受自然作用影响较大的特征;而Hg和Pb最高值出现在龙口和界河河口等东部水域,来源呈现受周边工业污染物的人为排放影响较大的特征。基于地理累积指数、生态效应浓度以及Hakanson潜在生态风险指数的综合评价表明,13%~29%的研究区域的表层沉积物受到轻微程度的Cd、Hg和Pb污染,Cd和Hg高值水域达到中等生态风险程度;Hg和As在65%~68%的研究区域的表层沉积物中达到可能对沉积物底质环境及生物群落产生不利生态影响水平。基于对重金属污染物的评价结果,莱州湾表层沉积物质量较好,局部区域存在Hg、Pb、Cd和As的潜在污染风险。     

沉积物中2,2',4,4'-四溴联苯醚(BDE-47)在铜锈环棱螺体内的毒代动力学及其繁殖毒性

多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)是一种全球性的新型持久性有毒污染物,沉积物中高浓度的PBDEs是水生态系统的巨大风险源,2,2’,4,4’-四溴联苯醚(BDE-47)在PBDEs同系物中,目前分布最广,生物毒性最强。为评价沉积物中BDE-47向底栖动物体内转移的潜力及其对底栖动物的潜在繁殖毒性,将实验室培养的铜锈环棱螺(Bellamya aeruginosa)暴露于BDE-47加标沉积物中,研究了BDE-47在铜锈环棱螺体内的毒代动力学特性及其对铜锈环棱螺潜在繁殖力的影响。结果表明,铜锈环棱螺对沉积物中BDE-47吸收较快,代谢速度相对较慢,BDE-47在铜锈环棱螺体内具有较强的生物积累性。生物积累达理论平衡时,铜锈环棱螺体内BDE-47浓度为1440.67ng·g-1(以样品干质量计)。BDE-47在铜锈环棱螺体内的生物积累和生物净化过程较好地符合一级动力学模型,摄入速率常数、清除速率常数和生物-沉积物累积因子分别为0.10、0.038和2.75,生物半衰期为18d。铜锈环棱螺体内BDE-47达到90%稳定状态所需的理论时间约为60d。低浓度BDE-47(160ng·g-1)暴露对铜锈环棱螺的潜在繁殖力没有影响,但当浓度≥640ng·g-1时,铜锈环棱螺的繁殖力下降50%,这表明BDE-47对铜锈环棱螺具有繁殖毒性。铜锈环棱螺可作为指示沉积物中底栖生物长期暴露于BDE-47的良好检测模型。     

Project house water: a novel interdisciplinary framework to assess the environmental and socioeconomic consequences of flood-related impacts

Protecting our water resources in terms of quality and quantity is considered one of the big challenges of the twenty-first century, which requires global and multidisciplinary solutions. A specific threat to water resources, in particular, is the increased occurrence and frequency of flood events due to climate change which has significant environmental and socioeconomic impacts. In addition to climate change, flooding (or subsequent erosion and run-off) may be exacerbated by, or result from, land use activities, obstruction of waterways, or urbanization of floodplains, as well as mining and other anthropogenic activities that alter natural flow regimes. Climate change and other anthropogenic induced flood events threaten the quantity of water as well as the quality of ecosystems and associated aquatic life. The quality of water can be significantly reduced through the unintentional distribution of pollutants, damage of infrastructure, and distribution of sediments and suspended materials during flood events. To understand and predict how flood events and associated distribution of pollutants may impact ecosystem and human health, as well as infrastructure, large-scale interdisciplinary collaborative efforts are required, which involve ecotoxicologists, hydrologists, chemists, geoscientists, water engineers, and socioeconomists. The research network “project house water” consists of a number of experts from a wide range of disciplines and was established to improve our current understanding of flood events and associated societal and environmental impacts. The concept of project house and similar seed fund and boost fund projects was established by the RWTH Aachen University within the framework of the German excellence initiative with support of the German research foundation (DFG) to promote and fund interdisciplinary research projects and provide a platform for scientists to collaborate on innovative, challenging research. Project house water consists of six proof-of-concept studies in very diverse and interdisciplinary areas of research (ecotoxicology, water, and chemical process engineering, geography, sociology, economy). The goal is to promote and foster high-quality research in the areas of water research and flood-risk assessments that combine and build off-laboratory experiments with modeling, monitoring, and surveys, as well as the use of applied methods and techniques across a variety of disciplines.