Biodynamic modelling and the prediction of accumulated trace metal concentrations in the polychaete Arenicola marina

The use of biodynamic models to understand metal uptake directly from sediments by deposit-feeding organisms still represents a special challenge. In this study, accumulated concentrations of Cd, Zn and Ag predicted by biodynamic modelling in the lugworm Arenicola marina have been compared to measured concentrations in field populations in several UK estuaries. The biodynamic model predicted accumulated field Cd concentrations remarkably accurately, and predicted bioaccumulated Ag concentrations were in the range of those measured in lugworms collected from the field. For Zn the model showed less but still good comparability, accurately predicting Zn bioaccumulation in A. marina at high sediment concentrations but underestimating accumulated Zn in the worms from sites with low and intermediate levels of Zn sediment contamination. Therefore, it appears that the physiological parameters experimentally derived for A. marina are applicable to the conditions encountered in these environments and that the assumptions made in the model are plausible.     

Cesium accumulation by fish following acute input to lakes: a comparison of experimental and Chernobyl-impacted systems

An uptake parameter u (L kg⁻¹ d⁻¹) and a loss rate parameter k (d⁻¹) were estimated for the patterns of accumulation and loss of ¹³³Cs by three fish species following an experimental ¹³³Cs addition into a pond in South Carolina, USA. These u and k parameters were compared to similar estimates for fish from other experimental ponds and from lakes that received ¹³⁷Cs deposition from Chernobyl. Estimates of u from ponds and lakes declined with increasing potassium concentrations in the water column. Although loss rates were greater in the experimental ponds, the times required to reach maximum Cs concentrations in fish were similar between ponds and lakes, because ponds and lakes had similar retentions of Cs in the water column. The maximum Cs concentrations in fish were largely determined by initial Cs concentrations in the water column. These maximum concentrations in fish and the times required to reach these maxima are potentially useful indicators for assessments of risks to humans from fish consumption.     

River use profile of the Central Niger Delta based on traditional eco-livelihood knowledge (TELK)

The Central Niger Delta is made up of a network of rivers and creeks that constitute the inland surface waters. These surface waters have historically influenced settlement patterns and are of diverse use to residents of the Central Niger Delta. Surface water like many ecological system are complex, whose complexity has been associated with seasonal variability. Traditional knowledge (TK), traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and the traditional eco-livelihood knowledge (TELK) of residents of four rural communities in the Central Niger Delta have been explored in developing a river use profile of rural communities of the Central Niger Delta. A questionnaire survey has been carried out in four communities, two each from the Otuoke and Kolo Creeks. The result shows that river use varies across seasons and affected by: physico-chemical water quality and characteristics of surface water; the hydrological characteristics; the biological/ecological characteristics; cultural use and demand; need for development projects; and access to this vital resource. Fishing constitute one of the major livelihood source in the Central Niger Delta and the TELK of fishers in the sample communities have specifically been explored to understanding fishing patterns across seasons. The five seasons identified from this study are: flood season; flood recession season; dry season; early rainy season; and rainy season. Therefore, the thesis of this paper is that there is the need to balance the current usage of surface water in the developing world such as the Central Niger Delta with the demand for development as well as future use if development is to meet the criteria for equitable development. The river use profile could be a promising tool in planning for equitable development.

The design of water markets when instream flows have value

The main objective of this paper is to design and test a decentralized exchange mechanism that generates the location-specific pricing necessary to achieve efficient allocations in the presence of instream flow values. Although a market-oriented approach has the potential to improve upon traditional command and control regulations, questions remain about how these rights-based institutions can be implemented such that the potential gains from liberalized trade can be realized. This article uses laboratory experiments to test three different water market institutions designed to incorporate instream flow values into the allocation mechanism through active participation of an environmental trader. The smart, computer-coordinated market described herein offers the potential to significantly reduce coordination problems and transaction costs associated with finding mutually beneficial trades that satisfy environmental constraints. We find that direct environmental participation in the market can achieve highly efficient and stable outcomes, although the potential does exist for the environmental agent to influence outcomes.     

Environmental Integrated Assessment via Monte Carlo Simulation with a Case Study of the Mid-Atlantic Region,USA

Environmental integrated assessments are often carried out via the aggregation of a set of environmental indicators. Aggregated indices derived from the same data set can differ substantially depending upon how the indicators are weighted and aggregated, which is often a subjective matter. This article presents a method of generating aggregated environmental indices in an objective manner via Monte Carlo simulation. Rankings derived from the aggregated indices within and between three Monte Carlo simulations were used to evaluate the overall environmental condition of the study area. Other insights, such as the distribution of good or bad values of indicators at a watershed and/or a subregion, were observed in the study.     

Fish and ships: relating dispersal frequency to success in biological invasions

 Most studies characterizing successful biological invaders emphasize those traits that help a species establish a new population. Invasions are, however, multi-phase processes with at least two phases, dispersal and introduction, that occur before establishment. Characteristics that enhance survival at any of these three phases will contribute to invasion success. Here, we synthesize information on the dispersal, introduction, and establishment of fishes mediated by ship ballast-water transport. We synthesize 54 reports of at least 31 fish species collected from ballast tanks (Phase 1), including 28 new reports from our recent studies (1986 to 1996). Our literature survey revealed 40 reports of 32 fish species whose introductions have been attributed to ballast transport (Phase 2), of which at least 24 survived to establish persistent populations (Phase 3). We detected little overlap at the species level between these two data sets (Phase 1 vs Phases 2 and 3), but patterns emerged at the family level. The Gobiidae (6 species), Clupeidae (4 species), and Gasterosteidae (1 species) were the most commonly found fish families in ballast tanks (Phase 1). The Gobiidae (13 species), Blenniidae (6 species) and Pleuronectidae (2 species) dominated the list of ballast-mediated introductions (Phase 2); gobies and blennies were the families most frequently established (Phase 3). The invasive success of gobies and blennies may be explained in part by their crevicolous nature: both groups seek refuge and lay eggs in small holes, and may take advantage of the ballast-intake holes on ship hulls. This behavior, not typically associated with invasive ability, may contribute to successful introduction and establishment by facilitating the dispersal phase of invasion. The failure of the pleuronectids to invade may reflect poor salinity match between donor and recipient regions. To develop a predictive framework of invasion success, organisms must be sampled at all three phases of the invasion process. Our comparison of two ballast sampling methods suggests that fishes have been undersampled in ballast-water studies, including our own, and that the role of ballast transport in promoting fish invasions has been underestimated. Received: 13 January 1999 / Accepted: 24 February 2000     

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.     

Macrofaunal recovery following TBT ban

In the United Kingdom, the use of TBT-based anti-fouling paints on small vessels was banned in 1987, and a biological study of the Crouch Estuary, a yachting centre on the south-eastern coast of the UK, was conducted in order to determine the ecological improvements resulting from this legislation. We present the changes in the macro-infaunal communities along the estuary in relation to declining TBT concentrations between 1987 and 2005. Although the major changes in response to the ban were observed within the first 3 years (primarily an increase in the number of crustacean taxa and a shift in community structure), with changes still apparent between three and 5 years, the temporal duration of this study allowed the rapidity of the response to be truly determined.     

The development of point-of-use water filters as sampling devices in bioforensics: extent of microbial sorption and elution

The foundational idea for this project is that household faucet-mounted water filters may be used as bioforensic sampling devices to detect the extent of a potential bioagent release in domestic water supplies. An optimized eluent solution was determined experimentally by quantifying recoveries of microorganisms from point-of-use (POU) drinking water filters. The optimized extraction protocol was then used in mock bioagent release experiments to determine the feasibility of POU filters as bioforensic sampling devices. Bacillus atrophaeus spores, Escherichia coli and PP7 virus were exposed to filters and the number of attached organisms was determined by enumerating the unattached organisms on selective agar media. Subsequently, the filters were eluted and the percent of extracted organisms was determined based on the number of attached organisms. Two popular brands of carbon block filters retained 92%-99% of representative virus, spore and vegetative bacteria. In back-flush elutions of single filters, the most efficient eluent was identified as a combination of 1% peptone and 1% Tween-80, and extraction recovered 25.4% (+/-17.5%) of attached E. coli, 20.4% (+/-3.6%) of B. atrophaeus spores, and 9.4% (+/-5.2%) of PP7 virions (+/- standard deviations). In bioagent release studies in which filters were challenged with 100 agents mL(-1), greater than 99% of the spores were retained by the filters, and the percent of attached spores that were recovered ranged from 10.4% at day 0 to 4.3% five days after the release event (averaged from five separate experiments). In contrast, E. coli, Salmonella typhimurium and PP7 virus were rapidly inactivated in the chlorinated tap water, indicating their improbable survival in chlorinated water supplies. It is therefore concluded that household water filters can be used as microbial sampling devices for bioforensic applications in the event of a bioagent release in domestic drinking water supplies.     

The Impacts of Human Visitation on Mussel Bed Communities Along the California Coast: Are Regulatory Marine Reserves Effective in Protecting These Communities?

Rocky intertidal habitats frequently are used by humans for recreational, educational, and subsistence-harvesting purposes, with intertidal populations damaged by visitation activities such as extraction, trampling, and handling. California Marine Managed Areas, particularly regulatory marine reserves (MRs), were established to provide legal protection and enhancement of coastal resources and include prohibitions on harvesting intertidal populations. However, the effectiveness of MRs is unclear as enforcement of no-take laws is weak and no regulations protect intertidal species from other detrimental visitor impacts such as trampling. The goal of this study was two-fold: (1) to determine impacts from human visitation on California mussel populations (Mytilus californianus) and mussel bed community diversity; and (2) to investigate the effectiveness of regulatory MRs in reducing visitor impacts on these populations. Surveys of mussel populations and bed-associated diversity were compared: (1) at sites subjected to either high or low levels of human use, and (2) at sites either unprotected or with regulatory protection banning collecting. At sites subjected to higher levels of human visitation, mussel populations were significantly lower than low-use sites. Comparisons of mussel populations inside and outside of regulatory MRs revealed no consistent pattern suggesting that California no-take regulatory reserves may have limited effectiveness in protecting mussel communities. In areas where many people visit intertidal habitats for purposes other than collecting, many organisms will be affected by trampling, turning of rocks, and handling. In these cases, effective protection of rocky intertidal communities requires an approach that goes beyond the singular focus on collecting to reduce the full suite of impacts.