Abstract
Two 80-L pond microcosms (laboratory model ecosystems) were treated with the water-soluble fraction of a crude coal liquefaction product and responses were monitored for nine weeks. A large portion of the dominant macrophyte community was destroyed by the treatment, as were filamentous algae and benthic diatoms. Snails emigrated from the systems, and Zooplankton disappeared. Primary production and respiration declined for two weeks, remained low for two more weeks, then gradually returned to pre-treatment levels. Changes occurred in pH, alkalinity, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, dissolved organic carbon, and dissolved inorganic nitrogen. The microcosms recovered by the end of the experiment, but community composition and some chemical variables differed from the pre-treatment conditions.
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Research sponsored by the Office of Health and Environmental Research, U.S. Department of Energy, under contract W-7405-eng-26 with Union Carbide Corporation. Publication No. 1920, Environmental Sciences Division, ORNL
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Giddings, J.M. Effects of the water-soluble fraction of a coal-derived oil on pond microcosms. Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 11, 735–747 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01059162
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01059162