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The Role of Periphyton in Mediating the Effects of Pollution in a Stream Ecosystem

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Abstract

The effects of pollutants on primary producers ramify through ecosystems because primary producers provide food and structure for higher trophic levels and they mediate the biogeochemical cycling of nutrients and contaminants. Periphyton (attached algae) were studied as part of a long-term biological monitoring program designed to guide remediation efforts by the Department of Energy’s Y-12 National Security Complex on East Fork Poplar Creek (EFPC) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. High concentrations of nutrients entering EFPC were responsible for elevated periphyton production and placed the stream in a state of eutrophy. High rates of primary production at upstream locations in EFPC were associated with alterations in both invertebrate and fish communities. Grazers represented >50% of the biomass of invertebrates and fish near the Y-12 Complex but <10% at downstream and reference sites. An index of epilithic periphyton production accounted for 95% of the site-to-site variation in biomass of grazing fish. Analyses of heavy metals in EFPC periphyton showed that concentrations of zinc, cadmium, copper and nickel in periphyton decreased exponentially with distance downstream from Y-12. Zinc uptake by periphyton was estimated to reduce the concentration of this metal in stream water ~60% over a 5-km reach of EFPC. Management options for mitigating eutrophy in EFPC include additional reductions in nutrient inputs and/or allowing streamside trees to grow and shade the stream. However, reducing periphyton growth may lead to greater downstream transport of contaminants while simultaneously causing higher concentrations of mercury and PCBs in fish at upstream sites.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by the Environmental Compliance Department of the Y-12 National Security Complex, which is managed by BWXT Y-12, LLC for the U. S. Department of Energy under contract number DE-AC05-00OR22800. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed by the University of Tennessee-Battelle LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725. We thank Roger Petrie of the Tennessee Department of Environmental Conservation for EFPC nutrient data.

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Author notes

  1. Harry L. Boston

    Present address: Boston Government Services, 2532 Jones Road, Lenoir City, TN, 37771, USA

  2. Arthur J. Stewart

    Present address: Oak Ridge Associated Universities, PO Box 117, MS-6173, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, PO Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831-6036, USA

    Walter R. Hill, Michael G. Ryon, John G. Smith, S. Marshall Adams, Harry L. Boston & Arthur J. Stewart

  2. Institute of Natural Resource Sustainability, Illinois Natural History Survey, University of Illinois, 1816 South Oak Street, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA

    Walter R. Hill

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  1. Walter R. Hill
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  2. Michael G. Ryon
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  3. John G. Smith
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  4. S. Marshall Adams
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  5. Harry L. Boston
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Correspondence to Walter R. Hill.

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Hill, W.R., Ryon, M.G., Smith, J.G. et al. The Role of Periphyton in Mediating the Effects of Pollution in a Stream Ecosystem. Environmental Management 45, 563–576 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9425-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9425-2

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