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Impacts of Pollution from Different Sources on Ecological Quality of a Multiple-use Coast

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Abstract

Investigation of pollution sources and their impacts on ecosystems is important, not only for better understanding the responses of an ecosystem to pollutants, but also for making practicable prevention and control plans. In this study, ecological quality of three areas which received different source pollutants in Shanghai coast were evaluated and compared in four seasons using Shannon–Wiener index (H′), a benthic diversity index as an indicator of ecological quality of coastal waters. The genotoxicity and physical-chemical variables of water samples were also analyzed. The H′ value indicated the ecological quality of Shanghai coastal waters was seriously impacted, and the ecological quality of two areas receiving waste discharges were significantly worse than that of the natural protection zone but not significantly different in four seasons. The positive genotoxic response was detected in most samples from two discharge zones but not detected in the samples from the natural protection zone. However, no significant difference was observed in water quality variables in the different coastal areas. Our study suggested that the point source pollution had significantly contributed to the genotoxicity of the coastal waters and impaired benthic assemblages, while the deterioration of ecological quality status was also critically impacted by the stressors from other sources.

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Acknowledgement

The authors are grateful for the help and collaboration of the colleagues in the East China Sea Monitoring Center, State Oceanic Administration. This project was supported by the Opening Fund of the Key Lab of Marine Pollution and Eco-Environment, SOA (200434), Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality (062358101) and Marine Science Fund for Young Scientists (2007129).

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  1. Jianyong Wu

    Present address: , 161 Rosenau Hall, CB 7431#, 421 Pittsboro St, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Health Science, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA

    Jianyong Wu

  2. East China Sea Monitoring Center, State Oceanic Administration, Shanghai, 200137, China

    Jinhui Wang

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  1. Jianyong Wu
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  2. Jinhui Wang
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Correspondence to Jianyong Wu.

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Wu, J., Wang, J. Impacts of Pollution from Different Sources on Ecological Quality of a Multiple-use Coast. Water Air Soil Pollut 193, 25–35 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-008-9665-4

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