No detrimental effects of desalination waste on temperate fish assemblages

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sasha K Whitmarsh ◽  
Greg M Barbara ◽  
James Brook ◽  
Dimitri Colella ◽  
Peter G Fairweather ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Waste Product ◽  
Ecological Impacts ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Reference Sites ◽  
Desalination Plant ◽  
Saline Waste ◽  
Temperate Fish ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Water resources are becoming increasingly scarce due to population growth and global changes in weather patterns. Desalination plants that extract freshwater from brackish or seawater are already being used worldwide, with many new plants being developed and built. The waste product from the extraction processes has an elevated salt concentration and can potentially cause substantial impacts to local marine flora and fauna. The present study assesses the impact of saline waste from a 100 GL/year desalination plant on southern Australian temperate fish assemblages, using baited remote underwater video. The study compared four reference sites to the impact site (desalination outfall) and found no evidence that the saline waste was having a detrimental effect on fish assemblages in proximity to the outfall, with species diversity and abundance comparable to those observed at reference sites. However, species diversity and abundance varied across geographical location, protection from fishing pressure, and reef type. Our study is one of the few assessing the ecological impacts of saline waste discharged from a large desalination plant and shows no decrease in fish diversity or abundance, which is the response typically associated with the negative impacts of anthropogenic activities on fish assemblages.

scholarly journals Assessing effects of change in land use on size-related variables of fish in subtropical streams

2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 547-556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lluís Benejam ◽  
Franco Teixeira-de Mello ◽  
Mariana Meerhoff ◽  
Marcelo Loureiro ◽  
Erik Jeppesen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Species Richness ◽  
Species Diversity ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Fish Communities ◽  
Freshwater Ecosystems ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Fish Length

Transformation of the natural land cover is one of the most important global changes. Changes in land use may strongly affect ecosystem functions and biodiversity by directly or indirectly modifying key structural properties. Here, we examined the effects of land use on the size structure of fish communities in subtropical Uruguayan streams. We analysed the suitability of non-taxonomic, size-related variables as a tool to elucidate shifts in stream fish assemblages along a gradient in land use change. We also tested some taxonomic variables (e.g., species richness and species diversity) to compare their response with size-related variables. In the more anthropogenic disturbed basins (i.e., dominance of urban and agricultural land use), we found higher size diversity, slope of size spectrum (flatter slopes) and total range of fish length, whereas higher species richness, fish abundance and species diversity were detected in more pristine stream basins (i.e., dominance of rangelands). In combination with traditional taxonomic variables, size-related variables of fish communities in streams may be effective tools in evaluating the changes occurring in freshwater ecosystems associated with anthropogenic changes in land use.

scholarly journals Identifying key processes and sectors in the interaction between climate and socio-economic systems: a review toward integrating Earth–human systems

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaoru Tachiiri ◽  
Xuanming Su ◽  
Ken’ichi Matsumoto
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Gross Domestic Product ◽  
Significant Influence ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Climate Impacts ◽  
Ecological Impacts ◽  
The Other ◽  
Economic Damage ◽  
Economic Systems ◽  
The Impact

AbstractFor the purpose of identifying the key processes and sectors involved in the interaction between Earth and socio-economic systems, we review existing studies on those processes/sectors through which the climate impacts socio-economic systems, which then in turn affect the climate. For each process/sector, we review the direct physical and ecological impacts and, if available, the impact on the economy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Based on this review, land sector is identified as the process with the most significant impact on GHG emissions, while labor productivity has the largest impact on the gross domestic product (GDP). On the other hand, the energy sector, due to the increase in the demand for cooling, will have increased GHG emissions. Water resources, sea level rise, natural disasters, ecosystem services, and diseases also show the potential to have a significant influence on GHG emissions and GDP, although for most of these, a large effect was reported only by a limited number of studies. As a result, more studies are required to verify their influence in terms of feedbacks to the climate. In addition, although the economic damage arising from migration and conflict is uncertain, they should be treated as potentially damaging processes.

scholarly journals Breathing space: deoxygenation of aquatic environments can drive differential ecological impacts across biological invasion stages

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
James W. E. Dickey ◽  
Neil E. Coughlan ◽  
Jaimie T. A. Dick ◽  
Vincent Médoc ◽  
Monica McCard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Oxygen Saturation ◽  
Ecological Impacts ◽  
Neogobius Melanostomus ◽  
Aquatic Environments ◽  
Relative Impact ◽  
Low Oxygen ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Prey Populations

AbstractThe influence of climate change on the ecological impacts of invasive alien species (IAS) remains understudied, with deoxygenation of aquatic environments often-overlooked as a consequence of climate change. Here, we therefore assessed how oxygen saturation affects the ecological impact of a predatory invasive fish, the Ponto-Caspian round goby (Neogobius melanostomus), relative to a co-occurring endangered European native analogue, the bullhead (Cottus gobio) experiencing decline in the presence of the IAS. In individual trials and mesocosms, we assessed the effect of high, medium and low (90%, 60% and 30%) oxygen saturation on: (1) functional responses (FRs) of the IAS and native, i.e. per capita feeding rates; (2) the impact on prey populations exerted; and (3) how combined impacts of both fishes change over invasion stages (Pre-invasion, Arrival, Replacement, Proliferation). Both species showed Type II potentially destabilising FRs, but at low oxygen saturation, the invader had a significantly higher feeding rate than the native. Relative Impact Potential, combining fish per capita effects and population abundances, revealed that low oxygen saturation exacerbates the high relative impact of the invader. The Relative Total Impact Potential (RTIP), modelling both consumer species’ impacts on prey populations in a system, was consistently higher at low oxygen saturation and especially high during invader Proliferation. In the mesocosm experiment, low oxygen lowered RTIP where both species were present, but again the IAS retained high relative impact during Replacement and Proliferation stages at low oxygen. We also found evidence of multiple predator effects, principally antagonism. We highlight the threat posed to native communities by IAS alongside climate-related stressors, but note that solutions may be available to remedy hypoxia and potentially mitigate impacts across invasion stages.

scholarly journals Impact Mechanism of the Ecological Vulnerability of Highly Developed Islands Based on the Bayesian Network Model—Applied to the Changshan Islands

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (8) ◽  
pp. 4150
Author(s):  
Keyu Qin ◽  
Haijun Huang ◽  
Jingya Liu ◽  
Liwen Yan ◽  
Yanxia Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bayesian Network ◽  
Network Model ◽  
Geographical Information ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Bayesian Network Model ◽  
Island Ecosystems ◽  
Impact Mechanism ◽  
The North ◽  
Ecological Vulnerability ◽  
The Impact

Islands are one of the most sensitive interfaces between global changes and land and sea dynamic effects, with high sensitivity and low stability. Therefore, under the dynamic coupling effect of human activities and frequent natural disasters, the vulnerability of the ecological environment of islands shows the characteristics of complexity and diversity. For the protection of island ecosystems, a system for the assessment of island ecosystems and studies on the mechanism of island ecological vulnerability are highly crucial. In this study, the North and South Changshan Islands of China were selected as the study area. Considering various impact factors of island ecological vulnerability, the geographical information systems (GIS) spatial analysis, field surveys, data sampling were used to evaluate island ecological vulnerability. The Bayesian network model was used to explore the impact mechanism of ecological vulnerability. The results showed that the ecological vulnerability of the North Changshan Island is higher than that of the South Changshan Island. Among all the indicators, the proportion of net primary productivity (NPP) and the steep slope has the strongest correlation with ecological vulnerability. This study can be used as references in the relevant departments to formulate management policies and promote the sustainable development of islands and their surrounding waters

scholarly journals Vegetation Dynamic Assessment by NDVI and Field Observations for Sustainability of China’s Wulagai River Basin

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 2528
Author(s):  
Panpan Chen ◽  
Huamin Liu ◽  
Zongming Wang ◽  
Dehua Mao ◽  
Cunzhu Liang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Vegetation Change ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Dynamic Assessment ◽  
Indicator System ◽  
Vegetation Changes ◽  
Vegetation Dynamic ◽  
Management Policies ◽  
The Impact

Accurate monitoring of grassland vegetation dynamics is essential for ecosystem restoration and the implementation of integrated management policies. A lack of information on vegetation changes in the Wulagai River Basin restricts regional development. Therefore, in this study, we integrated remote sensing, meteorological, and field plant community survey data in order to characterize vegetation and ecosystem changes from 1997 to 2018. The residual trend (RESTREND) method was utilized to detect vegetation changes caused by human factors, as well as to evaluate the impact of the management of pastures. Our results reveal that the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) of each examined ecosystem type showed an increasing trend, in which anthropogenic impact was the primary driving force of vegetation change. Our field survey confirmed that the meadow steppe ecosystem increased in species diversity and aboveground biomass; however, the typical steppe and riparian wet meadow ecosystems experienced species diversity and biomass degradation, therefore suggesting that an increase in NDVI may not directly reflect ecosystem improvement. Selecting an optimal indicator or indicator system is necessary in order to formulate reasonable grassland management policies for increasing the sustainability of grassland ecosystems.

Interactions between invasive plants and heavy metal stresses: a review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Li ◽  
Zhanrui Leng ◽  
Yueming Wu ◽  
Yizhou Du ◽  
Zhicong Dai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Invasive Species ◽  
Invasive Plants ◽  
Native Plants ◽  
Escape Behavior ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Plant Litter ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Anthropogenic Contamination ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Global changes have altered the distribution pattern of the plant communities, including invasive species. Anthropogenic contamination may reduce native plant resistance to the invasive species. Thus, the focus of the current review is on the contaminant biogeochemical behavior among native plants, invasive species and the soil within the plant-soil ecosystem to improve our understanding of the interactions between invasive plants and environmental stressors. Our studies together with synthesis of the literature showed that a) the impacts of invasive species on environmental stress were heterogeneous, b) the size of the impact was variable, and c) the influence types were multidirectional even within the same impact type. However, invasive plants showed self-protective mechanisms when exposed to heavy metals (HMs) and provided either positive or negative influence on the bioavailability and toxicity of HMs. On the other hand, HMs may favor plant invasion due to the widespread higher tolerance of invasive plants to HMS together with the “escape behavior” of native plants when exposed to toxic HM pollution. However, there has been no consensus on whether elemental compositions of invasive plants are different from the natives in the polluted regions. A quantitative research comparing plant, litter and soil contaminant contents between native plants and the invaders in a global context is an indispensable research focus in the future.

The impact of marine protected areas on temporal stability of fish species diversity

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda K. Pettersen ◽  
Ezequiel M. Marzinelli ◽  
Peter Steinberg ◽  
Melinda A. Coleman
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Marine Protected Areas ◽  
Temporal Stability ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Fish Species Diversity

scholarly journals Is the impact of eutrophication on phytoplankton diversity dependent on lake volume/ecosystem size?

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Didier L. Baho ◽  
Stina Drakare ◽  
Richard K. Johnson ◽  
Craig R. Allen ◽  
David G. Angeler
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Phytoplankton Diversity ◽  
Habitat Features ◽  
Anthropogenic Stressors ◽  
Lake Volume ◽  
Ecosystem Size ◽  
Phytoplankton Communities ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Local Habitat

<p>Research focusing on biodiversity responses to the interactions of ecosystem size and anthropogenic stressors are based mainly on correlative gradient studies, and may therefore confound size-stress relationships due to spatial context and differences in local habitat features across ecosystems. We investigated how local factors related to anthropogenic stressors (<em>e.g.,</em> eutrophication) interact with ecosystem size to influence species diversity. In this study, constructed lake mesocosms (with two contrasting volumes: 1020 (shallow mesocosms) and 2150 (deep mesocosms) litres) were used to simulate ecosystems of different size and manipulated nutrient levels to simulate mesotrophic and hypertrophic conditions. Using a factorial design, we assessed how the interaction between ecosystem size and nutrients influences phytoplankton diversity. We assessed community metrics (richness, diversity, evenness and total biovolumes) and multivariate community structure over a growing season (May to early November 2011). Different community structures were found between deep and shallow mescosoms with nutrient enrichment: Cyanobacteria dominated in the deep and Charophyta in the shallow mesocosms. In contrast, phytoplankton communities were more similar to each other in the low nutrient treatments; only Chlorophyta had generally a higher biovolume in the shallow compared to the deep mesocosms. These results suggest that ecosystem size is not only a determinant of species diversity, but that it can mediate the influence of anthropogenic effects on biodiversity. Such interactions increase the uncertainty of global change outcomes, and should therefore not be ignored in risk/impact assessment and management.</p>

Invasive Pine Tree Effects on Northern Coastal Scrub Structure and Composition

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert J. Steers ◽  
Susan L. Fritzke ◽  
Jen J. Rogers ◽  
James Cartan ◽  
Kaitlyn Hacker
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
Ecological Impacts ◽  
Tree Size ◽  
Basal Diameter ◽  
Monterey Pine ◽  
Pine Tree ◽  
Day Range ◽  
Pine Trees ◽  
The Impact

AbstractVegetation that becomes overtopped usually experiences a decrease in abundance or species richness. When an overtopping plant alters the physiognomy of the existing vegetation (e.g., trees invading a shrubland), ecosystem processes can also be dramatically altered. Worldwide, Monterey pine (Pinus radiata) cultivars have been planted in Mediterranean-like climates and are known to invade surrounding natural communities. Ecological impacts resulting from these invasions have been widely investigated; however, the effects from solitary pine trees on the vegetation they overtop are lacking. Furthermore, studies on the impact of P. radiata cultivars from the California floristic province, where P. radiata is native, do not exist. In coastal California, north of the present-day range of native P. radiata stands, cultivars of this species have invaded northern coastal scrub vegetation. To determine the impact of pine invasion on species richness and structure in this habitat, floristic surveys were conducted in 20 blocks that consisted of invaded and uninvaded plots. An invaded plot contained two subplots located under the canopy of an isolated pine tree, whereas a paired, uninvaded plot contained two subplots located in coastal scrub adjacent to each pine. Pine trees selected ranged in size from 2.8 to 119 cm (1.1 to 46.9 in) basal diameter. Our results demonstrate that understory native cover and species richness are negatively correlated with tree size. Understory exotic plant cover and richness of species other than P. radiata did not show any correlation with tree size, mainly because exotic plants had a very low abundance overall.

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