The Canary in the Coal Mine: Testate Amoebae Record Anthropogenic Impacts in Sediments of Oligotrophic Lake George, NY, USA

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 128-140
Author(s):  
Krystyna M. Kornecki ◽  
Matthew S. Schuler ◽  
Miraim E. Katz ◽  
Rick A. Relyea ◽  
Francine M. G. McCarthy ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Lake George (NY) is surrounded by Forever Wild Forest in the Adirondack Park and has a Class AA Special water quality rating, yet lake monitoring has revealed increasing anthropogenic impacts from salt and nutrient loading over the past 30 years. To reconstruct anthropogenic influence on the lake (e.g., salt loading, eutrophication, climate warming), we characterized modern stable isotopes and testate amoeba and diatom assemblages in surface sediments from 33 lake-wide sites and compared their variability to 36 years of water-quality data. Linear regression analyses support testate amoebae as rapid responders and recorders of environmental change because taxa are strongly correlated with percent change of important water quality parameters. Our assessment indicates that: 1) Netzelia gramen is associated with aquatic plants and filamentous algae, making them a valuable aquatic plant/alga indicator, which is supported by the co-occurrence of the diatom Cocconeis spp.; 2) difflugids are generally good indicators of eutrophication, except for Difflugia protaeiformis; and 3) seasonal differences in water quality trends are reflected in the fossil record on decadal time scales. We show that testate amoebae are highly sensitive to small environmental changes in an oligotrophic lake and exhibit established relationships from eutrophic and mesotrophic lakes as well as new, likely oligotrophic-specific correlations. Correlation coefficients of water quality variables and strains within a species also illustrate gradational relationships, suggesting testate amoebae exhibit ecophenotypic plasticity. Diatom and testate amoeba assemblages categorize modern lakebed sites into four subgroups: 1) benthic macrophyte; 2) high nutrient; 3) high alkalinity; and 4) salt loading assemblages.

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martina Botter ◽  
Paolo Burlando ◽  
Simone Fatichi

Abstract. The hydrological and biogeochemical response of rivers carries information about solute sources, pathways, and transformations in the catchment. We investigate long-term water quality data of eleven Swiss catchments with the objective to discern the influence of catchment characteristics and anthropogenic activities on delivery of solutes in stream water. Magnitude, trends and seasonality of water quality samplings of different solutes are evaluated and compared across catchments. Subsequently, the empirical dependence between concentration and discharge is used to classify different solute behaviors. Although the influence of catchment geology, morphology and size is sometime visible on in-stream solute concentrations, anthropogenic impacts are much more evident. Solute variability is generally smaller than discharge variability. The majority of solutes shows dilution with increasing discharge, especially geogenic species, while sediment-related solutes (e.g. Total Phosphorous and Organic Carbon species) show higher concentrations with increasing discharge. Both natural and anthropogenic factors impact the biogeochemical response of streams and, while the majority of solutes show identifiable behaviors in individual catchments, only a minority of behaviors can be generalized across catchments that exhibit different natural, climatic and anthropogenic features.


2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 1885-1904 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martina Botter ◽  
Paolo Burlando ◽  
Simone Fatichi

Abstract. The hydrological and biogeochemical response of rivers carries information about solute sources, pathways, and transformations in the catchment. We investigate long-term water quality data of 11 Swiss catchments with the objective to discern the influence of major catchment characteristics and anthropic activities on delivery of solutes in stream water. Magnitude, trends, and seasonality of water quality samplings of different solutes are evaluated and compared across catchments. Subsequently, the empirical dependence between concentration and discharge is used to classify the solute behaviors. While the anthropogenic impacts are clearly detectable in the concentration of certain solutes (i.e., Na+, Cl−, NO3, DRP), the influence of single catchment characteristics such as geology (e.g., on Ca2+ and H4SiO4), topography (e.g., on DOC, TOC, and TP), and size (e.g., on DOC and TOC) is only sometimes visible, which is also because of the limited sample size and the spatial heterogeneity within catchments. Solute variability in time is generally smaller than discharge variability and the most significant trends in time are due to temporal variations of anthropogenic rather than natural forcing. The majority of solutes show dilution with increasing discharge, especially geogenic species, while sediment-bonded solutes (e.g., total phosphorous and organic carbon species) show higher concentrations with increasing discharge. Both natural and anthropogenic factors affect the biogeochemical response of streams, and, while the majority of solutes show identifiable behaviors in individual catchments, only a minority of behaviors can be generalized across the 11 catchments that exhibit different natural, climatic, and anthropogenic features.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 37-48
Author(s):  
Kenanga Sari ◽  
Tri Retnaningsih Soeprobowati

The fast-growing development and industrialization have caused various impacts on nature including heavy metal pollution, especially in the coastal area. Tambakredjo, located in the North Semarang city, is home to a large number of mangrove and animal species. Therefore, water quality is important. This study was conducted to analyze water quality in the coastal area of Tambakredjo based on physical and chemical measurements. Water quality data were collected from different sites. Physical parameters (temperature, pH, DO, EC, TDS, ORP and salinity) and chemical parameters (Total N, Total P, Pb, Cr, Cd) were observed. Multivariate statistical techniques, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA), was applied to evaluate water quality. The results showed first principal component is 76.27%, where the highest conductivity, total dissolved solids and salinity are associated with site 1. Content of Lead 1.289 ppm, Cadmium 0.021 ppm, and Chromium 0.352 ppm exceeds the water quality standard PP. No. 82/2001. It indicated that Site 1 was characterized as the most heavily polluted site because the location received pollutants from rivers and oceans. This study also examined the short-term changes of the mangrove-covered area at the side of Banjir Kanal Timur using historical map satellite images. The results show that mangrove coverage in Tambakredjo near the aquaculture area had decreased from 1,875m2 to 1,401m2. Meanwhile, on the other site, the mangrove planting effort as a restoration program is carried out, especially in the estuary of Banjir Kanal Timur to anticipate more environmental changes.


2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn M. Conko ◽  
Margaret M. Kennedy ◽  
Karen C. Rice

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