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PERIPHYTON AND SEDIMENT BIOASSESSMENT AS INDICATORS OF THE EFFECT OF A COASTAL PULP MILL WASTEWATER
Citation:
Dantin, D D., M A. Lewis, AND S S. Foss. PERIPHYTON AND SEDIMENT BIOASSESSMENT AS INDICATORS OF THE EFFECT OF A COASTAL PULP MILL WASTEWATER. Presented at SETAC 19th Annual Meeting, Charlotte, NC, November 15 - 19, 1998.
Impact/Purpose:
Presentation
Description:
A two year study was conducted near Port St. Joe, Florida, in a coastal transportation canal and bay receiving combined municipal and pulp mill wastewater. The objective of the study was to determine the effectiveness of periphyton analysis techniques and sediment toxicity as indicators of environmental stress. Periphyton were colonized for 3 weeks in-situ at five locations above and below the outfall. Sediments were analyzed for toxicity using epibenthic grass shrimp and mysids. Despite decreased in the photic zone, significant increases in biomass and associated pigment production occurred below the discharge point. The percent increase in biomass downstream was as much as 500%, compared to periphyton colonized above the outfall. Sediments were found to be toxic to the grass shrimp but not to mysids. These effects of the effluent decreased progressively downstream of the outfall, indicating that the impact was site-specific. These field-derived effects were not preducted from the standard single-species toxicity tests conducted with an alga, invertebrate, fish, and the wastewater. It was concluded that the combination of single species toxicity tests and analysis of the periphyton and sediment toxicity were needed to define the effects of this wastewater in an estuarine environment.