Abstract
The effect of speciation on the toxicity of copper to phytoplankton in the Huron River watershed was assessed by changing the copper complexation capacity in water samples and measuring the levels of chlorophyll a. Differences in strength of conditional stability constants (log K′) of coppercomplexes found in these samples (Ford Lake: 8.8 ± 0.3, Huron River: 10.3 ± 0.4) suggested that coppercomplexing ligands in Ford Lake were mainly derived from humic material, whereas in the lotic environment, they might have been biologically produced. Appearance of the voltammograms obtained for water samples from each of the environments indicated that different biological components predominated in these two ecosystems. Despite the relatively high copper complexation capacity observed when 51 nM of copper was added to water samples, adverse effects reflected as lowered chlorophyll a levels were observed in the phytoplankton, suggesting some buffering of the electrolabile copper at a critical safe dose.
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