Impact of Bleached Kraft Pulp Mill Effluent on the Nearshore Benthic Community of Jackfish Bay, Lake Superior

Abstract

Abstract We assessed the impact of bleached kraft pulp mill effluent on benthic invertebrate community structure in the shallow (1 m) nearshore waters of Jackfish Bay, Lake Superior. Duplicate benthic samples were collected from 0.5 m2 quadrats at twenty-three stations along two shorelines of Jackfish Bay up to 1800 m from the point of effluent discharge, and from a reference station located within the Jackfish Bay study area. Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) revealed a gradient of stations on both shorelines which was strongly correlated with distance from effluent outfall and hence exposure to the effluent plume. Within this gradient were two distinct clusters of stations. The first cluster contained all but one station on both shores <300 m from the outfall; these stations receive constant exposure to the effluent and were dominated (>90%) by tubificids (Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri, Tubifex tubifex, T. ignotus and Spirosperma ferox) and the naidid Chaetogaster diaphanus. The second cluster contained all stations on both shores >300 m from the outfall; community structure at these stations was generally comparable to that at the reference site and was characterized by several species of Chironomidae, C. diaphanus and Nais barbata, and low numbers of several insect taxa. The results of this study show that benthic community structure in nearshore environments can be significantly impacted by pulp mill effluent and should be considered in monitoring assessments. At Jackfish Bay, such impacts appear to be restricted primarily to within the first 500 m of effluent discharge.