Sewage-derived Organic Matter Research Articles

Thirty years of a bottom oxygen depletion-renewal cycle in the coastal yet deep environment of the West Saronikos Gulf (Greece): Its drivers and the impact on the benthic communities

In the period 1987–2017, a series of physical and chemical measurements related to oxygen variability at a trough area with a maximum depth of ~420 m in the West Saronikos Gulf, reveal the following: In the early 90s, deep winter mixing occurred resulting in an oxygenation down to ~420 m followed by an oxygen decline. This decline reached near-bottom hypoxic conditions (O2 < ~62 μM (μmol/L)) after 1998, while a denitrification phase occurred after 2000 and a complete bottom anoxia in 2005. In June 2012, an oxygenation down to ~350 m was detected that most likely occurred in winter 2012. The 2012 oxygenation raised the until-then anoxic bottom concentrations to hypoxic ones in the years towards 2017 via vertical diffusive oxygen transfer. Observations of the benthic communities during the hypoxia, severe hypoxia (O2 < ~15 μM) and oxygen recovery phases showed a peak of opportunists in the hypoxia and a long faunal depletion in the severe hypoxia phases. A reversal in the benthic community structure appeared after the oxygenation of 2012 with the (re)appearance of opportunists while, in 2017, the community showed signs of retreat to earlier stages. The main anthropogenic pressure that could tentatively affect the oxygen concentration in the study area is posed by the Athens treated-sewage outfall at ~40 km away from the trough, which inputs organic matter into the Saronikos Gulf through effluent water of reduced salinity that, in addition, may alter the stratification opposing the vertical mixing. We show that the treated sewage output had no influence on a) the stratification, b) the particulate and dissolved organic carbon and c) the sewage-derived organic matter. Instead, the long-term dissolved oxygen variability with the deep renewal events was mostly driven by the large-scale atmosphere-ocean conditions (heat exchange and evaporation-minus-precipitation budget) that determine the hydrographic characteristics and the winter mixing.

Effects of Trace Metals and Municipal Wastewater on the Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera of a Stream Community.

Simple SummaryMayflies (Ephemeroptera), stoneflies (Plecoptera), and caddisflies (Trichoptera) (EPT) are aquatic insects that are well known to the general public and are commonly used as indicators of environmental quality in water management. Knowledge of how EPT communities react to human-induced gradients in real environments can be important, for example, during the assessment of the implications of newly planned or currently active human disturbances for natural or cultural landscapes. We sampled a stream ecosystem affected by mining and smelting industries and communal wastewaters with pronounced concentrations of cadmium, lead, and zinc, as well as high levels of pesticides, pharmaceuticals, illegal drugs, and sewage-derived organic matter. Changes in other environmental factors such as increases in temperature were also studied at the affected sites. The abundance and species richness of stoneflies fell rapidly at the study sites. The richness of mayfly families also declined, from four to one, even though overall mayfly abundance was not affected. Conversely, the abundances of caddisflies were higher at the affected sites, and their richness did not decrease. This study will provide feedback for ecotoxicologists who perform better controlled and manipulated tests in laboratories, although any such test results are limited by simple artificial environments.Abundances of EPT larvae sampled in a Central European locality affected by mining and smelting, as well as by the continual inflow of treated communal wastewaters (WWs), were recorded. High concentrations of trace metals in water (maximum 1200 µg·L–1 for zinc) and sediments (maximum 140,000 mg·kg–1 in dry weight for lead) were found at the most contaminated sites. The highest loads of pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and illegal drugs were found under the WW effluent. Other associated factors such as the physicochemical parameters of the water and alterations to microhabitats were also evaluated and taken into account. Although EPT richness was lower at affected sites, abundances did not fall. Stoneflies were dominant at unaffected sites, while caddisflies dominated at affected sites. Only baetid mayflies were detected at the sites contaminated by trace metals and WWs; ephemerellid, heptageniid, and leptophlebiid mayflies were absent from these sites. The site contaminated by trace metals was also inhabited by numerous limnephilid caddisflies, in which limb malformations were detected in up to 11.8% of all specimens of a single taxon. Downstream from the entrance of the WWs, the locality was dominated by hydropsychid caddisflies. The increasing prevalence of predator or passive filter-feeding strategies in these EPT communities was significantly related to increasing water conductivity and acute ecosystemic exposure to ‘poorly treated’ WWs.

Trophic diversity and carbon sources supporting fish communities along a pollution gradient in a tropical river

Anthropogenic activities can have a great influence on water quality and in the availability of habitat and food resources, which can promote changes in the trophic diversity and carbon sources sustaining aquatic communities. The objective of this study was to evaluate if the trophic diversity and the main carbon sources sustaining fish communities change along a pollution gradient. The study was carried out at eight sites distributed along the Rio das Velhas, a Brazilian river highly impacted by anthropogenic activities, in which the discharge of domestic and industrial sewage from the Metropolitan Region of Belo Horizonte (MRBH) presents a major source of pollution. Using carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope ratios, we identified the major carbon sources/food sources of common fish species and calculated six metrics of trophic diversity. Autochthonous primary producers (algae, periphyton, and macrophytes) were the main carbon sources for all trophic guilds at all sites, but notably, sewage-derived organic matter was an additional significant carbon source to the fish community in the most polluted testing site. Here, the community was composed mainly by detritivorous and omnivorous fishes and exhibited greater ranges of carbon and nitrogen isotopic values, large total areas, high trophic diversity, small trophic redundancy, and less even distribution of trophic niches than the less polluted sites. We conclude that the trophic guilds, trophic diversity metrics, and carbon sources sustaining fish communities in the Rio das Velhas are highly influenced by the presence of pollution. Besides favoring omnivorous and detritivorous fishes, the input of sewage also provided an important food source to sustain the fish community from sites close to the MRBH.

Isotopic signatures in Mytilus galloprovincialis and Ulva latuca as bioindicators for assessing discharged sewage effluent in coastal waters along Otago Peninsula, New Zealand

ABSTRACTSewage, waste organic matter from domestic and municipal wastewater, causes increased secondary productivity, eutrophication and trace metal contamination, reduced oxygen levels, and biodiversity which can lead to ecological disturbances in the natural aquatic ecosystem. The impact of sewage-derived organic matter (SDOM) on the nearshore marine ecosystem of the Otago Coast was assessed before, and 15 years after upgrade of the Dunedin sewage treatment plant. Carbon and nitrogen isotopic ratios in the tissues of sentinel organisms were used as bioindicators to elucidate the primary sources of nutrition the coastal environment. Mytilus galloprovincialis, a marine bivalve, exhibited a strong influence of SDOM from two sites in 2001. In 2015, M. galloprovincialis had a trophic enrichment factor of 3‰ (δ15N) and 1‰ (δ13C) when compared to the marine particulate organic matter (POM), suggestive of a dietary change away from the SDOM. Suspended POM collected from riverine and estuarine sources revealed other possible nitrogen sources from human-driven activities such as pastoral farming, application of organic manure and inorganic fertilisers, nitrification of ammonium from semi-urban septic tanks, and animal organic waste residues.

Evidence of sewage input to inner shelf sediments in the NE coast of Brazil obtained by molecular markers distribution

Coprostanol (5β-cholestan-3β-ol) and other fecal steroids were used as markers to trace the input of sewage to the shelf along the coast of Sergipe and Alagoas States, in NE Brazil. Surface sediment samples in shallow regions (<50m depth) on the shelf were collected adjacent to four fluvial systems, whose drainage basins exhibit distinct levels of human influence. Highest coprostanol concentrations were observed in the area under influence of the Sergipe River (58.6±74.6ngg−1; maximum of 184.1ngg−1), whereas in the Vaza-Barris (18.9±23.6ngg−1) and the Piaui/Real (12.3±6.7ngg−1) rivers the levels of coprostanol were near the method’s limit of detection. Nearby the São Francisco River, the largest in the NE Brazil, coprostanol was virtually absent. The findings of the present study, supported by coprostanol-based diagnostic ratios, revealed that, when sanitation is lacking in the coastal region, even a small-sized river like the Sergipe River can effectively contribute to the export of sewage-derived organic matter to the inner continental shelf in the studied region.

Tracing sewage-derived organic matter into a shallow groundwater food web using stable isotope and fluorescence signatures

Little is known about the feeding modes of groundwater invertebrates (stygofauna). Incorporation of sewage-derived organic matter (OM) into a shallow groundwater food web was studied using fluorescence and stable isotope signatures (δ13C and δ15N). Organic pollution was hypothesised to limit sensitive species’ abundances along the contamination gradient and isotope signatures of stygofauna consuming sewage-derived OM were expected to be enriched in δ15N. Stygofauna communities near a sewage treatment plant in New Zealand were sampled over 4 months and microbial biofilms were incubated in situ on native gravel for 1 month. As anticipated, OM stress-subsidy gradients altered stygofauna composition: the biomass of oligochaetes and Paraleptamphopus amphipods increased in OM-enriched groundwater (higher dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and tryptophan-like fluorescence), whereas other, probably less-tolerant taxa (e.g. ostracods, Dytiscidae) were absent. Isotopic signatures for stygofauna from polluted groundwater were consistent with assimilation of isotopically enriched sewage-N (δ15N values of 7–16‰), but highly depleted in δ13C relative to sewage. Negative 13C discriminations probably occur in Paraleptamphopus amphipods, and may also occur in oligochaetes and Dytiscidae, a finding with implications for the application of δ13C for determining food sources in groundwaters. Organic pollution of groundwaters may have serious repercussions for stygofauna community structure with potentially irreversible consequences.

마산만의 하수기인 유기물 fecal sterol의 분포

Surface sediments and seawater were sampled at Masan and Haengam Bays of Korea, to evaluate contamination by sewage-derived organic matter using fecal sterols, Six stream-water samples into Masan and Haengam Bays were also sampled. Total concentrations of eight sterols (coprostanol, epichloestanol, epicoprostanol, cholesterol, cholestanol, brassicasterol, stigmasterol and <TEX>$\beta-sitosterol$</TEX>) were in the range of <TEX>$1,274\~4,768{\mu}g/g$</TEX> dry weight in suspended particulate from the stream-water, <TEX>$292\~2,244{\mu}g/g$</TEX> dry weight in suspended particulate from the seawater and <TEX>$4.5\~27.2{\mu}g/g$</TEX> dry weight in the sediments. Although sterol compositions in sediments, seawater and stream-water were different, cholesterol was the predominant sterol in all samples. The proportion and concentration of coprostanol, a sewage tracer, in stream-water was much higher than those in sediment and seawater. The sterol levels including coprostanol in the sediments and seawater were higher at inner basin than at the outer bay. Some molecular indices and multivariate statistical analysis were used to assess the origin of these sterols and sewage contamination in the study area. The sterol composition patterns in stream-water were mainly associated with contamination by sewage-derived organic matters and those of seawater were associated with the activities of marine-originated organisms. Sterol levels in the sediments were both from the sewage input through stream-water and the marine- originated organisms. This survey suggests that the main source/route of sewage-derived organic matters in Masan Bay is the input of stream-water into the bay.

Feeding of benthic foraminifera on diatoms and sewage-derived organic matter: an experimental application of lipid biomarker techniques.

Foraminiferal ecology at sewage outfalls has been investigated in numerous field studies over the last 30 years. Foraminifera have been frequently used as biomonitors of sewage pollution since they are both abundant and ubiquitous. Sewage outfalls have been demonstrated to have both positive and negative effects on adjacent foraminiferal populations, but it has never been shown conclusively why sewage affects foraminifera in these ways. Such information on the impact mechanisms of sewage pollution is essential if foraminifera are to be used as sewage pollution biomonitors, and also to understand the ecology of these important protists. One possible cause of a positive effect is the direct consumption of sewage-derived particulate organic matter (POM) by the foraminifera themselves. However this hypothesis has never been tested experimentally. Here, lipid (fatty acid and sterol) biomarker techniques were applied to study the ingestion of two potential food items by the foraminiferan Haynesina germanica in the laboratory. An experiment was conducted to confirm that the laboratory conditions were conducive to the survival and feeding of the foraminifera. In this experiment, foraminifera were provided with the pennate diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum, which was considered to be a suitable food source. After 2 weeks, a four-fold increase in the levels of the diatom fatty acid biomarker, 20:5(n-3), in the foraminifera suggested that they had fed actively on the diatoms and survived under the experimental conditions. These experimental conditions were used in the main experiment, where foraminifera were fed the POM from sewage. Lipid biomarker analysis indicated that H. germanica did not consume secondary treated sewage-derived POM. Neither fatty acid profiles in the sewage nor coprostanol, the diagnostic human faecal sterol, were detected in foraminifera after exposure to the potential sewage food source. However, foraminifera may have consumed bacteria associated with the sewage in the experiment. The findings are discussed in terms of current EU legislation on sewage treatment that has affected the composition of sewage discharges, and therefore possibly reduced the nutritive value of sewage to the marine benthos.

Comparison of Sterol Biomarkers for Sewage with other Measures in Victoria Harbour, B.C., Canada

A lipid biomarker survey was conducted in Victoria Harbour, Canada, to compare the distribution of sewage-derived organic matter with existing results from bacterial studies. Previous surveys [Miller (1993) Report prepared by Capital Regional District Engineering Department, Victoria, B.C. Canada and Milleret al. (1995) Report prepared by CRD Environmental Services Group and Aquatic Science Consultants Ltd., B.C., Canada] of sewage contamination in the harbour were based principally on infrequent faecal coliform counts. The use of lipid biomarkers to determine time-averaged concentrations of sewage components in sediments may be a more appropriate method for defining areas where sewage is causing environmental or human health risks. 5β-Coprostanol was measured together with other sterols, fatty acids and fatty alcohols. Generally, sewage contamination shown by these lipid biomarkers was coincident with high faecal coliform counts from previous studies. However, this survey suggests, contrary to faecal coliform counts, that Portage Inlet was a region where sewage had accumulated in the sediments, possibly due to nearby overflow facilities or tidal pumping. Although the bacterial counts were low, sewage-derived organic matter was accumulating in the slack areas. In sediments of the Gorge and West Bay there were low faecal biomarker concentrations; this was probably due to the strong tidal currents which do not allow faecal matter to settle in sediments. Faecal coliform counts, however, indicated poor water quality in these same regions but this probably reflects fresh discharges passing through this area without leading to settlement.

Assessment of the sources, transport and fate of sewage-derived organic matter in Port Phillip Bay, Australia, using the signature lipid coprostanol

To evaluate the distribution of faecal material in Port Phillip Bay, surface sediments from sites throughout the bay and inflowing water courses were analysed for fatty acids and sterols. Water samples were also collected to identify possible sources of faecal contamination. Bay sediments had total fatty acid concentrations between 4 and 183 µg g–1 (dry weight) and total sterol concentrations between 0.6 and 39.2 µg g–1. Creek sediments contained more sterols, ranging from 22.8–148 µg g–1. These lipid distributions suggest that the bulk of the labile organic matter derives from marine microalgae, primarily diatoms. Coprostanol (5β-cholestan-3β-ol), a sterol often used as an indicator of faecal contamination, was also present. Concentrations ranged from &lt;0.01–0.55 µg g–1 in surface sediments, with values over 0.25 µg g–1 and 5β-/5α-C27 stanol ratios greater than 0.4, indicative of sewage inputs. A clearer picture of distributions of sewage-derived organic matter was obtained when coprostanol was normalized to total organic matter rather than sediment dry weight. Areas showing higher coprostanol concentrations included those adjacent to the main sewage treatment plant and several low-volume drains and creeks, indicating localized problems of sewage contamination.

Transport and Recovery of Bacteriophage PRD1 in a Sand and Gravel Aquifer: Effect of Sewage-Derived Organic Matter

To test the effects of sewage-derived organic matter on virus attachment, 32P-labeled bacteriophage PRD1, linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS), and tracers were injected into sewage-contaminated (suboxic, elevated organic matter) and uncontaminated (oxic, low organic matter) zones of an iron oxide-coated quartz sand and gravel aquifer on Cape Cod, MA. In the uncontaminated zone, 83% of the PRD1 were attenuated over the first meter of transport by attachment to aquifer grains. In the contaminated zone, 42% of the PRD1 were attenuated over the first meter of transport. Sewage-derived organic matter contributed to the difference in PRD1 attenuation by blocking attachment sites in the contaminated zone. At greater distances down-gradient (to a total transport distance of 3.6 m), a near-constant amount of PRD1 continued to break through, suggesting that aquifer grain heterogeneities allowed a small amount of reversible attachment. Injection of an LAS mixture (25 mg L-1), a common sewage constituent, remobilize...

Concentrations of coprostanol that correspond to existing bacterial indicator guideline limits

Coprostanol is a faecal sterol that has been proposed as an alternative measure of faecal pollution. While the technique has been used successfully to trace sewage-derived organic matter in a range of environments, it has not been embraced for use as a water quality indicator. This is mostly because of a lack of epidemiological evidence relating coprostanol abundance to any health risk. However, there is a valuable reason why the concentration of coprostanol should be related as quantitatively as possible to the abundance of bacterial indicators currently used to measure faecal pollution. The measurement of coprostanol (and concurrently other faecal sterols) offers many diagnostic and quantitative advantages over traditional techniques for detecting human sewage pollution versus faecal contamination from animal sources. Knowing the amount of coprostanol expected given a certain amount of human sewage pollution would provide a measure against which water managers could quantitatively assess faecal pollution as a whole and relate that assessment to variables with which they are more familiar. This study determines the relationships between coprostanol concentrations and indicator bacterial counts and synthesises the results from several environments to propose coprostanol concentrations broadly equivalent to existing bacterial standards. Our data suggest that 60 and 400 ng L −1 of coprostanol correspond to currently defined primary and secondary contact limits for bacteria measured as thermotolerant coliforms (commonly referred to as faecal coliforms) or enterococci.

The effects of sewage organic matter on biogeochemical processes within mid-shelf sediments offshore Sydney, Australia

A laboratory incubation experiment was conducted using replicate cores collected from a muddy-sand sediment facies offshore Sydney, Australia to determine what components and processes would be affected by the addition of sewage organic matter. Sewage effluent has a solid phase composition of 40% carbon (35% organic carbon), 5% nitrogen, 1% phosphorus and 5% silicate. The molecular C:N:P ratio is 92:10:1, compared to the Redfield ratio of 106:16:1 in marine phytoplankton. Sediment cores were incubated at in situ temperature in a darkened room for periods up to 95 days. Sewage organic matter was added to the cores at three different loads equivalent to 0 (T0), 65 (T1) and 130 (T2) g m −2 of sediment. Following the addition of sewage organic matter, fluxes of oxygen (into the sediments), ammonia and phosphate (from the sediments) increased, reflecting an enhanced organic carbon supply to the sediments. Oxygen penetrated to a depth of 6 mm in the ambient cores, but the sediment oxygen content was severely depleted following the addition of the sewage-derived organic matter. Sediment porewater data, together with nutrient flux data indicate that oxygen reduction, nitrate reduction and sulphate reduction occurs within these sediments. Following the addition of sewage organic matter, increases in total nitrogen, total phosphate and total organic carbon were measured to depths of 5 cm in the sediments, suggesting that bioturbation influences nutrient and organic carbon distributions. Additionally, irrigation of the surficial sediments may play an important role in the metabolism of organic matter. These results indicate that oxygen penetration, oxygen fluxes, nitrate concentrations within porewaters, ammonia flux rates, and solid phase concentrations of total organic carbon and nutrients may be useful indicators of sediments affected by high rates of organic matter deposition onto Sydney's offshore sediments. The EPA has recently predicted maximum deposition rates of sewage particulate matter to be approximately 1 g m −2 day −1. Because of the similarities in CNP ratios of sewage organic matter and marine organic matter, the effects of sewage organic matter and marine organic matter inputs to coastal sediments may not be easily distinguishable.

The total carbohydrate: Organic carbon ratio as an indicator of sewage-derived organic matter in Burbo Bight sediments, Liverpool Bay, UK

Sediments from the Burbo Bight, Liverpool Bay, were analysed for their total carbohydrate (TCH) and organic carbon (TOC) contents, and the TCH:TOC ratio (when the TCH is expressed as a percentage of the TOC) was used to give an indication of the amount of sewage-derived organic matter in the sediments. The %TCH values found ranged from 17–68 with an average of 40, indicating that sewage-derived organic matter constituted a significant fraction of the organic matter in the sediment. This appears likely to have been derived mainly from the Mersey Estuary outflow and the sewage sludge dumped in Liverpool Bay, but these two sources cannot be distinguished using this technique. It is suggested that further studies are required on the carbohydrates in sewage sludge and coastal sediments to satisfactorily establish this technique.

Coprostanols in Antarctic marine sediments: A biomarker for marine mammals and not human pollution

The first analysis of sterols in Antarctic marine sediment cores (Bransfield Strait and McMurdo Sound) is reported here. The isolated sterols in the sediments from Bransfield Strait are comprised mainly of dinosterol (4α,23,24-trimethyl-5αcholest-22-en-3β-ol), coprostanol (5β-cholestan-3β-ol) and epicoprostanol (5β-cholestan-3α-ol) and trace amounts of cholesterol (cholest-5-en-3β-ol). The sediment cores of McMurdo Sound also contain small quantities of coprostanols in addition to large amounts of marine sterols. Dinosterol is a known dinoflagellate chemical marker, whereas coprostanols are currently being used as tracers for sewage contamination. However, sterol composition in Antarctic sediments is expected to be atypical of sewage input and probably different from those of temperate and tropical zones. The coprostanols must therefore arise from the feces of marine mammals, most probably whales which use the region for feeding and spawning. Based on the results of this study, caution should be exercised in the use of coprostanol to estimate the amount of sewage-derived organic matter transported away from impacted coastal areas.

Benthic-pelagic coupling in sewage-affected marine ecosystems

Coupling between degraded benthic habitats and populations of epibenthic and pelagic organisms is evident around major sewage outfalls in the Southern California Bight. The distribution of bottom-feeding fishes appears to be affected, but sampling has not been intensive enough to rigorously define patterns for more than a few species. Some evidence suggests that changes in fish abundance may be related to changes in the distribution and abundance of benthic prey; those species (e.g. Dover sole) that can adapt their diets to take advantage of dense populations of opportunistic polychaetes may be found in large numbers around outfalls. Some benthic crustacean feeders are at a disadvantage. Sewage effluent is an allochthnous source of organic matter to the food web and Dover sole and ridgeback shrimp both show shifts in stable isotope ratios consistent with the thesis that sewage-derived organic matter in sediments is trophically transferred to epibenthic organisms. Constructing a carbon budget based on the δ 13C shifts in these species from area of a major outfall relative to a distant control station suggests that there is an in situ source of isotopically very light carbon in outfall sediments, perhaps from CO 2 fixation by chemoautotrophs and biological methane oxidation. Benthic-pelagic coupling is also evident in the accumulation of chlorinated hydrocarbons by fish and other organisms. At the two major Los Angeles area outfalls log-transformed liver-to-sediment concentration ratios of chlorinated benzenes, which are accumulated to moderate levels in fish, show a linear relationship to the log of K ow (the octanol-to-water partioning coefficient) of these compounds. Chlorinated hydrocarbons with greater lipid solubility, e.g. PCBs and p,p-DDE, are concentrated to very high levels. Studies of food webs using Cs/K as a measure of trophic level suggest that trophic-step magnification is concentrating these compounds in higher trophic levels.