Lithological controls on biological activity and groundwater chemistry in Quaternary sediments

Depth profiles of solute chemistry and sulfate isotopic compositions are presented for groundwater and pore water in a sequence of Quaternary glacial outwash sediments. Sand units show evidence for hydraulic connection to the surface and thus modern sources of solutes. Finer‐grained sediments show a general pattern of increasing solute concentrations with depth, with sulfate derived from ancient rainwater and pyrite oxidation in the soil/drift. In these sediments sulfate has undergone bacterial sulfate reduction (BSR) to produce biogenic sulfide. In clay sediments, with d₁₀ ≤ 1·6 µm, high concentrations of sulfate and acetate now co‐exist, implying that BSR is inhibited. The correlation with smaller sediment grain size indicates that this is due to pore size exclusion of the sulfate reducing bacteria. Mechanical restriction of microbial function thus provides a fundamental limitation on microbial respiration in buried clay‐rich sediments, which acts as a control on the chemical evolution of their pore waters. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An overview of toxicant identification in sediments and dredged materials

The identification of toxicants affecting aquatic benthic systems is critical to sound assessment and management of our nation's waterways. Identification of toxicants can be useful in designing effective sediment remediation plans and reasonable options for sediment disposal. Knowledge of which contaminants affect benthic systems allows managers to link pollution to specific dischargers and prevent further release of toxicant(s). In addition, identification of major causes of toxicity in sediments may guide programs such as those developing environmental sediment guidelines and registering pesticides, while knowledge of the causes of toxicity which drive ecological changes such as shifts in benthic community structure would be useful in performing ecological risk assessments. To this end, the US Environmental Protection Agency has developed tools (toxicity identification and evaluation (TIE) methods) that allow investigators to characterize and identify chemicals causing acute toxicity in sediments and dredged materials. To date, most sediment TIEs have been performed on interstitial waters. Preliminary evidence from the use of interstitial water TIEs reveals certain patterns in causes of sediment toxicity. First, among all sediments tested, there is no one predominant cause of toxicity; metals, organics, and ammonia play approximately equal roles in causing toxicity. Second, within a single sediment there are multiple causes of toxicity detected; not just one chemical class is active. Third, the role of ammonia is very prominent in these interstitial waters. Finally, if sediments are divided into marine or freshwater, TIEs perforMed on interstitial waters from freshwater sediments indicate a variety of toxicants in fairly equal proportions, while TIEs performed on interstitial waters from marine sediments have identified only ammonia and organics as toxicants, with metals playing a minor role. Preliminary evidence from whole sediment TIEs indicates that organic compounds play a major role in the toxicity of marine sediments, with almost no evidence for either metal or ammonia toxicity. However, interpretation of these results may be skewed because only a small number of interstitial water (n = 13) and whole sediment (n = 5) TIEs have been completed. These trends may change as more data are collected.     

太湖草源性"湖泛"水域沉积物营养盐释放估算

于太湖草源性"湖泛"暴发期,采集柱状沉积物并应用peeper被动采样装置获得"湖泛"区原位沉积物间隙水.泥水样品分析表明:"湖泛"发生水域表层(0~7 cm)沉积物的含水率、孔隙度和有机质含量均明显高于对照区,其中有机质含量更是对照区样品的4倍左右,沉水植物残体促使表层沉积物物化性质改变的作用明显;"湖泛"发生水域表层沉积物间隙水中铵态氮(NH+4-N)、溶解性反应磷(SRP)及Fe2+含量远高于未发生区,植物残体降解对沉积物厌氧环境的营造显著.运用分子扩散模型对沉积物释放通量估算:"湖泛"发生区沉积物NH+4-N、SRP和Fe2+的释放速率分别是对照区的49.8、15.3和123.1倍.研究认为,草源性"湖泛"水体氮、磷等营养物含量升高的主要原因是沉积物的释放,而"湖泛"所营造的厌氧环境是氮、磷释放急剧增加的主要驱动因素.     

Rare earth elements in the pore waters of reducing nearshore sediments

The REE are mobile during early diagenesis in reducing nearshore sediments of Buzzards Bay leading to greatly enhanced concentrations in pore waters, e.g. 815 pmol kg⁻¹ Nd and 1910 pmol kg⁻¹ Ce within 30 cm of the sediment-seawater interface, about 10–50 times local seawater values. Two principal diagenetic reactions have been identified. Preferential Ce enrichment (positive Ce anomalies) and preferential heavy REE enrichment (light REE removal) in the pore waters is associated with redox cycling of Fe and Mn within the upper few centimeters of the sediment. Release of REE, without fractionation, from sediments and addition to pore waters occurs deeper within the sediment column. The impact on the bulk sediment chemistry is undetectable but the porewater gradients imply that there are significant dissolved REE fluxes, both internal to the sediment system and across the sediment-seawater interface.     

Seasonal variation in the toxicity of sediment-associated contaminants in Corpus Christi Bay, TX

Seasonal variation in pore water and sediment-water interface (SWI) toxicity at two sites of suspected contamination was investigated using sea urchin embryological development (Arbacia punctulata) and copepod hatching success (Schizopera knabeni). Site S1, located inside a marina, was fine-grained and S2, located near a neighboring stormwater outfall, was sandy. Both sites were cored in summer and winter, along with reference sites of equivalent grain sizes. Whereas the muddy contaminated site displayed a slight decrease in sea urchin toxicity from summer to winter, pore water from the sandy contaminated site exhibited an increase in sea urchin toxicity. The sandy sites displayed slight toxicity increase to copepod hatching success in winter, which occurred in the SWI of S2 and in the pore water from the reference site, R2, where it coincided with sedimentation. Cu was the most prevalent metal in the sediment samples. Although Cu concentration increased in the whole sediments and pore waters from summer to winter, its concentration in overlying SWI exposure decreased from summer to winter. Organic compounds exhibited opposite behavior, with smaller variety identified in the winter pore water samples, but more chemicals detected in the SWI samples in winter.     

Burrowing responses of the short-neck clam Ruditapes philippinarum to sediment contaminants

The burrowing responses of a common tropical bivalve, the short-neck clam Ruditapes philippinarum, to cadmium (Cd)-spiked sediment, variations of sediment grain size and natural sediments collected from 15 locations in Hong Kong's inshore waters were investigated through a series of laboratory tests. Results showed that the burrowing response exhibited a negative relationship with an increase in Cd concentration in the spiked sediments. The level of Cd was also found to be directly proportional to the percent mortality of the clam. However, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the time elapsed for the clam to burrow into sediments with different grain size composition. The elapsed time for 50% of the test clams to burrow into the sediment (ET₅₀) over a period of 48 h was calculated for the sediment samples collected from the 15 locations. Results of ANOVA showed significant difference (p<0.05) among the sediment samples. Tukey's multiple comparison test revealed two groups of sediments: group 1 containing 3 sediment samples collected from Victoria Harbour and group 2 containing 12 samples obtained from other coastal areas of Hong Kong. The ET₅₀ value for group 1 sediments was found to be greater than 2880 min whilst the ET₅₀ for group 2 sediments had a mean of 173.9 min. Agglomerative classification of the sediment samples, based on metal content (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn), also showed two similar groups, suggesting that the ET₅₀ values were correlated with the metal level of the sediment samples. Group 1 sediments collected from Victoria Harbour had greater concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni and Zn as compared to that in group 2. The present study demonstrated that high metal content in the sediment tends to inhibit the burrowing responses of the clam and that there is potential to develop the burrowing responses of R. philippinarum as a sublethal sediment toxicity test.     

Bank permeability in an Australian ephemeral dry‐land stream: variation with stage resulting from mud deposition and sediment clogging

Percolation of flood waters into the bed and banks of ephemeral streams provides one of the key mechanisms responsible for transmission loss. However, there are very few published estimates of the rates at which water can enter stream‐bank sediments, and little is known about the variation in bank permeability with elevation above the bed and the resulting effects on transmission loss in floods of different magnitudes. This paper presents the results of 69 field determinations of bank infiltrability made on Fowlers Creek, an ephemeral dry‐land stream located in arid western New South Wales, Australia. Fowlers Creek carries high concentrations of suspended sediments, which are deposited as mud drapes on the bed, banks and floodplain. Results demonstrate that infiltration rates are lowest at the base of the banks, and tend to increase steadily with elevation on the bank, even above the apparent upper limit of mud drapes. In parallel, the texture of the bank sediments (assessed from samples of the uppermost 10 cm) becomes coarser with elevation above the bed. This pattern is inferred to relate to the delivery of silts and clays into pore spaces in the bank sediments by percolating flood waters. The patterns of infiltration rate and sediment texture mapped in the field are reasoned to be the product of many clogging episodes in past flood events having different peak stages. The increase in infiltration rate and mean particle size up the banks reflects lower frequencies of submergence and clogging of the upper banks by large floods, and more frequent inundation and clogging of the lower banks by sub‐bank‐full flows. The stage‐related changes in bank permeability provide a mechanism that can drive variations in transmission loss among floods having different peak stages and hydrograph shapes. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The toxicity of marine sediments in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong

When the toxicity of marine sediment in Hong Kong was evaluated, it was found that the seven sediments collected within Victoria Harbour were severely contaminated with heavy metals, at concentrations many times higher than those in sediments collected from outside the harbour. The highest metal content was recorded in site VS14 (located near the airport runway and the industrialized area), with copper, zinc, lead and chromium values of 3789, 610, 138 and 601 mg kg⁻¹ dry wt, respectively. This site also had the greatest alkaline phosphatase activities (15 fluorescent intensity unit g⁻¹ wet wt), the largest number of total coliforms (910 CFU g⁻¹ wet wt) and sulphate-reducing bacteria (8.5 × 10⁴ cells g⁻¹ wet wt), implying that site VS14 was also contaminated with organic matter and nutrients. Sediment bioassays, Microtox and algal tests, demonstrated that sediment elutriates obtained from site VS14 were of greatest toxicity. The EC₁₀ value in Microtox tests was 17% elutriate, and the 96-h IC₅₀ values using Skeletonema costatum and Dunaliella tertiolecta were 40 and 79% elutriate, respectively. No toxic effects were found in sediment samples collected from the control site outside Victoria Harbour. Significant correlations were found between the results of the algal toxicity test (using S. costatum) and the coliform count and metal content of the sediments. The Microtox test was less sensitive than the algal bioassay, and no sediment elutriate, even from the site mostly contaminated by heavy metals, caused more than 50% inhibition of the light-emitting activity of the bacteria. In this study, S. costatum (the diatom) provided a more sensitive and reliable test species than D. tertiolecta (the flagellate) in differentiating the toxicity of marine sediments.     

Toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) of pore water of contaminated marine sediments collected from Hong Kong waters

Marine sediment can function both as a source and as a sink of marine chemical contaminants. The toxicity of contaminated marine sediment can be assessed by toxic evaluation of its pore water, the inter-particle water of sediment, because toxicants in the pore water may be bioavailable to marine organisms. In this study, the toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) was performed to identify the major toxicants in the pore water of marine sediment collected in Hong Kong waters. In Phase 1 TIE, the suspected toxicants were characterized as anions or organic compounds that are either oxidizable or filterable in alkaline medium. In Phase 2 TIE, the suspected toxicants were identified as sulfide (S²⁻) based on the reduction of toxicity due to lowering of sulfide concentrations by experimental manipulations. The mass balance and spiking analyses in Phase 3 confirmed that S²⁻ was one of the major toxicants and that some non-toxic unknown compounds measured by LC–MS, which was removed by C18 solid phase extraction, enhanced the toxicity of S²⁻ in the pore water samples.     

Removal of ammonia toxicity in marine sediment TIEs: a comparison of Ulva lactuca,zeolite and aeration methods

Toxicity Identification Evaluations (TIEs) can be used to determine the specific toxicant(s), including ammonia, causing toxicity observed in marine sediments. Two primary TIE manipulations are available for characterizing and identifying ammonia in marine sediments: Ulva lactuca addition and zeolite addition. In this study, we compared the efficacy of these methods to (1) remove NH(x) and NH(3) from overlying and interstitial waters and (2) reduce toxicity to the amphipod Ampelisca abdita and mysid Americamysis bahia using both spiked and environmentally contaminated sediments. The utility of aeration for removing NH(x) and NH(3) during a marine sediment TIE was also evaluated preliminarily. In general, the U. lactuca and zeolite addition methods performed similarly well at removing spiked NH(x) and NH(3) from overlying and interstitial waters compared to an unmanipulated sediment. Toxicity to the amphipod was reduced approximately the same by both methods. However, toxicity to the mysid was most effectively reduced by the U. lactuca addition indicating this method functions best with epibenthic species exposed to ammonia in the water column. Aeration removed NH(x) and NH(3) from seawater when the pH was adjusted to 10; however, very little ammonia was removed at ambient pHs ( approximately 8.0). This comparison demonstrates both U. lactuca and zeolite addition methods are effective TIE tools for reducing the concentrations and toxicity of ammonia in whole sediment toxicity tests.     

Pore water testing and analysis: the good,the bad,and the ugly

The increasingly common practice of collecting and assessing sediment pore water as a primary measure of sediment quality is reviewed. Good features of this practice include: pore water is a key exposure route for some organisms associated with sediments; pore water testing eliminates particle size effects; pore water analyses and tests can provide useful information regarding contamination and pollution. Bad features include: pore water is not the only exposure route; pore water tests lack chemical or biological realism: their "sensitivity" relative to other tests may be meaningless due to manipulation and laboratory artifacts; many sediment and surface dwelling organisms are not directly influenced by pore water. Bad features can become ugly if: other exposure pathways are not considered (for toxicity or bioaccumulation); manipulation techniques are not appropriate; pore water tests are inappropriately linked to population-level effects. Pore water testing and analyses can be effective tools provided their limitations are well understood by researchers and managers.     

Role of fluids in surface deformation caused by the 1999 Chi‐Chi earthquake in Taiwan

The 1999 Chi‐Chi earthquake significantly altered the landscape of central Taiwan. Surface deformation produced by the earthquake along the trace of the Chelungpu thrust can be classified into two styles: (1) uplift without significant surface rupture, and (2) uplift accompanied by surface rupture. Here we examine areas that exhibited the first style of deformation (e.g. Wufeng). Seismic stress at the time of the main shock may have been relieved by high pore‐fluid pressure in a 300‐m‐thick sand and gravel aquifer. Along the thrust fault, frictional heating of these sediments resulted in thermal expansion and an increase in pore‐fluid pressure. High pore‐fluid pressure damped seismic‐wave energy and enhanced intergranular slips of unconsolidated sandy and gravel sediments, which were possibly assisted by sulphuric acid corrosion, leading to a high sulphate content in the groundwater (c. 70 mg L^?1). These changes permitted surface folding and terrace‐style uplifting to occur without significant rupture. In contrast, other areas in which the second style of deformation is dominant (e.g. Fengyuen‐Shihkang) have thin (0–10 m) sand and gravel deposits and lower concentrations of sulphate (c. 30 mg L^?1) in groundwater. In these areas, sediments were heated but not sufficiently to produce significant thermal expansion and increase in pore‐fluid pressure; accumulation of stress in these locations led to rupture at the ground surface, with the formation of steep fault scarps. The areas exhibiting the first deformation style are characterized by the presence of high pore‐fluid pressure, frictional heat conduction, and possibly chemical corrosion related to sulphuric acid attack and formation of sulphate, in contrast to those involving significant uplift and surface rupture. The areal distribution of these two surface deformation styles suggests that the aforementioned fluid‐related subsurface processes may have altered the characteristics of sediments and caused diverse responses to the quake. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Micro X‐Ray computed tomography imaging and ultrasonic velocity measurements in tetrahydrofuran‐hydrate‐bearing sediments

Naturally occurring gas hydrates contain significant amounts of natural gas that might be produced as an energy resource in the foreseeable future. Thus, it is necessary to understand the pore‐space characteristics of hydrate reservoirs, particularly the pore‐scale distribution of the hydrate and its interaction with the sediment. Four end‐member models for hydrate distribution in the pore space are pore filling, sediment‐frame component, envelope cementing, and contact cementing. The goal of this study is to compare the models with pore‐scale hydrate distributions obtained in laboratory‐formed hydrates. Our results verify hydrate pore‐scale distributions by direct, visual observations that were previously implied by indirect, elastic property measurements. Laboratory measurements were conducted using tetrahydrofuran as a guest molecule since tetrahydrofuran hydrate can be used as a proxy for naturally occurring hydrates. We performed micro X‐ray computed tomography to obtain information about the distribution of hydrate in the pore space of synthetic sediment (glass beads). We also made ultrasonic velocity measurements on the same samples. Micro X‐ray computed tomography images and ultrasonic velocity measurements both indicate that the tetrahydrofuran hydrate forms in the pore space with a part of the hydrate bridging the grains without touching the grain surfaces. These hydrate‐bearing sediments appear to follow a pore‐filling model with a portion of the hydrate becoming a load‐bearing part of the sediment frame.     

非稳沉采煤沉陷区沉积物-水体界面的氮、磷分布及迁移转化特征

以淮南后湖非稳沉采煤沉陷区沉积物-水体界面为研究对象,分析该湖未开发区(A区)、水产养殖区(B区)和水生蔬菜种植区(C区)3个功能区上覆水-间隙水-沉积物体系中氮、磷分布及其迁移特征.结果表明,氮、磷在不同水体界面的分布差异较大.其中上覆水中氮、磷浓度表现为A区B区C区;间隙水中氮、磷分布差异不显著,然而各功能区间隙水的氮、磷浓度明显高于上覆水,氮、磷主要由间隙水向上覆水中移动;沉积物中氮、磷含量以C区最高.后湖采煤沉陷区水体表现出氮污染、磷限制的现象.     

A remote controlled freeze corer for sampling unconsolidated surface sediments

A new coring device is presented which allows the recovery of loose watery surface sediments and the water/sediment interface byin situ freezing, resulting in well preserved samples. The instrument consists of a tripod with adjustable legs, a hydraulic system, an insulated thermos (with two electrical pumps), and a wedge-shaped freeze box. Alcohol chilled with dry ice is the freezing agent. The corer can be deployed from a boat or a raft and permits recovery of undisturbed surface sediment sections up to 100 cm long in deep waters. The corer is particularly useful for sampling varved sediments.     

Transport and deposition of fine sediment in open channels with different aspect ratios

This paper investigates by means of several large eddy simulations how the channel aspect ratio affects the transport and settling of suspended sediments. The numerical method is successfully validated using data of a physical experiment of fine sediment net deposition in an open channel flow. The channel aspect ratio, A, is known to be the determining factor for the development, strength and distribution of the turbulence‐driven secondary flow, and it is demonstrated that A influences the primary flow, turbulence quantities and the transport and fate of fine sediments. The secondary flow locally supports or hinders the falling of fine sediment particles in a turbulent flow, which results in a non‐uniform deposition of fine sediments over the cross‐section. While the channel aspect ratio has a large influence on the distribution of suspended sediments within the cross‐section, its effect on the cross‐sectional averaged deposition is negligibly small. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development of guidelines for ammonia in estuarine and marine water systems

The water quality guideline trigger value for ammonia in estuarine and marine waters has been revised with the addition of 38 new results to the data set of 21 used in earlier guideline derivations. Using species sensitivity distributions, a new trigger value of 460 μg total NH₃-N/L was derived for slightly to moderately disturbed systems (95% protection concentration, PC95), with a value of 160 μg total NH₃-N/L applying to waters of high conservation value (PC99). For sediment pore waters, a guideline trigger value of 3.9 mg total NH₃-N/L, derived from the 80th percentile of background data from Sydney Harbour, is recommended. This value is likely to be exceeded in degraded sediments subject to dredging; however, ocean disposal of such sediments results in rapid decreases in porewater ammonia and a guideline trigger value for dissolved ammonia during disposal of dredged sediments of 1550 μg total NH₃-N/L is proposed.     

Evolution of Heterogeneous Mixed Siliciclastic/Carbonate Aquifers Containing Metastable Sediments

Mixed carbonate and siliciclastic marine sediments commonly become freshwater aquifers in eastern coastal regions of the United States and many other global locations. As these deposits age, the carbonate fraction of the sediment is commonly removed by dissolution and the aquifer can become a solely siliciclastic system or contain zones or beds of pure quartz sand. During aquifer evolution, the sediment grain size characteristics, hydraulic conductivity, and porosity change. An investigation of these changes using mixed carbonate/siliciclastic sediment samples collected from a modern barrier island beach in southern Florida showed that the average mean grain diameter decreased with removal of the carbonate fraction, but the average hydraulic conductivity and porosity increased slightly, but not to statistical significance. This counterintuitive result occurs because of the change in the pore types from a combined shelter and intergranular pore system producing a dual porosity system in the mixed sediments to a single intergranular pore system in the siliciclastic sediment fraction. Within the mixed carbonate/siliciclastic sediment, in the pure carbonate fraction, large shell fractions form grain‐supported large pores, which become filled with sand‐sized quartz as the shell fragments decrease in size or as the sediment becomes compacted. The hydraulic conductivity increases because the shell fragments that were oriented perpendicular to flow caused an increase in the length of the flow path, or a larger scale tortuosity, compared with the flow through pure quartz sand.     

Burrowing responses of the short-neck clam Ruditapes philippinarum to sediment contaminants

The burrowing responses of a common tropical bivalve, the short-neck clam Ruditapes philippinarum, to cadmium (Cd)-spiked sediment, variations of sediment grain size and natural sediments collected from 15 locations in Hong Kong's inshore waters were investigated through a series of laboratory tests. Results showed that the burrowing response exhibited a negative relationship with an increase in Cd concentration in the spiked sediments. The level of Cd was also found to be directly proportional to the percent mortality of the clam. However, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the time elapsed for the clam to burrow into sediments with different grain size composition. The elapsed time for 50% of the test clams to burrow into the sediment (ET₅₀) over a period of 48 h was calculated for the sediment samples collected from the 15 locations. Results of ANOVA showed significant difference (p<0.05) among the sediment samples. Tukey's multiple comparison test revealed two groups of sediments: group 1 containing 3 sediment samples collected from Victoria Harbour and group 2 containing 12 samples obtained from other coastal areas of Hong Kong. The ET₅₀ value for group 1 sediments was found to be greater than 2880 min whilst the ET₅₀ for group 2 sediments had a mean of 173.9 min. Agglomerative classification of the sediment samples, based on metal content (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn), also showed two similar groups, suggesting that the ET₅₀ values were correlated with the metal level of the sediment samples. Group 1 sediments collected from Victoria Harbour had greater concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni and Zn as compared to that in group 2. The present study demonstrated that high metal content in the sediment tends to inhibit the burrowing responses of the clam and that there is potential to develop the burrowing responses of R. philippinarum as a sublethal sediment toxicity test.