我国水环境生物学研究进展

本文回顾了我国水环境生物学近年来的进展。全文分四部分:水污染生物监测;水污染生物治理;水生态毒理学及对今后研究工作的建议。     

Field and Laboratory Exposures of Two Moss Species to Low Level Metal Pollution

Moss transplants of the species Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus and Pleurozium schreberi were used as active biomonitoring organisms as a part of a monitoring study to assess the impact of metals associated with ambient particles on mosses at roadsides.The moss samples were exposed at a semi-urban and roadside site for 3 months for subsequent analysis of metal concentration (Cu, Pb and Zn). This field experiment was carried out to investigate the accumulation of the metals over a period of 0, 4, 8 and 12 weeks at the two sites. The metal concentration in the moss samples generally increased with the length of exposure and was higher at the roadside site. The two species, however, showed slightly different accumulation patterns. In addition to the metal analysis chlorophyll concentrations were analysed as a measure of stress response in the moss samples of the above mentioned field exposures. The chlorophyll concentrations of exposed mosses showed no or only weak correlations to the concentration of the three metals measured in the moss, which suggests that other conditions have a greater influence on the chlorophyll concentration.The effect of a single metal on the moss was studied in laboratory experiments exposing R. squarrosus to the metals copper, lead and zinc at concentrations based on the above field data. At the concentrations used there was a significant reduction in the chlorophyll a concentration after exposure to copper.     

Could Ornamental Plants Serve as Passive Biomonitors in Urban Areas?

A search for cheap and efficient method to monitor atmospheric particulates in city centres has raised new interest to measure foliar element concentrations after the role of particulate pollution for respiratory illnesses was discovered. Leaf samples of Golden dewdrop (Duranta repens L.) collected in Palermo (South of Italy) between 1998 and 2000 were analysed to study the possible use of this shrub as a passive biomonitor for atmospheric pollution in urban areas. Concentrations of Ba, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Pb and Zn were determined from leaf samples collected from six sampling sites representing either (a) areas of high traffic density or (b) areas not directly affected by the city traffic (e.g. gardens). Most of the elements showed a significant temporal variation but no consistent trends could be seen, i.e. the highest (or lowest) values were not detected consistently at some particular time of the year. Furthermore temporal changes were of same magnitude in polluted versus less polluted areas; no statistically significant interaction between pollution level and collection period was detected. Pollution level (traffic density) was the primary factor to explain spatial variation only in the case of foliar Mg concentrations. On the other hand, variation in foliar concentrations between sampling sites (irrespective of the pollution level) was large. Our results suggest that particulate deposition needs to be quite high before spatial segregation can be done on the basis of foliar element concentrations.     

Factors affecting PAH residues in the lugworm Arenicola marina, a sediment feeding polychaete

Being a sediment feeder, the lugworm Arenicola marina could be a suitable candidate organism for the biomonitoring of sediment-bound contaminants in intertidal areas. Since lugworms are only rarely used in environmental monitoring, little is known about the natural variation in their body residue levels. In this study, we assessed the importance of seasonal fluctuations, spatial variation and sexual development to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) residues in lugworms. Over a period of 15 months, lugworms were sampled along a contamination gradient in the Western Scheldt estuary in the Netherlands. A clear seasonal pattern in the body residue levels of PAH was observed, with lowest levels in March and highest levels just prior to the spawning season in September. During the spawning season the body residue levels showed a marked decrease. Although this seasonal pattern is apparently related to the reproductive cycle of the lugworm, no clear differences in body residue levels were found between animals with or without developed gonads. The contamination gradient, present in the estuary, was clearly reflected in the body residue levels of PAH. The expected gradient of internal concentrations was, however, absent in October, when the spawning period was not yet finished. The variation in lugworm body residue levels was smaller than the fluctuations in sediment PAH levels. It can be concluded that the lugworm is a suitable organism for the biomonitoring of sediment-bound contaminants, provided that attention is paid to its reproductive cycle.     

Rehabilitation of Saline Wetlands, Olympics 2000 Site, Sydney (Australia)—I: Management Strategies Based on Ecological Needs Assessment

The Homebush Bay area, Sydney, site of the Olympic Games 2000, has been largely occupied for nearly a century by an abattoir, brickworks, armaments depot and waste dumps. However, it contains remnants of original ecosystems, including two estuarine wetlands, and the Olympic Co-ordination Authority (OCA), set up to manage the redevelopment of the site, is committed to the rehabilitation of these ecosystems. The ecological approaches and rehabilitation measures used for one of the wetlands are detailed. Apart from a history of disturbance, it has for 10 years been without tidal flushing. However, these wetlands are the largest remaining in the Sydney estuary, and are significant for a number of reasons including biodiversity and waterbird conservation. The ecological parameters of the site, the results of a ‘before-restoration-impact' study, and the iterative links between science and management in the introduction of the rehabilitation measures, are presented. Criteria for success are discussed, along with biomonitoring strategies to test success.     

年轮化学示踪技术及在重现矿区重金属污染历史中的应用

矿区自然分布的树木从环境中吸收重金属元素,并在形成层发育过程中将重金属元素储存在年轮中,通过分析年轮中重金属元素含量的变化特征,可以半定量判定不同污染途径对年轮中重金属元素的贡献率,进而重现矿区环境变迁历史.本文综述了国内外年轮化学在环境污染分析中的应用案例,针对影响年轮化学分析精度的各种环境因素,结合矿区污染特征,探...     

Heavy metals in bog waters: An alternative way to assess atmospheric precipitation quality?

Ombrotrophic bogs are used to reliably assess past and present levels of heavy metal depositions through chemical analyses of peat layers. Instead, surface waters collected in ombrotrophic bogs were never tested as an alternative way to assess atmospheric precipitation quality, although the solely source of water in bogs is by atmospheric precipitation. In the present paper the reliability of bog water to mirror atmospheric precipitation quality has been tested. To this aim, heavy metal concentrations in bog water were compared to both rainwater chemistry, and tissue chemistry of Hylocomium splendens, a moss frequently used as biomonitor. Bog water was periodically sampled in three different microhabitats, i.e., a hummock, a carpet, and a hollow at two bogs, located in the south-eastern Alps of Italy. Microhabitats were selected in order to encompass a gradient of water table depth from relatively dry to relatively wet conditions, respectively. Basing on surface peat and bog water chemistry as well as on hydrological measurements, selected microhabitats were shown to be ombrotrophic, i.e., their mineral input was solely by atmospheric precipitation. Heavy metal concentrations in bog water did not differ significantly among microhabitats, with the only exception of Fe which showed significantly higher concentrations in hummock water. Because of the lack of rainwater chemical information for the study area, mean heavy metal concentrations in rainwater were obtained from a set of European stations monitoring atmospheric precipitation. A significant relationship was found between heavy metals in rainwater and bog water, further supported by the positive relationship between emission amounts of Cd, Cr, Cu, Zn, and Pb in Italy and the corresponding values in bog water during the study period. Concentrations of heavy metals in bog water were then compared with corresponding concentrations in H. splendens collected in the nearby of the study bogs. Moss chemistry has been here used as a proxy of atmospheric precipitation chemistry, basing on the reliability of mosses to mirror local precipitation chemistry as widely demonstrated by biomonitoring surveys. Bog water and moss tissues showed the same pattern of variation of concentrations, although moss tissues were characterised by higher absolute concentrations of heavy metals.     

Hepatic 7-ethoxyresorufin O-deethylase Activity in eel (Anguilla Anguilla) from The Thames Estuary and Comparisons with other United Kingdom Estuaries

Hepatic microsomal 7-ethoxyresorufin O-deethylase (EROD) activities (indicative of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs)) were measured in eel Anguilla anguilla from the Thames Estuary. Fish were collected from up to 13 sites during November 1997, May and August 1998 and October 1999. Throughout this period no clear seasonal variation could be identified at every site along the Thames. However, during the summer months, fish sampled from sites in the middle to the upper estuary (Woolwich, Greenhithe and West Thurrock) reported up to 3-fold higher EROD activities compared to sites either at the upper reaches (Richmond and Brentford) at the same time of the year, or fish sampled in winter, along the entire length of the estuary. A laboratory exposure experiment demonstrated a 3-fold elevation of EROD activity 2 days after injection with β-naphthoflavone (β-NF). However, higher levels of activity could be determined in fish sampled from the Weston canal near the Merseyside. The lowest levels of A. anguilla EROD activity were observed in fish sampled from the upper reaches of the River Tamar, Devon, and were comparable to activities determined in fish from the Wear and Humber estuaries. A. anguilla sampled along the Thames, Tyne and Tees estuaries reported between 2.5- and 7-fold higher EROD activities compared to fish collected from the Tamar. These results indicate that a low to moderate induction of A. anguilla CYP1A had occurred (indicative of low to moderate exposure to PAHs and planar PCBs) in fish collected from the Thames, Tyne, Wear, Tees, Humber and Tamar estuaries. However, the highest level of EROD activity was observed in fish from the Weston Canal (Merseyside).     

Biomonitoring of Trace Metals by Different species of Lichens (Parmelia) in North-West Italy

The concentrations of Cd, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, V, and Zn were measured in four different species of lichens (Parmelia caperata, P. pastillifera, P. saxatilis, P. sulcata) sampled in North-West Italy, in order to obtain maps showing metal distribution and the degree of deviation from background (natural) conditions. Significant differences among the species were found for Zn, Mn, Pb and V, suggesting that the combined use of mixed species in biomonitoring surveys can affect the interpretation of results. Results obtained for Parmelia caperata samples have been compared with background (natural) levels, and maps showing the distribution of each metal expressed as deviation from background levels have been obtained. Overall such maps show a medium to high alteration degree in the study area.