Algae utilization in assessment of the large Turawa Lake (Poland) pollution with heavy metals

Abstract

This investigation was undertaken to determine the applicability of algae for the assessment of contamination level of water reservoirs with heavy metals. The alga Spirogyra sp. collected in the littoral zone of the Large Turawa Lake (artificial lake in Southern Poland) was used for the study. The concentrations of heavy metals accumulated in the alga inhabiting a flow-through water basin of the Large Turawa Lake were found to correlate with sources of these metals, such as benthic sediments and contaminated watercourses. The highest concentrations of metals were found in alga samples collected at the outlet of the lake: c (Mn) = 12330 mg/kg dry mass, c (Fe) = 15059 mg/kg d.m., c (Cu) = 47.5 mg/kg d.m., c (Zn) = 1411 mg/kg d.m., c (Cd) = 108.8 mg/kg d.m., and c (Pb) = 684 mg/kg d.m. The metals originated from benthic sediments (sapropelic mud) deposited close to the outlet of the lake. Statistically significant differences in the concentrations of cadmium accumulated in the alga were found between samples from the sites, where cadmium occurred in sandy sediments (max. 27.6 mg/kg d.m.), and samples from the sites located far from the contaminated sediments (max. 12.8 mg/kg d.m.).

The Use of Water Plants in Biomonitoring And Phytoremediation of Waters Polluted with Heavy Metals

“…Numerous bioindicators and biomonitors, among others algae [62,63], water animals [64,65] and macrophytes [54,66] are used to assess pollution of water environment. The main objectives of biomonitoring research of surface waters are the assessment of reservoirs pollution, identifying sources of pollution, long-term monitoring in order to define the dynamics of the changes, defining consequences of pollution for biocenosis and comparative studies between different elements of the ecosystem.…”

Substratum‐Associated Microbiota

“…and that highresolution microscopic techniques can aid the study of metal ecotoxicity. Rajfur et al (2011) showed that algae could be used for heavy metal contamination assessment, since the concentrations of heavy metals in the benthic algae Spirogyra sp. were correlated with the sources of these metals, such as benthic sediments and contaminated watercourses.…”

Influence of Treated Sewage Discharge on the Benthos Ciliate Assembly in the Lowland River

“…Different types of organisms, from bacteria [9], algae [10,11] and protozoa [12,13] to macroinvertebrates and vertebrates [14][15][16][17][18] are being used as indicators of changes in the aquatic environment. The significant influence of sewage on structure of the bacteria group was reported by Wakelin et al [8].…”