Response of white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) to pulp and paper mill effluent in the Androscoggin River, Maine, USA

Abstract

Adverse effects of pulp and paper mill effluent on fish populations have been well documented in many countries over the last two decades. Some of the initial studies were at mills with conventional chlorine bleaching and no secondary effluent treatment. Following installation of secondary treatment, changes in bleaching technology to elemental chlorine-free bleaching, and other process changes, adverse effects on fish were reduced or eliminated at some mills. Because no two mills are exactly alike, it is difficult to predict adverse impacts of any given mill on fish populations. In 1994, a study of female white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) in the Androscoggin River, Maine, USA, showed induction of mixed function oxidase, reductions in gonad size and plasma estradiol, and an increase in plasma testosterone in fish downstream of discharges from three large bleached kraft pulp and paper mills, and host community municipal sewage treatment plants (STP). After all three mills switched to elemental chlorine-free bleaching in the late 1990s, studies from 2001 to 2003 found that the pattern of reproductive impacts on white sucker populations measured in 1994 was not repeated. In addition, population estimates of white sucker from 2002 to 2003 using mark-recapture techniques found that densities and biomass were well within the range of those of a reference population, and of those reported in the literature for unimpacted populations. Detailed studies immediately above and below each mill/sewage treatment plant showed no evidence of reproductive effects. However, a clear pattern of eutrophication was noted, which increased cumulatively downstream below each mill/STP.

Long‐Term Studies of Fish Health before and after the Closure of a Bleached Kraft Pulp Mill in Northern Ontario, Canada

“…While improvements have been observed after temporary closures (Bowron et al 2009) and maintenance shutdowns (Munkittrick et al 1992) at some mills, they are not always clearly demonstrated. Similarly, contrasting patterns have also been observed after treatment and process upgrades (Servos et al 1997; Janz et al 2001; Mower et al 2011), including persistence of some signals in fish captured at MAT‐EXP in earlier studies (Munkittrick et al 1998; Arciszewski et al 2015). Our data are no exception.…”

“…Studies of recovery have been done at multiple pulp mills but historically examined process changes, treatment upgrades, and temporary closures. Studies after process changes and treatment upgrades have indicated re-occupation by species (Cross and Ellis 1981), whereas others have shown reduced indications of exposure (Bowron et al 2009;Mower et al 2011). However, elimination of impacts is not always observed during these interventions (Munkttrick et al 1992;Munkittrick et al 1997;Bowron et al 2009).…”

A 30-Year Study of Impacts, Recovery, and Development of Critical Effect Sizes for Endocrine Disruption in White Sucker (Catostomus commersonii) Exposed to Bleached-Kraft Pulp Mill Effluent at Jackfish Bay, Ontario, Canada

“…In studies at other mills, improved reproductive performance was generally associated with reduced use of molecular chlorine, improved condensate handling and liquor spill control ( 25 ) and at mills with lower BOD and gas chromatographic total ion profiles ( 28 , 87 ). A study of female white sucker in the Androscoggin River, Maine, USA found that the pattern of reproductive impacts observed near 3 pulp mills disappeared after a switch to ECF bleaching, including reductions in gonad size and plasma E2 and increase in plasma T in fish exposed to effluent ( 88 ).…”

Using Fish as a Sentinel in Risk Management of Contaminated Sediments

“…The environmental effects of emissions from the cellulose industry have, since the 1960s, been an area for environmental research forming the basis for successive mitigation actions to protect aquatic life (Norrström and Karlsson 2015 ; Ussery et al 2021 ). Numerous field studies targeting effects on fish have been conducted in Scandinavia (Sandström et al 1988 ; Landner et al 1994 ; Förlin et al 1995 ; Karels and Oikari 2000 ), North- and South America (Adams et al 1992 ; Munkittrick et al 1994 ; McMaster et al 2006 ; Chiang et al 2010 ; Mower et al 2011 ; Barra et al 2021 ) and Oceania (Harris et al 1992 ; van den Heuvel et al 2010 ). For natural reasons, most studies have focused on the effects of present emissions, whereas relatively few studies, with some exceptions (Meriläinen et al 2001 ; Hynynen et al 2004 ; Arciszewski et al 2021 ), have investigated the status of ecological indicators after mill closure.…”