Unique Pit Lake Created in an Opencast Potassium Salt Mine (Dombrovska Pit Lake in Kalush, Ukraine)

Abstract

We studied the physicochemical and biological characteristics of the Dombrovska pit lake in Ukraine. The lake formed in an abandoned opencast potassium salt mine and is one of the most saline inland water bodies in the world. It is 85 m deep (November 2015) and an annual inflow of about 2 Mm 3 of water. The lake has two distinct layers. The mesohaline surface (0-5 m) layer is well oxygenated and slightly alkaline (pH = 7.5-8.8). Its mineralization, expressed as dry mass, was 50-134 g dm − 3 , and its electrical conductivity (EC) was 58-134 mS cm − 1 . The underlying layer consists of hypersaline water with low amounts of dissolved oxygen, a neutral pH (6.7-7.4), high mineralization (179-420 g dm − 3 ), high EC (169-215 mS cm − 1 ), and higher concentrations of major anions and cations (except Ca 2+ ) and nutrients than the overlying water. The vertical relationship between major ions and metals and the future salinity of the lake are discussed. In terms of zooplankton, in July we found living specimens of the rotifer Brachionus plicatilis and the ciliates Paradileptus elephantinus and Tindinnidium sp. as well as dead rotifers, cladocerans, and copepods (in total, 19 species), but only live B. plicatilis and 9 dead species in November. In the littoral part of the pit lake, we found the diatoms Nitzschia pusilla and some Halamphora species (H. borealis, H. tenerrima, H. acutiuscula), which favour highly saline waters.

Critical multi-stranded approach for determining the ecological values of diatoms in unique aquatic ecosystems of anthropogenic origin

“…Based on our present findings, and those of previous studies, in our opinion that it is not appropriate to classify Navicula cincta as an oligohalobous species with regard to salinity: it has been recorded in fresh (Żelazna-Wieczorek, 2011; Wojtal, 2013), brackish (Żelazna-Wieczorek, Olszyński & Nowicka-Krawczyk, 2015; Żurek et al, 2018) and salt waters (Witkowski, Lange-Bertalot & Metzeltin, 2000). We propose the following ecological indicator value according to Van Dam, Mertens & Sinkeldam (1994) for Navicula cincta s.l.…”

Peer Review #1 of "Critical multi-stranded approach for determining the ecological values of diatoms in unique aquatic ecosystems of anthropogenic origin (v0.1)"

“…have been described, and it can be assumed that each of these individual species in this group may be associated with narrower optimal ecological conditions (Cantonati et al 2016). Based on our present findings, and those of previous studies, in our opinion that it is not appropriate to classify Navicula cincta as an oligohalobous species with regard to salinity: it has been recorded in fresh (Żelazna-Wieczorek 2011;Wojtal 2013), brackish (Żelazna-Wieczorek, Olszyński & Nowicka-Krawczyk 2015Żurek et al 2018) and salt waters (Witkowski, Lange-Bertalot & Metzeltin 2000). We propose the following ecological indicator value according to Van Dam et al (1994) for Navicula cincta s.l.…”

Effect of underground salty mine water on the rotifer communities in the Bolina River (Upper Silesia, Southern Poland)

“…Knowledge about the rotifer communities in highly anthropogenically saline habitats is scarce and is limited only to stagnant waters (Bielańska-Grajner and Cudak, 2014;Bielańska-Grajner et al, 2014a;Pociecha et al, 2018;Żurek et al, 2018). Although the rotifer communities in naturally strongly saline running waters have been the subject of researches, these studies have primarily concerned estuaries.…”