2022 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Virtual Conference
March 13 - 15, 2022
6/05/2017 | 2:15 PM - 2:30 PM | DOES SURFACE COAL-MINING LEAD TO SELENIUM BIOACCUMULATION IN HEADWATER ECOSYSTEMS? | 305B
DOES SURFACE COAL-MINING LEAD TO SELENIUM BIOACCUMULATION IN HEADWATER ECOSYSTEMS?
Aquatic ecosystems across the globe can be contaminated with excess selenium (Se), a trace element that bioaccumulates within the aquatic food chain. In central Appalachia, U.S.A., surface coal-mining releases Se, often causing elevated concentrations in the water of headwater streams. Though headwaters dominate stream networks in central Appalachia, processes of Se enrichment and trophic transfer in these systems have not been previously documented. In this study, we evaluated Se dynamics by determining concentrations in streamwater and in benthic macroinvertebrates from 23 headwater streams in summer 2015. Nine of these streams, including reference and mining-influenced sites, were selected for intensive sampling of streamwater, sediment, biofilm, leaf detritus, and benthic macroinvertebrates during two sampling periods - fall 2015 and spring 2016. We found Se dynamics were similar between seasons and between reference and mining-influenced streams, but Se concentrations were elevated in all material sampled in the mining-influenced streams relative to reference streams. Elevated Se concentrations indicate that headwater stream ecosystems are capable of accumulating Se via processes similar to those occurring in low-gradient streams and lentic habitats.
- C03 Invertebrates
- C27 Landuse and Non-Point source Impacts
- C13 Ecotoxicology
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Presenters/Authors
Keridwen Whitmore
(), Virginia Tech, keridwen@vt.edu;
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