2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH
5/23/2019 | 11:45 AM - 12:00 PM | TEMPORAL AND SPATIAL EXTENT OF SURFACE COAL MINING INFLUENCES ON CENTRAL APPALACHIAN HEADWATER STREAMS | 151 ABC
TEMPORAL AND SPATIAL EXTENT OF SURFACE COAL MINING INFLUENCES ON CENTRAL APPALACHIAN HEADWATER STREAMS
Increased loading of dissolved ions (salinization) is a primary alteration to headwater streams in the central Appalachian coalfield. However, temporal and spatial trends of increased dissolved ions and associated influences on biota have not been well studied. To address this research need, we analyzed temporal trends in specific conductance, benthic macroinvertebrate communities, and ion matrix in 24 headwater streams from 2011-2019. To date, there is limited evidence of recovery of water chemistry or aquatic life in these streams indicating, lasting impacts from surface coal mining. We analyzed spatial patterns of water chemistry in a subset of these streams using synoptic sampling of multiple constitutes every 100m under high and low flow conditions. Preliminary results indicate that water chemistry is spatially dynamic and can be influenced by several processes including dilution and source activation. Lastly, we investigated spatial patterns of selenium bioaccumulation from particulate matter to top trophic levels including fish and salamanders and found limited evidence of increased selenium bioaccumulation downstream of a single source. Our work indicates persistent coal mining influences but also highlights future research needs to better understand downstream impacts to water quality and biotic communities.
- Watershed
- Invertebrate
- Food Webs
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Presenters/Authors
Thomas Cianciolo
(), Virginia Tech, thomrc6@vt.edu;
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