HR: 1330h
AN: NB33T-03    [Abstracts]
TI: Site Dependent Beneficial Effects of Aquaculture Effluent
AU: * Buzby, K M
EM: kmbuzby@mail.wvu.edu
AF: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering West Virginia University, PO Box 6103, Morgantown, WV 26506 United States
AU: Viadero, R C
EM: rcviadero@mail.wvu.edu
AF: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering West Virginia University, PO Box 6103, Morgantown, WV 26506 United States
AB: The effect of aquaculture effluent on community structure was examined in a stream formed by the discharge of treated acid mine water. The mine water stream and the raceway stream whose source was treated mine water were sampled. In addition, a site below the confluence of the mine water and raceway streams was also sampled. Initially, there were no significant differences in macroinvertebrate density, diversity or community structure in the closed canopy, low light, mine water and raceway streams. However, in the high light environment below the confluence, the community included a substantial proportion of grazers and density was significantly lower. After an inadvertent resuspension of precipitated metal hydroxides from the AMD treatment facility, communities in the mine water stream and below the confluence were strongly dominated by chironomids while the raceway stream maintained much of its diversity. At the end of the study period diversity in all streams was significantly greater than in earlier samples however, densities were 6-8x lower than initial values in the raceway and mine water streams. This study demonstrated that there was little effect of aquaculture effluent on the benthic community in a low-light environment. Additionally, aquaculture effluent mediated the negative effects of AMD metals.
DE: 9810 New fields (not classifiable under other headings)
SC: North American Benthological Society [NB]
MN: 2005 Joint Assembly