Bioaccumulation of chemical elements at post-industrial freshwater sites varies predictably between habitats, elements and taxa: A power law approach

CARREIRA, Bruno M, Vojtech KOLAR, Eliska CHMELOVA, Jiri JAN, Josip ADASEVIC, Andrea LANDEIRA-DABARCA, Lucie VEBROVA, Martina POLÁKOVÁ, Petra HORKA, Sarka OTAHALOVA, Zuzana MUSILOVA, Jakub BOROVEC, Robert TROPEK and David S BOUKAL. Bioaccumulation of chemical elements at post-industrial freshwater sites varies predictably between habitats, elements and taxa: A power law approach. Science of the Total Environment. AMSTERDAM: Elsevier, 2023, vol. 901, November, p. "165794", 14 pp. ISSN 0048-9697. Available from: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165794.

Basic information

• Original name: Bioaccumulation of chemical elements at post-industrial freshwater sites varies predictably between habitats, elements and taxa: A power law approach
• Authors: CARREIRA, Bruno M (guarantor), Vojtech KOLAR, Eliska CHMELOVA, Jiri JAN, Josip ADASEVIC, Andrea LANDEIRA-DABARCA, Lucie VEBROVA, Martina POLÁKOVÁ (203 Czech Republic, belonging to the institution), Petra HORKA, Sarka OTAHALOVA, Zuzana MUSILOVA, Jakub BOROVEC, Robert TROPEK and David S BOUKAL.
• Edition: Science of the Total Environment, AMSTERDAM, Elsevier, 2023, 0048-9697.

Other information

• Original language: English
• Type of outcome: Article in a journal
• Field of Study: 10511 Environmental sciences
• Country of publisher: Netherlands
• Confidentiality degree: is not subject to a state or trade secret
• WWW: URL
• Impact factor: Impact factor: 9.800 in 2022
• RIV identification code: RIV/00216224:14310/23:00132173
• Organization unit: Faculty of Science
• Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165794
• UT WoS: 001054885000001
• Keywords in English: Trace elements; Heavy metals; Macroinvertebrates; Fish; Microhabitat; Trophic level; Coal combustion residues
• Tags: rivok
• Tags: International impact, Reviewed

Abstract

Elevated environmental levels of elements originating from anthropogenic activities threaten natural communities and public health, as these elements can persist and bioaccumulate in the environment. However, their environmental risks and bioaccumulation patterns are often habitat-, species- and element-specific. We studied the bioaccumulation patterns of 11 elements in seven freshwater taxa in post-mining habitats in the Czech Republic, ranging from less polluted mining ponds to highly polluted fly ash lagoons. We found nonlinear, powerlaw relationships between the environmental and tissue concentrations of the elements, which may explain differences in bioaccumulation factors (BAF) reported in the literature. Tissue concentrations were driven by the environmental concentrations in non-essential elements (Al, As, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb and V), but this dependence was limited in essential elements (Cu, Mn, Se and Zn). Tissue concentrations of most elements were also more closely related to substrate than to water concentrations. Bioaccumulation was habitat specific in eight elements: stronger in mining ponds for Al and Pb, and stronger in fly ash lagoons for As, Cu, Mn, Pb, Se, V and Zn, although the differences were often minor. Bioaccumulation of some elements further increased in mineral-rich localities. Proximity to substrate, rather than trophic level, drove increased bioaccumulation levels across taxa. This highlights the importance of substrate as a pollutant reservoir in standing freshwaters and suggests that benthic taxa, such as molluscs (e.g., Physella) and other macroinvertebrates (e.g., Nepa), constitute good bioindicators. Despite the higher environmental risks in fly ash lagoons than in mining ponds, the observed ability of freshwater biota to sustain pollution supports the conservation potential of post-industrial sites. The power law approach used here to quantify and disentangle the effects of various bioaccumulation drivers may be helpful in additional contexts, increasing our ability to predict the effects of other contaminants and environmental hazards on biota.