Role of autochthonous bacteria in the removal of spilled oil from sediment

The concentration of oil in the sediment of Colgate Creek in Baltimore Harbour of Chesapeake Bay increased significantly after accidental oil spill. A month after a spill, the concentration of oil in sediment diminished by ca. 75%. Microbial degradation of oil by bacteria present in Colgate Creek sediment offers the most plausible explanation for the decreases observed in the total oil content of the sediment after spills.     

Microbial degradation of model petroleum at low temperatures

Two areas of Chesapeake Bay, Colgate Creek in Baltimore Harbor and Eastern Bay, are presently under study, with routine sampling of water and sediment for petroleum-degrading microorganisms (bacteria, yeasts, and fungi) by direct plating and enrichment culture. Selected physical and chemical parameters are recorded for each sampling site, and water and sediment samples are extracted for hydrocarbons. Numbers of petroleum-degrading microorganisms enumerated by direct plating were found to correlate with the concentration of benzene-extractable material and were higher for the Colgate Creek than for the Eastern Bay site. Petroleum-degrading microorganisms were isolated from water and sediment samples at environmental temperatures of 0°, 5°, and 10°C. A salts medium supplemented with nitrate and phosphate was used to provide optimum conditions for petroleum degradation, whereas Chesapeake Bay water was used to simulate natural environmental conditions. Use of a model petroleum permitted quantitative measurement of utilization of individual hydrocarbons ranging in complexity from simple alkanes to polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons. Higher growth yields and maximum hydrocarbon degradation was observed for microorganisms in the salts medium at 0°, 5°, and 10°C, although significant quantities of hydrocarbons were utilized in some samples grown in a medium for which Chesapeake Bay water was the diluent. Bacterial hydrocarbon degradation accounted for most of the model petroleum utilization at 0° and 5°C. However, oscillations of bacterial populations, with significant growth of yeasts, was observed at 10°C. Photomicroscopy and scanning electron microscopy revealed aggregates of bacteria, yeasts, and fungi associated with oil globules. From preliminary identification and classification of the hydrocarbon-utilizing bacteria, members of the generaVibrio, Aeromonas, Pseudomonas, andAcinetobacter were present in the enrichment cultures. From results of this study, it is concluded that utilization of model petroleum at low temperatures is a function of the types and numbers of microorganisms present in an original inoculum taken from the natural environment.     

Laboratory Study of Chemical Speciation of Mercury in Lake Sediment and Water under Aerobic and Anaerobic Conditions

Chemical speciation and partitioning of radiolabeled HgCl₂ were studied in model aquatic systems consisting of undisturbed eutrophic lake sediment and water in plastic cylinders. The cylinders were either gradually made anaerobic by a gentle flow of N₂-CO₂ or kept aerobic by air flow. The proportion of methylated ²⁰³Hg was significantly higher, in both water and sediment, in the anaerobic systems than in the aerobic systems. The composition and total concentration of fatty acids originating from bacterial phospholipids, as well as the concentration of vitamin B₁₂, including related cobalamins, were similar in sediments from the anaerobic and aerobic systems. Bacterial cell numbers were, on average, 3.6 times higher in the anaerobic water columns than in the aerobic ones. Volatilization of ²⁰³Hg occurred in all systems except in an autoclaved control and was of similar magnitudes in the anaerobic and aerobic systems. Incorporation of ²⁰³Hg into the sediment was significantly faster in the aerobic systems than in the anaerobic systems. These results suggest that episodes of anoxia in bottom waters and sediment cause an increase in net mercury methylation and, hence, an increase in bioavailable mercury.     

Short-Term Effects of South Louisiana and Kuwait Crude Oils on Glucose Utilization by Marine Bacterial Populations

Two crude oils, South Louisiana and Kuwait, were examined for their impact on glucose utilization by bacterial populations from the Gulf of Mexico. The uptake and mineralization of [U-¹⁴C]glucose was assayed after a 4- to 23-h exposure to various concentrations of added crude oil (0, 0.001, 0.01, and 0.1% [vol/vol]). The effects of oil were determined in a total of 15 sediment and 13 water samples collected from offshore, open-bay, and salt marsh environments. The utilization of glucose by bacterial populations usually was not affected by added oil; in 10 sediment and 11 water samples, oil had no significant effect on either glucose uptake or mineralization. Stimulation by oil was recorded in four sediment samples. Oil inhibition occurred in one sediment and two water samples, but only in the presence of the highest concentration of added oil, i.e., 0.1%. Our data suggest that short-term exposure to either South Louisiana or Kuwait crude oil, even at 0.1%, usually has no toxic effect on glucose utilization by marine bacterial populations.     

Effects of sediment loads on the fish and invertebrates of a Sierra Nevada river, California

This study examined the effects of sedimentloadings from an abandoned hydraulic miningsite on potential trout spawning gravels, largeaquatic macroinvertebrates, and fish growth,survival and reproduction in the South YubaRiver (Nevada County) California. Effects ofsediment loadings, which are transported to theSouth Yuba River via Humbug Creek, wereinvestigated by comparing data from sites onthe South Yuba River upstream and downstream ofHumbug Creek. The study did not find anydeleterious effects of sediment loadings onfish survival and reproduction (based onsnorkel survey data), or large aquaticmacroinvertebrate populations. In addition,the lack of a significant difference in thepercentage of 0.30 to 3.35 mm material insubstrate samples suggests that sediment loadsare not affecting trout spawning gravels. Incontrast, Sacramento pikeminnow(Ptychocheilus grandis) growth appears to beaffected by both water temperatures andsediment loadings. Downstream of Humbug Creek,growth during the first year was significantlyfaster, based on calculated standard lengths atthe age 1 annulus, but condition factor wassignificantly lower than above Humbug Creek.     

Availability of dissolved oxygen in interstitial waters of a sandy creek

Dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity and alkalinity of surface and subsurface interstitial waters were investigated at Mill Creek (a small, rural, predominantly sandy stream in east Texas).Dissolved oxygen concentration tended to decrease with sediment depth, while conductivity and alkalinity did not significantly change with substrate depth. Surface water pH was significantly higher than interstitial water (p = 0.05).Chemical analyses of subsurface water from a pre- to post-storm event showed a depression in dissolved oxygen concentration in moderate and deep interstitial waters, immediately following the return of stream base flow, with the deeper strata returning to pre-storm oxygen levels four days later.A thermal convective current mechanism is proposed which would serve to transport surface water downward into these deeper interstices.     

The impact of an industrially contaminated lake on heavy metal levels in its effluent stream

Levels of cadmium and zinc in various components of Williamson Ditch (an industrially contaminated stream flowing into Palestine Lake), Trimble Creek (a stream draining Palestine Lake) and the Tippecance River (a river receiving Trimble Creek) were determined. Water, sediment, plant, fish and clam samples were analyzed for cadmium and zinc content by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Unweighted mean metal concentrations in Trimble Creek were the following: water, 51 µg Zn/1 and 4.2 µg Cd/1; sediment, 592 µg Zn/g and 48.8,µg Cd/g; plants, 375 µm Zn/g and 7.91 µg Cd/g; fish, 145 µg Zn/g and 6.02 µg Cd/g. These concentrations were generally lower than those found in Williamson Ditch and higher than those found in the Tippecanoe River or background levels previously reported for other aquatic ecosystems.     

The ecology of mercury-resistant bacteria in Chesapeake Bay

Total ambient mercury concentrations and numbers of mercury resistant, aerobic heterotrophic bacteria at six locations in Chesapeake Bay were monitored over a 17 month period. Mercury resistance expressed as the proportion of the total, viable, aerobic, heterotrophic bacterial population reached a reproducible maximum in spring and was positively correlated with dissolved oxygen concentration and sediment mercury concentration and negatively correlated with water turbidity. A relationship between mercury resistance and metabolic capability for reduction of mercuric ion to the metallic state was established by surveying a number of HgCl₂-resistant cultures. The reaction was also observed in microrganisms isolated by differential centrifugation of water and sediment samples. Mercuric ion exhibited an average half-life of 12.5 days in the presence of approximately 10⁵ organisms/ml. Cultures resistant to 6 ppm of mercuric chloride and 3 ppm of phenylmercuric acetate (PMA) were classified into eight generic categories.Pseudomonas spp. were the most numerous of those bacteria capable of metabolizing both compounds; however, PMA was more toxic and was more selective forPseudomonas. The mercury-resistant generic distribution was distinct from that of the total bacterial generic distribution and differed significantly between water and sediment, positionally and seasonally. The proportion of nonglucose-utilizing mercury-resistantPsuedomonas spp. was found to be positively correlated with total bacterial mercury resistance. It is concluded from this study that numbers of mercury-resistant bacteria as established by plate count can serve as a valid index ofin situ Hg²⁺ metabolism.     

Mapping the Spatial Extent of Depositional Areas in Agricultural,Urban, and Residential California Streams: Implications for Pyrethroid Toxicity

Wetted stream-bed mapping at randomly selected sites in an agricultural stream (Del Puerto Creek), urban stream (Arcade Creek), and residential stream (Pleasant Grove Creek) in California was conducted to determine the spatial extent of depositional and non-depositional areas. This study evaluated the “representativeness” of standard sediment sampling approaches used in California by using hydrophobic pyrethroids as an example. Measured background concentrations of eight pyrethroids in sediment and potential sediment toxicity for each stream were discussed within the context of depositional areas. Four percent, 15%, and 12% of the randomly selected transects in Del Puerto Creek, Arcade Creek, and Pleasant Grove Creek, respectively, were depositional areas. For all three streams, depositional areas were more dominant in downstream segments. Pyrethroid concentrations in sediment were higher in depositional areas versus non-depositional areas in Del Puerto Creek and were also higher downstream. Pyrethroid concentrations in sediment were also higher in downstream areas of Arcade Creek but generally higher in upstream areas of Pleasant Grove Creek. The results from this study demonstrate the importance of determining “representativeness” of depositional areas for an entire stream if hydrophobic chemicals (pyrethroids) measured in sediment from depositional areas are suspected to be toxic.     

Inventory of heavy metals and organic micropollutants In an urban water catchment drainage basin

The Linggi River drainage basin in Negeri Sembilan Malaysia is the major source of potable water for the townships of Seremban and Port Dickson. Water quality is threatened by industrial and commercial development taking place in the basin. This study investigated the concentrations and distribution of organic micro-pollutants and heavy metals within the catchment. Arsenic, copper, cadmium, lead, mercury and zinc were determined in water and sediment samples. All heavy metal concentrations were increased down the basin; arsenic and copper concentration in particular were elevated probably due respectively to flow in of arsenical herbicides in rubber and oil palm plantations and copper sulphate and an additive in pig food.Total phenol concentration also increased considerably within the catchment as a result of urbanisation. Five priority phenolic pollutants (2,4-dimethylphenol; 4-chloro-3-methylphenol; 2,4,6-trichlorophenol; 4-introphenol; pentachlorophenol) were found.     

Field Observations on the Acute Effect of Crude Oil on Glucose and Glutamate Uptake in Samples Collected from Arctic and Subarctic Waters

The acute effects of crude oil on glucose uptake rates by marine microorganisms were studied in 215 water and 162 sediment samples collected from both arctic and subarctic marine waters. The mean percentage reduction of glucose uptake rates ranged from 37 to 58 in the water samples exposed to crude oil and from 14 to 36 in the sediment samples. Substrate uptake kinetic studies indicated that the observed reductions by microbial populations exposed to crude oil were caused by metabolic inhibition. The effect of crude oil was less in sediments than in the water samples, with the difference being significant at the P < 0.0002 level. With the exception of one sediment study, all of the differences observed in the uptake rates between treated and nontreated samples were statistically significant. A high degree of variability was observed in the degree which glucose and glutamate uptake rates were altered in water samples exposed to crude oil. In some cases, uptake rates were greater in the samples exposed to crude oil. Data on samples collected in Cook Inlet suggested that areas where pelagic microorganisms are most probably chronically exposed to crude oil are also the areas where the effects of crude oil on glucose uptake are the lowest. Two studies indicated that after pelagic populations are exposed to crude oil for several days, the heterotrophic population adjusts to the presence of crude oil.     

The ecology of mercury-resistant bacteria in Chesapeake Bay

Total ambient mercury concentrations and numbers of mercury resistant, aerobic heterotrophic bacteria at six locations in Chesapeake Bay were monitored over a 17 month period. Mercury resistance expressed as the proportion of the total, viable, aerobic, heterotrophic bacterial population reached a reproducible maximum in spring and was positively correlated with dissolved oxygen concentration and sediment mercury concentration and negatively correlated with water turbidity. A relationship between mercury resistance and metabolic capability for reduction of mercuric ion to the metallic state was established by surveying a number of HgCl₂-resistant cultures. The reaction was also observed in microrganisms isolated by differential centrifugation of water and sediment samples. Mercuric ion exhibited an average half-life of 12.5 days in the presence of approximately 10⁵ organisms/ml. Cultures resistant to 6 ppm of mercuric chloride and 3 ppm of phenylmercuric acetate (PMA) were classified into eight generic categories.Pseudomonas spp. were the most numerous of those bacteria capable of metabolizing both compounds; however, PMA was more toxic and was more selective forPseudomonas. The mercury-resistant generic distribution was distinct from that of the total bacterial generic distribution and differed significantly between water and sediment, positionally and seasonally. The proportion of nonglucose-utilizing mercury-resistantPsuedomonas spp. was found to be positively correlated with total bacterial mercury resistance. It is concluded from this study that numbers of mercury-resistant bacteria as established by plate count can serve as a valid index ofin situ Hg²⁺ metabolism.     

保安湖沉积物和间隙水中氮和磷的含量及其分布

保安湖沉积物中氮(N)的含量平均为5.20mg/g,平面分布以桥墩湖区含量最高。沉积物中磷(P)的含量平均为0.75mg/g,平面分布以扁担塘湖区含量最高。沉积物间隙水中总氮的平均含量为3.63mg/L,无机氮中以氨氮的含量最高,占总氮的57.2%;间隙水中总磷的含量平均为0.098mg/L,磷酸盐占总磷的50.0%.间隙水中氮和磷含量的平面分布差异不明显。间隙水中氮和磷的含量比湖水中含量高,但除氨氮外,一般不超过5倍,表明湖水和沉积物间隙水之间营养交换十分强烈。       

Dental amalgam mercury exposure in rats

The aim of this study was to measure the distribution of mercury, in tissues of rats exposed to amalgam over a two months period. Possible interaction of mercury with copper and zinc in organs was also evaluated. Rats were either exposed to mercury from 4 dental amalgams, or fed the diet containing powdered amalgam during two months. Mercury was measured in the kidney, liver and brain, copper in kidney and brain and zinc in kidney. The results showed significantly higher concentrations of mercury in the kidneys and the brains of rats in both exposed groups compared to control. Even after two months of exposure to mercury brain mercury concentration in rats with amalgam fillings was 8 times higher than in the control and 2 times higher than in rats exposed to amalgam supplemented diet. The highest mercury concentration in the latter group was found in the kidneys and it was 5 times higher than in the control group. We found no significant differences between mercury levels in exposed and control rat's liver. Exposure to mercury from dental amalgams did not alter the concentrations of copper and zinc in the tissues. Histopathological analyses of rats tissues did not show any pathological changes. These results support previously proposed nose-brain transport of mercury released from dental amalgam fillings.     

Effects of hydrodynamics on phosphorus concentrations in water of Lake Taihu,a large,shallow, eutrophic lake of China

To understand the effect of hydrodynamical process on water phosphorus concentration, wind, wave, and several water quality indices were observed in Meiliang Bay, a shallow and eutrophic bay locates in north of Lake Taihu. During the 7 day observation period, wind speed and significant wave height were recorded more than 3 h per day, and water samples were collected in five water-depth layers once a day. Hydrodynamical disturbance had no significant correlationship with the water quality at the top layer when the significant wave height was smaller than 30 cm, but it significantly increased suspended solids (SS) concentration of the bottom water layer. Concentrations of nutrients showed no positive correlationship with SS concentration in the water body. Intensive sediment resuspension may not have occurred when the hydrodynamic stress on sediment was only a little higher than the critical stress for sediment resuspension. A new method for confirming the critical stress for intensive sediment resuspension and nutrient release still needs to be developed. The range of the water quality indices was quite high during the seven days of observation. High variation seems to be a common character of large shallow lakes like Taihu.     

Tolerance to Various Toxicants by Marine Bacteria Highly Resistant to Mercury

Bacteria highly resistant to mercury isolated from seawater and sediment samples were tested for growth in the presence of different heavy metals, pesticides, phenol, formaldehyde, formic acid, and trichloroethane to investigate their potential for growth in the presence of a variety of toxic xenobiotics. We hypothesized that bacteria resistant to high concentrations of mercury would have potential capacities to tolerate or possibly degrade a variety of toxic materials and thus would be important in environmental pollution bioremediation. The mercury-resistant bacteria were found to belong to Pseudomonas, Proteus, Xanthomonas, Alteromonas, Aeromonas, and Enterobacteriaceae. All these environmental bacterial strains tolerant to mercury used in this study were capable of growth at a far higher concentration (50 ppm) of mercury than previously reported. Likewise, their ability to grow in the presence of toxic xenobiotics, either singly or in combination, was superior to that of bacteria incapable of growth in media containing 5 ppm mercury. Plasmid-curing assays done in this study ascertained that resistance to mercury antibiotics, and toxic xenobiotics is mediated by chromosomally borne genes and/or transposable elements rather than by plasmids.     

Design and application of rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probes for the dissimilatory iron- and manganese-reducing bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens.

A 16S rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probe specific for the iron (Fe3+)- and manganese (Mn4+)-reducing bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens was constructed and tested in both laboratory- and field-based hybridization experiments. The radioactively labeled probe was used to detect S. putrefaciens in field samples collected from the water column and sediments of Oneida Lake in New York and its major southern tributary, Chittenango Creek. S. putrefaciens was quantified by (i) hybridization of the probe to bulk RNA extracted from field samples and normalization of the S. putrefaciens-specific rRNA to total eubacterial rRNA, (ii) a colony-based probe hybridization assay, and (iii) a colony-based biochemical assay which detected the formation of iron sulfide precipitates on triple-sugar iron agar. The results of field applications indicated that the three detection methods were comparable in sensitivity for detecting S. putrefaciens in water column and sediment samples. S. putrefaciens rRNA was detected in the surficial layers of the lake and creek sediments, but the levels of S. putrefaciens rRNA were below the detection limits in the lake and creek water samples. The highest concentrations of S. putrefaciens rRNA, corresponding to approximately 2% of the total eubacterial rRNA, were detected in the surficial sediments of Chittenango Creek and at a midlake site where the Oneida Lake floor is covered by a high concentration of ferromanganese nodules. This finding supports the hypothesis that metal-reducing bacteria such as S. putrefaciens are important components in the overall biogeochemical cycling of iron, manganese and other elements in seasonally anoxic freshwater basins.     

The dark side of the hyporheic zone: depth profiles of nitrogen and its processing in stream sediments

1. Although it is well known that sediments can be hot spots for nitrogen transformation in streams, many previous studies have confined measurements of denitrification and nitrate retention to shallow sediments (<5 cm deep). We determined the extent of nitrate processing in deeper sediments of a sand plains stream (Emmons Creek) by measuring denitrification in core sections to a depth of 25 cm and by assessing vertical nitrate profiles, with peepers and piezometers, to a depth of 70 cm. 2. Denitrification rates of sediment slurries based on acetylene block were higher in shallower core sections. However, core sections deeper than 5 cm accounted for 68% of the mean depth‐integrated denitrification rate. 3. Vertical hydraulic gradient and vertical profiles of pore water chloride concentration suggested that deep ground water upwelled through shallow sediments before discharging to the stream channel. The results of a two‐source mixing model based on chloride concentrations suggested that the hyporheic zone was very shallow (<5 cm) in Emmons Creek. 4. Vertical profiles showed that nitrate concentration in shallow ground water was about 10–60% of the nitrate concentration of deep ground water. The mean nitrate concentrations of deep and shallow ground water were 2.17 and 0.73 mg NO₃‐N L^?1, respectively. 5. Deep ground water tended to be oxic (6.9 mg O₂ L^?1) but approached anoxia (0.8 mg O₂ L^?1) after passing through shallow, organic carbon‐rich sediments, which suggests that the decline in the nitrate concentrations of upwelling ground water was because of denitrification. 6. Collectively, our results suggest that there is substantial nitrate removal occurring in deep sediments, below the hyporheic zone, in Emmons Creek. Our findings suggest that not accounting for nitrate removal in deep sediments could lead to underestimates of nitrogen processing in streams and catchments.     

Physical and biological parameters that determine the fate of p-chlorophenol in laboratory test systems.

Shake-flask and microcosm studies were conducted to determine the fate of para-chlorophenol (p-CP) in water and sediment systems and the role of sediment and nonsediment surfaces in the biodegradation process. Biodegradation of p-CP in estuarine water samples in shake flasks was slow over incubation periods of 300 h. The addition of detrital sediment resulted in immediate and rapid degradation evidenced by the production of 14CO2 from [14C]p-CP. The addition of sterile sediment, glass beads, or sand resulted in approximately four to six times more CO2 evolution than observed in the water alone. Densities of p-CP-degrading bacteria associated with the detrital sediment were 100 times greater than those enumerated in water. Bacteria in the water and associated with the sediment after preexposure of both water and sediment of p-CP demonstrated enhanced biodegradation. In some microcosms, p-CP was degraded completely in the top 1.0 cm of intact sediment beds. Sediment reworking activities by benthic invertebrates from one site were sufficient to mix p-CP deep into the sediment bed faster than biodegradation or molecular diffusion. p-CP was persistent at lower depths of the sediment, possibly a result of reduced oxygen conditions preventing aerobic biodegradation.     

Case Study of Petroleum Contaminated Area of Novi Sad After NATO Bombing in Yugoslavia

The 1999 NATO bombing of the oil refinery in Novi Sad (Yugoslavia) has heavily contaminated the Danube River and its sediments, as well as the surrounding soil and groundwater. The destruction of the factories released 73,569 tons of crude oil of which 90% was incinerated, 560 tons reached the Danube River, and the remainder was spilled onto the soil. The contents of oil and oil derivatives in the soil were in the range of 3 to 42,000?mg/kg. The first soil layer contained an average of 67,000?mg/kg of crude oil and oil derivatives. The layers beneath it, above the groundwater table, contained 56?ml/l of free oil derivatives in the drained water. The spreading of this pollution could imperil the groundwater quality in the water supply zone because the refinery is located in the hinterland of the zone. The quality of water and sediment samples was monitored from April 1999 to November 2000 by measuring concentrations of hydrocarbons and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). The hydrocarbon content in the Danube River water in October 2000 was about 20% of the value measured at the time of the accident. Immediately after the accident the concentration of mineral oil in the surface sediment was in the range of 0.11 to 0.29?g/kg. At the same time PAH concentrations in the river sediment were up to 160?mg/kg, depending on the sampling site location. The values showed a decrease in the course of further monitoring.