Table Of ContentCommission of the ^ P" Joint Research Centre
European Communities '^Ń*"^ (Várese), Italy
••URSES
Published for the Commission of the European Communities,
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BIOLOGICAL ASPECTS
OF
FRESHWATER POLLUTION
Proceedings of the Course held at the Joint
Research Centre of the Commission of the
European Communities, Ispra, Italy, 5-9 June 1978
Edited by
O.RAVERA
Commission of the European Communities
Joint Research Centre, Ispra, Italy
Published for the
COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
by
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First edition 1979
EUR 6392 en
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Biological aspects of freshwater pollution.
1. Fresh-water ecology. 2. Water - Pollution
I. Ravera, O IL Commission of the European
Communities
574.5'2632 TD423 79-40776
ISBN 0-08-023442-9
In order to make this volume available as economically
and as rapidly as possible the authors' typescripts have
been reproduced in their original forms. This method
has its typographical limitations but it is hoped that they
in no way distract the reader.
Printed and bound in Great Britain by
William Clowes (Beccles) Limited, Beecks and London
Preface
Since the second World War pollution and degradation of ecosystems have assumed a more general impor
tance owing to the increase in human population and the growth and spread of industries and modern agri
cultural techniques. Water pollution means the discharge of noxious substances (e.g. biocides, detergents,
heavy metals, oil, nutrients) and/or heat into a body of water in sufficiently large amounts as to produce
deleterious effects on the aquatic environment.
The problem of pollution of fresh water is well known to be crucial, particularly for industrialized coun
tries with a high population density. An increase in human population together with a rise in living stan
dards causes an increase in the consumption of fresh water and a decrease in the quantity of clean water
available. Because both these phenomena have the same basic cause, they combine to create a very dan
gerous situation in some areas. As a consequence, in recent years increased attention has been given to
this problem by national governments and international organizations (e.g. CEC, FAO, UNESCO, OECD,
WHO, MaB).
In spite of intensive studies on this subject, several fundamental aspects of the problem are still unclear.
For example, the fate of most of the pollutants introduced into the natural environment is unknown and
information about the relationship between the concentration of a given pollutant in the water and its
biological effects is very scarse. Moreover, it is evident that the monitoring and control of polluted envi
ronments and any counteraction against pollution must be based on ecological principles. In the field of
water pollution, the study of the biota is the only means of obtaining information on the hazard of
pollutants. In fact, any judgement of the level of pollution in an ecosystem is based, not only on the con
centration of toxic substance in the medium, but also on the knowledge (more or less complete) of the
effects of a certain concentration of these substances on living organisms, animals and plants. More re
search is needed on the effects of pollution at population and community level, this being the basis for
evaluating the actual damage produced by pollution on the biota.
With the abovementioned considerations in mind, it seemed opportune to organize the course
"Biological aspects of fresh water pollution", on June 5th — 9th, 1978, at the Joint Research Centre
(JRC), Ispra (Vαrese - Italy) in the framework of its Education and Training Program, realized by the
so-called "ISPRA Courses". This advanced course was coordinated by the undersigned and given in the
form of a series of lectures presented by 10 well-known experts in their specific field. The two most im
portant aims of this course were:
1) to illustrate and discuss the fundamentals of the effects of pollution on fresh water organisms,
populations and communities;
2) to supply an up-to-date picture of the research on this subject.
vi i i Preface
This book contains the lectures presented at this course reviewed by the authors. This book is, conse
quently, not a text on fresh water pollution: it tackles only a part of this extensive subject in the fornn
of a series of problems.
The short and long term effects of toxic substances on fish is obviously one of the most important topics
of fresh water pollution. The most significant results obtained in this field during the last 30 years by the
Fish Section of the U.K. Water Research Centre are summarized very clearly. These studies, carried out
in the laboratory, in the field and in artificial streams, made an important contribution to the elaboration
of fresh water quality criteria for fish. This chapter covers the most important aspects of these problems.
One chapter concerns lacustrine zooplankton and its importance in the study of fresh water pollution.
Indeed, it may be used to detect even very low concentrations of some toxic substances and several
pollutants may have a noxious influence on this central ring of the aquatic food network. The brief his
tory of the zooplankton used as a pollution indicator is very Interesting. The authors discuss the diffi
culties of discriminating between variations in the zooplankton community due to natural causes and tho
se produced by pollution. This chapter concerns studies in the natural environment as well as laboratory
experiments.
In another chapter, the most important biological methods developed at the international level for the
assessment of the quality of surface waters are reviewed and discussed. The efforts made by the Commis
sion of the European Communities to calibrate the methods commonly used and the results obtained,
are outlined.
Because the community is strongly influenced by the physical and chemical characteristics of the environ
ment in which it lives, it follows that variations in the environmental characteristics influence the struc
ture of the community. On this basis it seems possible that the recent trophic history of a lake can be
determined from analysis of the remains of organisms (pseudofossils) present in the sediments. To this
end the remains of Cladocera and Chironomidae collected from the sediments of some Irish lakes have
been studied. The results obtained are reported and discussed and are in good agreement with those ob
tained from analyses of some "biochemical pseudofossils" (pigments) present in the same sediments. In
trophic evolution, physical processes are generally less studied than the chemical ones, but their impor
tance is relevant. From the data from 62 European and North American lakes, the influence of the inter
nal input of nutrients by vertical mixing on the annual primary production has been evaluated. If the
mean annual charge of phosphorus is higher than a certain value, the influence of the internal input is
abolished because the production rate is not limited by the nutrients but by the light intensity. The wide
variations in primary production in lakes with similar nutrient charge is due to physical factors such as
morphometrical characteristics, vertical mixing and redox potential of the interface water-sediment. This
point of view may be the background for future research on the eutrophication problem.
One of the subjects also considered in this book is eutrophication caused by domestic sewage and pollu
tion by heavy metals in running waters studied in artificial outdoor rivers. From a study of the effects on
the benthic algae, several important points came to light. For example: heavy metals considered as nu
trients as well as toxic substances, quantitative and qualitative changes in a benthic algae community, the
influence of the season on metal toxicity, variations in the sensitivity of different algal species to the
same metal, the recovery of the algal community from metal stress, the difficulty in employing and
establishing lists of indicator organisms because the benthic community reflects the past situation. The
most important point is the combined effects of eutrophication and heavy metals pollution.
The importance of heavy metals in fresh water pollution is treated in another chapter on a global scale for
different water bodies (e.g. rivers, man-made lakes and natural lakes). Sediment analyses are considered to
be very useful in assessing the sources, distribution and, in several cases, the potential hazard of this type
of pollution. The water quality criteria (concerning heavy metals) proposed by different countries and
organizations are compared and discussed. Among the most important points treated in this chapter were:
metal speciation, seasonal cycle of metal transport, retention and release of heavy metals by and from the
sediment and the transfer of heavy metals in aquatic food chains. The discussion of the different methods
Preface i χ
adopted for restoring lakes contaminated by mercury, is very relevant.
The need for clear and objective information on radioactive pollution and its biological consequences is
well appreciated today. Two aspects of this problem are discussed in this book. One is the discharge of
radionuclides to aquatic ecosystems and the protection of the environment (including man) from radia
tion, the other is the effects of ionizing radiations in aquatic biota. The description elaborating the
"discharge formula" that fixes the quantity of radioactive substances which can be discharged into our
environment is very accurate. I would like to mention that the "critical parameters" adopted in radio-
protection and discussed in the book, can be also used for protecting the biota (and man) against non-ra
dioactive pollution. The effects of ionizing radiations on aquatic populations are discussed. Genetic and
somatic effects and the factors acting on them were evaluated from copious information obtained from
laboratory experiments and the scant knowledge of the natural populations. One of the most important
points in the chapter is the recovery-rate in connection with the demographic characteristics of the popu
lation.
The chapter on waste water treatment covers domestic sewage, industrial effluents and the influence of
air pollution control on sewage treatment. The clear illustration of the subject with some well chosen
examples covers a large proportion of the chemical and technological problems of waste water treatment.
Of particular interest is the description of the new problems created in water treatment arising from air
pollution control by wet techniques.
The text is complemented by numerous figures and tables. Many references (about 500) are reported at
the end of each chapter. We expresse our gratitude to the authors who worked so hard in preparing their
manuscripts, to Mr. B. Henry, Manager, Education and Training Program, who fully supported the course
and book projects, and to his staff for the excellent organization of the course, and to Miss Lorenza
Giannoni for her valuable help in organizing the preparation of the book.
Oscar Ravera
Studies on the Effects of Pollution on
Freshwater Fish
J.F.deL. G.SoIbé
Acting Head, Fish Section, Water Research Centre, Stevenage Laboratory,
Eider Way, Stevenage, Herts, U.K.
ABSTRACT
The formation of the United Kingdom» s Water Research Centre and the role of the
Centre's Fish Section (formerly a section of the Water Pollution Research
Laboratory) are described. Work on the effects of pollution on freshwater
fisheries has developed during the Section's 30 year existence from short-term
studies of the lethal toxicity of single chemicals to long-term evaluation of the
sub-lethal effects of mixtures of chemicals*
Field studies have "been utilised to identify problems and to assess the relevance
of the laboratory-derived data. Work in the laboratoryi the field, and, as a
compromise, artificieúL streams, is contributing to the development of watei>-
quality criteria for freshwater fish* Work is also in progress on the use of fish
in continuous, automatic monitors of water quality*
A bibliography of 90 of the Section's publications is included*
Keywords: freshwater fish, toxicity, acute studies, chronic studies, laboratory
studies, field studies, artificial streams, water-quality criteria,
environmental standards, bibliography*
BTTRCQDUCTIOli
Fish have been valued for many years as excellent indicators of water quality.
Their position in the a(iuatic ecosystem, generally at or close to the end of food
•chains', their sensitivity to a variety of pollutants, their size (making them
easily visible when dead), and their devoted followers - the keenly-observant
anglers - all contribute to their value in this respect*
Studies on the effects of pollution on fish have not only been made to 'calibrate'
fish as indicators, but have also allowed the establishment of water-quality
criteria to safeguard fish for their own sake* The critical assembly of data to
this latter end has been particularly effectively co-ordinated by the European
Inland Fisheries Advisory Commission* In the last I4 years EIFAC has jmblished
reports on the effects on fish of, for example, finely divided solids (EIFAC, I964),
pH value (EIFAC, I968), ammonia (EIFAC, 1970), phenols (EIFAC, 1972), dissolved
oxygen (EIFAC, 1973a), zinc (EIFAC, 1973b), copper (EIFAC, 1976), and cadmium
2 J. F. de L« α· Solb^
(EIFAD, 1977). Such reports have been taken into acooimt by the ten Regional
Water Authorities (RWAB) of England and Wales in their introduction of local
measures for the control of pollution and, no doubt, by the equivalent authorities
in other nations*
When the RWAs were established in the UK in April I974 they took over control of
the rivers (previously held by their predecessors, the River Authorities) and
control of sewerage and sewage treatment which had been administered by local
authorities* Althou^ the RWAs inherited research facilities from the River
Authorities and began to develop further facilities to serve their specific local
rec[uirements they rec^uired an establishment to cater for national research demands.
This establishment! also created in April 1974ι was called the Water Research
Centre. It was formed by combining two existing laboratories, the Water Pollution
Research Laboratory (WFRL), at Stevenage, and the Water Research Association (WRA),
at Medmenham, with the Research Division of the Water Resources Board. The WHIL
had been carrying out investigations for Central dovemment for 47 years, cus far
as · dirty water* was concerned. TBie WRA was a rather younger · clean water*
research establishment whose subscribers included the water supply companies.
The WRC employs about 5OO people in divisions specialising in water storage,
treatment, and supply; river and coeuErtal pollution; sewerage and sewage treatment;
the disposal of sludge and refuse; waters-quality surveillance and health;
economics; and the effects of pollution on fish.
The following notes describe the development of the WFRL/kRC Pish Section and its
evolving approaches to the problems of evaluating the impact of pollution on
fisheries and, to return to my opening statement, to the investigation of ways in
which fish can aid man in continuous automatic waters-quality alarm systems,
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE WFRL/^C FISH SECTION
Even before the creation of a »Fish Section* in the late 1940s, ad hoc
investigations of the effects of polluting substances on fish had been carried out
by WFRL staff. For instance, data were published on the effects of potassium
cyanide and ¿«cresol on trout (Southgate, Pentelow and Bassindale, 1933) and a
paper was produced on the toxicity to fish of chlorinated sewage effluents (Allen,
Blezard, and Wheatland, 194^)· The first paper from the new Section appeared in
1952, and was concerned with the experimental methods, the interpretation of
results, and variation of resistance to poison among a group of test fish (Herbert,
1952). At this early stage it was realised that *fixecU-volurae* (static) tests
suffered from severe limitations, that there was a need for oxygenation of the test
waters without driving off volatile poisons, and that CO2 production, pH value, and
temperature should be controlled. Location of the median fish (e.g. the 6th to die
in a batch of II) was identified as representing a useful way of indicating the
effects of a poison on a batch of fish in a statistically meaningful manner. The
best estimate of the median period of survival of a batch of fish was considered
to be the geometric mean of individual survived times because a log-normal
distribution had been found when the number of fish overturning had been plotted
against time. Not all variation noted was inherent; the possibility of acclimation
had been recognised.
This methodology was employed in the first test programme, in which the toxicity of
potassium cyanide to rainbow trout (Salmo gardneri) was investigated (Herbert and
Merkens, 1952). Cyanide at that time was a constituent of effluents from gas works
and of other industrial effluents. Acclimation of fish to low levels of the
chemical increased their survival time in hi^ier concentrations; larger fish
survived longer than smaller fish of the same age. A linear relationship was found
STUDIES CfS TSE EFFECTS OF POLLUTION ON FElESilWATER FISH
e
" \
•Λ
if)
b lO^
8
S 10 -
ζ
<
δ c
ÜJ I 1 1
2 I 005 Ol 0·5 I
mg/l as CN
Fig. 1. Strai¿lit-line interpretation of toxicity test data
(from Herbert and Merkens, 1952)
when the percentage of fish overturned (probability scale) was plotted against time
in logarithms* An assumption was made that there was also a linear relationship
between concentration of poison, C, and median period of survival, T, so that
η log C + log Τ » k
where η and k were constants (Fig* 1)· This relationship only held for small
lengths of the toxicity curve and of course did not allow for the existence of
median lethal threshold concentrations (defined for the present purpose as
concentrations of a chemical, under a given set of test conditions, below which
half a batch of fish should survive for an extended period, illustrated in Fig. 2).
One of the first effects of an environmental variable on the toxicity of a poison
studied by the Section also concerned cyanide. Downing (1954) established that
survival times of rainbow trout in concentrations of potassium cyanide in the
range 0.105-0.155 mg/l as CN increased as the concentration of dissolved oxygen
(DO) in the water increased between 10 and 100 per cent of the air saturation
value (AS7).
Ammonia is one of the most widespread of pollutants and was the next to be studied
in detail by the Section. Work in the Laboratory showed the effects of 00^ on the
toxicity of ammonia to fish (Alabaster and Herbert, 1954» Allan, Alabaster and
Herbert, 1954; Lloyd and Herbert, I96O; Pentelow, Allan, Herbert and Alabaster,
1958). This work marked an early stage in the long-term co-operation between the
WFRL Fish Section and the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Laboratory of the
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and it involved many of the methods
of approach utilised in later years.
J. p. de L. 0. Solb/
MEDIAN LETHAL THRESHOLD CONCENTRATIONS
i 1 i 1
- - FreeCOj
-= lOOOh T il \v (ppm)
8j \ \ \ \ V 3-2
Η \A \ \ X 7-7
• 21-5
11
uj if)
to II I II 1
0-3 0-4 0-6 0-8 1 1-5
UNDIS50CIATED NH3 (mg/l as Ν)
Fig. 2. Effect of free 00^ on median lethal threshold concentration
of ammonia for rainbow trout (from Lloyd and Herbert,
Reprint No. 359)
Later studies with ammonia were concerned with the effects of DO concentration on
toxicity to rainbow trout (Downing and Merkens, 1955) and to rainbow trout, perch
(Perca fluviatilis)« roach (Rutilus rutilus), and gudgeon (Gobio gobio). (Merkens
and Downing, 1957·; Lloyd (1961a) assembled from his own and earlier work a
graphical method for calculating the toxicity of ammonia to rainbow trout, which
took into account the effects of pH ysdue, temperature, DO, bicarbonate alkalinity
and free COp. This method was incorporated later by Brown (I968) in the procedure
for calculating the toxicity of a mixture of poisons to ridnbow trout. Finally,
concerning ammonia in the absence of other chemicals at poisonous concentrations.
Ball (1967a) studied its effects on rainbow trout, perch, roach, bream (Abramis
brama) and rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus). Ball found that the median lethail
threshold concentrations for all these species were very similar, but they were
reewhed q[uickly by rainbow trout and much more slowly by the other species
(Fig. 3).
The effects of low concentrations of dissolved oxygen on fish, both in the
absence of other stresses and influencing the toxicity of poisons, have been
studied extensively by the Section. For trout and perch the inter-relationships
of COp and DO were examined by Alabaster, Herbert and Hemens (I957) . Carbon
dioxide reduces the affinity of the blood of many freshwater fish species for
oxygen and the minimum non-lethal level of DO was indeed found to be hi^er as COg
concentrations were increased. In any potentially lethal situation fish live
longer if the water temperature is lowered. Downing and Merkens (1957) confirmed
this finding with rainbow trout, perch, roach, mirror carp (Cyprinus carpió)»
tench (Tinea tinea), dace (Leuciscus leuciscus), chub (Leuciscus cephalus) and
bleak (Albumus albumus) and ranked the species in order of their tolerance,
tench being the most tolerant and trout the most sensitive.
A further environmental variable, light, was considered by Alabaster and
Robertson (196I) in their examination of the behaviour of roach, bream, and perch
under the stresses of low DO and hi^ temperatures. All the species were more
active at dawn and dusk; perch and bream shoals tended to break up at ni^t;
