A New Approach for Detecting and Mapping Sewage Impacts

Primary consumers as bioindicator of nitrogen pollution in lake planktonic and benthic food webs

“…For instance, the increase in ı 15 N values of periphytons is related to nutrient enrichment, reflecting the increase in relative contribution of sewage in river systems (Toda et al, 2002;Bergfur et al, 2009). In coastal and estuarine ecosystems, the elevated ı 15 N levels in marine plants, such as macroalga and seagrass, are typically found near sewage outfalls; these decrease to relatively low levels along with an increase in distance from the shoreline, reflecting sewage nitrogen distribution and spatial reduction ways (Costanzo et al, 2001;Savage and Elmgren, 2004). Our results, along with those from previous studies, suggest that the use of ı 15 N values of primary producers as indicators can successfully evaluate the effects of human pollution discharged on aquatic ecosystems, which had been missed by conventional monitoring methods of water column nutrients.…”

“…Recent studies have found stable nitrogen isotope ratios ( 15 N/ 14 N), as an alternative to those of traditional parameters, can identify the sources of surface water nutrient pollution (Heaton, 1986;Macko and Ostrom, 1994;Costanzo et al, 2001;Vander Zanden et al, 2005;Chang et al, 2009). Many factors may be involved in establishing the ı 15 N value in aquatic ecosystems, and human wastewater and livestock waste nitrogen are enriched in 15 N and vary approximately between +10% and +22‰ (Heaton, 1986;Curt et al, 2004).…”

Selection of effective macroalgal species and tracing nitrogen sources on the different part of Yantai coast, China indicated by macroalgal δ15N values

“…For example, sewage effluent or animal wastewaters are characterized by high values of δ 15 N, from 7‰ to 50.1‰ (Kendall, 1998;Savage and Elmgren, 2004;Dailer et al, 2010), while fertilizer derived from industrial fixation of N 2 are depleted in δ 15 N values, from − 7.5‰ to 6.6‰ (Heaton, 1986;Macko and Ostrom, 1994;Vitòria et al, 2004;Dailer et al, 2010). Particularly, the use of δ 15 N of macroalgae and other autotrophic organisms to identify nitrogen sources in coastal ecosystems has become more popular in the last few years, e.g., Moreton Bay, Australia (Costanzo et al, 2001), Himmerfjärden Bay, Sweden (Savage and Elmgren, 2004), Baltic Sea (Deutsch and Voss, 2006;Schubert et al, 2013), Hanalei Bay, Kauai, USA (Derse et al, 2007), Narragansett Bay, RI, USA (Thornber et al, 2008), Gulf of California, USA (Piñón-Gimate et al, 2009;Soto-Jiménez, 2013, 2015), Maui, Hawai'i, USA (Dailer et al, 2010), Ría de A Coruña, Northwestern Spain Bode, 2013, 2015), and Marennes-Olèron Bay, France (Raimonet et al, 2013). The basic premise of nitrogen sources tracing with macroalgal tissue δ 15 N is that it could reflect the nitrogen source in a predictable manner (Cohen and Fong, 2005).…”

Oyster and Macroalgae Bioindicators Detect Elevated δ15N in Maryland’s Coastal Bays

“…and the eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) were analyzed for δ 15 N to determine spatial and temporal patterns of nitrogen sources. A broad-scale survey assessment of deployed macroalgae (June 2004) Kemp et al 2005;Bricker et al 2008) do not detect biologically incorporated nitrogen (Costanzo et al 2001). Analyzing stable nitrogen isotopes (δ 15 N) in bioindicator species can be used to address these limitations, as the approach has been shown to identify sources of human and animal wastes (Costanzo et al 2001;Cohen and Fong 2005).…”

“…A broad-scale survey assessment of deployed macroalgae (June 2004) Kemp et al 2005;Bricker et al 2008) do not detect biologically incorporated nitrogen (Costanzo et al 2001). Analyzing stable nitrogen isotopes (δ 15 N) in bioindicator species can be used to address these limitations, as the approach has been shown to identify sources of human and animal wastes (Costanzo et al 2001;Cohen and Fong 2005). Standard water chemistry measurements of eutrophic symptoms can be complemented with δ 15 N in bioindicator species to increase understanding of the location and potentially infer the sources of nitrogen.…”