Application of a battery of biotests for the determination of leachate toxicity to bacteria and invertebrates from sewage sludge-amended soil

Abstract

The objective of the study was to determine the leachates toxicity from sewage sludge-amended soils (sandy and loamy). Samples originated from a plot experiment realized over a period of 29 months. Two types of soil were fertilized with sewage sludges at the dose of 3 % (90 t/ha). Soil samples were taken after 0, 7, 17, and 29 months from the application of sewage sludges. Leachates were obtained according to the EN 12457–2 protocol. The following commercial tests were applied for the estimation of the toxicity: Microtox (Vibrio fischeri), Microbial assay for toxic risk assessment (ten bacteria and one yeast), Protoxkit F™ (Tetrahymena thermophila), Rotoxkit F™ (Brachionus calyciflorus), and Daphtoxkit F™ (Daphnia magna). The test organisms displayed varied toxicity with relation to the soils amended with sewage sludges. The toxicity of the leachates depended both on the soil type and on the kind of sewage sludge applied. Notable differences were also observed in the sensitivity of the test organisms to the presence of sewage sludge in the soil. The highest sensitivity was a characteristic of B. calyciflorus, while the lowest sensitivity to the presence of the sludges was revealed by the protozoa T. thermophila. Throughout the periods of the study, constant variations of toxicity were observed for most of the test organisms. The intensity as well as the range of those variations depended both on the kind of test organism and on the kind of sludge and soil type. In most cases, an increase of the toxicity of soils amended with the sewage sludges was observed after 29 months of the experiment.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11356-012-1268-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Application of mesotrione at different doses in an amended soil: Dissipation and effect on the soil microbial biomass and activity

“…3). In the SS-amended soil, DHA might be directly inhibited by organic residue, with a toxic effect on the soil microorganisms themselves, as shown by Malara and Oleszczuk (2013). However, compost had a stimulating effect on soil DHA, as also shown in previous papers, where soil DHA increased in the presence of different organic amendments (Sopeña and Bending, 2013;Marín-Benito et al, 2014).…”

Chemical characterization and ecotoxicity of three soil foaming agents used in mechanized tunneling

“…This acute test uses neonates (n = 20 for each condition) hatched from dormant eggs (ephippia) to determine the inhibition of motility [12][13][14].…”

Sewage sludge biochars management—Ecotoxicity, mobility of heavy metals, and soil microbial biomass

“…Second, liquid and gaseous products of the pyrolysis process can constitute an alternative energy source, and its solid product (biochar) is a rich source of stable carbon and nutrients for plants [7,8]. Some scientific reports describe the impact of sewage sludge biochar on the chemical properties of soil [5,11], and others describe changes in biological parameters after the application of such material [12,13]. Some scientific reports describe the impact of sewage sludge biochar on the chemical properties of soil [5,11], and others describe changes in biological parameters after the application of such material [12,13].…”

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