Aquatic assessment of the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site, Vershire, Vermont

Seal, Robert R.; Kiah, Richard G.; Piatak, Nadine M.; Besser, John M.; Coles, James F.; Hammarstrom, Jane M.; Argue, Denise M.; Levitan, Denise M.; Deacon, Jeffrey R.; Ingersoll, Christopher G.

doi:10.3133/sir20105084

Cited by 8 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…High redox potentials (423-451 mV) were measured, indicating that EB-90M water was oxidized (aerobic environments have redox potentials �-100 mV; [44]). Water sulfate levels (95-126 mg/L) were within EPA-recommended concentrations (<250 mg/L) and consistent with former Ely Brook geological studies [3] but less than those reported in other ARD studies [45]. Most nutrients, including nitrate and nitrite (<0.02 mg/L), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (<0.7 mg/ L), and reactive and total phosphorus (<0.15 mg/L) in water were below the detection limit.…”

Section: Physicochemical Characterizationsupporting

confidence: 86%

“…When metal sulfides are exposed to water and oxygen, hydronium and sulfate ions are produced, lowering the pH of the water. Toxic levels of Cu, Fe, Zn, and Pb, leaching from pyrrhotite-rich, Besshi-type sulfide deposits [2] have adversely affected the water quality and aquatic biodiversity in the copper belt [3]. This process is further accelerated by the presence of acidophilic, sulfur and/or iron-oxidizing bacteria, which quickly convert insoluble sulfides to soluble sulfate ions and Fe 2+ to Fe 3+ , the predominant, soluble form of iron at acidic pH.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To assess the potential of ARD to produce bioactive secondary metabolites, we characterized the water and sediment associated with ARD at the Superfund site Ely Copper Mine. Both water and sediment at this mine have been affected by ARD (pH > 3) and high metal concentrations (e.g., up to 1,560 μg/L Cu) [ 3 ]. In 2010, dissolved Cu concentrations in the water and sediment at Ely Copper Mine exceeded the aquatic health criteria by 45–222 and 7–40 times, respectively [ 3 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Both water and sediment at this mine have been affected by ARD (pH > 3) and high metal concentrations (e.g., up to 1,560 μg/L Cu) [ 3 ]. In 2010, dissolved Cu concentrations in the water and sediment at Ely Copper Mine exceeded the aquatic health criteria by 45–222 and 7–40 times, respectively [ 3 ]. Thus, we sampled water and sediment at the Ely Brook, a confluence of clean water and upstream tributaries that drain the mine [ 3 ], and used shotgun metagenomics and metatranscriptomics to characterize the ARD microbiome, including community structure and diversity, and the genes involved in secondary metabolism as well as heavy metal and antibiotic resistance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterization of an acid rock drainage microbiome and transcriptome at the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site

et al. 2020

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The microbial oxidation of metal sulfides plays a major role in the formation of acid rock drainage (ARD). We aimed to broadly characterize the ARD at Ely Brook, which drains the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site in Vermont, USA, using metagenomics and metatranscriptomics to assess the metabolic potential and seasonal ecological roles of microorganisms in water and sediment. Using Centrifuge against the NCBI "nt" database,~25% of reads in sediment and water samples were classified as acid-tolerant Proteobacteria (61 ± 4%) belonging to the genera Pseudomonas (2.6-3.3%), Bradyrhizobium (1.7-4.1%), and Streptomyces (2.9-5.0%). Numerous genes (12%) were differentially expressed between seasons and played significant roles in iron, sulfur, carbon, and nitrogen cycling. The most abundant RNA transcript encoded the multidrug resistance protein Stp, and most expressed KEGG-annotated transcripts were involved in amino acid metabolism. Biosynthetic gene clusters involved in secondary metabolism (BGCs, 449) as well as metal-(133) and antibiotic-resistance (8501) genes were identified across the entire dataset. Several antibiotic and metal resistance genes were colocalized and coexpressed with putative BGCs, providing insight into the protective roles of the molecules BGCs produce. Our study shows that ecological stimuli, such as metal concentrations and seasonal variations, can drive ARD taxa to produce novel bioactive metabolites.

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Section: Physicochemical Characterizationsupporting

confidence: 86%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterization of an acid rock drainage microbiome and transcriptome at the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site

et al. 2020

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“…The greatest difference among the 3 species was the weak association of midge endpoints with the metal mixture in Tri‐State sediments. The relative sensitivity of midges versus amphipods may differ among metal mixtures; for example, several studies have reported greater sensitivity of midges than amphipods in sediments contaminated primarily with Cu . The low Cu concentrations in Tri‐State sediment and porewater, however, suggest that Cu probably did not cause the different patterns of toxicity observed for midges.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxicity of sediments from lead–zinc mining areas to juvenile freshwater mussels (Lampsilis siliquoidea) compared to standard test organisms

Besser

Ingersoll

Brumbaugh

et al. 2015

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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Sediment toxicity tests compared chronic effects on survival, growth, and biomass of juvenile freshwater mussels (28-d exposures with Lampsilis siliquoidea) to the responses of standard test organisms-amphipods (28-d exposures with Hyalella azteca) and midges (10-d exposures with Chironomus dilutus)-in sediments from 2 lead-zinc mining areas: the Tri-State Mining District and Southeast Missouri Mining District. Mussel tests were conducted in sediments sieved to <0.25 mm to facilitate recovery of juvenile mussels (2-4 mo old). Sediments were contaminated primarily with lead, zinc, and cadmium, with greater zinc and cadmium concentrations in Tri-State sediments and greater lead concentrations in southeast Missouri sediments. The frequency of highly toxic responses (reduced 10% or more relative to reference sites) in Tri-State sediments was greatest for amphipod survival (25% of samples), midge biomass (20%), and mussel survival (14%). In southeast Missouri sediments, the frequency of highly toxic samples was greatest for mussel biomass (25%) and amphipod biomass (13%). Thresholds for metal toxicity to mussels, expressed as hazard quotients based on probable effect concentrations, were lower for southeast Missouri sediments than for Tri-State sediments. Southeast Missouri sites with toxic sediments had 2 or fewer live mussel taxa in a concurrent mussel population survey, compared with 7 to 26 taxa at reference sites. These results demonstrate that sediment toxicity tests with juvenile mussels can be conducted reliably by modifying existing standard methods; that the sensitivity of mussels to metals can be similar to or greater than standard test organisms; and that responses of mussels in laboratory toxicity tests are consistent with effects on wild mussel populations.

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Sediment toxicity data and excess simultaneously extracted metals from field‐collected samples: Comparison to United States Environmental Protection Agency benchmarks

DeForest

Toll

Judd

et al. 2021

Integr Envir Assess & Manag

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US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Procedures for the Derivation of Equilibrium Partitioning Sediment Benchmarks (ESBs) for the Protection of Benthic Organisms: Metal Mixtures are based on the principle that metals toxicity to benthic organisms is determined by bioavailable metals concentrations in porewater. One ESB is based on the difference between simultaneously extracted metal (SEM) and acid volatile sulfide (AVS) concentrations in sediment (excess SEM). The excess SEM ESBs include a lower uncertainty bound, below which most samples (95%) are expected to be "nontoxic" (defined as a bioassay mortality rate ≤24%), and an upper uncertainty bound, above which most samples (95%) are expected to be "toxic" (defined as a mortality rate >24%). Samples that fall between the upper and lower bounds are classified as "uncertain." Excess SEM ESBs can, in principle, be improved by normalizing for organic carbon (OC). OC is a binding phase that reduces metals bioavailability. OC normalization should improve the accuracy of bioavailable metal concentration estimates, thus tightening uncertainty bounds. We evaluated field-collected sediments from 13 studies with excess SEM, OC, and bioassay data (n = 740). Use of the OC-normalized excess SEM benchmarks did not improve prediction accuracy. The ESB model predicts OC-normalized excess SEM exceeding the upper benchmark even when toxicity is not observed, because error in the OC normalization model increases at low OC concentrations. To minimize the likelihood of incorrectly identifying nontoxic samples as toxic, we recommend that OC normalization of excess SEM should not be considered for sediments with an OC concentration <1% and is questionable for sediments with an OC concentration of 1%-4%. Additional focused studies are needed to confirm or refine the minimum sediment OC concentrations that are applicable for reducing uncertainty in toxicity predictions due to excess SEM.

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Aquatic assessment of the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site, Vershire, Vermont

Cited by 8 publications

References 28 publications

Characterization of an acid rock drainage microbiome and transcriptome at the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site

Characterization of an acid rock drainage microbiome and transcriptome at the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site

Toxicity of sediments from lead–zinc mining areas to juvenile freshwater mussels (Lampsilis siliquoidea) compared to standard test organisms

Sediment toxicity data and excess simultaneously extracted metals from field‐collected samples: Comparison to United States Environmental Protection Agency benchmarks

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