Macrobenthos of the cooling watre discharge canal of the Gladstone Power Station , Queensland

Abstract

Quantitative sampling of the macrobenthos of the cooling water discharge canal of the Gladstone Power Station has been conducted monthly from September 1976 to July 1980 (sampling times 1-47), to provide information on (i) the effects of an initially small but increasing thermal discharge on this biota, and (ii) the likely effects that could be expected to occur in the Calliope River, which will ultimately receive a 65-m3 s-1 thermal discharge with a maximum temperature differential of 8.2� C when the power station is fully commissioned. Considerable fluctuation was found in the biotic data; however, the number of benthic organisms correlates more closely with flow rates in the canal than with any other abiotic factor, showing a positive correlation for sampling times 1-32, followed by a negative correlation for times 33-47. Times classification also indicated a major dichotomy at times 32-34. It is concluded that the changes in the benthos of the canal can be attributed primarily to changes in flow rates, which, in turn, have altered the sediment composition. This is supported by a change in the benthic fauna, with a gradual replacement of species of known sandy mud affinities by species living on or in stiff clays. With a design maximum temperature differential of 8.2� C and with lower water velocities outside the canal, the present data suggest that it is unlikely that the benthic fauna of the Calliope River, adjacent to the power station, will be markedly altered as a result of the thermal discharge; however, because of abiotic and biotic differences between thecanal and the river, the testing of this extrapolation must await the analysis of the 'post-thermal' data presently being collected.

Nearshore fish community of the Port River-Barker Inlet Estuary, South Australia. I. Effect of thermal effluent on the fish community structure, and distribution and growth of economically important fish species

“…Saenger et al 1982); however, we discount this possibility because Thomas et al (1986) found no association between sediment type and distance from the source of thermal discharge in 1982, which was after the flow rate was increased with the further development of the power station.…”

The Influence of Dry-season Conditions on the Bottom Dwelling Fauna of an East Australian Sub-tropical Estuary

“…Changes to the coastline since the 1940s have included the reclamation or degradation of over 650 ha of mangroves and 990 ha of saltmarsh (QDEH, 1994). Localised changes to water quality and the estuarine biota have also been documented (Saenger et al, 1982). If estuarine communities are to be protected it is necessary that they are adequately documented and their conservation values assessed.…”

To What Extent Can Existing Research Help Project Climate Change Impacts on Biodiversity in Aquatic Environments? A Review of Methodological Approaches

“…Scientists can also monopolize on already existing warm water effluents, such as emission of heated cooling water from power plants (e.g., [44][45][46][47][48][49]). If information on base-line levels is available from surveys conducted before construction, the effects of the temperature increase can be evaluated based on comparisons with more current situations as estimated from monitoring programs of recipient areas [49].…”