Ulva growth bioassay for testing toxic compounds and wastewater flowing into streams

Abstract

Pollutants have a dramatic ecological impact on aquatic environment and in particular the dwelling flora and fauna. This study focused on use of a new effortless approach to detect water pollution viz. Ulva growth bioassay. Several different water samples including a) wastewater obtained from a plating industry; b) stream water from five streams in Incheon viz. Gongchon, Jangsu, Hagik, Gulpo and Gyesan stream were investigated for their toxicity to the green marine macroalga, Ulva pertusa. Growth of U. pertusa showed concentration-dependent response to plating effluents, proving to be a suitable end point for estimating the wastewater toxicity. Comparison of the results obtained using conventional chemical assays and the Ulva bioassay coincided with each other in identifying the most polluted stream water out of the five streams tested.