An assessment of toxicity in profundal lake sediment
due to deposition of heavy metals and POPs from the
atmosphere
Brian Rippey†, Neil Rose††, Handong Yang††, Stuart Harrad †††,
Mat Robson††† and Sarah Travers†
†
††
University of Ulster
University College London
†††
University of Birmingham
Low
SE=9
n=7-10
250
ugPb g-1
200
150
100
50
0
1850
1870
1890
1910
1930
1950
1970
1990
Medium
n=1-4
250
ugPb g-1
200
150
100
50
0
1850
1870
1890
1910
1930
1950
1970
250
High
SE=20
n=6-10
200
ugPb g-1
1990
150
100
50
Forty-nine sediment cores from forty-one
lakes in three contamination regions
0
1850
1870
1890
1910
1930
1950
1970
1990
Rippey & Douglas (2004) Global Biogeochemical Cycles 18, GB4026, doi:10.1029/2004GB002305, 2004
Y Bi
Veagh
Lochnagar
Blue Lough
Chon
Llagi
Enoch
Clyd
Hir
Tinker
Muck
Burnmore
Scoat
Scoat
Grannoch
Uisge
Llagi
Veagh
Eiddew Bach
Chon
Hir
Clyd
Cranmer
Tinker
Mynach
Dulyn
Lochan Dubh
Uisge
Larach
Muck
0
Achlaise
200
nan Eun
400
Maam
600
Lochnagar
800
Uaine
1000
Irydyn
Long
Tanna
PEC = 459 µg/g
TEC = 121 µg/g
Uncontaminated = 123 µg/g
Larach
Zn
Blue Lough
Coire nan Arr
PEC = 128 µg/g
TEC = 35.8 µg/g
Uncontaminated = 31 µg/g
Coire nan Arr
Pb
Pb concentration mgPb g
Sediment Quality Guidelines
MacDonald et al. (2000)
µgZn g-1
-1
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
Tier I Sediment Ecological Risk Assessment of
profundal lake sediment contaminated by heavy metals
and POPs deposited from the atmosphere
1
Determine the concentrations of a range of relevant contaminants
of profundal lake sediments; heavy metals and POPs
2
Compare the concentrations with sediment quality guideline values
3
Complete laboratory sediment toxicity tests
4
Evaluate the biological effects in freshwater sediment that may result
from the contamination found
1 Heavy metals
Hg, Pb, Cu, Ni, Zn, Cd and As
2 Five OCs
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch Doilet
α-HCH, γ-HCH, DDD, DDE and DDT
Lochnagar
Loch Chon
3 Seven PCBs
PCB 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153 and 180
Scoat Tarn
Burnmoor Tarn
Agden Reservoir
Llyn Llagi
Llyn Cwm
Mynach
Tooting Common
Lake
4 Fifteen PAHs
acenaphthylene, acenaphthene, fluorene,
phenanthrene, anthracene, fluoranthene,
pyrene, benzo[a]anthracene, chrysene,
benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[j+k]fluoranthene,
benzo[a]pyrene, indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene,
dibenzo[ah+ac]anthracene, benzo[ghi]perylene
5 Five PBDEs
PBDE 47, 99, 100, 153 and 154
Two sediment toxicity tests
17-day chironomid survival and emergence
7-day cladoceran survival and reproduction
Compare profundal lake sediment samples
with reference sediment
Uncontaminated sediment
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch Doilet
Lochnagar
Loch Chon
Pb
Zn
Cd
As
Scoat Tarn
Burnmoor Tarn
Agden Reservoir
Llyn Llagi
Llyn Cwm
Mynach
Tooting Common
Lake
Zn, ug/g
300
400
200
100
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Burnmoor
Tarn
Tooting
Common
Scoat Tarn
Loch Chon
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Burnmoor
Tarn
Tooting
Common
Scoat Tarn
Loch Chon
Loch Chon
Tooting
Common
Burnmoor
Tarn
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
6
120
As, ug/g
4
2
80
40
Tooting
Common
Burnmoor
Tarn
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch Chon
0
0
Scoat Tarn
Cd, ug/g
200
0
0
Scoat Tarn
Pb, ug/g
600
31 ug/g
123 ug/g
0.46 ug/g
1 or 10 ug/g
Over half of the lake sediment samples are contaminated by Pb, Zn, Cd and As
Total
Total PAHs,
PCBs, ug/g
ng/g
2
0
0
Agden
Reservoir
Agden
Reservoir
Loch
Chon
Loch
Chon
Llyn
Llagi
Llyn
Llagi
Scoat
Tarn
Scoat
Tarn
LlynLlyn
Cwm
Mynach
Cwm
Mynach
Tooting
Common
Lake
Tooting
Common
Lake
Lochnagar
Lochnagar
Burnmoor
Tarn
Burnmoor
Tarn
Tooting Common
Lake
Loch
Doilet
Loch
Doilet
Llyn Llagi
Llyn Cwm
Mynach
Loch
Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch
Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch Doilet
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch Chon
Lochnagar
Scoat Tarn
Burnmoor Tarn
Agden Reservoir
10
12
8
8
6
4
4
Over half of the lake sediment samples are contaminated by PCBs and PAHs
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch Doilet
Lochnagar
Loch Chon
Scoat Tarn
Burnmoor Tarn
PBDEs, ng/g
Agden Reservoir
Llyn Llagi
Llyn Cwm
Mynach
Tooting Common
Lake
47
99
100
153
154
Loch Coire Fionnaraich
<0.4
<0.4
<0.2
<0.3
<0.2
Loch Doilet
<0.4
<0.4
<0.2
<0.3
<0.2
Burnmoor Tarn
<0.4
<0.4
<0.2
<0.3
<0.2
Lochnagar
0.9
2.0
0.2
0.5
0.2
Tooting Common Lake
<0.4
<0.4
<0.2
<0.3
<0.2
Llyn Cwm Mynach
<0.4
<0.4
<0.2
<0.3
<0.2
Scoat Tarn
<0.4
0.7
<0.2
<0.3
<0.2
Llyn Llagi
<0.4
0.6
<0.2
<0.3
<0.2
Loch Chon
0.7
1.4
<0.2
0.4
<0.2
Agden Reservoir
1.2
2.4
0.2
0.7
<0.2
Around one third of the lake sediment samples are contaminated by PBDEs
Using the concentrations of
heavy metals, PCBs and PAHs
Least contaminated lakes are:
Loch Coire
Fionnaraich
Loch Doilet
Loch Coire Fionnaraich
Burnmoor Tarn
Loch Doilet
Lochnagar
Loch Chon
Scoat Tarn
Burnmoor Tarn
Agden Reservoir
Llyn Llagi
Llyn Cwm
Mynach
Most contaminated are:
Llyn Llagi
Lochnagar
Tooting Common Lake
Agden Reservoir
Tooting Common
Lake
Sweden (Johansson 1989)
Norway (Rognerud & Fjeld 2001)
UK and Ireland (Rippey & Douglas 2004; Rose & Rippey 2002)
USA (Norton et al. 1992; Furlong et al 1987)
7-day cladoceran survival
and reproduction
Burnmoor Tarn
Lochnagar
Tooting Common Lake
Llyn Cwm Mynach
Scoat Tarn
Llyn Llagi
Lochnagar
Tooting
Common
Llyn Cwm
Mynach
Scoat Tarn
Llyn Llagi
0
Burnmoor
Tarn
20
Loch Doilet
40
Loch
Doilet
60
Reference sediment
80
Reference
sediment
Agden Reservoir
*
Agden
Reservoir
60
*
Loch Chon
80
Loch
Chon
Survival, %
17-day chironomid survival
and emergence
Young produced
100
*
*
*
40
20
0
There is toxicity in four of the lake sediment samples,
Loch Doilet, Scoat Tarn, Llyn Llagi and Agden Reservoir
Toxicity quotient is ratio of concentration to Sediment Quality Guideline value
Use PEC of MacDonald et al. (2000)
Can also calculate quotients for groups of chemicals
PEC-Q Mean-metals uses average quotient for seven heavy metals
PEC-Q OCs uses the sum of the concentrations of five OCs
PEC-Q PCBs uses concentration of total PCBs
PEC-Q PAHs uses concentration of total PAHs
PEC-Q MPP (and) is mean of metals, PCBs and PAHs
PEC-Q MPP (or) is mean of metals and either PCBs or PAHs
Toxicity quotient
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0
PEC OCs = 571 ng/g
PEC PCBs = 676 ng/g
PEC PAHs = 22,800 ng/g
Incidence of toxicity, %
There may be a risk if PEC-Q value is greater than 0.5 (Ingersoll et al. 2001)
60
40
20
0
<0.1
0.1 to <0.5 0.5 to <1.0 1.0 to 5.0
>5.0
Incidence of toxicity, %
PEC-Q Mean-metals
80
60
40
20
0
<0.1
0.1 to <0.5 0.5 to <1.0 1.0 to 5.0
PEC-Q Mean-MPP (or)
>5.0
Incidence of toxicity, %
<0.1
0.1 to
<0.5
0.5 to
<1.0
1.0 to 5.0
PEC-Q Mean-metals
60
40
20
0
>5.0
Agden
Agden Reservoir
Reservoir
Loch
Loch Chon
Chon
Llyn
Llyn Llagi
Llagi
Scoat
Scoat Tarn
Tarn
Llyn
Llyn Cwm
Cwm Mynach
Mynach
Tooting
Tooting Common
Common Lake
Lake
Lochnagar
Lochnagar
Burnmoor
Burnmoor Tarn
Tarn
1.0
3.0
0.8
Loch
Loch Doilet
Doilet
Loch
Loch Coire
Coire Fionnaraich
Fionnaraich
PEC-Q
PEC-Q
1.2
4.0
Mean-metals
Pb
OCs
As
Total
Cd PCBs
0.6
2.0
0.4
1.0
0.2
0.0
0.0
Incidence of toxicity, %
<0.1
0.1 to
<0.5
0.5 to
<1.0
1.0 to 5.0
PEC-Q Mean-metals
60
40
20
0
>5.0
Agden Reservoir
Loch Chon
Llyn Llagi
Scoat Tarn
Llyn Cwm Mynach
Tooting Common Lake
Lochnagar
0.8
Burnmoor Tarn
1.0
Loch Doilet
Loch Coire Fionnaraich
PEC-Q
1.2
Mean-metals
OCs
Total PCBs
Total PAHs
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
Mean-metals
1.2
OCs
Total PCBs
Total PAHs
PEC-Q
1.0
0.8
Mean-MPP (or)
0.6
0.4
0.2
40
20
0
<0.1
0.1 to
<0.5
0.5 to
<1.0
1.0 to 5.0
PEC-Q Mean-metals
>5.0
*
Agden Reservoir
Llyn Llagi
*
Loch Chon
Scoat Tarn
Llyn Cwm Mynach
Tooting Common Lake
Lochnagar
Burnmoor Tarn
60
Incidence of toxicity, %
Incidence of toxicity, %
Loch Coire Fionnaraich
Loch Doilet
0.0
*
80
60
40
20
0
<0.1
0.1 to <0.5
0.5 to <1.0
1.0 to 5.0
PEC-Q Mean-MPP (or)
>5.0
PEC-Q Meanmetals
PEC-Q Mean-MMP (or)
0.1 to <0.5
1/3
33.3
23
0.1 to <0.5
2/7
28.6
17
0.5 to 1.0
3/6
50.0
25
0.5 to 1.0
2/2
100.0
43
The concentrations of Pb and As are high enough in Scoat Tarn,
Llyn Llagi and Agden Reservoir to cause the toxicity found,
with contributions by PAHs in Agden Reservoir
Maximum PEC-Q Mean-metals is 1.08
PEC-Q Meanmetals
PEC-Q Mean-MMP (or)
0.1 to <0.5
1/3
33.3
23
0.1 to <0.5
2/7
28.6
17
0.5 to 1.0
3/6
50.0
25
0.5 to 1.0
2/2
100.0
43
The concentrations of Pb and As are high enough in Scoat Tarn,
Llyn Llagi and Agden Reservoir to cause the toxicity found,
with contributions by PAHs in Agden Reservoir
Maximum PEC-Q Mean-metals is 1.08
PEC-Q
Mean-metals
>0.3
0.8
2.0
2.0
2.5
3.5
Mean 1.9
Median 2.0
Site
Upper Mississippi River
Trenton Channel of the Detroit River, Michigan
River Kolbacksan, Sweden
Upper Clark Fork River & Milltown Reservoir, Montana
Twelve lakes in the vicinity of the Sudbury, Canada
Buffalo River, Indiana Harbour and Saginaw River
Reference
Canfield et al. (1998)
Besser et al. (1996)
Dave (1992)
Canfield et al. (1994)
Borgmann et al (2001)
Canfield et al. (1996)
PEC-Q Meanmetals
PEC-Q Mean-MMP (or)
0.1 to <0.5
1/3
33.3
23
0.1 to <0.5
2/7
28.6
17
0.5 to 1.0
3/6
50.0
25
0.5 to 1.0
2/2
100.0
43
The concentrations of Pb and As are high enough in Scoat Tarn,
Llyn Llagi and Agden Reservoir to cause the toxicity found,
with contributions by PAHs in Agden Reservoir
Maximum PEC-Q Mean-metals is 1.08
There is toxicity in the sediments of Llyn Llagi,
Scoat Tarn and Agden Reservoir in the laboratory,
but are there biological effects in the lakes?