Dataset Information

Current water quality guidelines across North America and Europe do not protect lakes from salinization.

ABSTRACT: Human-induced salinization caused by the use of road deicing salts, agricultural practices, mining operations, and climate change is a major threat to the biodiversity and functioning of freshwater ecosystems. Yet, it is unclear if freshwater ecosystems are protected from salinization by current water quality guidelines. Leveraging an experimental network of land-based and in-lake mesocosms across North America and Europe, we tested how salinization-indicated as elevated chloride (Cl^-) concentration-will affect lake food webs and if two of the lowest Cl^- thresholds found globally are sufficient to protect these food webs. Our results indicated that salinization will cause substantial zooplankton mortality at the lowest Cl^- thresholds established in Canada (120 mg Cl^-/L) and the United States (230 mg Cl^-/L) and throughout Europe where Cl^- thresholds are generally higher. For instance, at 73% of our study sites, Cl^- concentrations that caused a ≥50% reduction in cladoceran abundance were at or below Cl^- thresholds in Canada, in the United States, and throughout Europe. Similar trends occurred for copepod and rotifer zooplankton. The loss of zooplankton triggered a cascading effect causing an increase in phytoplankton biomass at 47% of study sites. Such changes in lake food webs could alter nutrient cycling and water clarity and trigger declines in fish production. Current Cl^- thresholds across North America and Europe clearly do not adequately protect lake food webs. Water quality guidelines should be developed where they do not exist, and there is an urgent need to reassess existing guidelines to protect lake ecosystems from human-induced salinization.

SUBMITTER: Hintz WD

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8892338 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Current water quality guidelines across North America and Europe do not protect lakes from salinization.

Hintz William D WD Arnott Shelley E SE Symons Celia C CC Greco Danielle A DA McClymont Alexandra A Brentrup Jennifer A JA Cañedo-Argüelles Miguel M Derry Alison M AM Downing Amy L AL Gray Derek K DK Melles Stephanie J SJ Relyea Rick A RA Rusak James A JA Searle Catherine L CL Astorg Louis L Baker Henry K HK Beisner Beatrix E BE Cottingham Kathryn L KL Ersoy Zeynep Z Espinosa Carmen C Franceschini Jaclyn J Giorgio Angelina T AT Göbeler Norman N Hassal Emily E Hébert Marie-Pier MP Huynh Mercedes M Hylander Samuel S Jonasen Kacie L KL Kirkwood Andrea E AE Langenheder Silke S Langvall Ola O Laudon Hjalmar H Lind Lovisa L Lundgren Maria M Proia Lorenzo L Schuler Matthew S MS Shurin Jonathan B JB Steiner Christopher F CF Striebel Maren M Thibodeau Simon S Urrutia-Cordero Pablo P Vendrell-Puigmitja Lidia L Weyhenmeyer Gesa A GA

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20220301 9

Human-induced salinization caused by the use of road deicing salts, agricultural practices, mining operations, and climate change is a major threat to the biodiversity and functioning of freshwater ecosystems. Yet, it is unclear if freshwater ecosystems are protected from salinization by current water quality guidelines. Leveraging an experimental network of land-based and in-lake mesocosms across North America and Europe, we tested how salinization-indicated as elevated chloride (Cl<sup>-</sup> ...[more]

PMID: 35193976

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Project description:BackgroundAn estimated four million and 43 million people in Canada and the USA use private water supplies. Private water supplies are vulnerable to waterborne disease outbreaks. Private water supplies in Canada and the USA are often unregulated and private water management is often a choice left to the owner. Perceptions of water quality become important in influencing the adoption of private water stewardship practices, therefore safeguarding public health.MethodsWe conducted a systematic literature review to understand factors that shape perceptions of water quality among private water users. We searched six computer databases (Web of science, Medline, Scopus, EBSCO, PubMed and Agricola). The search was limited to primary peer-reviewed publications, grey literature and excluded conference proceedings, review articles, and non-peer review articles. We restricted the search to papers published in English and to articles which published data on surveys of private water users within Canada and the USA. The search was also restricted to publications from 1986 to 2017. The literature search generated 36,478 records. Two hundred and four full text were reviewed.ResultsFifty-two articles were included in the final review. Several factors were found to influence perceptions of water quality including organoleptic preferences, chemical and microbiological contaminants, perceived risks, water well infrastructure, past experience with water quality, external information, demographics, in addition to the values, attitudes, and beliefs held by well owners.ConclusionsUnderstanding the factors that shape perceptions of water quality among private water users is an important step in developing private water management policies to increase compliance towards water testing and treatment in Canada and the USA. As many jurisdictions in Canada and the USA do not have mandatory private water testing or treatment guidelines, delineating these factors is an important step in informing future research and guiding policy on the public health of private water systems.

Project description:Freshwater Salinization Syndrome (FSS) refers to groups of biological, physical, and chemical impacts which commonly occur together in response to salinization. FSS can be assessed by the mobilization of chemical mixtures, termed "chemical cocktails", in watersheds. Currently, we do not know if salinization and mobilization of chemical cocktails along streams can be mitigated or reversed using restoration and conservation strategies. We investigated 1) the formation of chemical cocktails temporally and spatially along streams experiencing different levels of restoration and riparian forest conservation and 2) the potential for attenuation of chemical cocktails and salt ions along flowpaths through conservation and restoration areas. We monitored high-frequency temporal and longitudinal changes in streamwater chemistry in response to different pollution events (i.e., road salt, stormwater runoff, wastewater effluent, and baseflow conditions) and several types of watershed management or conservation efforts in six urban watersheds in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicates that chemical cocktails which formed along flowpaths (i.e., permanent reaches of a stream) varied due to pollution events. In response to winter road salt applications, the chemical cocktails were enriched in salts and metals (e.g., Na+, Mn, and Cu). During most baseflow and stormflow conditions, chemical cocktails were less enriched in salt ions and trace metals. Downstream attenuation of salt ions occurred during baseflow and stormflow conditions along flowpaths through regional parks, stream-floodplain restorations, and a national park. Conversely, chemical mixtures of salt ions and metals, which formed in response to multiple road salt applications or prolonged road salt exposure, did not show patterns of rapid attenuation downstream. Multiple linear regression was used to investigate variables that influence changes in chemical cocktails along flowpaths. Attenuation and dilution of salt ions and chemical cocktails along stream flowpaths was significantly related to riparian forest buffer width, types of salt pollution, and distance downstream. Although salt ions and chemical cocktails can be attenuated and diluted in response to conservation and restoration efforts at lower concentration ranges, there can be limitations in attenuation during road salt events, particularly if storm drains bypass riparian buffers.

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Current water quality guidelines across North America and Europe do not protect lakes from salinization.

Publications

Current water quality guidelines across North America and Europe do not protect lakes from salinization.

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