THE USE OF BENTHIC ALGAL BIOASSESSMENT TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECTS OF GOLF COURSE CONSTRUCTION AND OPERATION ON HEADWATER STREAMS.

J.G. Winter¹, P.J. Dillon², R.A. Reid³, and K. Somers³. ¹Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Environmental Monitoring and Reporting Branch, 125 Resources Road, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M9P 3V6, ²Environmental and Resource Studies, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada K9J 7B8, ³Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Dorset Environmental Science Centre, P.O. Box 39, Dorset, Ontario, Canada P0A 1E0

Benthic algal bioassessment was used to evaluate the effects of golf courses on headwater streams on the Precambrian Shield. Streams were sampled for water chemistry and epilithic benthic algae on courses in operation, courses under construction, and in nearby reference areas. Correspondence analysis was used to determine major patterns in diatom data, and canonical correspondence analysis was used to evaluate relationships with environmental variables. A variety of summary indices were also calculated. Diatom assemblages were different in reference streams than in operational golf course streams, and indicative of nutrient enrichment, higher pH, and disturbance. There was a lower proportion of diatoms relative to other algal groups in operational golf course streams compared with reference locations. Percent dominance by a single algal taxon was also higher. Although differences to reference data were less marked for construction sites, the proportion of diatom eutrophic indicators and filamentous green algae were higher. A comparison of one golf course under construction indicated cumulative changes in benthic algal community structure over time from 1 year before opening to 1 year after. Overall our results indicate that benthic algal approaches can be used effectively to evaluate the impact of golf course construction and operation on Shield streams.