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Communication at the NABS Annual meeting, Keystone, 2000
(437) TRENDS IN BENTHIC COMMUNITY STRUCTURE IN A WETLAND DESIGNED FOR TREATMENT
OF METALS-LADEN WATER.
D.A. Pillard and R.B. Naddy. ENSR Consulting and Engineering, 4303 W. LaPorte Ave. Fort Collins, CO
Warm Springs Ponds (WSP), near Anaconda, MT, are a
series of constructed wetlands and treatment ponds designed to treat
metals originating from historic mining operations. The WSP system also
provides substantial wildlife habitat. To assess the effectiveness of
current remedial strategies and to measure potential metals impacts on
wildlife, an integrated biomonitoring program was initiated at WSP in
1995. Benthic macroinverterbates were collected for assessment of
community parameters and quantification of tissue metals residue.
Density and diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates tended to be higher
at sites in Ponds 2 and 3, which are active ponds (constant inflow and
outflow of water), than wet closure areas that do not have active
through-flow of water. Overall benthic density has not exhibited
consistent temporal trends. However, the number of collected taxa has
generally increased over time, with the most abundant taxa being
Tubificidae, Chironomidae, and Hyalella azteca. Bulk sediment copper
concentrations were somewhat correlated with benthic tissue copper
concentrations, although tissue concentrations were not strongly
correlated with community structure parameters, indicating a minimum of
direct metals effects on overall benthic community health.
Presented at 1:00 PM on Wednesday, May 31, 2000 in Wetlands
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