Year: 1987
Type: article
Abstract: A mesocosm experiment to assess the fate and effects of sewage sludge in the coastal marine environment was conducted over 4 mo during the summer of 1984 with 9 different treatments of sewage sludge and nutrient addtions.Evidence from setthng rate studes, accumulahons of carbon and pollutant organics and rahos of in the sediment indicated up to 83 O/O of the sludge particulate inputs settled to the bottom and up to 51 % accumulated there.While no toxicity due to organics or metals was apparent, prolonged hypoxia and even anoxia occurred in upper treatment levels.At summer temperatures, sludge particulate inputs in excess of 1 g C m-2 d-' caused these hypoxic conditions.In contrast to low primary production in low and medium sludge treatments during the last 2 mo of the experiment, the highest sludge treatment had high production.We attribute these patterns to excessive grazing pressure from zooplankton and benthlc fauna in the lower 2 treatments and hypoxia-retarded grazing in the upper treatment.In the upper treatments, peaks of produchon stimulated peaks of excessive respiration suggesting that respiration of sludge particulates was enhanced or CO-metabolized with the production of fresh organic material.
Source: Marine Ecology Progress Series
DOI: 10.3354/meps041187
Authors: CA Oviatt, JG Quinn, JT Maughan, JT Ellis, BK Sullivan, JN Gearing, PJ Gearing, CD Hunt, PA Sampou, JS Latimer
Institutions: Battelle, University of Rhode Island
Language: English
Subfield: Oceanography
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2008506208