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Bioassays with terrestrial and aquatic species as monitoring tools of hydrocarbon degradation

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Abstract

In this study chemical analyses and ecotoxicity tests were applied for the assessment of a heavily hydrocarbon-contaminated soil prior and after the application of a remediation procedure that consisted in the stimulation of soil autochthonous populations of hydrocarbon degraders in static-ventilated biopiles. Terrestrial bioassays were applied in mixtures of test soils and artificial control soil and studied the survival and reproduction of Eisenia fetida and the avoidance response of E. fetida and Folsomia candida. Effects on aquatic organisms were studied by means of acute tests with Vibrio fischeri, Raphidocelis subcapitata, and Daphnia magna performed on aqueous elutriates from test soils. The bioremediation procedure led to a significant reduction in the concentration of hydrocarbons (from 34264 to 3074 mg kg−1, i.e., 91 % decrease) and toxicity although bioassays were not able to report a percentage decrease of toxicity as high as the percentage reduction. Sublethal tests proved the most sensitive terrestrial bioassays and avoidance tests with earthworms and springtails showed potential as monitoring tools of hydrocarbon remediation due to their high sensitivity and short duration. The concentrations of hydrocarbons in water extracts from test soils were 130 and 100 μg L−1 before and after remediation, respectively. Similarly to terrestrial tests, most aquatic bioassays detected a significant reduction in toxicity, which was almost negligible at the end of the treatment. D. magna survival was the most affected by soil elutriates although toxicity to the crustacean was associated to the salinity of the samples rather than to the concentration of hydrocarbons. Ecotoxicity tests with aqueous soil elutriates proved less relevant in the assessment of hydrocarbon-contaminated soils due to the low hydrosolubility of hydrocarbons and the influence of the physicochemical parameters of the aquatic medium.

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Acknowledgments

Authors want to thank Geotecnia 2000 for supplying the soils. This research was funded by the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) and R&D Gestió i Serveis Ambientals S.L. (Spain) through a doctoral grant to Jaume Bori (Beca UPC Recerca 2012-2016) and by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness through the project CTM2010-18167.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Research and Innovation in Toxicology (CRIT-Innotex Center), Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Ctra. Nac. 150 Km 15, 08227, Terrassa (Barcelona), Spain

    Jaume Bori, Bettina Vallès & Maria Carme Riva

  2. Geotecnia 2000 (Grupo ATISAE), Tres Cantos, Madrid, Spain

    Lina Ortega

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  1. Jaume Bori
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  2. Bettina Vallès
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  3. Lina Ortega
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  4. Maria Carme Riva
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Correspondence to Jaume Bori.

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Bori, J., Vallès, B., Ortega, L. et al. Bioassays with terrestrial and aquatic species as monitoring tools of hydrocarbon degradation. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23, 18694–18703 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-7097-z

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