Interacting effects of sulphate pollution, sulphide toxicity and eutrophication on vegetation development in fens: a mesocosm experiment.
Both eutrophication and SO4 pollution can lead to higher availability of nutrients and potentially toxic compounds in wetlands. To unravel the interaction between the level of eutrophication and toxicity at species and community level, effects of SO4 were tested in nutrient-poor and nutrient-rich fen mesocosms. Biomass production of aquatic and semi-aquatic macrophytes and colonization of the water layer increased after fertilization, leading to dominance of highly competitive species. SO4 addition increased alkalinity and sulphide concentrations, leading to decomposition and additional eutrophication. SO4 pollution and concomitant sulphide production considerably reduced biomass production and colonization, but macrophytes were less vulnerable in fertilized conditions. The experiment shows that competition between species, vegetation succession and terrestrialization are not only influenced by nutrient availability, but also by toxicity, which strongly interacts with the level of eutrophication. This implies that previously neutralized toxicity effects in eutrophied fens may appear after nutrient reduction measures have been taken.
Geurts
Jeroen J M
JJ
Aquatic Ecology and Environmental Biology, Institute for Wetland and Water Research, Radboud University Nijmegen, Toernooiveld 1, 6525 ED Nijmegen, The Netherlands. j.geurts@b-ware.eu
Sarneel
Judith M
JM
Willers
Bart J C
BJ
Roelofs
Jan G M
JG
Verhoeven
Jos T A
JT
Lamers
Leon P M
LP
D000397:Air Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D044822:Biodiversity; D018533:Biomass; D004463:Ecology / Q000379:methods; D005068:Eutrophication; D009584:Nitrogen; D010758:Phosphorus; D063245:Plant Development; D012621:Seasons; D013045:Species Specificity; D013431:Sulfates / Q000633:toxicity*; D013440:Sulfides / Q000633:toxicity*; D053833:Wetlands
D013431:Sulfates; D013440:Sulfides; D010758:Phosphorus; D009584:Nitrogen