title: Plant growth and the performance of mangrove wetland microcosms for mariculture effluent depuration.
abstract: This study established wetland microcosms that were either unplanted or planted in monoculture with native mangrove species in Taiwan (Avicennia marina, Rhizophora stylosa, and Lumnitzera racemosa) for the purpose of receiving high-salinity mariculture effluents; additionally, the microcosms operated at different hydraulic retention times (HRTs). Plant growth and the performance of the microcosms with respect to pollutant removal were investigated. The results showed that seedlings of all three mangrove species survived and grew sufficiently well under continuous flooding. The presence of mangroves consistently improved SS, BOD(5), and TP removal, particularly under short HRT conditions. The mangrove microcosms removed pollutants from the mariculture effluents with efficiencies of 5.7-27.1% (SS), 4.9-36.3% (BOD(5)), 18.7-29.9% (TP), 21.2-49.8% (NH(4)-N), and 5.4-37.7% (NO(x)-N). A. marina and L. racemosa were more tolerant of continuous flooding than R. stylosa. However, no species displayed consistently superior performance in decreasing all pollutant-related parameters investigated. For all pollutants, microcosms operating at a 2-d HRT exhibited a higher removal efficiency than those operating at a 0.5-d HRT.
authors.affiliation: Department of Life Sciences, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC.
authors.forename: Yung-Ming
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Su
authors.forename: Ying-Feng
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Shuh-Ren
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Jing
authors.forename: Ping-Chun Lucy
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Hou
mesh_terms: D017756:Aquaculture; D032407:Avicennia / Q000254:growth & development*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D057919:Biological Oxygen Demand Analysis; D017753:Ecosystem; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D043982:Rhizophoraceae / Q000254:growth & development*; D036226:Seedlings / Q000254:growth & development; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D014877:Water Pollution, Chemical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D053833:Wetlands
chemical_list: D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical