title: Zebrafish and clean water technology: assessing soil bioretention as a protective treatment for toxic urban runoff.
abstract: Urban stormwater contains a complex mixture of contaminants that can be acutely toxic to aquatic biota. Green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) is a set of evolving technologies intended to reduce impacts on natural systems by slowing and filtering runoff. The extent to which GSI methods work as intended is usually assessed in terms of water quantity (hydrology) and quality (chemistry). Biological indicators of GSI effectiveness have received less attention, despite an overarching goal of protecting the health of aquatic species. Here we use the zebrafish (Danio rerio) experimental model to evaluate bioinfiltration as a relatively inexpensive technology for treating runoff from an urban highway with dense motor vehicle traffic. Zebrafish embryos exposed to untreated runoff (48-96h; six storm events) displayed an array of developmental abnormalities, including delayed hatching, reduced growth, pericardial edema, microphthalmia (small eyes), and reduced swim bladder inflation. Three of the six storms were acutely lethal, and sublethal toxicity was evident across all storms, even when stormwater was diluted by as much as 95% in clean water. As anticipated from exposure to cardiotoxic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), untreated runoff also caused heart failure, as indicated by circulatory stasis, pericardial edema, and looping defects. Bioretention treatment dramatically improved stormwater quality and reversed nearly all forms of developmental toxicity. The zebrafish model therefore provides a versatile experimental platform for rapidly assessing GSI effectiveness.
authors.affiliation: Washington State University Puyallup Research & Extension Center, 2606W Pioneer Ave, Puyallup, WA 98371, USA. Electronic address: jen.mcintyre@wsu.edu.
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: McIntyre
authors.affiliation: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Washington Fish & Wildlife Office, 510 Desmond Dr. SE, Lacey, WA 98503, USA.
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.affiliation: NOAA-NMFS Northwest Science Center, 2725 Montlake Blvd E, Seattle, WA 98112, USA.
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Incardona
authors.affiliation: Washington State University Puyallup Research & Extension Center, 2606W Pioneer Ave, Puyallup, WA 98371, USA.
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Stark
authors.affiliation: NOAA-NMFS Northwest Science Center, 2725 Montlake Blvd E, Seattle, WA 98112, USA.
authors.forename: B F
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Anulacion
authors.affiliation: NOAA-NMFS Northwest Science Center, 2725 Montlake Blvd E, Seattle, WA 98112, USA.
authors.forename: N L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Scholz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry*; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D014872:Water Movements; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D015027:Zebrafish
chemical_list: D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Developmental toxicity; Ecotoxicology; Embryos; Green stormwater infrastructure; Highway runoff; Low impact development; Zebrafish