A carregar...
Projeto de investigação
INSTITUTE OF EARTH SCIENCES
Financiador
Autores
Publicações
Chemical and ecotoxicological assessment of agricultural drainage water from a maize crop area: a case study in the Tejo basin (Portugal)
Publication . Palma, Patrícia; Catarino, Adriana; Silva, Emília; Alvarenga, Paula
The use of agricultural drainage water (ADW) in irrigation is a great challenge, improving
water use efficiency, nutrient circularity, and avoiding surface and ground-water contamination.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the chemical and ecotoxicological characteristics of an
ADW to analyze the safety of its reuse. An irrigated area with maize crops was selected (Tejo Basin,
Portugal), where a subsurface structure for the recovery of ADW was installed, collecting the drainage
in a pond and recycling it for crop irrigation. Water was collected monthly during the irrigation
campaign of 2021 (April to August). Three herbicides and two metabolites were quantified, reaching
a maximum concentration of 0.74 g L1 for S-metolachlor and 0.48 g L1 for terbuthylazine. The
lethal bioassays did not detect toxicity, except for the sample collected in August toward Vibrio fisheri
(EC50 = 25.2%). The samples were not toxic to Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, with a growth inhibition
rate of less than 10%. The low lethal and sublethal effects may be ascribed to the high nutrient
concentration (e.g., 1.76 mg P L1 and 98.9 mg NO3
L1, in July) that could have masked toxic
effects. Ecotoxicological responses support the option of ADW reuse in irrigation, offering a safe and
sustainable solution for water and nutrient management.
Integrative toolbox to assess the quality of freshwater sediments contaminated with potentially toxic metals
Publication . Palma, Patrícia; Penha, Alexandra Marchã; Novais, Maria Helena; Fialho, Sofia; Lima, Ana; Catarino, Adriana; Mourinha, Clarisse; Alvarenga, Paula; Iakunin, Maksim; Rodrigues, Gonçalo; Potes, Miguel; Morais, Manuela; Costa, Maria João; Salgado, Rui
The Guadiana Basin is a transnational basin, presenting historical contamination with potentially toxic metals
(PTM), which origin can be both natural and anthropogenic. This study explores the use of a set of observational,
chemical and ecotoxicological assays with Heterocypris incongruens, Vibrio fischeri, Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata,
Thamnocephalus platyurus, identifying the most sensitive to be included in a toolbox to analyze the quality of
freshwater sediments related to this type of contamination. The study included the analysis of a reservoir and
streams sediments of Guadiana basin, in two consecutive years with different climate conditions 2017 (dry year)
and 2018 (normal year). The results showed high chemical variability along the basin, with greater contami-
nation with PTM in the reservoir sediments. The calculated Enrichment Factors (EF) indicated high anthropo-
genic contamination by Cd, followed by Pb (EF > 1.5). The geoaccumulation index (Igeo) revealed that the
sediments were severely polluted with Cd, and slightly polluted with Pb and Cu, inducing a higher sublethal
toxicity to Heterocypris incongruens. Among the parameters evaluated, and after the use of multivariate statistical
techniques, the toolbox for assessing sediments quality, in similar climate and geological conditions, should
include the analysis of: meteorology, land use/cover in the area, granulometry, organic matter content, PTM
concentrations, contamination indices (e.g., Igeo and EF), and sublethal bioassays with H. incongruens (total
sediment analysis) and Vibrio fisheri luminescence inhibition (pore water analysis).
Assessment of the environmental impact of acid mine drainage on surface water, stream sediments, and macrophytes using a battery of chemical and ecotoxicological indicators
Publication . Alvarenga, Paula; Guerreiro, Nádia; Simões, Isabel; Imaginário, Maria José; Palma, Patrícia
Mining activities at the Portuguese sector of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB) have been
responsible for the pollution of water, sediments, and biota, caused by the acid mine drainage
(AMD) from the tailing deposits. The impact has been felt for years in the rivers and streams
receiving AMD from the Aljustrel mine (SW sector of the IPB, Portugal), such as at the Água Forte
stream, a tributary of the Roxo stream (Sado and Mira Hydrographic Region). To evaluate the extent
of that environmental impact prior to the remediation actions, surface water, sediments, and the
macrophyte Scirpus holoschoenus L. were sampled at the Água Forte and the Roxo streams, upstream
and downstream from the confluence. The surface water and the sediments were extremely acidic
at the Água Forte stream (pH ranges 2.22–2.92 for the water and 2.57–3.32 for the sediment), with
high As, Cu, Pb, and Zn concentrations of 2.1, 120, 0.21, and 421 mg kg1, respectively, in the water,
and 661, 1746, 539, and 1994 mg kg1, respectively, in the sediment, in the location closer to the
mine. Two aquatic bioassays evidenced the high ecotoxicity of the Água Forte water at that site,
with very low EC50 values for Vibrio fischeri luminescence inhibition (<3.1% v/v) and Daphnia magna
48-hour immobilization/mortality assays (<6.3% v/v). The impact of the AMD was also evident
in the sediments of the Roxo stream, but not so marked in the water, with circa neutral pH and
lower As, Cu, Pb, and Zn concentrations. Consistently, the ecotoxicological response was only felt
in the sampling point closer to the confluence of the Água Forte with the Roxo stream, with an
EC20 of 27.0% (v/v) towards the V. fischeri. One of the dominant and well adapted macrophytes, S.
holoschoenus L., presented low bioaccumulation factors for Cu (0.04) and Zn (0.15) in their emerging
parts, and very low concentrations for As and Pb, making this plant a potential candidate to be used
in phytoremediation actions to treat and control AMD in the IPB
Chemical and Ecotoxicological Assessment of Agricultural Drainage Water from a Maize Crop Area: A Case Study in the Tejo Basin (Portugal)
Publication . Palma, Patrícia; Catarino, Adriana; Silva, Emília; Alvarenga, Paula
The use of agricultural drainage water (ADW) in irrigation is a great challenge, improving
water use efficiency, nutrient circularity, and avoiding surface and ground-water contamination.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the chemical and ecotoxicological characteristics of an
ADW to analyze the safety of its reuse. An irrigated area with maize crops was selected (Tejo Basin,
Portugal), where a subsurface structure for the recovery of ADW was installed, collecting the drainage
in a pond and recycling it for crop irrigation. Water was collected monthly during the irrigation
campaign of 2021 (April to August). Three herbicides and two metabolites were quantified, reaching
a maximum concentration of 0.74 g L1 for S-metolachlor and 0.48 g L1 for terbuthylazine. The
lethal bioassays did not detect toxicity, except for the sample collected in August toward Vibrio fisheri
(EC50 = 25.2%). The samples were not toxic to Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, with a growth inhibition
rate of less than 10%. The low lethal and sublethal effects may be ascribed to the high nutrient
concentration (e.g., 1.76 mg P L1 and 98.9 mg NO3
L1, in July) that could have masked toxic
effects. Ecotoxicological responses support the option of ADW reuse in irrigation, offering a safe and
sustainable solution for water and nutrient management.
Potentially Toxic Elements’ Contamination of Soils Affected by Mining Activities in the Portuguese Sector of the Iberian Pyrite Belt and Optional Remediation Actions: A Review
Publication . Mourinha, Clarisse; Palma, Patrícia; Alexandre, Carlos; Cruz, Nuno; Rodrigues, Sónia Morais; Alvarenga, Paula
Both sectors of the Iberian Pyrite Belt, Portuguese and Spanish, have been exploited since
ancient times, but more intensively during and after the second half of the 19th century. Large
volumes of polymetallic sulfide ore were extracted in open pits or in underground works, processed
without environmental concerns, and the generated waste rocks and tailings were simply deposited
in the area. Many of these mining sites were abandoned for years under the action of erosive
agents, leading to the spread of trace elements and the contamination of soils, waters and sediments.
Some of these mine sites have been submitted to rehabilitation actions, mostly using constructive
techniques to dig and contain the contaminated tailings and other waste materials, but the remaining
soil still needs to be treated with the best available techniques to recover its ecosystem functions.
Besides the degraded physical structure and poor nutritional status of these soils, they have common
characteristics, as a consequence of the pyrite oxidation and acid drainage produced, such as a high
concentration of trace elements and low pH, which must be considered in the remediation plans.
This manuscript aims to review the results from studies which have already covered these topics
in the Iberian Pyrite Belt, especially in its Portuguese sector, considering: (i) soils’ physicochemical
characteristics; (ii) potentially toxic trace elements’ concentration; and (iii) sustainable remediation
technologies to cope with this type of soil contamination. Phytostabilization, after the amelioration of
the soil’s properties with organic and inorganic amendments, was investigated at the lab and field
scale by several authors, and their results were also considered
Unidades organizacionais
Descrição
Palavras-chave
Contribuidores
Financiadores
Entidade financiadora
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
Programa de financiamento
6817 - DCRRNI ID
Número da atribuição
UIDB/04683/2020