Phytoplankton in mine waste water community structure, control factors and biological monitoring

Abstract

Mining companies face world-wide environmental challenges in finding sustainable solutions to decommissioning mine waste management areas. Within areas needing restoration (open pits, acidified lakes, tailings and sludge ponds), ecological engineering techniques can be used in mine water bodies in order to retain contaminants, thereby reducing their loads to the receiving aquatic environment. Phytoplankton communities in such water bodies, so-called “Biological Polishing Systems”, play significant roles in primary production, metal-removal, overall water quality improvement, and biological monitoring. This study defines the structure of phytoplankton communities and their controlling factors in several mine water bodies. The findings relate water quality to phytoplankton presence, shedding new light on biological monitoring approaches and discusses some implications of eco-toxicity.