5/20/2015  |   10:30 - 10:45   |  101B

MICROPLASTIC IN URBAN STREAMS: SOURCE, ABUNDANCE, AND SELECTION OF UNIQUE BACTERIAL ASSEMBLAGES Microplastic particles (< 5mm) in oceans are an emerging ecological concern. Little is known about riverine microplastic, but plastic fibers (i.e., synthetic fabrics) and pellets (i.e., abrasives in personal care products) are abundant in wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent which enters rivers. Our preliminary research showed microplastic, collected downstream of a WWTP, is more abundant than many marine sites and has higher occurrences of bacterial taxa associated with plastic decomposition and gastrointestinal pathogens than natural surfaces (e.g., seston and water column). In summer 2014, we collected surface water and sediment upstream and downstream of 10 WWTPs in Illinois, USA to quantify microplastic concentrations, determine if WWTPs are a point source, and compare bacterial communities on microplastic and natural surfaces. Microplastic concentration was significantly higher downstream of WWTPs than upstream, although concentrations varied among sites. Ongoing analysis of 16S rRNA genes via next-generation sequencing will describe bacterial communities on microplastic and natural substrates. We also expect WWTP methods (e.g., filtration and disinfection techniques) will influence assemblages. Results will inform policies and engineering advances focused on the evolving field of microplastic pollution.

Amanda McCormick (Primary Presenter/Author,Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, mccormick.amandar@gmail.com;


Timothy Hoellein (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, thoellein@luc.edu;
Dr. Hoellein is a freshwater ecologist at Loyola University Chicago. His research interests are focused on ecosystem processes and biogeochemistry. His research lab explores these areas in associate with the movement and biological transformation of elements, energy, and pollution in aquatic ecosystems.

Joshua Hittie (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, jhittie@luc.edu;


Maxwell London (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, maxwellglondon@gmail.com;


John Kelly (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, Jkelly7@luc.edu;

5/20/2015  |   10:45 - 11:00   |  101B

MICROPLASTIC PARTICLES ARE A NOVEL AND MOBILE HABITAT FOR MICROORGANISMS IN FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS Microplastic particles (<5 mm) are an environmental contaminant of emerging concern, as recent studies have shown high microplastic concentrations in marine habitats worldwide. Sources of microplastic include fragmentation of larger plastic materials, industrial manufacturing pellets, personal care products, domestic cleansers, and synthetic textiles. Our work has documented similar concentrations of microplastic in the Great Lakes, and higher concentrations in an urban river. We observed dense bacterial colonization of microplastic in these freshwater habitats, and analyzed this colonization in laboratory incubations of microplastic from commercial products. In all cases, next-generation sequencing analysis revealed that microplastic-attached bacterial communities were distinct in taxonomic composition from communities in associated natural habitats, e.g. water column, seston and benthos. For example, microplastic collected in an urban river downstream of a wastewater treatment plant had significantly higher abundance of bacterial species associated with human gastrointestinal infections. We also demonstrated that microplastic can be transported long distances in a river (> 10 km). Therefore, microplastic may represent a novel microbial habitat that can transport a distinct suite of bacteria over long distances within freshwater ecosystems.

John Kelly (Primary Presenter/Author), Loyola University Chicago, Jkelly7@luc.edu;


Timothy Hoellein (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, thoellein@luc.edu;
Dr. Hoellein is a freshwater ecologist at Loyola University Chicago. His research interests are focused on ecosystem processes and biogeochemistry. His research lab explores these areas in associate with the movement and biological transformation of elements, energy, and pollution in aquatic ecosystems.

Sherri Mason (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), State University of New York at Fredonia, mason@fredonia.edu;


Amanda McCormick (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, mccormick.amandar@gmail.com;


Maxwell London (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Loyola University Chicago, maxwellglondon@gmail.com;

5/20/2015  |   11:00 - 11:15   |  101B

URBAN MICROBIAL ECOLOGY OF THE MILWAUKEE ESTUARY AND HARBOR Freshwater estuaries throughout the Great Lakes region receive stormwater runoff from heavily urbanized population centers. While human and animal feces contained in this runoff are often the focus of source tracking investigations, non-fecal bacterial loads from soil, aerosols, and urban infrastructure are also transported to the estuary and lake. We quantified and characterized this non-fecal urban bacterial component using bacterial 16S rRNA sequences from sewage, stormwater, and aquatic environments surrounding Milwaukee, WI. Microbial communities from each of these environments had a distinctive character. Components of the microbial community that affiliated most strongly with stormwater can be considered an “urban microbial signature,” and we can track these organisms to the harbor/estuary and lake. Estuary samples collected from the junction of three rivers and outer edge of the harbor varied in their composition, but tended to have higher urban signatures that correlated to increased rainfall. Over 50 million people live in urban population centers along within the Great Lakes region; as urbanization continues, increased loading of urban bacteria may have long term impacts on nearshore ecosystems.

Jenny Fisher (Primary Presenter/Author), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, fisher26@uwm.edu;


Ryan Newton (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, newtonr@uwm.edu;


Deb Dila (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, dila@uwm.edu;


Sandra McLellan (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, mclellan@uwm.edu;

5/20/2015  |   11:15 - 11:30   |  101B

DETECTING AND LOCATING SOURCES OF SEWAGE CONTAMINATION IN SURFACE WATER USING OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF WATER Outdated and failing municipal separated stormwater (MS4s) and sanitary sewers are emerging as a major threat to water resources in the United States. In recent years, research has demonstrated that stormwater often harbors numerous contaminants such as human-specific pathogens, pharmaceuticals, surfactants, and fire retardants. The occurrence of sewage-derived contaminants in stormwater suggests that sanitary sewage is mixing with stormwater through illicit connections, cracks in sanitary lines, or other mechanisms that result in leakage of sewage into MS4s. Detecting sewage in stormwater is currently a cost and time prohibitive task for municipalities. Optical properties of water, that is, fluorescence and absorbance spectroscopy allows for rapid characterization of dissolved organic matter in stormwater. Optical properties of water can be decomposed in a variety of ways to develop statistical relationships that predict the occurrence of sewage in stormwater associated with human waste. These statistical relationships can be further leveraged to develop field-level optical sensors that municipalities could use in real-time to locate and identify potential sources of MS4 failures.

Samuel Christel (Primary Presenter/Author), University of Wisconsin-Madison , schristel@wisc.edu;


Steve Corsi (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), U.S. Geological Survey, srcorsi@usgs.gov;


Peter Lenaker (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), U.S. Geological Survey, plenaker@usgs.gov;


Austin Baldwin (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), U.S. Geological Survey, akbaldwi@usgs.gov;


Brian Pellerin (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), U.S. Geological Survey, bpeller@usgs.gov;


Brian Bergamaschi (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), U.S. Geological Survey, bbergama@usgs.gov;


Sandra McLellan (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, mclellan@uwm.edu;


Emily Stanley (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Wisconsin - Madison, ehstanley@wisc.edu;

5/20/2015  |   11:30 - 11:45   |  101B

STREAM WATER QUALITY AND MACROINVERTEBRATES CONDITION IN AN URBANIZED WATERSHED OF THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI RIVER BASIN Little information is available on effects of urbanization on stream ecosystems in the Lower Mississippi River Basin. Base flow water samples were collected and analyzed monthly from four urban and four suburban streams from June 2011 to December 2013. Macroinvertebrates were assessed twice (October and March) each year during this period by a 500-µm mesh D-frame net. In the urban subwatersheds, dense residential housing, commercial buildings, and surface runoff from streets and highways were the primary stressors. In contrast, stressors in suburban subwatersheds included lawn/pasture and scattered residential housing. In urban streams, we generally found that water temperature, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, and pH were greater compared to suburban streams. Conversely, turbidity and major nutrient species were generally lower in urban streams compared to suburban streams. There were more taxa groups in the urban than suburban streams. EPT (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera) was not abundantly found in both urban and suburban streams. Gastropoda was dominant in the urban streams. Chironomidae, Oligochaeta, and Libelludidae were abundant in both the urban and suburban streams.

Yushun Chen (Primary Presenter/Author), Institute of Hydrobiology & University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, yushunchen@ihb.ac.cn;


Sagar Shrestha (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Aquaculture and Fisheries Center, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, yushunchen@ihb.ac.cn;


Kathryn Herzog (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Aquaculture and Fisheries Center, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, yushunchen@ihb.ac.cn;

5/20/2015  |   11:45 - 12:00   |  101B

THE RESPONSE IN MACROINVERTEBRATE COMMUNITIES TO FLOOD DISTURBANCE IN URBAN RESTORED SYSTEMS Flooding is an important disturbance that structures stream communities. While flooding is investigated in a diversity of freshwater ecosystems, there are fewer studies focused on urban streams. Understanding macroinvertebrate post-flood dynamics is important for informing key ecosystem processes like food web dynamics and organic matter processing in these systems. The objective of this research is to quantify changes in macroinvertebrate populations in urban restored streams following flood events. We chose four streams in the Charlotte, NC area and monitored each stream’s flood response for one year using six storms. Abundance trends reflected other published disturbance studies with a 66% increase ten days post-flood. We also found that restored sites recover in ways more similar to each other than to the unrestored reference site. Resistance and resilience of organisms was compared between sites and patterns emerged. Resistance was weaker in three restored sites shown by their inability to withstand small storms and stronger in the unrestored forested reference. Resilience was stronger in restored sites shown by their sometimes rapid recovery of organism abundance.

Sara Henderson (Primary Presenter/Author), University of North Carolina at Charlotte, s.eileen.h@gmail.com;


Sandra Clinton, PhD (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of North Carolina at Charlotte, sandra.clinton@charlotte.edu;
This session is being submitted on behalf of the SFS Science and Policy Committee.