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Publications

Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).

Filter Total Items: 4094

Bacterial methylmercury degradation in Florida Everglades peat sediment

Methylmercury (MeHg) degradation was investigated along an eutrophication gradient in the Florida Everglades by quantifying 14CH4 and 14CO2 production after incubation of anaerobic sediments with [14C]MeHg. Degradation rate constants (k) were consistently ≤0.1 d-1 and decreased with sediment depth. Higher k values were observed when shorter incubation times and lower MeHg amendment levels were use
Authors
M. C. Marvin-DiPasquale, R.S. Oremland

Microbial diversity in a hydrocarbon- and chlorinated-solvent- contaminated aquifer undergoing intrinsic bioremediation

A culture-independent molecular phylogenetic approach was used to survey constituents of microbial communities associated with an aquifer contaminated with hydrocarbons (mainly jet fuel) and chlorinated solvents undergoing intrinsic bioremediation. Samples were obtained from three redox zones: methanogenic, methanogenic-sulfate reducing, and iron or sulfate reducing. Small-subunit rRNA genes were
Authors
M.A. Dojka, P. Hugenholtz, S.K. Haack, N.R. Pace

Sulfur geochemistry of hydrothermal waters in Yellowstone National Park: I. The origin of thiosulfate in hot spring waters

Thiosulfate (S2O32−), polythionate (SxO62−), dissolved sulfide (H2S), and sulfate (SO42−) concentrations in thirty-nine alkaline and acidic springs in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) were determined. The analyses were conducted on site, using ion chromatography for thiosulfate, polythionate, and sulfate, and using colorimetry for dissolved sulfide. Thiosulfate was detected at concentrations typica
Authors
Y. Xu, M.A.A. Schoonen, D. Kirk Nordstrom, K.M. Cunningham, J. W. Ball

Influence of microalgal biomass on absorption efficiency of Cd, Cr, and Zn by two bivalves from San Francisco Bay

The bioavailability to clams (Potamocorbula amurensis and Macoma balthica) of Cd, Cr, and Zn from suspended particulate material (SPM) collected during a phytoplankton bloom was compared to bioavailability from SPM dominated by resuspended sediments. Bioavailability was also compared among mudflat sediments amended with different levels of living benthic microalgae. Bioavailability was defined by
Authors
B.-G. Lee, S. N. Luoma

Flow of river water into a Karstic limestone aquifer. 1. Tracing the young fraction in groundwater mixtures in the Upper Floridan Aquifer near Valdosta, Georgia

The quality of water in the Upper Floridan aquifer near Valdosta, Georgia is affected locally by discharge of Withlacoochee River water through sinkholes in the river bed. Data on transient tracers and other dissolved substances, including Cl−, 3H, tritiogenic helium-3 (3He), chlorofluorocarbons (CFC-11, CFC-12, CFC-113), organic C (DOC), O2 (DO), H2S, CH4, δ18O, δD, and 14C were investigated as t
Authors
Niel Plummer, E. Busenberg, J. B. McConnell, S. Drenkard, P. Schlosser, R. L. Michel

Effect of enhanced manganese oxidation in the hyporheic zone on basin-scale geochemical mass balance

We determined the role of the hyporheic zone (the subsurface zone where stream water and shallow groundwater mix) in enhancing microbially mediated oxidation of dissolved manganese (to form manganese precipitates) in a drainage basin contaminated by copper mining. The fate of manganese is of overall importance to water quality in Pinal Creek Basin, Arizona, because manganese reactions affect the t
Authors
Judson W. Harvey, Christopher C. Fuller

Fate and transport of linear alkylbenzenesulfonate in a sewage- contaminated aquifer: A comparison of natural-gradient pulsed tracer tests

Two natural-gradient tracer tests were conducted to determine the transport and biodegradation behavior of linear alkylbenzenesulfonate (LAS) surfactant under in situ conditions in a sewage-contaminated aquifer. The tests were conducted in two biogeochemically distinct zones of the aquifer: (1) an aerobic uncontaminated zone (oxic zone) and (2) a moderately aerobic, sewage-contaminated zone (trans
Authors
C.J. Krueger, L. B. Barber, D.W. Metge, J.A. Field

Effect of contaminant concentration on aerobic microbial mineralization of DCE and VC in stream-bed sediments

Discharge of DCE and VC to an aerobic surface water system simultaneously represents a significant environmental concern and, potentially, a non-engineered opportunity for efficient contaminant bioremediation. The potential for bioremediation, however, depends on the ability of the stream-bed microbial community to efficiently and completely degrade DCE and VC over a range of contaminant concentra
Authors
P. M. Bradley, F. H. Chapelle

Microbial mineralization of VC and DCE under different terminal electron accepting conditions

Production of 14CO2 from [1,2-14C] dichloroethene (DCE) or [1,2-14C] vinyl chloride (VC) was quantified in aquifer and stream-bed sediment microcosms to evaluate the potential for microbial mineralization as a pathway for DCE and VC biodegradation under aerobic, Fe(III)-reducing, SO4-reducing, and methanogenic conditions. Mineralization of [1,2-14C] DCE and [1,2-14C] VC to 14CO2 decreased under in
Authors
P. M. Bradley, F. H. Chapelle

Herbicides in ground water of the Midwest: A regional study of shallow aquifers, 1991-94

The intensive herbicide use associated with the 'Corn Belt' marks the Midwestern United States as a region where herbicide contamination of ground water could be a problem. To better understand the regional occurrence of herbicides in shallow aquifers of the Midwest, a sampling network of 303 wells across 12 States was developed. The results documented relatively widespread, low-level concentratio
Authors
Dana W. Kolpin, J. K. Stamer, D. A. Goolsby, E.M. Thurman

Contribution of hydroxylated atrazine degradation products to the total atrazine load in midwestern streams

The contribution of hydroxylated atrazine degradation products (HADPs) to the total atrazine load (i.e., atrazine plus stable metabolites) in streams needs to be determined in order to fully assess the impact of atrazine contamination on stream ecosystems and human health. The objectives of this study were (1) to determine the contribution of HADPs to the total atrazine load in streams of nine mid
Authors
R.N. Lerch, P.E. Blanchard, E.M. Thurman