Using Benthic Macroinvertebrate and Fish Communities as Bioindicators of the Tanshui River Basin Around the Greater Taipei Area — Multivariate Analysis of Spatial Variation Related to Levels of Water Pollution

Bibliographic Data

ID15490651
AuthorsShuh-Sen Young (National Hsinchu University of Education, corresponding author), Hsi-Nan Yang (Environmental Protection Administration), Da‐Ji Huang (0000-0002-8897-5894, Chia Nan University of Pharmacy and Science), Da-Ji Huang (Chia Nan University of Pharmacy and Science), Su-Miao Liu (Environmental Protection Administration), Yueh‐Han Huang (0000-0002-9981-2521, National Hsinchu University of Education), Yueh-Han Huang (National Hsinchu University of Education), Chung-Ting Chiang (National Hsinchu University of Education), Jinwei Liu (0000-0001-8161-5004, National Hsinchu University of Education), Jin-Wei Liu (National Hsinchu University of Education)
Year2014
Volume11
Issue7
Pages7116-7143
Publication date2014-07-14
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1661-7827 • E-ISSN: 1660-4601
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/ijerph110707116
PMID25026081
PMCIDPMC4113864
OpenAlexW2064561291
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited22

After decades of strict pollution control and municipal sewage treatment, the water quality of the Tanshui River increased significantly after pollution mitigation as indicated by the River Pollution Index (RPI). The pollution level of the estuarine region decreased from severe pollution to mostly moderately impaired. The most polluted waters are presently restricted to a flow track length between 15-35 km relative to the river mouth. From July 2011 to September 2012, four surveys of fish and benthic macroinvertebrates were conducted at 45 sampling sites around the Tanshui River basin. The pollution level of all the study area indicated by the RPI could also be explained by the Family Biotic Index (FBI) and Biotic Index (BI) from the benthic macroinvertebrate community, and the Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) of the fish community. The result of canonical correlation analysis between aquatic environmental factors and community structure indicated that the community structure was closely related to the level of water pollution. Fish species richness in the estuarine area has increased significantly in recent years. Some catadromous fish and crustaceans could cross the moderate polluted water into the upstream freshwater, and have re-colonized their populations. The benthic macroinvertebrate community relying on the benthic substrate of the estuarine region is still very poor, and the water layer was still moderately polluted

Benthic zone · Bioindicator · Biology · Cartography · Drainage basin · Fish · Fishery · Geography · Multivariate analysis · Multivariate statistics · Structural basin · Environmental Science · Fish Ecology and Management Studies · Freshwater macroinvertebrate diversity and ecology · Water Quality and Pollution Assessment · Ecology · Pollution

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