EFFECT OF OIL SPILL BIOREMEDIATION ON THE BENTHIC FAUNA

摘要

This project was designed to determine the impact of different bioremediation strategies on oil biodegradation and benthic meio- and macrofaunal communities. A field trial simulating an oil spill was established at a hydrodymanically active shoreline site in England. Microbiological and chemical investigations indicated that fertilizer stimulated oil biodegradation with treated oiled sediment showing a significant (P<0.05) reduction in oil compared to the unfertilized but oiled sediment. After 11 weeks, bioremediation had not stimulated faster recolonization rates of fertilized vs non-fertilized oiled sediments by benthic fauna. Multivariate analyses suggested that the fertilizer caused changes in species distribution patterns of benthic fauna. Fertilizer did not effect trophic relationships in nematode assemblages, but the impact of oiling and nutrient addition on macrofauna biomass was detected within 3 weeks of the fertilizer addition. These preliminary results suggest that although fertilizer treatment had no adverse effect on the benthic fauna, it also did not promote more rapid recovery of the benthic invertebrate community following the oil spill.