Aneta Spyra

Humans widely use pharmaceuticals due to their availability, effectiveness, quick pain relief, and ability to improve well-being and health conditions. Their presence in aquatic environments, even in small doses, leads to serious ecological disturbances and alterations in trophic chains. This study aimed to assess the mortality and mobility of native Gammarus pulex and invasive Gammarus tigrinus under exposure to the nonopioid analgesics paracetamol, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and a pharmaceutical mixture, as well as to determine their acute toxicity and impact on both species. At the 24 ^th and 96 ^th h of exposure, the highest increase in mortality was observed, most likely linked to shock caused by the sudden appearance of pollutants and the duration of exposure. Mortality was influenced not only by exposure time but also by the type of pharmaceutical. Paracetamol was the most lethal for both native and invasive species, though 100% mortality was recorded after 96 h of exposure. At a concentration of 5000 mg/L, all organisms died within 24 h. G. tigrinus , despite its broader ecological tolerance to pollution and resistance to environmental changes, responded to the presence of pharmaceuticals like G. pulex . Regarding survival, the ibuprofen–ketoprofen mixture in a 1:1 ratio was the least lethal for G. tigrinus , while ketoprofen alone was the least lethal for G. pulex . The availability and widespread use of over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, combined with the lack of systematic monitoring of aquatic environments, pose serious challenges to aquatic organisms in the context of pharmaceutical pollution in water habitats.

Benthic invertebrates utilized as indicators of river ecological status were examined within the river situated in agricultural catchments as a model system to assess the significance of agricultural pollution in accordance with the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). The extensive study revealed variations in the physicochemical parameters of the water over the years, including pH, NO ₃ , NH ₄ , total dissolved solids, salinity, chlorides, and dissolved oxygen. Notably, the maximum density of invertebrates consistently showed a significant increase during the spring compared to the autumn, while multimetric index values remained comparable. The ecological status fluctuated over the years, with classifications ranging from good and moderate in 2014, moderate in 2017, to good and poor in 2020 and 2023. The significance of the long‐term monitoring study lies in the evolving impact of parameters on the river's ecological status, index component metrics, and MMI values. Additionally, the number of variables exhibiting a significant relationship with individual component metrics has expanded over time. Seasonal variations, as indicated by redundancy analysis results, demonstrated that chlorophyll a and chlorides (in spring) and conductivity (in the autumn) significantly influenced seven metrics and the water quality class. While differences in component metric values were observed in specific years, the water quality class remained comparable over the long term in the two seasons. In the seasons, the MMI_PL value and the quality class were comparable. However, individual component metrics were influenced by various environmental factors, highlighting the importance of considering these factors in interpreting the results of benthic macroinvertebrate studies.

Rivers face multiple stressors that act on biodiversity. In view of global environmental changes, river modifications, deforestation, and pollution, their natural parts are of highest importance in maintaining the biodiversity of mollusks. The study addresses the predictors of rare mollusk species, as they serve as ecological indicators of ecosystem quality and drivers of ecosystem pollution in agricultural, urban, and forest catchments. Analyses of environmental predictors and mollusk distribution were provided, and the model of multivariate canonical correspondence analysis was constructed. The pH of the water was relatively high, indicating alkaline conditions, whereas conductivity was low, indicating no salty influences in river basins. The study revealed the occurrence of species globally threatened (EN), vulnerable in Europe (VU), least concern species (LC), or legally protected in Poland, for example, Unio crassus, Anodonta cygnea, and Unio tumidus. Mollusks showed a high positive association with 13 predictors that reflected the variety of substrates, river and water parameters, and debris. As shown by CCA results, they also avoided rivers in urban catchments. The results provide new data for managing areas, and the specifics are easy to extrapolate to other contexts. Mollusks occurrence in freshwaters has decreased dramatically, placing them among the most threatened animals on Earth. Overall, this study highlights the complex interactions between environmental conditions and mollusk diversity.

Drought has an effect on hydrologic conditions and water quality under climate change. Small water retention in forests is one of the priority investment programs implemented in recent years, supported by the European Union. This study aimed to assess the ecological conditions of forest lakes using macrophytes and benthos organisms diversity as an ecological indicator of ecosystem conditions under climatic changes. The study was carried out in forest artificial lakes serving as surface water retention in the context of biodiversity in climatic changes and its role in the retention of water. Despite systematic maintenance activities, a long period of lake existence significantly determines the natural biological processes occurring in lakes and riparian habitats. The analysis showed low values of salinity indicators and the concentration of nitrogen and phosphorus. The pH ranged from 6.2 to 7.6; showing slightly acidic conditions or within the limits of neutral. The model of plant associations showed the occurrence of 24 species of plants within nine plant assemblages in the Phragmitetea and Potametea classes of associations (Biocenotic index 1.007–1.692). Despite human activities, lake condition, as assessed by the ESMI index or the biocenotic diversity indices, is good (0.416–0.648). Climate change, expressed by an increase in the frequency of dry years, creates a situation of changes in filling lakes with water, which, taking into account their small depth, results in dynamically changing conditions for the development of phytolittoral. Along with the phytolittoral changes, benthos communities change, their density and the number of taxa also fluctuate. It should be assumed that with ongoing climate change, these phenomena will probably intensify, which will lead to changes in entire ecosystems at plant and animal levels.

Coal mining activity contributes to energy security and employment occupation, but is associated with environmental deterioration. Coal combustion leads to GHG emissions, while coal mining results in the generation of saline effluents. These effluents are discharged in inland surface waters, applying significant pressure on their quality, with a negative impact on aquatic life and the economy of a region. This study includes water samples that were analyzed in order to investigate the organic compounds, heavy metals, and other physicochemical parameters. Biological monitoring was done according to the Water Framework Directive methodology. The results from an aquatic area in Southern Poland, which indirectly receives coal mine effluents, indicate elevated salinity with excessive chlorides, sulfates, and sodium ions. The water quality of another non-polluted aquatic area was also assessed to examine the impact of indirect coal mine wastewater discharge on this area. The high salinity levels hinder the use of river water for drinking, agricultural, or industrial purposes. The results obtained show high pressure on the ecological status of streams and rivers that receive mine effluents, and on the density and diversity of aquatic invertebrates. This pressure is clearly visible in the structure of benthic communities and in invertebrate diversity. It also contributes to the appearance of invasive species and increasing water salinity. Limiting discharges of mine water transporting large loads of saline substances would reduce the negative impact on the quality of river waters and biological life.

Background: Secondary salinity of river water reduces the value of ecosystem services, negatively impacting the entire aquatic ecosystem and reducing the possibility of water use. In Poland, significant anthropogenic salinity of rivers and water reservoirs is usually associated with mining activity consisting of pumping salty mine water into settling ponds or often directly into rivers. However, to assess the reasons for the salinity of the Vistula waters, it is necessary to identify all sources of salt in surface waters, enabling the assessment of the salt load in the waters. Methods: The paper presents four sources of data which have been compiled to propose a valuable method for analyzing the threat of the river. Patrol monitoring was one method of data acquisition, and State Environmental Monitoring data ware also used. Clustering and correlation statistical techniques were used for analysis. Results: Of the 20 physical and chemical parameters analyzed, chloride, calcium sulphate and magnesium ions are important for salinity. Measurements with multi-parameter probes allowed for the identification of increased salinity pressure sites, while flow analyses were required to calculate the load. Conclusions: The Vistula River had the highest concentrations of the analyzed ions in the Silesia Region. The use of patrol monitoring can be highly useful in determining the causes of emerging problems with water quality and supporting State Environmental Monitoring.

Human activities, including the mining industry, have considerably degraded water habitats worldwide. Acidification has severely affected aquatic environments and biodiversity by altering food webs and reducing species richness. The study area in southern Poland is unique in addressing the effects of mining‐related acidification on biodiversity in freshwater ecosystems along a broad pH gradient (2.4–9.6) in mining lakes. Study was designed to test for effect of human induced acidification. Using multivariate ordination techniques, we analyzed how variations in invertebrate composition are related to environmental factors. The results indicated that pH, hardness, total dissolved solids, and the content of ammonia and calcium were significantly associated with the distribution of invertebrates in the studied mining lakes. The highest iron content, relatively high values of conductivity, and chlorides were found in the extremely acidic mining lakes. A clear trend in decreasing density with decreasing pH was observed for taxa such as Oligochaeta, Chironomidae, Glossiphonidae, and certain taxa of snails. However, the density of other taxa such as Lestidae, Libellulidae, Caenidae, Sialidae, Helodidae, Hydrophilidae, and Polycentropodidae increased with decreasing pH. Specific communities were found with increasing acidity. Therefore, a further increase in acidity will probably cause a stronger decline in most of taxa and their density, and on water chemistry (e.g., calcium concentration, nitrites, and hardness). The data yielded offer an opportunity to fill knowledge gaps on acidic stress concerning less‐studied environments such as mining lakes and link environmental pollution with communities, which is especially important, because aquatic forest habitats are especially exposed to different climatic factors and threats.