Impacts of legacy mining on stream structural and functional processes in an urban stream

This doctoral dissertation aims to improve the understanding of mine drainage in urban watersheds, specifically how neutral mine drainage (NMD) influences urban streams. Past research on both urban streams and mine impacted streams has largely focused on characterizing streams using structural approaches although there has been an increase in literature on functional processes over the past decade. As urban streams experience multiple co-stressors such as land-use changes combined with heavy metal contamination it is important that we study them using more robust, complementary approaches. This dissertation characterizes the stream from a structural approach looking at physicochemical characteristics and species diversity and abundance of primary producers (i.e., periphyton and macrophytes), biofilm diatoms, macroinvertebrates and the sediment microbial community in addition to investigating the stream from a functional approach, focusing on surface water and sediment nutrient cycling and whole reach stream metabolism. From the structural and functional assessments, the stream was characterized to have an abundance of pollutant and metal tolerant organisms that contribute to high biological activity, specifically periphyton biofilm assemblages and macrophytes that drive nutrient uptake and stream metabolism.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph. D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Natural resources (MU)

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Missouri--Columbia

Year dc:date.issued

2023

Author dc:creator

• Wilson, Jessica Lyn

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Argerich, Alba

Language dc:language.iso

eng, English

DOI

https://doi.org/10.32469/10355/96132

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:mospace.umsystem.edu:10355/96132