Chapters authored
Shallow Lakes of the Mexican Central Plateau: Assessing their Health Condition with Oxidative Stress Biomarkers in Sentinel Organisms
In the Mexican Central Plateau (MCP), due to their long history of geologic instability, numerous fluvial systems that were blocked formed extensive shallow lakes. Environmental conditions of this area have favored the agricultural land use and the settlement of great industrial corridors and cities. Human activities in MCP are largely sustained by intense water use that has led to a high deterioration in the water bodies of this area. We analyze the water quality of two selected shallow lakes of the MCP: Yuriria Lake and Xochimilco Lake and early warning biomarkers of native sentinel species of each lake. Both studied lakes are influenced by the input of complex mixtures of pollutants. We assess water quality index and a set of oxidative stress biomarkers in native endemic species of each lake. Results showed that the input of xenobiotics and changes in the periods of dry and rains in the shallow lakes studied provoke a stronger response in sentinel organisms because dilution effects are minimal in a small water column. Furthermore, resuspension of sediments in shallow lakes can release pollutants to the water column that could exert damage to the health condition of the aquatic biota compromising the survival of endemic sensitive species.
Part of the book: Lake Sciences and Climate Change
Calibrating and Validating the Biomonitoring Working Party (BMWP) Index for the Bioassessment of Water Quality in Neotropical Streams
The Biological Monitoring Working Party (BMWP) is among the most used bioassessment indices for aquatic ecosystems quality assessment, which assigns scores to each macroinvertebrate taxa according to their sensitivity to organic pollution. However, BMWP scores must be calibrated to each geographical and ecological conditions. In this study, we obtain statistically derived scores of sensitivity for macroinvertebrates taxa from Neotropical Mexican rivers, Apatlaco and Chalma-Tembembe rivers, Balsas Basin. We obtained water samples and aquatic macroinvertebrates in four sampling campaigns (dry and rainy seasons). Physicochemical parameters and the abundances of the aquatic macroinvertebrates were used for the BMWP index calibration, which was performed in steps obtaining: the physicochemical quality index (Pcq), incorporation of abundances classes of macroinvertebrates taxa in the corresponding Pcq interval and the determination of bioindication values for each macroinvertebrate family. The BMWP calibrated index was validated and tested for the geographical range extension. The BMWP scores for Chalma-Tembembe River (located in agricultural areas) showed bad polluted to regular and moderated polluted categories. The urban river zone of Apatlaco River showed: bad, very polluted to very bad categories. The BMWP calibrated is a suitable biomonitoring tool, allowing the detection of those zones that needs urgently a management and recovery plan.
Part of the book: Water Quality