Eutrofização de açudes no semiárido: vulnerabilidade e biomanipulação

Abstract

With the increasing water demand and the concern that the supply can not meet that consumption, it is increasingly necessary conserving the available water, in quantity and (especially) quality. This conservation is especially important in semi-arid regions such as the Brazilian Northeast (NEB), where water is scarce. The main causes of pollution (water waste) in smal reservoirs (in the semiarid) are: the animal presence on the reservoir margins, where they defecate and urinate; domestic wastewater (e.g. laundry water, water used in the household); removal of riparian vegetation, which protects reservoirs against silting and organic matter input; presence of outdoor trash; and use of agricultural inputs that contribute to the process of eutrophication. In turn, the main feature of eutrophication process is excess nutrients in water bodies, with considerable growth fluctuations and eventual death of algae and weeds. With the continuity of the process, there is the accumulation of dead matter in the deepest region of these environments, causing the increase in bacterial metabolism that causes the death of fish and other organisms by oxygen lack or reduction, plus the toxin production by blue-green algae, which are harmful to human health and to the biota at large. Therefore, studies that estimating the nutrient input become urgent. With such studies, strategies for the restoration of eutrophic reservoirs can be implemented. Among such strategies there is biomanipulation. Biomanipulation is a biological strategy based in the use of aquatic organisms (e.g. fish), to balance the aquatic ecosystem. Hypothesis: "Is it possible to treat an eutrophic reservoir using biomanipulation?” If so, what are the particularities of biomanipulating a reservoir the semiarid region, especially considering its rich ictiological diversity, with predominantly omnivorous fish population and where fish reproduction occurs throughout the year? Therefore, in order to answer these questions, this thesis was divided in two parts, the first comparing the state of eutrophication and its probable causes in two tropical reservoirs, one in wet climate (La Juventud, Cuba) and the other in semiarid climate (Marengo, Brazil). After estimating the trophic state of the two reservoirs in rainy and dry seasons, we evaluated the influence of hydrology and of land use on reservoir trophic level. It was found that the semi-arid tropical reservoir was eutrophic, while the reservoir on humid climate was mesotrophic. Considering that there is similar land use in the two basins and that, in the rainy season, the nutrient input in the wet basin is considerably higher than the nutrient input in the semiarid basin, the higher trophic state of the semi-arid basin is surprising. The variable that best explains this phenomenon is the water residence time, which directly influences the phosphorus residence time in the reservoir. The high water residence time in the semiarid basin reservoir (three times that of the reservoir in humid climate) is due as much to the low runoff coefficient (93 versus 595 mm per year in the reservoir in humid climate) as to the excessive water evaporation in the semiarid reservoir (1.2 times that of the reservoir in humid climate). These results indicate that semiarid reservoirs are more vulnerable to eutrophication than reservoirs in humid climate in summer periods and, therefore, the management of their basins should be more restrictive to nutrient production; as to the second part, it reflects the particularities of the biomanipulation issue. Thus, in experimental 2000L mesocosms, six treatments were outlined to evaluate the effects of two omnivorous species (Nile tilapia – Oreochromis niloticus and piaba – Astyanax bimaculatus) on eutrophic waters. It was also taken into account the sediment influence as a nutrient source for the eutrophication process. The treatments were: 1. Oreochromis niloticus without sediment; 2. Oreochromis niloticus with sediment; 3. Oreochromis niloticus plus Astyanax bimaculatus without sediment; 4. Oreochromis niloticus plus Astyanax bimaculatus with sediment; 5. Astyanax bimaculatus without sediment and; 6. Astyanax bimaculatus with sediment. Each test was conducted for 45 days. Water samples were taken every 15 days. Tests were performed for total phosphorus, orthophosphate, chlorophyll a and total nitrogen (TN being tested only at the beginning and at the end of each treatment). Testing for dissolved oxygen concentration, temperature, pH and Secchi transparency was done in situ. The sediment was tested for pH, ion content, nutrients (such as Ca2+, Mg2+, Al3+, iron and assimilable phosphorous) and particle size. In order to estimate the treatment water trophic level, the trophic state index (TSI) of Toledo Jr. et al. (1983) was applied. Differences between the TSI values were calculated acording to Carlson (1991). Also, the fish were tested for total phosphorus content. The results suggested that systems containing tilapia showed low efficiency in the recovery of eutrophic waters. The average TSI obtained in these tests showed that the water remained eutrophic. Treatments with piabas showed better efficiency in controlling eutrophication. The average TSI obtained in these tests showed that the water went from eutrophic to mesotrophic. However, the results found by TSI differences do not confirm if the piabas (Astyanax bimaculatus) were alone responsible for this. The same results could be also influenced by light and temperature. As to the total phosphorus content of specimens coming from treatments, tilapia showed higher bioaccumulation than that shown by piabas. However, the results were antagonic to those obtained from specimens taken directly from nature. In short, two omnivorous species were tested for their biomanipulation potential; the Oreochromis nilotucus, which, due to its behavior, proved to be an agent of water quality disruption and the Astyanax bimaculatus, which was shown as being potentially viable for future biomanipulation research.