Microbial bloom formation in a high pH spent nuclear fuel pond.
Cyanobacteria
First generation Magnox storage pond
High pH
Pseudanabaena
Sellafield
Spent nuclear fuel pond
Journal
The Science of the total environment
ISSN: 1879-1026
Titre abrégé: Sci Total Environ
Pays: Netherlands
ID NLM: 0330500
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
10 Jun 2020
10 Jun 2020
Historique:
received:
02
12
2019
revised:
21
02
2020
accepted:
21
02
2020
entrez:
25
4
2020
pubmed:
25
4
2020
medline:
27
6
2020
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
Microorganisms are able to colonise a wide range of extreme environments, including nuclear facilities. In this study, the First Generation Magnox Storage Pond (FGMSP) a high pH, legacy spent nuclear fuel pond (SNFP) situated at Sellafield, Cumbria, UK, was studied. Despite the inhospitable conditions in the FGMSP, microorganisms can cause "blooms" within the facility which to date have not been studied. These microbial blooms significantly reduce visibility in the engineered facility, disrupting fuel retrieval operations and slowing decommissioning. The microbial community colonising the pond during two microbial bloom periods was determined by using physiological measurements and high throughput next generation sequencing techniques. In situ probes within the ponds targeting photosynthetic pigments indicated a cyanobacterial bloom event. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene data suggested that a single cyanobacterial genus was dominant during the bloom events, which was most closely related to Pseudanabaena sp. Comparisons between the microbial community of FGMSP and an adjacent SNFP that is periodically purged into the FGMSP, showed different community profiles. Data confirm the onset of the microbial blooms occurred when the pond purge rate was reduced, and blooms could be controlled by re-establishing the purging regime. The presence of Pseudanabaena sp. that can colonise the pond and dominate during bloom periods is notable since they have received little attention for their role in cyanobacterial bloom formation. This work also informs bioremediation efforts to treat waters contaminated with radionuclides, which could benefit from the use of cyanobacteria able to tolerate extreme environments and accumulate priority radionuclides.
Identifiants
pubmed: 32325573
pii: S0048-9697(20)31026-3
doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137515
pii:
doi:
Substances chimiques
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
0
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
137515Informations de copyright
Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts
Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that this study received funding from Sellafield Ltd. The funder had no role in study design and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Sellafield Ltd. did provide the pond water samples and detailed pond data collected as part of routine operations. All authors declare no conflict of interest.