| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4420175 | Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety | 2014 | 8 Pages |
•Selenium pollution from coal ash wastewater exceeded toxic thresholds for fish.•A large proportion of fish (28.9 percent) exhibited deformity of the spine and/or head.•Teratogenic Deformity Index values indicated negative impacts on the fishery.•The value of fishery losses was calculated at over $US 8.6 million annually.•Cumulative losses exceeded $US 217 million, with damage dating back to 1987.
Selenium pollution from coal ash wastewater was investigated in Lake Sutton, NC. This lake has been continuously used as a cooling pond for a coal-fired power plant since 1972. Historic and recent levels of contamination in fish tissues (14–105 µg Se/g dry weight in liver, 24–127 in eggs, 4–23 in muscle, 7–38 in whole-body) exceeded toxic thresholds and teratogenic effects were observed in fish collected in 2013. A high proportion (28.9 percent) of juvenile Lepomis spp. exhibited spinal and craniofacial malformations that were consistent with selenium poisoning. Teratogenic Deformity Index values indicated population-level impacts on the fishery. The partially monetized cost of resultant fishery losses was calculated at over $US 8.6 million annually, and over $US 217 million for the entire period of damage, which dates back to 1987 when chemical and biological monitoring began.
