Stream microbial communities and ecosystem functioning show complex responses to multiple stressors in wastewater

Multiple anthropogenic drivers are changing ecosystems globally, with a disproportionate and intensifying impact on freshwater habitats. A major impact of urbanisation are inputs from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Initially designed to greatly reduce nutrient loads, WWTPs increasingly release a multitude of micropollutants (i.e., synthetic chemicals) and organisms (including antibiotic resistant bacteria) to receiving environments. This pollution may have pervasive impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Viewed through multiple lenses of macroecological and ecotoxicological theory, we combined field, flume, and laboratory experiments to determine the effects of wastewater on microbial communities and organic-matter processing using a standardized decomposition assay. Firstly, we conducted a mensurative experiment using 60 sampling locations above and below WWTP discharges in 20 Swiss streams. This showed that microbial respiration and decomposition rates were positively...

多重人为驱动因子正改变全球生态系统，且对淡水生境造成不成比例且日益加剧的影响。城市化带来的主要影响之一来自污水处理厂（Wastewater Treatment Plants, WWTPs）。这类设施最初旨在大幅降低营养盐负荷，但如今正不断向受纳环境排放大量微污染物（即人工合成化学品）与各类生物（包括抗生素耐药菌）。此类污染可能对生物多样性与生态系统服务产生广泛影响。本研究基于宏生态学与生态毒理学理论的多重视角，结合野外调查、流水槽与实验室实验，采用标准化分解实验测定法，探究废水对微生物群落与有机质分解过程的影响。首先，我们在瑞士20条溪流中的污水处理厂排放口上下游共设置60个采样点位，开展了一项观测性实验。研究结果显示，微生物呼吸速率与分解速率呈正相关……