Active biomonitoring for chemical contamination levels assessment of continental rivers

Abstract

In collaboration with the French Biodiversity Agency and the Water Agencies, active biomonitoring assay with the amphipod Gammarus fossarum has been developed in responses to requirements of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) for the chemical contamination monitoring. Biota offers many advantages for identifying and the quantification of priority substances. Caging allows to control biological parameters of test organisms and the exposure duration, making it possible to reliably compare data obtained between stations and over time. In addition to assessing the compliance of water bodies towards environmental quality standards (EQS), active biomonitoring allows to qualify, through indicators, bioavailable contamination levels of water bodies for major chemical compound families (metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls and pesticides) and to identify most problematic substances. Active biomonitoring and related indicators also offer the opportunity to project the impact of chemical contamination on biological communities from concentration levels observed in caged gammarids.