Liselotte Ludvigsen

Distribution and Composition of Microbial Populations in a Landfill Leachate Contaminated Aquifer (Grindsted, Denmark).

A bstractTo investigate whether landfill leachates affected the microbial biomass and/or community composition of the extant microbiota, 37 samples were collected along a 305-m transect of a shallow landfill-leachate polluted aquifer. The samples were analyzed for total numbers of bacteria by use of the acridine orange direct count method (AODC). Numbers of dominant, specific groups of bacteria and total numbers of protozoa were measured by use of the most probable number method (MPN). Viable biomass estimates were obtained from measures of ATP and ester-linked phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) concentrations. The estimated numbers of total bacteria by direct counts were relatively constant throughout the aquifer, ranging from a low of 4.8 × 106 cells/g dry weight (dw) to a high of 5.3 × 107 cells/g dw. Viable biomass estimates based on PLFA concentrations were one to three orders of magnitude lower with the greatest concentrations (up to 4 × 105 cells/g dw) occurring at the border of the landfill and in samples collected from thin lenses of clay and silt with sand streaks. Cell number estimates based on ATP concentrations were also found to be lower than the direct count measurements (<2.2 × 106 cells/g dw), and with the greatest concentrations close to the landfill. Methanogens (Archaea) and reducers of sulfate, iron, manganese, and nitrate were all observed in the aquifer. Methanogens were found to be restricted to the most polluted and reduced part of the aquifer at a maximum cell number of 5.4 × 104 cells/g dw. Populations of sulfate reducers decreased with an increase in horizontal distance from the landfill ranging from a high of 9.0 × 103 cells/g dw to a low of 6 cells/g dw. Iron, manganese, and nitrate reducers were detected throughout the leachate plume all at maximum cell numbers of 106 cells/g dw. Changes in PLFA profiles indicated that a shift in microbial community composition occurred with increasing horizontal distance from the landfill. The types and patterns of lipid biomarkers suggested that increased proportions of sulfate- and iron-reducing bacteria as well as certain microeukaryotes existed at the border of the landfill. The presence of these lipid biomarkers correlated with the MPN results. There was, however, no significant correlation between the abundances of the specific PLFA biomarkers and quantitative measurements of redox processes. The application of AODC, MPN, PLFA, and ATP analyses in the characterization of the extant microbiota within the Grindsted aquifer revealed that as distance increased from the leachate source, viable biomass decreased and community composition shifted. These results led to the conclusion that the landfill leachate induced an increase in microbial cell numbers by altering the subsurface aquifer so that it was conducive to the growth of methanogens and of iron-and sulfate-reducing bacteria and fungi.

Anaerobic microbial redox processes in a landfill leachate contaminated aquifer (Grindsted, Denmark)

The distribution of anaerobic microbial redox processes was investigated along a 305 m long transect of a shallow landfill-leachate polluted aquifer. By unamended bioassays containing sediment and groundwater, 37 samples were investigated with respect to methane production, sulfate, iron, and manganese reduction, and denitrification. Methane production was restricted to the most reduced part of the plume with rates of 0.003–0.055 nmol CH4/g dry weight/day. Sulfate reduction was observed at rates of maximum 1.8 nmol SO42−/g dry weight/day along with methane production in the plume, but sulfate reduction was also observed further downgradient of the landfill. Iron reduction at rates of 5–19 nmol Fe(II)/g dry weight/day was observed in only a few samples, but this may be related to a high detection limit for the iron reducing bioassay. Manganese reduction at rates of maximum 2.4 nmol Mn(II)/g dry weight/day and denitrification at rates of 0.2–37 nmol N2O–N/g dry weight/day were observed in the less reduced part of the plume. All the redox processes were microbial processes. In many cases, several redox processes took place simultaneously, but in all samples one process dominated accounting for more than 70% of the equivalent carbon conversion. The bioassays showed that the redox zones in the plume identified from the groundwater composition (e.g. as methanogenic and sulfate reducing) locally hosted also other redox processes (e.g. iron reduction). This may have implications for the potential of the redox zone to degrade trace amounts of organic chemicals and suggests that unamended bioassays may be an important supplement to other approaches in characterizing the redox processes in an anaerobic plume.

Geology and sediment geochemistry of a landfill leachate contaminated aquifer (Grindsted, Denmark)

Abstract A landfill leachate affected aquifer was investigated with respect to the geology and sediment geochemistry (solid organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, oxidation capacity, reduced iron and sulfur species) involving 185 sediment samples taken along a 305-m-long and 10–12-m-deep transect downgradient from the landfill. The geology showed two distinct sand layers (upper Quaternary, Weichselian and a lower Tertiary, Miocene) sandwiching thin layers of silt/clay deposits, peat and brown coal. The organic carbon content (TOC) and the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of the sandy sediments were low (TOC, 100–300 μg C (g DW) −1 ; CEC, 0.1–0.5 meq per 100 g DW) and correlated fairly well with the geology. Processes in the contaminant plume caused depletion of oxidation capacity and precipitation of reduced iron and sulfur species. However, some of these parameters were also affected by the geology, e.g. the oxidation capacity (OXC) was significantly higher in the Quaternary layer (OXC, 14–35 μeq g DW −1 ) than in the Tertiary sand layer (OXC, −1 ). The intermediate layers (silt/clay and brown coal) have significantly higher values of most of the parameters investigated. This work demonstrates the need for a small scale geological model and a detailed mapping of the geochemistry of the sediments in order to distinguish impacts caused by the contaminant plumes from natural variations in the aquifer geochemistry.

An anaerobic field injection experiment in a landfill leachate plume, Grindsted, Denmark: 2. Deduction of anaerobic (methanogenic, sulfate‐, and Fe (III)‐reducing) redox conditions

Redox conditions may be environmental factors which affect the fate of the xenobiotic organic compounds. Therefore the redox conditions were characterized in an anaerobic, leachate-contaminated aquifer 15–60 m downgradient from the Grindsted Landfill, Denmark, where an field injection experiment was carried out. Furthermore, the stability of the redox conditions spatially and over time were investigated, and different approaches to deduce the redox conditions were evaluated. The redox conditions were evaluated in a set of 20 sediment and groundwater samples taken from locations adjacent to the sediment samples. Samples were investigated with respect to groundwater chemistry, including hydrogen and volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and sediment geochemistry, and bioassays were performed. The groundwater chemistry, including redox sensitive species for a large number of samples, varied over time during the experimental period of 924 days owing to variations in the leachate from the landfill. However, no indication of change in the redox environment resulting from the field injection experiment or natural variation was observed in the individual sampling points. The methane, Fe(II), hydrogen, and VFA groundwater chemistry parameters strongly indicated a Fe(III)-reducing environment. This was further supported by the bioassays, although methane production and sulfate-reduction were also observed in a few samples close to the landfill. On the basis of the calculated carbon conversion, Fe(III) was the dominant electron acceptor in the region of the aquifer, which was investigated. Because of the complexity of a landfill leachate plume, several redox processes may occur simultaneously, and an array of methods must be applied for redox characterization in such multicomponent systems.

Degradability of chlorinated aliphatic compounds in methanogenic leachates sampled at eight landfills

The degradability of chlorinated aliphatic compounds (tetra chloromethane (TeCM); 1,1,1-trichloroethane (1,1,1-TCA); 1,1,2-trichloroethane (1,1,2-TCA); tetrachloroethene/per chloroethylene (PCE); and trichloroethene/trichloroethylene (TCE)) was studied under methanogenic conditions in batch reactors with leachate from eight landfills in Denmark. All landfill leachates showed fast abiotic degradation of TeCM and 1,1,1-TCA, while 1,1,2-TCA seemed unaffected during the methanogenic incubation. PCE and TCE were degraded biologically by reductive dehalogenation, but only in three of the eight leachates. The conversion rates of the chlorinated ethenes (PCE, TCE, dichloroethene (DCE)) and monochlo roethene/vinyl chloride (VC) varied significantly between the three landfill leachates transforming chlorinated ethenes. In one leachate, complete conversion of all ethenes, including conversion of VC, was observed within 40 days, while another leachate during the same period showed only about 50% con version of PCE. This indicates that transformation of these common solvents in the landfill environment may vary sub stantially between landfills.