Effect of wastewater from the in-water cleaning of ship hulls on attached and unattached microalgae.

Environmental spills of in-water hull cleaning wastewater (HCW) containing heavy metals and biocides is inevitable, and the effects of HCW on microalgae are unknown. To investigate this, we conducted microcosm experiments by adding HCW to natural seawater. HCW samples were obtained from two different cleaning methods (soft: sponge, hard: brush), and 5 % or 10 % were added to natural seawater as treatments. Dissolved Cu concentrations were 5 to 10 times higher in the treatments than those in the control. There were significant differences in growth of unattached microalgae depending on HCW dose (chlorophyll a : 34.1 ± 0.8 μg L⁻¹ in control vs. 12.6 ± 4.3 μg L⁻¹ in treatments). Conversely, the biomass of attached microalgae increased with HCW dose, which was associated with most of the nutrient reduction later in the experiment, rather than unattached microalgae. Our findings suggest that HCW can significantly impact microalgal community, especially depending on spill volume. • Ship's hull in-water cleaning wastewater (HCW) affected significantly on the microalgal communities. • Dissolved Cu from HCW had a negative effect on the growth of unattached microalgae. • Abundance of attached microalgae increased as HCW dose increased. • Microalgal community structure may change as a result of HCW effluent. • Regulating HCW effluent volume may be more important than cleaning intensity during in-water cleaning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]