• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.80-88
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• 2016

In order to reconstruct a benthic foodweb structure and assess the role of benthic microalgaes as a diet source for benthos, we analyzed the carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes of diverse benthos (bivalves, crustaceans, gastropods and fishes) and potential diets (particulate organic matter, sedimentary organic matter, benthic microalgae, seagrass, and macroalgaes) in the intertidal mudflat surrounding Yeongheung Island. The ${\delta}^{13}C$ values of the diets indicated wide ranges (- 26.5‰ to - 8.4‰) while benthos showed a small range of ${\delta}^{13}C$ values (-12.1‰ to - 17.8‰), although they were in the same range. Except for green algaes among the macroalgaes as well as sedimentary organic matter, ${\delta}^{15}N$ values of the diet candidates ($5.7{\pm}1.0$‰) were lighter in comparison to those of the benthos ($11.8{\pm}1.9$‰). Based on the ${\delta}^{13}C$ and ${\delta}^{15}N$ data, the benthos were classified into 3 groups, indicating a different diet and trophic position. But benthic microalgae is the most important diet source for all three benthos groups based on their stable isotope ratios, suggesting benthic microalgae should be a main diet to the intertidal ecosystem. Hence this study highlights that the biomass of benthic microalgae as biological resource should be evaluated for the management of the intertidal ecosystem of Yeongheung Island.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.125-137
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• 2022

To assess the characteristics of meiofaunal community fluctuations related to environmental factors, seasonal surveys were conducted in the subtidal zone of Hallyeohaesang National Park. The average depth of the study area was about 20 m, and the average water temperature at the bottom was low in winter(11.33℃) and high in summer(17.95℃). The sedimentary particles mainly comprised silt and clay at most stations. The abundance of meiofauna ranged from 81.7 to 1,296.5 Inds. 10 cm^-2, and the average abundance was 589.3 Inds. 10 cm^-2. The average abundance of meiofauna in each season was the lowest at 416.5 Inds. 10cm^-2 in winter and the highest at 704.5Inds.10 cm^-2 in spring. The dominant taxa were nematodes (about 92%) and harpacticoids (about 5%). In the cluster analysis of meiofaunal communities, they were divided into four significant groups. The largest group mainly contained spring and summer samples, and contained stations with a high nematode density of over 500 Inds. 10 cm^-2 and harpacticoids below 50 Inds. 10 cm^-2 with a high composition ratio of nematodes. In the cluster analysis, no regional division was found between the stations, and it was thought to be divided by the seasons with high abundance according to seasonal variation and the composition ratio of nematodes and harpacticoids. In the Spearman rank correlation analysis, the density of total meiofauna and the most dominant taxa, nematodes, was not significantly related to environmental factors. However, the density of harpacticoids had a significant positive correlation with water depth and a negative correlation with sediment particle size.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.183-200
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• 2003

In order to assess the ecological changes induced by organic pollutants of the Shihwa Lake, BPI (Benthic Pollution Index) based on the benthic faunal community was employed. It was modified from Infaunal Trophic Index (ITI), and recommended as a pollution detecting method for the environmental assessment. The BPI values were calculated from the benthos data, which were collected for three terms: in 1980, before the Shihwa Lake was built up; in 1994-1997, which the Shihwa Lake was completely isolated from the outer seawater; in 1997-1999, after inflow of the outer seawater. Since the Shihwa Dike was constructed in February 1994, the pollution intensity of the lake had been increased from the narrow and inner part of the former Gyeonggi Bay and spread fast along the coast line of the Shihwa Lake. Then, in 1996 it showed the very high BPI levels all around the Lake. This serious polluted condition had been lasted till 1997, when the inflow of the seawater was begun. In 1998, from the nearest part of the Shihwa Gate, the BPI levels gradually became low in most area of the Lake, except its inner and narrow part. These greatly lowered BPI levels mean that the seawater inflow could be assumed to affect positively in the lake. Furthermore, BPI gave the same results from the other environmental assessment based on the abundance and the species richness of macrobenthic community. It shows that BPI could be useful as an effective method to assess the marine environment and evaluate the status of environmental conditions.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2016.05a
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• pp.525-525
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• 2016

도심지역의 대단위 주거 단지 조성에 따른 다양한 하천 생태계에 대한 문제가 야기되어 하천 생태계에 대한 환경영향평가가 때때로 시도되고 있다. 토지이용의 변화에 따라 유역의 물순환 경향이 달라지고 이로 인하여 하천 수생태계에 영향이 달라지게 된다. 본 연구에서는 토지이용 변화와 물순환 변수인 유량인자와 하천 수생태환경의 상관관계를 조사해 보고자 하였다. 대상 유역으로는 한강 하류지역인 서울특별시 주변의 30개 소유역을 대상으로 하였으며, 일유량 자료와 BMI 지수, 유역의 불투수율등을 사용하였다. 또한 환경부에서 제공하고 있는 2012-2014년 자료중 한강 유역에서 조사된 저서성대형무척추동물지수 관측소와 유랑 관측소와 일치하는 33개 지점을 선정하여 유량지표와 생태환경 지수와의 관계를 조사 분석하였다. 본 연구에서는 수생태환경을 나타낼 수 있는 지수인 저서성대형무척추동물지수 (Benthic Macroinvertebrates Index, BMI)를 조사하여 자료를 구축하고, 토지이용변화와 유량변화에 따른 BMI 지수의 영향을 조사하고, 토지이용 변수와 수문학적 변수와의 상관관계를 조사하고자 하였다. 유역의 불투수율과 마찬가지로 일평균 유량, 0.5년 초과빈도, 0.1년 초과빈도, 0.01년 초과빈도 유량과 BMI 지수와의 상관관계를 조사하였다. 이러한 상관관계 도출을 통하여 유역의 개발에 따른 하천 수생태에 영향을 수문변수 중의 하나인 유량지표로 유추 할 수 있으며 수생태에 대한 영향을 저감할 수 있는 저감 방안으로 유량자료를 사용할 수 있을 것으로 기대할 수 있다.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.31 no.11
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• pp.947-956
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• 2009

Residual petroleum hydrocarbons after an oil spill may accumulate in the marine benthic ecosystem due to their high hydrophobicity. A lot of monitoring data are required for the estimation of ecosystem exposure to residual petrochemicals in an ecological risk assessment in the affected region. To save time and cost, the environmental exposure to them in the affected ecosystem can also be assessed using a simple food-web bioaccumulation model. In this study, we evaluated residual concentrations of four selected polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (phenanthrene, anthracene, pyrene, and benzo[a]pyrene) in a hypothetic benthic ecosystem composed of six species under two exposure scenarios. Body-residue concentration ranged 5~250 mg/kg body depending on trophic positions in an extreme scenario in which the aqueous concentrations of PAHs were assumed to be one-tenth of their aqueous solubility. In addition, bioconcentration factors (BCFs) and bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) were evaluated for model species. The logarithm of bioconcentration factor (log BCF) linearly increased with increasing the logarithm of 1-octanol-water partition coefficient (log $K_{OW}$) until log $K_{OW}$ of 7.0, followed by a gradual decrease with further increase in log $K_{OW}$ without metabolic degradation. Biomagnification became significant when log $K_{OW}$ of a pollutant exceeded 5.0 in the model ecosystem, indicating that investigation of food-web structure should be critical to predict biomagnifications in the affected ecosystem because log $K_{OW}$ values of many petrochemicals are higher than 5.0. Although further research is required for better site-specific evaluation of exposure, the model simulation can be used to estimate the level of the ecosystem exposure to residual oil contaminants at the screening level.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.212-223
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• 2022

For the remediation and restoration of contaminated sediment at the West Sea-Byeong dumping site, dredged materials was dumped in 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017. The physicochemical properties and benthic fauna in surface sediments of the capping area (5 stations) and natural recovery area (2 stations) were analyzed annually from 2014 to 2020 to evaluate the capping effect of the dredged materials. The natural recovery area had a finer sediment with a mean particle size of 5.91-7.64 Φ, while the sediment in the capping area consisted of coarse-grained particles with a mean particle size of 1.47-3.01 Φ owing to the capping effect of dredged materials. Considering that the contents of organic matters (COD, TOC, and TN) and heavy metals in the capping area are approximately 50 % lower (p<0.05) than that in the natural recovery area, it is judged that there is a capping effect of dredged materials. As a result of analyzing macrobenthic assemblages, the number of species and ecological indices of the capping area were significantly lower than that of the natural recovery area (p<0.05). The number of species and ecological indices at the capping area were increased for the first four years after the capping in 2013 and 2014 and then tended to decrease thereafter. It is presumed that opportunistic species, which have rapid growth and short lifetime, appeared dominantly during the initial phase of capping, and the additory capping in 2016 and 2017 caused re-disturbance in the habitat environment. In the natural recovery and capping areas, Azti's Marine Biotic Index (AMBI) was evaluated as a fine healthy status because it maintained the level of 2^nd grades (Good), whereas Benthic Pollution Index (BPI) remained at the 1^st and 2^nd grade. Therefore, capping of dredged materials for remediation of contaminated sediment in the dumping site has the effect of reducing the pollution level. However, in terms of the benthic ecosystem, it is recommended that the recovery trend should be monitored long-term. Additionally, it is necessary to introduce an adaptive management strategy when expanding the project to remediate the contaminated sediment at the dumping area in the future.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.292-302
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to analyze the trophic structures and the energy flows in the lower reaches of the Nakdong River using the Ecopath model (Walter et al., 1997). The sampling and analyses were carried out at 6 sampling sites of the lower reaches of the Nakdong River on May and November in 2007. Total of 9 groups detritus, macrophytes, phytoplankton, zooplankton, zoobenthos, Cyprinus carpio, Hemibarbus labeo, Micropterus salmoides and other fishes were considered to assess the trophic relationship, energy flows and interactions among them in the study. As a result, it was concluded that the lower reaches of the Nakdong River was consisted of producers (Detritus, Macrophytes, Phytoplankton), primary consumers (Zooplankton, Zoobenthos, Cyprinus carpio, Hemibarbus labeo, Other fishes) and secondary consumer (Micropterus salmoides). The total system throughput was estimated at 2.7 kg m$^{-2}$ year$^{-1}$ including a consumption of 52%, exports of 9.1%, respiratory flows of 18.0% and flows into detritus of 20.9%. MTI (mixed trophic impacts) analysis demonstrated that Pseudobagrus fulvidraco had positive impact on Cyprinus carpio, Carassius cuvieri and Carassius auratus. On the other hand, other fishes had negative impact on Cyprinus carpio, Carassius cuvieri and Carassius auratus. Also, all the functional groups except detritus had a negative impact on themselves.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2009.05a
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• pp.2073-2077
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• 2009

지구 온난화의 영향으로 생각되는 이상기온이 세계각지에서 발생하고 있고, 우리나라도 최근 몇 년 동안 각지에서 집중호우에 의한 재해가 발생하고 있다. 이러한 자연재해는 모든 분야에서 심각한 영향을 미치고 있으며, 이중 산과 택지개발 및 도로공사 등에서 발생하는 토사는 하천, 저수지, 댐 및 하구를 빠르게 메우고 탁수환경을 지속시켜 수질악화와 오염원이 되며 저서생태계에 많은 영향을 미치고 있는 실정이다. 또한 토사는 농업용저수지와 수리구조물의 수명을 단축시키고, 하상을 높여 흐름을 방해하거나 변화시켜 하천의 범람을 유도하기도 한다. 이와 같이 토사는 토사농도변화에 따라 인명피해와 재산피해를 초래하고 있어 그 특징을 다각도로 분석 파악할 필요성이 있다. 본 연구에서는 토사의 농도와 분광반사특성의 상호관계를 알아보기 위해 원격탐사(RS)기법을 이용하였다. 탁수환경을 분광복사계(Li-1800)를 이용하여 미리 제작한 2개의 수조(흑색, 백색) 안 토사(실트질, 모래질)의 농도를 변화시켜 반사값을 측정하였다. 측정된 반사값을 이용하여 토사농도에 따른 분광반사 특성을 파악하였고, 토사 정보를 추정하는데 유용한 파장영역에 대해 검토, 고찰하였다.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.1-16
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• 2024

Most wetlands worldwide have suffered from extensive human exploitation. Unfortunately they have been less explored compared to river and lake ecosystems despite their ecological importance and economic values. This is the same case in Korea. This study was aimed to estimate the assemblage attributes and distribution characteristics of benthic macroinvertebrates for fifty wetlands distributed throughout subtropical Jeju Island in 2021. A total of 133 taxa were identified during survey periods belonging to 53 families, 19 orders, 5 classes and 3 phyla. Taxa richness ranged from 4 to 31 taxa per wetland with an average of 17.5 taxa. Taxa richness and abundance of predatory insect groups such as Odonata, Hemiptera and Coleoptera respectively accounted for 67.7% and 68.2% of the total. Among them Coleoptera were the most diverse and abundant. Taxa richness and abundance did not significantly differ from each wetland type classified in accordance with the National Wetland Classification System. There were three endangered species (Clithon retropictum, Lethocerus deyrolli and Cybister (Cybister) chinensis) and several restrictively distributed species only in Jeju Island. Cluster analysis based on the similarity in the benthic macroinvertebrate composition largely classified 50 wetlands into two major clusters: small wetlands located in lowland areas and medium-sized wetlands in middle mountainous regions. All cluster groups displayed significant differences in wetland area, long axis, percentage of fine particles and macrophyte composition ratio. Indicator Species Analysis selected 19 important indicators with the highest indicator value of Ceriagrion melanurum at 63%, followed by Noterus japonicus (59%) and Polypylis hemisphaerula (58%). Our results are expected to provide fundamental information on the biodiversity and habitat environments for benthic macroinvertebrates in wetland ecosystems, consequently helping to establish conservation and restoration plans for small wetlands relatively vulnerable to human disturbance.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.115-132
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• 1992

This study was conducted to clarify the distribution pattern of macrobenthic soft-bottom dwelling animals near the shellfish farming ground in Chinhae Bay, Korea Sampling was seasonally performed with van Veen grab$(0.1m^2)$ from October 1990 to July 1991. Benthic animals collected during the study comprised 107 species which amounted to 6,978 individuals: 52 species from polychaetes$(48.6\%)$, 34 species from crustaceans$(31.8\%),$ 14 species from molluscs$(13.1\%)$ and 7 species from other faunal groups$(6.5\%)$. The dominant species were four polychaetes and one amphipod: Lumbrineis longifolia, Capitella capitate, Mediomastus sp., Sigambra tentaculata and Erictonius pugnax. The study area could be divided into 3 regions based on the faunal similarity which was closely related to the content of organic matter in the surface sediment. The benthic community located near the shellfish farming ground showed large spatial and seasonal variations in species diversity and evenness in contrast to the stable values off the farming area. The oxygen deficient water mass below 2 ml/l In thi bottom layer during the summer stressed and depauperated the benthic community in the autumn of 1990. However, the benthic community did recover during the winter. It is postulated that the cyclic phenomenon of summer mortality followed by winter recovery may be a common characteristic in benthic communities subjected to a high level of organic pollution.