Papers by Mary Kelly-quinn
Research Square (Research Square), Aug 4, 2023
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Biology and environment, 2014
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Springer eBooks, 2009
Abstract Eutrophication still continues to be an issue of major concern for the protection of wat... more Abstract Eutrophication still continues to be an issue of major concern for the protection of water quality, and accordingly, the European Union Water Framework Directive has set a minimum target for all waters where ''good status'' is defined as a slight departure from the ...
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Biology and environment, 2020
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Forest Ecology and Management, Oct 1, 2015
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Biology and environment, 2019
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Journal of Fish Biology, Mar 13, 2014
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Verhandlungen, Mar 1, 2005
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Biology and environment, 2012
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The construction of road scheme river crossings can significantly impact aquatic ecosystems conta... more The construction of road scheme river crossings can significantly impact aquatic ecosystems containing protected species, particularly those that are sensitive to the input of sediment. The potential of motorway construction activity to impact freshwater ecosystems has been well documented. The proposed paper will describe a pilot-scale water quality data acquisition system that was developed specifically to provide real-time water quality data during the construction of the recently opened M3 motorway that traverses a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) in Ireland. A water quality monitoring station was established that enabled the following water quality parameters to be monitored in real-time: Temperature, Turbidity, pH, Dissolved Oxygen. The water quality sensors were powered by a solar panel and the data recorded was instantaneously transmitted via a mobile phone link to a dedicated web site. The primary concern in this instance was the input of excessive sediment. Relationships were established for the rivers in question to enable the on-line turbidity measurements to be converted to SS concentrations. Alarms could also be set on the data acquisition system to signal that a parameter has exceeded water quality limits. River water quality was recorded continuously at 10-minute intervals both during road construction and for a significant period of time post construction. Data recorded during the motorway construction indicated that the dry-weather SS concentrations were well-within permissible limits. However, during storm events, SS concentrations were dramatically elevated on the rising limit of the flood hydrograph due to sediment transport from earthworks activities associated with the motorway construction. A significant decrease in SS concentrations was recorded for both dry and wet weather flows following re-vegetation of the top-soiled surfaces adjacent to the watercourses traversed by the motorway. This pilot study demonstrates how cost-effective, state-of-the-art technology can be deployed to continuously monitor in real-time water quality impacts of motorway construction through ecologically sensitive watercourses. Traditional grab sampling is unlikely to provide data at sufficient frequency in water bodies with marked temporal variability. The monitoring protocols developed in this pilot-scale study have already been incorporated into the proposed environmental management of other motorway construction schemes in Ireland, for example, the Environmental Impact Study for the M20 motorway which will cross over rivers containing the endangered pearl mussel, an aquatic species which is highly sensitive to SS. A real-time monitoring system will enable any potential elevation in solids levels due to construction activities to be rapidly detected and corrective action to be taken in a timely fashion to prevent any detrimental effects on the pearl mussel.
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Irish Journal of Agricultural and Food Research, 2023
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Journal of Fish Biology, Dec 11, 2018
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Hydrobiologia
Currently, 50% of Irish rivers do not meet water quality standards, with many declining due to nu... more Currently, 50% of Irish rivers do not meet water quality standards, with many declining due to numerous pressures, including peatland degradation. This study examines stream water quality in the Irish midlands, a region where raised bogs have been all historically disturbed to various extent and the majority drained for industrial or domestic peat extraction. For the first time, we provide in-depth analysis of stream water chemistry within a heavily modified bog landscape. Small streams from degraded bogs exhibited greater levels of pollutants, in particular: total dissolved nitrogen (0.48 mg/l) and sulphate (18.49 mg/l) as well as higher electrical conductivity (mean: 334 μS/cm) compared to similar bog streams in near-natural bogs. Except for site-specific nitrogen pollution in certain streams surrounding degraded peatlands, the chemical composition of the receiving streams did not significantly differ between near-natural and degraded sites, reflecting the spatio-temporal scales o...
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Heliyon
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Authorea (Authorea), Feb 21, 2023
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Biology and Environment: Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy
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Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
Streams and rivers cover a larger proportion of the Earth’s surface but are highly affected by hu... more Streams and rivers cover a larger proportion of the Earth’s surface but are highly affected by human pressures. Conversely, bioassessment methods are in their infancy in developing countries such as Ethiopia. In this study, we compared 2- and 3-min macroinvertebrate kick samples at multiple locations for both riffle habitat (RH) and multihabitat (MH) approaches. The performance of each method was evaluated statistically using benthic macroinvertebrate metrics and diversity indices. Results of the Kruskal–Wallis analysis in this study showed no significant differences among methods tested in minimally impacted streams in Ethiopia and generally performed equally irrespective of the methods employed except for total abundances and Ephemeroptera abundances. Furthermore, multivariate analysis of the relative abundances of macroinvertebrate communities using analysis of similarity (ANOSIM), RELATE, non-metric multidimensional scaling (MDS), and classification strength-sampling method comparability (CS-SMC) indicated a high similarity in the macroinvertebrate communities recorded among all methods employed in this study area. However, the index of multivariate dispersion (IMD) test showed variations in relative abundances of macroinvertebrate communities among the methods. In summary, if the focus is not on rare taxa and the required information is not dependent on additional evidence provided by the use of lower taxonomic levels of identification (genus and species), the results of the present study support the use of the shorter 2-min RH kick sampling method for the bioassessment of wadeable rivers and streams in Ethiopia.
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Macroinvertebrate distribution and community structure in lotic water are influenced by a range o... more Macroinvertebrate distribution and community structure in lotic water are influenced by a range of natural environmental variables and other anthropogenic factors, particularly related to the construction of dams. Hydropower dams can alter natural flow regimes, sediment transportation, hydrochemical water quality, channel morphology, water temperature, and nutrient cycles and physically obstruct the dispersal and the migration of macroinvertebrates and fish communities. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of the Koka Hydropower Dam on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblage structures. Environmental, hydromorphological, and macroinvertebrate community data were collected along the course of the Awash River in the upper Awash basin. A total of 2305 macroinvertebrates assigned to 11 orders and 41 families were collected from 15 sites in the upstream, midstream, and downstream reaches. Ephemeroptera (32.2%), Diptera (24.6%), and Trichoptera (20.2%) represented 77% of t...
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Biology and Environment: Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, 2021
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Papers by Mary Kelly-quinn