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MERC STDN Test Plan
6
testing prior to the maximum of six test trials depending on the nature of the failures. MERC
Senior Management will make a final decision on early termination of the tests, in consultation
with STDN staff.
This evaluation will be based on physical and biological characterization of water upon
ballasting (uptake of water) and comparisons of organisms in control versus treated water after a
five-day, in-tank holding time for the different D2 biological categories. Results will also be
presented as concentration of viable organisms per biological category in treated water upon
discharge versus IMO D2 standards.
5. Methods
Quantifying Physical Conditions:
Temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll fluorescence, turbidity and pH will
be measured every 15 minutes during the test trials by two identical multi-parameter probes
(calibrated according to manufactures specification) placed, one each, into the control and test
tanks. A third hand-held instrument will be used to measure temperature, salinity, and dissolved
oxygen of water in each replicate sample (described above) as it is collected.
Initial inline samples (three replicates, 500 ml - 2 l each) of ballast water during the
filling of the control and test tanks will also be collected, filtered, and analyzed for the water
quality parameters of particulate organic carbon (POC), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and
total suspended solids (TSS). See Appendices A, B and C for details.
Quantifying Viable Organism > 50 µm in size:
As described above, MERC uses five 1 m
3
mesocosms (a 5 m
3
integrated sample) to
sample each time point and treatment type (Table 2, page 19). Sampling occurs during initial
uptake of water, just downstream of the treatment systems during filling of the test tank, and
upon discharge of control and treated water (after 5 days). Immediately after filling, each
mesocosm will be drained through a 35 µm (50 µm diagonal dimension) plankton net to
concentrate the zooplankton for examination under a dissecting microscope. The proportion and
total concentration of live versus dead organisms will be determined using standard movement
and response to stimuli techniques and this live/dead analysis will take place within one hours of
collecting the individual samples. Depending on concentrations, quantification of zooplankton
in initial samples (upon ballasting) and control samples may require analysis of sub-samples and
extrapolation to the entire 1 m
3
. Zooplankton samples will then also be fixed with buffered, 10%
formalin in 125ml Nalgene bottles and shipped to the SERC for additional taxonomic
evaluations. Total counts and general taxonomic classification will be conducted under a
dissecting microscope at 25X, except for some taxa, which will be removed and identified using
a compound microscope. Larval forms of invertebrates will be identified to higher taxonomic
levels such as order (e.g., Decapoda) suborder (e.g., Balanomorpha) or class (e.g., Bivalvia).
Adults will be identified to species in most cases.
Quantifying Viable Organism 10 - 50 µm in size:
Two liters of unfiltered water for each mesocosm (a 10 l integrated sample) will be
collected immediately after filling, to determine concentrations of organisms in this size class
using four distinct methods (A – D below, Table 2 page 19). All samples will be held in amber
Nalgene bottles and transported on ice to laboratories where analyses occur within 3 hours of