Ecological Observation on Phytoplankton Species Composition in Wastewater Treatment Plant / Iraq

The present study focuses on phytoplankton species composition in wastewater treatment plant. Semi-monthly sampling was collected from three selected sites to implement in the study plant from November, 2012 to April, 2013. Phytoplankton and physicochemical parameters investigated in the present study. The results showed the dominance of non-diatomic algae qualitatively and quantitatively. The non diatomic algae represented 55.7% of the total identified algae, where Cyanophyceae, Chlorophyceae and Euglenophyceae represented 31.2%, 11.5% and 6.1%, while each of Xanthophyceae and Chrysophyceae represented 2.04% and 0.68% for Rhodophyceae. Diatomic algae represented 44.2% of the total identified phytoplankton during the study period. The total number of phytoplankton ranged 2512-26649 cell x 103/l, while chlorophyll-a ranged 7.57-44.88 mg/l. Nine species of phytoplankton recorded in the present study as a new record in Iraq. These are Anabaena naviculoides, Arthrospria jenneri, Camptylonemopsis, Lyngbya polysiphoniae, Echinosphaerella limnetica, Excentrosphaera viridis, Sphaeroplea annulina, Trachelomonas dybowskii, Hemidinum nasutum. The physicochemical parameters were temperature (air and water), electric conductivity, salinity, pH, TDS and TSS. The study included dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, total alkalinity, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, chloride, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and phosphate. The study concluded that the major constituent of Almamierh wastewater treatment plant has level between medium to strong domestic wastewater.