Just Cerfing Vol. 7, Issue 8, August 2016 Volume 5, Issue 3, March, 2014 | Page 64

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Effects of the Discharge of Iron Ore Tailings
nell, 2002; Maughan, 2001).
As a natural experiment of applied ecology, the present study seeks to
make a quantitative assessment of differences between communities normally occurring on rocky substrates near Ensenada Chapaco and comparable substrates experiencing long-term exposure to emissions of mine
process tailings. Previous studies for the same place, based only on qualitative observations (Stotz et al., 1994; Stotz and González, 1995), reported
major differences in community types between affected and nonaffected
areas. However, Vásquez et al. (1999, 2000) did not observe long-term
modifications in subtidal populations and communities or morphological
alterations in Lessonia trabeculata plants and its associated fauna in the area.
We now provide data on turbidity-induced changes of composition and
abundance of flora and fauna, causing important alterations in the general
patterns of rocky subtidal community distribution at Ensenada Chapaco,
that contribute to a better understanding of the effects of the discharge of
mine tailings into the sea. The results point to the need for more actual and
detailed information describing the general patterns of the structure and
distribution of natural communities on rocky coasts, as well as the need for
standardized methods to measure the effects produced by human action on
these communities in the Southern Pacific.

Fig W&R