Detrital processing in streams exposed to acidic precipitation in the Central Appalachian Mountains

From 1993-1994, three streams with different bedrock geology in the Monongahela National Forest, in north-central West Virginia were examined for the effects of pH and associated water chemistry variables on detrital processing. Leaf pack processing rates, macroinvertebrate colonization and microbial biomass on the leaf packs were compared. Streams differed in their capacity to buffer the effects of acidic precipitation. These differences significantly affected leaf processing rates between acidic and circumneutral streams but the differences in the biotic communities were not large enough to affect processing rates in the 2 years of the study.