Calculating Background Levels for Ecological Risk Parameters in Toxic Harbor Sediment

Establishing background levels for biological parameters is necessary in assessing the ecological risks from harbor sediment contaminated with toxic chemicals. For chemicals in sediment, the term contaminated is defined as having concentrations above background and significant human health or ecological risk levels. For biological parameters, a site could be considered contaminated if levels of the parameter are either more or less than the background level, depending on the specific parameter. Biological parameters can include tissue chemical concentrations in ecological receptors, bioassay responses, bioaccumulation levels, and benthic community metrics. Chemical parameters can include sediment concentrations of a variety of potentially toxic chemicals. Indirectly, contaminated harbor sediment can impact shellfish, fish, birds, and marine mammals, and human populations. This paper summarizes the methods used to define background levels for chemical and biological parameters from a survey of ecological risk investigations of marine harbor sediment at California Navy bases. Background levels for regional biological indices used to quantify ecological risks for benthic communities are also described. Generally, background stations are positioned in relatively clean areas exhibiting the same physical and general chemical characteristics as nearby areas with contaminated harbor sediment. The number of background stations and the number of sample replicates per background station depend on the statistical design of the sediment ecological risk investigation, developed through the data quality objective (DQO) process. Biological data from the background stations can be compared to data from a contaminated site by using minimum or maximum background levels or comparative statistics. In Navy ecological risk assessments (ERA's), calculated background levels and appropriate ecological risk screening criteria are used to identify sampling stations and sites with contaminated sediments.     

Consideration of Background Radiation in Ecological Risk Assessments

Background or ambient concentrations are often considered in the evaluation of potential risks to ecological receptors from exposure to hazardous chemicals in the environment. Such an evaluation may be a component of the screening or final risk management process and sets the baseline from which risks contributed by site-related activities can be addressed. Although the process for the evaluation of potential radiological risks to ecological receptors is less formalized than the chemical hazard assessment process, background remains an issue that should be addressed when considering potential site-related impacts. This paper briefly presents the ecological risk assessment approaches used to address background radionuclide concentrations at three United States Department of Defense Facilities. The concepts of total radiation dose, and tolerance and adaptation of populations to radiation are also discussed within the context of background radiation.     

Ecotoxicity Test Data for Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Soil: Plants and Soil-Dwelling Invertebrates

Ecotoxicity benchmarks for petroleum mixtures can be used in a screening-level ecological risk assessment. Data from studies evaluating the toxicity of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) to plants and soil invertebrates were reviewed for possible application to soil benchmark development. Toxicity data included LOAECs; estimated EC25s, EC20s, and LC50s; effective concentrations that caused greater than a 20% level of effect; and NOAECs. The variabilities in petroleum material, chemical analytical methodology, age of hydrocarbon-soil contact, nutrient amendment, and measured effects levels did not permit much meaningful aggregation of the data. Tenth, twenty-fifth, and fiftieth percentiles of toxicity and no-effects data are presented for unaggregated results within studies. Effects on invertebrates often occurred at concentrations of TPH lower than those associated with effects on plants. Lighter mixtures generally were associated with lower ranges of effects concentrations than heavier crude oil. Few aged and non-aged samples were available from the same study, and these did not show obvious trends regarding toxicity. Similarly, the addition of nutrients to promote bioremediation was not observed across studies to alter effective or nontoxic concentrations in a systematic way. Existing toxicity data are not sufficient to establish broadly applicable TPH ecotoxicity screening benchmarks with much confidence, even for specific mixtures.     

Challenges in Defining Background Levels for Human and Ecological Risk Assessments

A robust approach to defining, understanding, and tracking contaminant levels is crucial to human and ecological risk evaluation and risk management. Whether materials are present in the environment naturally (mercury, radon, nitrogen, phosphorous) and enhanced by human activities or are man-made (DDT and PCBs), the complexity of contaminant distributions and sources requires careful design and implementation of studies to characterize background. Before collection or analyses of data are initiated, an explicit definition of background appropriate to specific risk assessments is needed. Problems associated with determining background levels of contaminants in fish and seafood illustrate some challenges faced by risk assessors. Major differences in estimates of background may result from differences in sampling and analytical methods including selection of sampling locations, approaches to data analysis and synthesis, and tissues selected for analysis. Different approaches may yield background exposure or risk estimates that differ by 50% or more. Methodological transparency is essential in data collection and analysis to establish background and to ensure that data are used appropriately in both human and ecological risk assessments.     

新疆焉耆盆地辣椒地土壤重金属污染及生态风险预警

从新疆加工辣椒主产地(焉耆盆地)采集105个辣椒地典型土壤样品,测定其中As、Cd、Cr、Cu、Mn、Ni、Pb和Zn等8种重金属元素的含量。采用污染负荷指数(Pollution load index,PLI)、潜在生态风险指数(Potential ecological risk index,RI)和生态风险预警指数(Ecological risk warning index,I_(ER))对辣椒地土壤重金属污染及生态风险进行评价。结果表明:(1)焉耆盆地辣椒地土壤Cd、Cr、Ni、Pb和Zn含量的平均值分别超出新疆灌耕土背景值的1.65、1.40、1.32、3.21、6.42倍。辣椒地土壤Pb和Zn呈现重度污染,Cd、Cr和Ni轻度污染,As、Mn和Cu无污染。(2)土壤PLI平均值为1.40,呈现轻度污染。各重金属元素单项生态风险指数从大到小依次为:Cd、Ni、As、Cu、Pb、Cr、Zn。土壤RI平均值为18.40,属于轻微生态风险态势,IER平均值为-4.78,属于无警态势;博湖县辣椒地污染水平、潜在生态风险程度与生态风险预警等级最高,焉耆县污染水平、潜在生态风险程度与生态风险预警等级最低。(3)辣椒地土壤As、Cd、Pb与Zn主要受到人类活动的影响,Cr、Cu、Mn和Ni主要受到土壤地球化学作用的控制。Cd是焉耆盆地辣椒地生态风险等级最高的重金属元素,研究区农业生产过程中要防范Cd的污染风险。     

Extrapolation in Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessments: Proceedings of a Symposium

A symposium was conducted in April 1998 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory (NHEERL) to explore issues of extrapolation in human health and ecological risk assessments. Over the course of three and one half days, leading health and ecology experts presented and discussed research methods and approaches for extrapolating data among taxa and across levels of biological organization, through time, and across spatial scales. The intended result of this symposium was enhanced interaction among a diverse array of scientists, policymakers, and risk assessors to promote identification of approaches for reducing the uncertainties of extrapolation in risk assessment.     

Preliminary Remediation Goals for Terrestrial Wildlife

Remediation of contaminated sites requires information on upper concentration limits of chemicals in environmental media that are protective of ecological receptors. These upper concentration limits can be considered ecological preliminary remediation goals (EcoPRGs). The motivation for developing EcoPRGs was to provide risk managers with a simple tool for evaluating remedial actions that would be protective of the environment. Hazard quotient calculations used to support ecological screening assessments were modified to derive soil EcoPRGs for terrestrial wildlife populations. The primary modification is a population area use factor that is the fraction of a terrestrial animal population potentially affected by the contaminated site. Wildlife assessment population boundaries are based on a receptor's dispersal distance; for mammals dispersal distance is strongly related to the linear dimension (square root) of home range. Assuming that wildlife are unlikely to disperse beyond some distance from their birth or natal site, dispersal distance can be thought of as the radius of the assessment population's boundaries. This general relationship is useful as a simple way to estimate assessment population areas for terrestrial animals and helps fill data gaps for wildlife without direct measurements of dispersal.     

Approaches to Ecological Risk Characterization and Management: Selecting the Right Tools for the Job

Chemical-specific hazard quotient (HQ) risk characterization in ecological risk assessment (ERA) can be a value-added tool for risk management decision-making at chemical release sites, when applied appropriately. However, there is little consensus regarding how HQ results can be used for risk management decision-making at the population, community, and ecosystem levels. Furthermore, stakeholders are reluctant to consider alternatives to HQ results for risk management decisions. Chemical-specific HQs risk characterization should be viewed as only one of several approaches (i.e., tools) for addressing ecological issues; and in many situations, other quantitative and qualitative approaches will likely result in superior risk management decisions. The purpose of this paper is to address fundamental issues and limitations associated with chemical-specific HQ risk characterization in ERA, to identify when it may be appropriate, to explore alternatives that are currently available, and to identify areas that could be developed for the future. Several alternatives (i.e., compensatory restoration, performance-based ecological monitoring, ecological significance criteria, net environmental benefit analysis), including their limitations, that can supplement, augment, or substitute for HQs in ERA are presented. In addition, areas of research (i.e., wildlife habitat assessment/landscape ecology/population biology, and field validated risk-based screening levels) that could yield new tools are discussed.     

Environmental quantification of soil elements in the catchment of hydroelectric reservoirs in India

The contamination of inorganic elements in soil is a serious environmental problem,. The aim of the present study is to investigate concentrations of 19 elements in order to access the extent of their contaminations in the surface soil of hydroelectric catchments, Uttarakhand, India. For analysis, 168 soil samples were divided into eight groups according to altitudes. In soil samples, the concentration levels of Cr and Cu were found more than their background and threshold limit. Moreover, the evaluation of geochemical index (I_geo), enrichment factor (EF), and contamination factor (CF) suggests that soil samples were reasonably contaminated and highly enriched in Rb. The pollution load index (PLI) and degree of contamination (Cd) revealed that the presence of contaminations (PLI: 1.44; Cd: 44.94) in the study site might be a possible health risk for local residents. However, the calculation pollution ecological risk index (PERI) suggests low ecological risk (PERI: 77.61) of these elements. The clustering of sampling groups contained two clusters: the first cluster comprised F1 and F4 while the second cluster consists of the rest of the sampling group. Multivariate statistical analysis revealed that the variation in concentrations of the elements might be a result of agricultural activities and pedological processes.     

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Generic Ecological Assessment Endpoints

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency determined that one of the major impediments to the advancement and application of ecological risk assessment is doubt concerning appropriate assessment endpoints. The Agency's Risk Assessment Forum determined that the best solution to this problem was to define a set of generic ecological assessment endpoints (GEAEs). They are assessment endpoints that are applicable to a wide range of ecological risk assessments; because they reflect the programmatic goals of the Agency, they are applicable to a wide array of environmental issues, and they may be estimated using existing assessment tools. They are not specifically defined for individual cases; some ad hoc elaboration by users is expected. The GEAEs are not exhaustive or mandatory. Although most of the Agency's ecological decisions have been based on organism-level effects, GEAEs are also defined for populations, ecosystems, and special places.     

How Creditable are Cancer Risk Estimates from the S.W. Taiwan Database for Arsenic in Drinking Water?

A database of cancer mortality and arsenic concentrations in village wells in an arseniasis-endemic area of southwestern Taiwan has been the predominant source of information for risk assessments of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and two National Research Council reports on arsenic and drinking water. A limitation of the data, however, is that exposure is ecological, that is, cancer mortality cannot be matched with arsenic exposure on an individual basis, just grouped by village. The resultant potential for bias is examined by comparing dose-response analyses of villages divided into two groups, those with well concentrations in a narrow range and the remainder. The narrow range group suggests a flat or downward change in risk in the low dose range, whereas the other group indicates increasing risk. More disturbingly, however, the dose-response data are highly dispersed for both groups and the dose-response curve predicts background bladder/lung cancer levels much higher than a southwestern Taiwan comparison population. This may be due to a large variability between villages of the study area in bladder/lung cancer not directly attributable to arsenic. Including the comparison population in the dose-response analysis artificially anchors the dose-response curve at a background level inconsistent with the study population and likely just biases the slope factor upward.     

The current status of heavy metal in lake sediments from China: Pollution and ecological risk assessment

Heavy metal contamination in lake sediments is a serious problem, particularly in developing countries such as China. To evaluate heavy metal pollution and risk of contamination in lake sediments on a national scale in China, we collated available data in the literature of the last 10 years on lake sediments polluted with heavy metals from 24 provinces in China. Based on these data, we used sediment quality guidelines, geoaccumulation index, and potential ecological risk index to assess potential ecological risk levels. The results showed that approximately 20.6% of the lakes studied exceeded grade II level in Chinese soil quality standards for As, 31.3% for Cd, 4.6% for Cu, 20.8% for Ni, 2.8% for Zn, and 11.1% for Hg, respectively. Besides, the mean concentrations for As in 10.3% of lakes, Hg in 11.9% of lakes, and Ni in 31.3% of lakes surpassed the probable effect level. The potential ecological risk for toxic metals decreased in the order of Cd > Hg > As > Cu > Pb > Ni > Cr > Zn, and there were 21.8% of the lakes studied in the state of moderate risk, 10.9% in high risk, and 12.7% in very high risk. It can be concluded that Chinese lake sediments are polluted by heavy metals to varying degrees. In order to provide key management targets for relevant administrative agencies, based on the results of the pollution and ecological risk assessments, Cd, Hg, As, Cu, and Ni were selected as the priority control heavy metals, and the eastern coastal provinces and Hunan province were selected as the priority control provinces. This article, therefore, provides a comprehensive assessment of heavy metal pollution in lake sediments in China, while providing a reference for the development of lake sediment quality standards.     

Probabilistic Analysis of Human Health Risks Associated with Background Concentrations of Inorganic Arsenic: Use of a Margin of Exposure Approach

Substantial evidence exists from epidemiological and mechanistic studies supporting a sublinear or threshold dose–response relationship for the carcinogenicity of ingested arsenic; nonetheless, current regulatory agency evaluations have quantified arsenic risks using default, generic risk assessment procedures that assume a linear, no-threshold dose–response relationship. The resulting slope factors predict risks from U.S. background arsenic exposures that exceed certain regulatory levels of concern, an outcome that presents challenges for risk communication and risk management decisions. To better reflect the available scientific evidence, this article presents the results of a Margin of Exposure (MOE) analysis to characterize risks associated with typical and high-end background exposures of the U.S. population to arsenic from food, water, and soil. MOE values were calculated by comparing a no-observable-adverse-effect-level (NOAEL) derived from the epidemiological literature with exposure estimates generated using a probabilistic (Monte Carlo) model. The plausibility and conservative nature of the exposure and risk estimates evaluated in this analysis are supported by sensitivity and uncertainty analyses and by comparing predicted urinary arsenic concentrations with empirical data. Using the more scientifically supported MOE approach, the analysis presented in this article indicates that typical and high-end background exposures to inorganic arsenic in U.S. populations do not present elevated risks of carcinogenicity.     

Soil Microbial Communities and Ecological Risk Assessment: Risk Assessors’ Perspective

In the past, ecological risk assessments (ERAs) have generally overlooked the soil microbial community when evaluating the impacts of contaminants in soil. However, the soil microbial community, which includes bacteria and fungi, performs functions necessary for overall ecosystem health, including nitrogen fixation, nutrient cycling, and even degradation of contaminants. The incorporation of the soil microbial community into ERA requires the compilation of adequate toxicity data to complete the hazard assessment phase of the risk assessment. A variety of soil microbial toxicity tests exist that provide rapid and inexpensive results. Surveys of the microbial community at a contaminated site may also provide insight as to their functioning in the presence of contaminants. This paper explores the use of toxicity tests and surveys to evaluate chemical toxicity to microbes. However, many questions related to the best methodological approach to an ERA of the soil microbial community have yet to be answered.     

The Concept of Data Utility in Health Risk Assessment: A Multi-Disciplinary Perspective

Human and ecological health risk assessments and the decisions that stem from them require the acquisition and analysis of data. In agencies that are responsible for health risk decision-making, data (and/or opinions/judgments) are obtained from sources such as scientific literature, analytical and process measurements, expert elicitation, inspection findings, and public and private research institutions. Although the particulars of conducting health risk assessments of given disciplines may be dramatically different, a common concern is the subjective nature of judging data utility. Often risk assessors are limited to available data that may not be completely appropriate to address the question being asked. Data utility refers to the ability of available data to support a risk-based decision for a particular risk assessment. This article familiarizes the audience with the concept of data utility and is intended to raise the awareness of data collectors (e.g., researchers), risk assessors, and risk managers to data utility issues in health risk assessments so data collection and use will be improved. In order to emphasize the cross-cutting nature of data utility, the discussion has not been organized into a classical partitioning of risk assessment concerns as being either human health- or ecological health-oriented, as per the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Superfund Program.     

Role of Ecological Modeling in Risk Assessment

Ecological models are useful tools for evaluating the ecological significance of observed or predicted effects of toxic chemicals on individual organisms. Current risk estimation approaches using hazard quotients for individual-level endpoints have limited utility for assessing risks at the population, ecosystem, and landscape levels, which are the most relevant indicators for environmental management. In this paper, we define different types of ecological models, summarize their input and output variables, and present examples of the role of some recommended models in chemical risk assessments. A variety of population and ecosystem models have been applied successfully to evaluate ecological risks, including population viability of endangered species, habitat fragmentation, and toxic chemical issues. In particular, population models are widely available, and their value in predicting dynamics of natural populations has been demonstrated. Although data are often limited on vital rates and doseresponse functions needed for ecological modeling, accurate prediction of ecological effects may not be needed for all assessments. Often, a comparative assessment of risk (e.g., relative to baseline or reference) is of primary interest. Ecological modeling is currently a valuable approach for addressing many chemical risk assessment issues, including screening-level evaluations.     

A Procedure for Ecological Tiered Assessment of Risks (PETAR)

Several procedures for Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) have been suggested. The use of these existing procedures often relies on availability of existing data and/or on large resources for acquisition of new ones. This paper presents a three-tiered procedure for retrospective evaluation of risks adapted to limited resources and scarce background information of relevance for risk assessments, such as in developing countries. The tiers require successively more detailed investigations. The approach assures that resources available for site-specific investigations are directed towards well-formulated questions raised during previous stages of the assessment. The first tier, the preliminary assessment, is a qualitative evaluation of existing information on anthropogenic stressors, sources of stressors and expected ecological effects. The second tier is a regional risk assessment; a semi-quantitative evaluation of ecological risks, over large geographical areas, which results in a ranking of sources and stressors having the greatest potential for ecological impact and ranking of subareas inside the study area more likely to be impacted. The final tier is a site-specific and quantitative risk assessment, at a smaller scale and requiring more resources, that incorporates methodologies for establishing causality between exposure to multiple stressors and effects on specific endpoints of ecological and societal relevance.     

Performing Spatially and Temporally Explicit Ecological Exposure Assessments Involving Multiple Stressors

Ecological risk assessments have traditionally focused on estimating risk associated with a receptor's exposure to chemical stressors in abiotic (soil, water, etc.) and biotic (tissues, prey items) media. However, a free-living receptor is also constantly challenged to avoid or minimize adverse effects associated with those physical (e.g., loss of habitat) and biological (e.g., lack of adequate food) stressors that are already a consistent and natural part of its everyday existence. All three stressors, as well as their relative spatial and temporal positions with respect to each other and the receptor, may interact in ways that alter a chemical stressor's relative contribution to a receptor's overall risk. Evidence suggests that better representations of a chemical stressor's true contribution to overall risk would result if spatial, temporal, and multiple stressor interactions were more routinely considered and quantified. However, examples of this occurring in typical ecological risk assessments are rare, due, in part, to a lack of practical and accessible procedures for this purpose. This article outlines a procedure to give ecological risk assessment practitioners greater access to spatial, temporal, and multistressor techniques, describes an implementable spreadsheet-based model for performing calculations associated with this procedure, and discusses the types of ecological, life history, and landscape information needed to parameterize this model.     

土壤污染生态毒性效应评价研究进展

随着社会经济的高度发展,人类活动加剧,我国土壤污染问题突出,不仅威胁人体健康,同时也严重威胁动植物及微生物的安全,生态安全问题不容忽视。但是我国土壤污染风险管控目前主要关注人体健康,对生态系统的关注较少,缺乏土壤污染生态风险评估技术指南及基于生态风险的土壤环境质量基准及标准。准确评价土壤污染生态毒性效应,是制定土壤环境质量标准、实现生态风险评估及预警与管控的重要基础。针对土壤污染生态毒性效应评价问题,分别对土壤污染生态毒性效应特征、评价方法、评价终点、暴露-效应关系构建、生态毒性效应外推,以及群落水平与复合污染生态毒性效应评价等方面的关键问题展开了讨论,指出目前土壤污染生态毒性效应评价主要是基于单物种的急性毒性测试,利用个体和亚个体水平的指示物作为评价终点,缺乏针对群落及生态系统高水平评价终点的生态毒性效应评价方法,定量评价污染物尤其是复合污染物对土壤生物群落及生态系统的影响,是土壤污染生态毒性效应评价的关键问题和难点问题。建议今后重点开展以下3方面的工作1)群落及生态系统水平评价终点的筛选;2)土壤污染生态毒性效应环境影响因子识别及影响机制研究;3)土壤复合污染联合毒性效应定量评价及...     

Analytical Integration Procedures for the Derivation of Risk-Based Generic Assessment Criteria for Soil

Risk assessment models commonly used in contaminated sites employ a simple integration procedure by only partially combining exposure pathways from surface soil with vapor pathways from subsurface soil being excluded in the combination. The simplified approach can approximate the integrated generic assessment criteria only when there is a dominant exposure pathway. But these models are often based on a simple partitioning of a chemical in soil between the sorbed, dissolved, and vapor phases without consideration of the presence of non-aqueous phase liquid, and critically fail to consider non-soil background exposure for non-carcinogenic compounds. As a result, the generic assessment criteria derived may not be considered protective of human health. This article describes analytical integration procedures for the derivation of the generic assessment criteria that consider non-soil background exposure while limiting the average daily exposure for vapor pathways calculated from soil saturation limits. Significance of consideration of soil saturation limits for the derivation of the generic assessment criteria using an integrated approach is illustrated for organic compounds having varied levels of background exposure and soil saturations. The analytical integration procedures for the derivation of the soil generic assessment criteria under the linear chemical partition approach are also reviewed aiming to provide a single source of complete integration procedures for the derivation of the integrated generic assessment criteria.