Environmental Assessment
Evaluating Ecological Risk to Invertebrate Receptors from PAHs in Sediments at Hazardous Waste Sites (Final Report)
Notice
The Ecological Risk Assessment Support Center (ERASC) is announcing the release of the final report entitled, Evaluating Ecological Risk to Invertebrate Receptors from PAHs in Sediments at Hazardous Waste Sites.
Report Information
The report provides an overview of an approach for assessing risk to invertebrate receptors resulting from exposure to PAHs in contaminated sediments.
Michael Kravitz
- by phone at: 513-569-7740
- by email at: kravitz.michael@epa.gov
Background
This report was written in response to a request from EPA’s Ecological Risk Assessment Forum (ERAF) relating to the evaluation of ecological risk to vertebrate and benthic invertebrate receptors from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon compounds (PAHs) in sediment at hazardous waste sites. The report addressing this request provides an overview of an approach for assessing risk to invertebrate receptors resulting from exposure to PAHs in contaminated sediments. [Reaching a consensus scientific position on vertebrate risk issues is a longer-term prospect.]
The approach, based on procedures described in U.S. EPA (2003), involves the use of equilibrium partitioning techniques to determine exposure/bioavailability and narcosis theory to estimate sublethal toxicity of PAHs. Examples of how to use this approach with analytical data resulting from the analysis of contaminated sediments are provided. Additionally, this approach, particularly when used with other contaminated sediment assessment methods, offers risk assessors a useful tool for assessing the risk of PAHs to benthic invertebrates at hazardous waste sites.
The approach, based on procedures described in U.S. EPA (2003), involves the use of equilibrium partitioning techniques to determine exposure/bioavailability and narcosis theory to estimate sublethal toxicity of PAHs. Examples of how to use this approach with analytical data resulting from the analysis of contaminated sediments are provided. Additionally, this approach, particularly when used with other contaminated sediment assessment methods, offers risk assessors a useful tool for assessing the risk of PAHs to benthic invertebrates at hazardous waste sites.
History/Chronology
| Jul 2005 | An Internal Review Draft was completed. |
| Dec 2006 | Internal review was completed and comments were addressed to produce the Sediment PAH External Review Draft. |
| Mar 2007 | A Federal Register Notice was published to elicit public comments on the ERASC Sediment PAH External Review Draft. |
| Oct 2009 | EPA published the final report incorporating external public and peer review comments. |
Next Steps
This is the final report.
Citation
BURGESS, R. M. Evaluating Ecological Risk to Invertebrate Receptors from PAHs in Sediments at Hazardous Waste Sites (Final Report). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Ecological Risk Assessment Support Center, Cincinnati, OH, EPA/600/R-06/162F, 2009.
Downloads
Related Links
- U.S.EPA. 2003. Procedures for the Derivation of Equilibrium Partitioning Sediment Benchmarks (ESBS) for the Protection of Benthic Organisms: PAH Mixtures (PDF) (175 pp, 100 KB, about PDF)
- EPA's Ecological Risk Assessment Support Center (ERASC)
- Evaluating Ecological Risk to Invertebrate Receptors from PAHs in Sediments at Hazardous Waste Sites (External Review Draft)