You are here:
Comparative Toxicity of Louisiana Sweet Crude Oil (LSC) and Chemically Dispersed LSC to Two Gulf of Mexico Aquatic Test Species.
Citation:
HEMMER, M. J., M. G. BARRON, AND R. M. GREENE. Comparative Toxicity of Louisiana Sweet Crude Oil (LSC) and Chemically Dispersed LSC to Two Gulf of Mexico Aquatic Test Species. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-11/112, 2010.
Impact/Purpose:
Assess the acute toxicity of Louisiana Sweet Crude Oil using each of eight commercial oil dispersants with two aquatic toxicity test species; the mysid shrimp, Americamysis bahia and the inland silverside, Menidia beryllina. Results from these investigations provided information on the relative toxicity of oil alone, and oil-dispersant mixtures to two sensitive aquatic species.
Description:
Environmental Protection Agency released peer reviewed results from the second phase of its independent toxicity testing on mixtures of eight oil dispersants with Louisiana Sweet Crude Oil. EPA conducted the tests as part of an effort to ensure that EPA decisions remain grounded in the best available science and data. EPA’s results indicate that the eight dispersants tested have similar toxicities to one another when mixed with Louisiana Sweet Crude Oil. These results confirm that the dispersant used in response to the oil spill in the gulf, Corexit 9500A, when mixed with oil, is generally no more or less toxic than mixtures with the other available alternatives. The results also indicate that dispersant-oil mixtures are generally no more toxic to the aquatic test species than oil alone.