"RR-121." "March 2012." "The final report for this project ... is comprised of the thesis by W. Tyler Mehler submitted to the Department of Zoology, Southern Illinois University - Carbondale in December 2009." -- forward. Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-79).

The difficulty of assessing risk of sediment-associated contaminant mixtures to benthic ecosystems is often attributed to understanding the bioavailable fraction of each contaminant. These issues have led to the development of the toxicity identification evaluation (TIE). Past pore water TIE testing on Illinois River sediments has indicated that ammonia was the primary contaminant. The current study, however, suggests that ammonia is no longer the primary contaminant of concern, but rather non-polar organics, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, are the primary cause for toxicity in the Illinois River Complex (IRC). The study provides data that could be used in combination with previous work to more accurately characterize the sources and spatial trends of toxicity in Illinois River sediments for future risk assessment and mitigation.