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Ecological Risk Assessment
Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments - Part A OVERVIEW.PDF is an Adobe Acrobat file containing the document titled Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments at Hazardous Waste Sites and Permitted Facilities, Part A: Overview, dated July 4, 1996. This document contains the description of the DTSC-recommended phased method for conducting an ecological risk assessment. Outlined are the contents of a Scoping Assessment, a Phase I Predictive Assessment, a Phase II Validation Study and a Phase III Impact Assessment. More detailed guidance for each of these components will be available in a series of additional documents. Also included are flow charts describing the process with a text description of the decision points and work products contained in the flow charts. A response to comments section contains written responses to more than 100 written comments received after public notice of this document. Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments - Part B SCOPE.PDF is an Adobe PDF file containing the document titled Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments at Hazardous Waste Sites and Permitted Facilities, Part B:Scoping Assessment, dated July 4, 1996. This document contains the more detailed description of the contents of the initial Scoping Assessment with example tables, exposure route diagrams and conceptual site model diagrams. HERD EcoNOTES outline specific issues which have arisen subsequent to the release of the Department of Toxic Substances Control Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessment in 1996. These EcoNOTES are meant to provide clarification for specific issues not directly addressed in the 1996 guidance documents or to supersede any previous departmental guidance. EcoNOTES should be reviewed prior to preparation of an Ecological Risk Assessment.
EcoNOTE-3 (Revised) Dibutyltin Calculation of an action level/preliminary cleanup goal for dibutyltin (DBT) in surface, ground, and sediment interstitial water for protection of saltwater aquatic life. HERD recommends an action level/preliminary cleanup goal for DBT in surface, ground, and sediment interstitial water that is equal to 0.1 µg/L [100 times more than the proposed U.S. EPA Ambient Water Quality Criterion of 0.001 µg/L for tributyltin (TBT) in saltwater]. The HERD recommended DBT action level/preliminary cleanup goal should only apply in situations where DBT is detected in water (i.e., surface water or sediment interstitial water), but not TBT. In situations where both DBT and TBT are detected in water, HERD recommends that a toxic equivalency factor (TEF) approach be used.
This EcoNOTE has been reviewed by and incorporates the suggestions of the U.S. EPA Region IX Biological Technical Assistance Group (BTAG). EcoNOTE-5 (Revised) BTAG Mammalian TRV for Lead Revised U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Region 9 Biological Technical Assistance Group (BTAG) Mammalian Toxicity Reference Value (TRV) for Lead: Justification and Rationale. HERD and the BTAG have reviewed the request and submittal of the U.S. Army for reconsideration of the current mammalian BTAG TRV for lead (Pb). After consideration of the endpoints, dosing information, evaluation of the experimental results, and limitations of the experiments, the BTAG has agreed to set the mammalian Pb NOAEL (TRV-Low) at 1 mg/kg BW/day, based primarily on the kidney toxicity data contained in Fowler et al. (1980) and supported by at least 19 other studies suggesting that a 1 mg/kg BW/day Pb dose would be protective of bone, behavioral, immune, reproductive, embryonic, renal, and ocular effects seen at doses within one order of magnitude higher. The decision to alter the BTAG TRV is based on the best available data developed after the initial determination of the BTAG mammalian TRV-Low in 1997. As new information becomes available, this TRV, or others, may be revised. The BTAG will not consider revising other TRVs without sufficient scientific justification and documentation, as provided in this EcoNOTE. EcoNOTE-6 Avian TRV for Cadmium Revised Avian Toxicity Reference Value for Cadmium: Justification and Rationale. This document represents a revision to the cadmium toxicity reference value (TRV) for birds used by regulatory agencies and resource trustees in California for predictive ecological risk assessments. Our review focused on evaluating TRVs between the currently used TRV and the Eco-SSL TRV, considering the application of an updated ingestion rate model and uncertainty factors. After consideration of the endpoints and evaluation of the experimental results, we propose an ecologically protective NOAEL TRV based primarily on the kidney toxicity data in wood ducks, but supported by other studies that indicate the kidney is a critical target organ for cadmium toxicity. This TRV is also protective of reproductive effects, another sensitive endpoint for cadmium toxicity. In addition, a lowest observable adverse effect level was identified based on kidney nephrosis in mallards. Overall, these updated TRVs incorporate more recent studies and reviews on cadmium toxicity in birds while establishing thresholds based on ecologically relevant endpoints. ECO Checklist This checklist is provided as an aid to those preparing ecological risk assessments for submittal to the Department of Toxic Substances Control's Site Cleanup Program. This check list contains the elements of an ecological risk assessment the Department feels are necessary to provide adequate data to regulating agencies.
Guide to the Assessment and Remediation of State-Managed Sediment Sites (June 2007) The Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials (ASTSWMO) Sediments Focus Group has developed this paper which presents issues related to State sediment sites, which are typically smaller than those listed on the national priority list (NPL). State sediment sites can offer unique and complex challenges, such as limited resources of the State remedial programs and smaller, less financially viable responsible parties. This paper highlights sediment risk assessment and remediation issues, and provides references for States to motivate and cooperatively accomplish sediment cleanups DTSC Ecological Risk Assessment Process Workshop - Speaker's Presentations The Department of toxic Substances Control (DTSC), Human and Ecological Risk Division (HERD) sponsored regional ecological risk assessment workshops during the summer of 2007. The workshops provided DTSC project managers and other DTSC staff with an overview of ecological risk assessment, including DTSC's guidance for performing ecological risk assessments. Speakers included ecotoxicologists from DTSC's Human and Ecological Risk Division (HERD), the Department of Fish and Game, Office of Spill Prevention and Response (DFG/OSPR), and the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA). Please see the agenda for links to the speakers' presentations. American Society of Testing and Materials Bioassay Standards This guide is the first prototype of a project aimed at creating a comprehensive and easy to use index of all the standard bioassays currently being used in the scientific community. Individual Body Weight Files Individual Body Weight Files are currently available for avian receptors for use in Phase I Predictive Assessments. Please see EcoNOTE2 for suggested use of these measurements. All files are Microsoft Excel® 6.0 files. All the individual files are contained in a self-extracting zipped file titled 1st_bird.exe. The individual files available are: American kestrel (n=69): kestrel.xls American robin (n=99): robin.xls California quail (n=144): calquail.xls Cooper? hawk (n=24): cooperhk.xls great blue heron, (n=67): gbh.xls northern harrier (n=15): harrier.xls mourning dove (n=22): mourning.xls red tailed hawk (n=58): rthawk.xls sharp shinned hawk (n=39): sharpshin.xls USFWS Clutch Size One of the toxic endpoints used to develop a toxicity reference value for avian species is reduction in the number of eggs per clutch. This memorandum by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provides the rationale for considering reduction in clutch size as a significant measurement endpoint for ecological risk assessments. |