Quantifying spatial components of ecological exposure for ecological risk assessment at Rocky Mountain Arsenal
Conference
·
OSTI ID:37424
- EA Engineering, Science, and Technology, Hunt Valley, MD (United States)
- Morrison Knudsen Corp., Denver, CO (United States)
- Shell Oil Co., Houston, TX (United States)
For ecological risk assessment to be a useful tool for risk management decision making, the evaluation must reflect as closely as possible the biological and chemical realities of exposure. A crucial suite of parameters controlling exposure are those associated with spatial relationships between contaminants and biota. Effective methods for handling spatial aspects of exposure are available, and have been applied for risk quantitation at RMA. For terrestrial receptors, exposure integration ranges were estimated based on available literature on foraging and dispersal. Bioaccumulation factors (BAF) were developed from site-specific data on tissue and soil concentrations. To quantify projected risks across the entire 27 square mile parcel, ARC/INFO GIS software was employed to construct Theissen polygons over the area based on intensive surface and near-surface soil sampling programs. Biotic exposure at lower trophic levels was quantified by relating Biotic tissue concentrations of contaminants to soil concentrations using site-specific data-derived BAFS. For higher trophic levels, a simple feeding model was employed to estimate doses. Resulting quantitative risk estimates incorporating these spatial components had substantially reduced uncertainty and greater utility as risk management tools than alternative approaches.
- OSTI ID:
- 37424
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9410273--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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