EPA`s interim guidance on Water-Effect Ratios for metals -- Effects of changes from previous guidance
- Great Lakes Environmental Center, Columbus, OH (United States)
- Great Lakes Environmental Center, Traverse City, MI (United States)
EPA released the ``Interim Guidance on Determination and Use of Water Effect Ratios for Metals`` in February of 1994 which supersedes all previous guidance for water-effect ratio (WER) determinations. WER determinations are used to account for the difference in toxicity of a metal in laboratory water and its toxicity in water for a specific site. WERs can be used in the development of site-specific water quality criteria for certain metals. A summary and review of the new guidance is presented emphasizing changes from previous guidance. One notable change in the new guidance is the possible use of downstream or ``simulated`` downstream water as the dilution water rather than water collected upstream of the effluent`s influence. A case study is presented in which both the upstream and simulated downstream dilution waters were used to determine WERs for copper, cadmium and zinc. The effect of using downstream water for acute WERs was negligible for zinc, but increased copper and cadmium acute WERs by a factor of approximately three.
- OSTI ID:
- 37447
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9410273-; TRN: IM9519%%371
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 15. annual meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC), Denver, CO (United States), 30 Oct - 3 Nov 1994; Other Information: PBD: 1994; Related Information: Is Part Of Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 15th annual meeting: Abstract book. Ecological risk: Science, policy, law, and perception; PB: 286 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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