Predicting maximum likely exposure factors to determine screening criteria for risks to terrestrial wildlife from soil-borne contaminants
- URS Consultants, Seattle, WA (United States)
Ecological risk assessors are commonly required to provide a screening level, preliminary evaluation of the potential risks that may occur from chemical concentrations in the soil. For water and sediment-born chemicals, Ambient Water Quality Criteria developed by the EPA, and Sediment Quality Standards developed by NOAA, have been used for this purpose. Criteria have not been proposed for soil-borne chemicals. This presentation proposes soil criteria for some chemicals based on the development of maximum likely wildlife exposure factors. Wildlife species were grouped based on their foraging strategies. Maximum likely intake rates of air, soil and prey were estimated for each group based on allometric relationships. These intake rates were then compared to existing toxicity information to determine the minimum chemical concentration in the soil that may pose a potential threat to wildlife. These criteria can be used to identify chemicals of concern in the preliminary stages of an ecological risk assessment.
- OSTI ID:
- 37477
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9410273--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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