The significance of water quality guidelines in environmental decision making: Ethylene glycol -- A case example
- Beak Consultants Ltd., Brampton, Ontario (Canada)
- MDS Environmental Services, Mississauga, Ontario (Canada)
- Union Carbide Canada Inc., Anjou, Quebec (Canada)
- Union Carbide Corp., South Charleston, WV (United States)
Ethylene glycol is a principal component of deicing and anti-icing products commonly applied to aircraft in winter prior to take-off. Many airports do not have efficient collection systems in place surrounding aquatic environments and biota are often exposed to ethylene glycol contained in direct runoff and snowmelt. This study was designed to fulfill the minimum ecotoxicity data requirements for the development of a water quality guideline for ethylene glycol. Ecotoxicity testing was conducted using reagent-grade ethylene glycol and exposure concentrations were confirmed by GC/FID direct aqueous injection, or based on spectrophotometric measurement of the purpene-glycol reaction. The highest ethylene glycol NOEC values for the organisms tested included rainbow trout fry growth 14,692 mg/L, fathead minnow fry growth 12,531 mg/l, Ceriodaphnia dubia reproduction 3,469 mg/L, the ciliate Colpidium campylum 28,090 mg/L, and the rotifer Brachionus calyciflorus 12,800 mg/L. The highest non-lethal level for rainbow trout and the for the frog Xenopus laevis was 12,500 mg/L. Results indicated that the 48-hr LC50 for Xenopus laevis reported in an earlier study (and which was used in the derivation of some interim guidelines) could not be reproduced. However, results of the fish and invertebrate tests compared favorably with other literature values for similar species and with QSAR estimates. A number of water quality derivation protocols (CCME, Ontario MOE, and US EPA) were applied to the data set for the comparison of generated guideline values. Differences in values demonstrate the economic need for using a common approach in developing guidelines that are used to assess hazard to similar ecosystems in different jurisdictions within a global marketplace.
- OSTI ID:
- 230919
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9511137-; ISBN 1-880611-03-1; TRN: IM9623%%229
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 2. Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) world conference, Vancouver (Canada), 5-9 Nov 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of Second SETAC world congress (16. annual meeting): Abstract book. Global environmental protection: Science, politics, and common sense; PB: 378 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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