Sedimentary selenium as a causal factor for adverse biological effects: Toxicity thresholds and stream modeling
- Colorado Springs Utilities, CO (United States). Water Resources Dept.
- Chadwick Ecological Consultants, Inc., Littleton, CO (United States)
Selenium (Se) in the aquatic environment exhibits a strong association with particulate organic matter and as a result, measurements of waterborne concentration can be an unreliable predictor of bioaccumulation and adverse effects. Particulate-bound Se, typically measured as sedimentary Se, has been repeatedly implicated as a causal factor for Se bioaccumulation and subsequent potential for reproductive failures in fish and/or birds at sites receiving coal-fired power plant and refinery effluents as well as irrigation drainage. In fact, the premise that adverse biological effects are largely induced by sedimentary Se satisfies all of Hill`s criteria for a causal association. Despite these findings, most efforts to control Se continue to focus on waterborne concentrations because sedimentary toxicity thresholds are largely unknown. Sedimentary Se and associated biological effects data from studies of Se-bearing industrial effluent and irrigation drainage were compiled to initiate development of biological effects thresholds, The probability of adverse effects on fish or birds appears to be low up to a sedimentary Se concentration of about 2.8 {micro}g/g dry weight and high at 6.4 {micro}g/g dry weight (10th and 50th percentile of effects data, respectively). In addition, a preliminary regression model was derived for predicting dissolved to sedimentary Se transfer in streams as an interactive function of site-specific sedimentary organic carbon content (R{sup 2} = 0,870, p < 0.001) based on irrigation drainage studies in Colorado. This dissolved Se interaction with sedimentary organic carbon provides a possible explanation for the variable biological response to waterborne Se-organic-rich sites are predisposed to greater Se bioaccumulation and subsequent biological effects than organic-poor sites.
- OSTI ID:
- 392366
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9511137-; ISBN 1-880611-03-1; TRN: IM9647%%220
- 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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