Ecological effects of soil contamination at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland
- Argonne National Laboratory, IL (United States)
Assessment of the ecological condition of contaminated soil was conducted in portions of the U.S. Army's Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland as part of an ecological risk assessment. This area is covered by open fields, woods and nontidal marshes. Chemicals disposed of in open burning pits included methylphosphonothioic acid, dichlorodiethyl sulfide, and titanium tetrachloride and sulfur trioxide/chlorosulfonic acid. Previous soil analysis showed extensive surface soil contamination with metals, nitrate, PCBs and pesticides. This assessment included characterizing soil biota, biologically-mediated processes in soil and aboveground biomass. Field surveys of the soil invertebrate communities showed significant reductions in the total abundance of animals, reductions in the abundance of several taxonomic and functional groups of soil invertebrates, and changes in the activity of epigeic arthropods in contaminated areas when compared with the local [open quotes]background[close quotes] area. Laboratory toxicity tests also demonstrated that microbial activity and success of egg hatching of ground beetle Harpalus pensylvanicus were reduced in contaminated soils. These results suggest that impacts to soil ecosystems should be explicitly considered in ecological risk assessment.
- OSTI ID:
- 7162237
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-940894-; CODEN: BECLAG
- Journal Information:
- Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America; (United States), Vol. 75:2; Conference: Annual Ecological Society of America (ESA) meeting: science and public policy, Knoxville, TN (United States), 7-11 Aug 1994; ISSN 0012-9623
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
ANIMALS
POPULATION DYNAMICS
ARTHROPODS
INVERTEBRATES
POLLUTANTS
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
SOILS
CONTAMINATION
METALS
NITRATES
PESTICIDES
POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS
TOXICITY
AROMATICS
CHLORINATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
ELEMENTS
HALOGENATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
560300* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology