ABSTRACT: Benthic invertebrate communities were assessed after the December 2008 release of approximately 4.1 million m3 coal fly ash from a disposal dredge cell at the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Kingston Fossil Plant on Watts Bar Reservoir in Roane County, Tennessee, USA. Released ash filled the adjacent embayments and the main channel of the Emory River, migrating into reaches of the E…
ABSTRACT: Simple, deterministic screening‐level assessments that are highly conservative by design facilitate a rapid initial screening to determine whether a pesticide active ingredient has the potential to adversely affect threatened or endangered species. If a worst‐case estimate of pesticide exposure is below a very conservative effects metric (e.g., the no observed effects concentrati…
The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, precipitated by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck the northeastern coast of Japan in March 2011, has raised concerns about the potential impact to marine biota posed by the release of radioactive water and radionuclide particles into the environment. The Fukushima accident is the only major nuclear accident that has resu…
Human exposure to Hg through fish consumption from local waterways is an ongoing concern to regulatory decision makers. Previously described population exposure and bioaccumulation models were combined to analyze the impact of potential policies on susceptible populations. The combined model simulated the problem of Hg exposure by examining the system from the point of Hg in the water column to…
The Tennessee Valley Authority conducted a Baseline Ecological Risk Assessment (BERA) for the Kingston Fossil Plant ash release site to evaluate potential effects of residual coal ash on biota in Watts Bar Reservoir, Tennessee. The BERA was in response to a release of 4.1 millionm3 of coal ash on December 22, 2008. It used multiple lines of evidence to assess risks for 17 different ecological r…
To limit the risk associated with invasion of habitats by exogenous species, the International Convention for the Control and Management of the Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments was adopted in February 2004 and may soon enter into force. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has produced guidelines to assess the efficacy and reliability of Ballast Water Treatment Systems (BWTS), but no…
Copper (Cu) can impair olfaction in juvenile Pacific salmon (as well as other fishes), thus potentially inhibiting the ability of juveniles to avoid predators or to find food. Because Cu is commonly elevated in stormwater runoff in urban environments, storm events may result in elevated Cu concentrations in salmon-bearing streams. Accordingly, there is concern that existing Cu criteria, which w…