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Assessment of sediment contamination at Great Lakes Areas
of Concern: the ARCS Program Toxicity-Chemistry Work Group
strategy
P. E. Ross,1
G. A. Burton, Jr.,2 E. A.
Crecelius,3 J. C. Filkins,4
J. P. Giesy, Jr.,5 C. G.
Ingersoll,6
P. F. Landrum,7 M. J. Mac,8
T. J. Murphy,9 J. E. Rathbun,10
V. E. Smith,10 H. F. Tatem,11&
R. W. Taylor12
1 Department of Biology,
The Citadel, Charleston, SC 29409, U.S.A.
2Department of Biological
Sciences, Wright State University
3Battelle Memorial Institute,
Marine Sciences Laboratory
4US. Environmental Protection
Agency, Large Lakes Research Station
5Department of Fisheries
and Wildlife, Michigan State University
6 US. Fish and Wildlife
Service, National Fisheries Contaminant Research Center
7National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, Great Lakes Environment Research Laboratory
8US. Fish and Wildlife Service,
National Fisheries Research Center - Great Lakes
9 Chemistry Department DePaul
University
10 AScI Corporation, Large
Lakes Research Station
11United States Army Corps
of Engineers, Waterways Experiment Station
12Department of Geosciences,
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
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Abstract
In response to a mandate in Section 118(c)(3) of the
Water Quality Act of 1987, a program called Assessment and Remediation
of Contaminated Sediments (ARCS) was established. Four technical
work groups were formed. This paper details the research strategy
of the Toxicity-Chemistry Work Group.
The Work Group's general objectives are to develop survey
methods and to map the degree of contamination and toxicity in bottom
sediments at three study areas, which will serve as guidance for
future surveys at other locations. A related objective is to use
the darn base that wilt be generated to calculate sediment quality
concentrations by several methods. The information needed to achieve
these goals will be collected in a series of field surveys at three
areas: Saginaw Bay (MI), Grand Calumet River (IN), and Buffalo River
(NY). Assessments of the extent of contamination and potential adverse
effects of contaminants in sediment at each of these locations will
be conducted by collecting samples for physical characterization,
toxicity testing, mutagenicity testing, chemical analyses, and fish
bioaccumulalion assays. Fish populations will be assessed for tumors
and external abnormalities, and benthic community structure will
be analyzed. A mapping approach will use low-cost indicator parameters
at a large number of stations, and will extrapolate by correlation
from traditional chemical and biological studies at a smaller number
of locations. Sediment toxicity testing includes elutriate, pore
water and whole sediment bioassays in a three-tiered framework.
In addition to the regular series of toxicity tests at primary mater
stations, some stations are selected for a more extensive suite
of tests.
Keywords: sediments, contamination, Great Lakes, ARCS,
toxicity
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