bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Incremental ecological exposure risks from contaminated sediments in an urban estuarine river
Authors: Ludwig David F. , Iannuzzi Timothy J. 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
Estuaries in urban regions present unique environmental management challenges. Ecosystems in urban estuaries are typically impacted by habitat loss and degradation, watershed modification, and nonpoint and point sources of many chemicals. Restoring such systems requires an understanding of the relative contribution of various stressors to overall ecological conditions and an understanding of shifting patterns of stress over time. In this article, we present the results of a multiparameter environmental assessment of a quintessential urbanized waterway: the lower Passaic River in the vicinity of Newark, New Jersey, USA. To provide the foundation for effective management decision making, we quantified baseline conditions (habitat losses and degradation), chemical concentrations in sediment and biota relative to published toxic effect levels, direct toxicity of sediments to benthic organisms, and food-web mediated risks to fish-eating birds. Habitat losses have been severe (greater than 85% of wetlands, nearly 100% of the total length of tidal and nontidal tributaries, and 100% of natural shoreline habitat have been lost), resulting in substantial habitat constraints on biota. Despite this, biological communities are present in the lower Passaic. In general, concentrations of toxic chemicals in surface sediments have fallen with time, and natural recovery processes are proceeding. Chemical concentrations remain high enough to impair survival of amphipods, but not amphipod growth or polychaete growth or survival as measured in laboratory bioassays using field-collected sediment. Fish and blue crab body burdens of some metals, PCBs, and the pesticide, DDT, are at concentrations sufficiently high to exceed toxicity thresholds. The resident fish-eating bird—the belted kingfisher—is at exposure risk from some metals, PCBs, and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzo furans (PCDD/Fs). Migratory waders—the herons and egrets—are not at risk from chemical exposure. These complex findings suggest that restoring the lower Passaic River to ecological health is a correspondingly complex task. Habitat constraints must be eased for biotic components of the ecosystem, and chemical effects must be reduced for those organisms that are present. Only a coordinated, multidisciplinary restoration program will succeed in this challenging environment.
Why confined aquatic disposal cells often make sense
Authors: Fredette Thomas J 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
Confined aquatic disposal (CAD) cells are increasingly becoming the selected option for the management of unacceptably contaminated sediments. CAD cells are selected as the preferred alternative because this approach provides an acceptable compromise when cost, logistics, regulatory acceptance, environmental risk, and perception of various alternatives are considered. This preference for CAD cells often occurs even when other alternatives with similar risk reduction and less cost, such as an open water capping alternative, are considered as options. This paradox is largely a result of subjective factors that affect regulatory acceptance such as public perceptions.
Panel discussion: Remedy effectiveness: What works, what doesn't?
Authors: Zeller Craig , Cushing Bradford 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
As contaminated sediment sites in freshwater and marine environments come under increasing scrutiny, and the importance of these sites with regard to ecological and human health is better understood, the number of contaminated sediment sites requiring risk characterization and management is increasing. Risk reduction must be the long-term goal of all sediment management practices. Risk management strategies in aquatic environments focus on mitigating potential exposure pathways for contaminants that may pose an ecological or human health risk over time. Sediment management practices include dredging (“environmental dredging”), capping, monitored natural recovery, and combinations of these generic response actions. A Remedy Effectiveness Panel was selected to identify and discuss the key issues associated with the performance of these generic response actions for contaminated sediments. The panel convened in New Orleans on 26 January 2005 at Battelle's Third International Conference on the Remediation of Contaminated Sediments and made 3 presentations on response actions to conference attendees followed by an open dialog between attendees and panel members. This article introduces the 3 generic response actions, identifies key topics from the open dialog and presents opinions expressed, and provides a summary and observations.
Ecological impact in ditch mesocosms of simulated spray drift from a crop protection program for potatoes
Authors: Arts Gertie HP , Buijse-Bogdan Laura L , Belgers J Dick M , van Rhenen-Kersten Caroline H , van Wijngaarden Rene PA , Roessink Ivo , Maund Steve J , van den Brink Paul J , Brock Theo CM 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
Outdoor aquatic ditch mesocosms were treated with a range of pesticides to simulate various spray drift rates resulting from a typical crop protection program used in the cultivation of potatoes in The Netherlands. The main experimental aims of the present study were to provide information on the fate and ecological effects of drift of the pesticides into surface water and to evaluate the effectiveness of drift-reduction measures in mitigating risks. The pesticides selected and the dosage, frequency, and timing of application were based on normal agricultural practices in the potato crop. Applications of prosulfocarb, metribuzin (both herbicides), lambda-cyhalothrin (insecticide), chlorothalonil, and fluazinam (both fungicides) were made in the sequence typical of the spray calendar for potatoes. A total of 15 treatments with the various compounds were made by spray application to the water surface at 0.2%, 1%, and 5% of the recommended label rates. Chemical fate and effects on ecosystem function and structure (phytoplankton, zooplankton, chlorophyll-a, macroinvertebrates, macrophytes, breakdown of plant litter) were investigated. To interpret the observed effects, treatment concentrations were also expressed in toxic units (TU), which describe the relative toxicity of the compounds with standard toxicity test organisms (Daphnia and algae). After treatment, each compound disappeared from the water phase within 2 d, with the exception of prosulfocarb, for which 50% dissipation time (DT50) values ranged between 6 and 7 d. At the 5% treatment level, an exposure peak of 0.9 TUalgae was observed, which resulted in short-term responses of pH, oxygen, and phytoplankton. At the 5% treatment level, exposure concentrations also exceeded 0.1 TUDaphnia, and this resulted in long-term effects on zooplankton and macroinvertebrates, some of which did not fully recover by the end of the present study. At the 1% treatment level, only slight transient effects were observed on a limited number of zooplankton and macro-invertebrate species and on pH. At the 0.2% level, no consistent treatment-related effects were observed. Most of the observed effects were consistent with the results from higher-tier and mesocosm studies with the individual compounds. Multi and repeated stress played a small role within the applied pesticide package, because of rapid dissipation of most substances and the absence of many simultaneous applications. This suggests that risk assessments based on the individual compounds would in this case have been sufficiently protective for their uses in a crop protection program.
Residential energy use and potential conservation through reduced laundering temperatures in the United States and Canada
Authors: Sabaliunas Darius , Pittinger Charles , Kessel Cristy , Masscheleyn Patrick 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
A residential energy-use model was developed to estimate energy budgets for household laundering practices in the United States and Canada. The thermal energy for heating water and mechanical energy for agitating clothes in conventional washing machines were calculated for representative households in the United States and Canada. Comparisons in energy consumption among hot-, warm-, and cold-water wash and rinse cycles, horizontal- and vertical-axis washing machines, and gas and electric water heaters, were calculated on a per-wash-load basis. Demographic data for current laundering practices in the United States and Canada were then incorporated to estimate household and national energy consumption on an annual basis for each country. On average, the thermal energy required to heat water using either gas or electric energy constitutes 80% to 85% of the total energy consumed per wash in conventional, vertical-axis (top-loading) washing machines. The balance of energy used is mechanical energy. Consequently, the potential energy savings per load in converting from hot-and-warm- to cold-wash temperatures can be significant. Annual potential energy and cost savings and reductions in carbon dioxide emissions are also estimated for each country, assuming full conversion to cold-wash water temperatures. This study provides useful information to consumers for conserving energy in the home, as well as to manufacturers in the design of more energy-efficient laundry formulations and appliances.
Valuation of biodiversity effects from reduced pesticide use
Authors: Schou Jesper S. , Hasler Berit , Nahrstedt Birgit 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
This study deals with the effects on biodiversity of pesticide-free buffer zones along field margins. Using choice modeling, the majority of respondents to a survey on pesticide use in the environment are willing to accept an increase in the price of bread if the survival of partridge chicks and the number of wild plants increase. The study identifies the need for further empirical work with respect to methodological validation, price estimation, and the use of survey results in policy analysis. In particular, the environmental effects of pesticide use are complex and, therefore, present difficult challenges when presenting information to lay people. Forty-one percent of respondents changed their responses regarding willingness to pay more for bread when references to pesticide use were introduced in the questionnaire. This indicates that scenarios depicting changes in pesticide use can be difficult to present to lay people in an economically rational and well-defined context. Thus, in the study of valuation related to changes in pesticide use, much attention should be devoted to the design and definition of the context. Furthermore, the effects of providing different background information, e.g., with or without the mention of pesticides, should be tested.
Democracy and sustainable development—what is the alternative to cost–benefit analysis?
Authors: Söderbaum Peter 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
Cost–benefit analysis (CBA) is part of neoclassical economics, a specific paradigm, or theoretical perspective. In searching for alternatives to CBA, competing theoretical frameworks in economics appear to be a natural starting point. Positional analysis (PA) as an alternative to CBA is built on institutional theory and a different set of assumptions about human beings, organizations, markets, etc. Sustainable development (SD) is a multidimensional concept that includes social and ecological dimensions in addition to monetary aspects. If the political commitment to SD in the European Union and elsewhere is taken seriously, then approaches to decision making should be chosen that 1st open the door for multidimensional analysis rather than close it. Sustainable development suggests a direction for development in a broad sense but is still open to different interpretations. Each such interpretation is political in kind, and a 2nd criterion for judging different approaches is whether they are ideologically open rather than closed. Although methods for decision making have traditionally been connected with mathematical objective functions and optimization, the purpose of PA is to illuminate a decision situation in a many-sided way with respect to possibly relevant ideological orientations, alternatives, and consequences. Decisions are understood in terms of matching the ideological orientation of each decision maker with the expected effects profile of each alternative considered. Appropriateness and pattern recognition are other concepts in understanding this process.
Minimizing environmental impacts of a major construction: The øresund link
Authors: Gray john S. 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
The Øresund Link is a 4-lane motorway with a 2-line rail link between Copenhagen, Denmark, and Malmö, Sweden, built across the Øresund Sound between the 2 countries. The environmental concerns associated with construction of the Link were that that it might affect the water and salt flow through the Sound and into and out of the Baltic Sea, lead to destruction of the cod fishery, and affect other biological systems. An International Expert Panel was formed to design mitigation strategies to avoid negative environmental impacts. The Panel designed stringent environmental controls for the construction, of which the most significant was to limit sediment discharges to 5% of the dredged material. This was one-fifth of the discharge limit construction companies usually accept as normal for such a large-scale project. An environmental monitoring program was instituted to monitor compliance with the environmental control measures. As a result of the imposition of tough environmental requirements, the Link was built with little environmental impact and 3 y after it was completed, environmental conditions have returned to normal.
Ecological significance of residual exposures and effects from the Exxon Valdez oil spill
Authors: Harwell Mark A , Gentile John H 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
An ecological significance framework is used to assess the ecological condition of Prince William Sound (PWS), Alaska, USA, in order to address the current management question: 17 y following the Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS), are there any remaining and continuing ecologically significant exposures or effects on the PWS ecosystem caused by EVOS? We examined the extensive scientific literature funded by the Exxon Valdez Trustees or by ExxonMobil to assess exposures and effects from EVOS. Criteria to assess ecological significance include whether a change in a valued ecosystem component (VEC) is sufficient to affect the structure, function, and/or health of the system and whether such a change exceeds natural variability. The EVOS occurred on 24 March 1989, releasing over 250,000 barrels of crude oil into PWS. Because PWS is highly dynamic, the residual oil was largely eliminated in the first few years, and now only widely dispersed, highly weathered, or isolated small pockets of residual contamination remain. Many other sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) exist in PWS from past or present human activities or natural oil seeps. Multiple-lines-of-evidence analyses indicate that residual PAHs from EVOS no longer represent an ecologically significant exposure risk to PWS. To assess the ecological significance of any residual effects from EVOS, we examined the literature on more than 20 VECs, including primary producers, filter feeders, fish and bird primary consumers, fish and bird top predators, a bird scavenger, mammalian primary consumers and top predators, biotic communities, ecosystem-level properties of trophodynamics and biogeochemical processes, and landscape-level properties of habitat mosaic and wilderness quality. None of these has any ecologically significant effects that are detectable at present, with the exception of 1 pod of orcas and possibly 1 subpopulation of sea otters; however, in both those cases, PWS-wide populations appear to have fully recovered. Many other stressors continue to affect PWS adversely, including climate and oceanographic variability, increased tourism and shipping, invasive species, the 1964 earthquake, and overexploitation of marine resources, with associated cascading effects on populations of PWS fish and predators. We conclude that the PWS ecosystem has now effectively recovered from EVOS.
A method to incorporate ecology into residence time of chemicals in embayments: Local effect time
Authors: Abdelrhman Mohamed A 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
Residence times are defined classically by the physical and chemical aspects of water bodies rather than by their ecological implications. Therefore, a more clear and direct connection between the residence times and ecological effects is necessary to relate these timescales quantitatively to ecology. The concept of local effect time (LET) is proposed in this paper as a timescale with spatial resolution that relates to ecological components and their spatial distribution within an embayment. The LET can predict the susceptibility of real-world ecological components to change from one condition to another. It can provide an efficient way to allow managers and agencies to evaluate the degree of stress or relief from current or projected changes in the loading of contaminants or nutrients. The steps for calculating LETs and defining their correlation with the existing ecological components in an embayment are presented along with illustrative applications to loading from riverine inflow and a wastewater treatment plant. The LET successfully identified the areas within the water body that could be prone to ecological changes due to perturbations in the loading rate of riverine water and its constituents. An example is given that shows how the LET method can be used to delineate the distribution and duration of high levels of coliform bacteria due to a pulsed effluent from the treatment plant.
Brownfields and health risks—air dispersion modeling and health risk assessment at landfill redevelopment sites
Authors: Ofungwu Joseph , Eget Steven 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
Redevelopment of landfill sites in the New Jersey–New York metropolitan area for recreational (golf courses), commercial, and even residential purposes seems to be gaining acceptance among municipal planners and developers. Landfill gas generation, which includes methane and potentially toxic nonmethane compounds usually continues long after closure of the landfill exercise phase. It is therefore prudent to evaluate potential health risks associated with exposure to gas emissions before redevelopment of the landfill sites as recreational, commercial, and, especially, residential properties. Unacceptably high health risks would call for risk management measures such as limiting the development to commercial/recreational rather than residential uses, stringent gas control mechanisms, interior air filtration, etc. A methodology is presented for applying existing models to estimate residual landfill hazardous compounds emissions and to quantify associated health risks. Besides the toxic gas constituents of landfill emissions, other risk-related issues concerning buried waste, landfill leachate, and explosive gases were qualitatively evaluated. Five contiguously located landfill sites in New Jersey intended for residential and recreational redevelopment were used to exemplify the approach.
Sequential analysis of lines of evidence—an advanced weight-of-evidence approach for ecological risk assessment
Authors: Hull Ruth N , Swanson Stella 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
Weight-of-evidence (WOE) approaches have been used in ecological risk assessment (ERA) for many years. The approaches integrate various types of data (e.g., from chemistry, bioassay, and field studies) to make an overall conclusion of risk. However, the current practice of WOE has several important difficulties, including a lack of transparency related to how each line of evidence is weighted or integrated into the overall weight-of-evidence conclusion. Therefore, a sequential analysis of lines of evidence (SALE) approach has been developed that advances the practice of WOE. It was developed for an ERA of chemical stressors but also can be used for nonchemical stressors and is equally applicable to the aquatic and terrestrial environments. The sequential aspect of the SALE process is a significant advancement and is based on 2 primary ideas. First, risks can be ruled out with the use of certain lines of evidence, including modeled hazard quotients (HQs) and comparisons of soil, water, or sediment quality with conservative soil, water or sediment quality guidelines. Thus, the SALE process recognizes that HQs are most useful in ruling out risk rather than predicting risk to ecological populations or communities. Second, the SALE process provides several opportunities to exit the risk assessment process, not only when risks are ruled out, but also when magnitude of effect is acceptable or when little or no evidence exists that associations between stressors and effects may be causal. Thus, the SALE approach explicitly includes interaction between assessors and managers. It illustrates to risk managers how risk management can go beyond the simple derivation of risk-based concentrations of chemicals of concern to risk management goals based on ecological metrics (e.g., species diversity). It also can be used to stimulate discussion of the limitations of the ERA science, and how scientists deal with uncertainty. It should assist risk managers by allowing their decisions to be based on a sequential, flexible, and transparent process that includes direct toxicity risks, indirect risks (via changes in habitat suitability), and the spatial and temporal factors that can influence the risk assessment.
Biomarkers and integrated environmental risk assessment: Are there more questions than answers?
Authors: Hagger Josephine A , Jones Malcolm B , Leonard DR Paul , Owen Richard , Galloway Tamara S 
Published: March 2010

Abstract
The introduction of the European Commission's Water Framework Directive (WFD; 2000/60/EC) established a new era in environmental risk assessment. In addition to incorporating the compliance of chemical quality standards, the key objective of the WFD is the general protection of the aquatic environment in its entirety. This new approach emphasizes the need for an integrated environmental risk assessment and offers the potential for the incorporation of biological effects measures, including the use of biomarkers in this process. Biomarkers have been suggested as practical tools for environmental management for a number of decades, but their inclusion has not been universally accepted because of a number of unanswered questions regarding sensitivity, practicality, and reproducibility. With this in mind, this paper addresses these potential questions and shows how, by taking a weight-of-evidence approach, biomarkers may be successfully incorporated within environmental risk assessment frameworks such as the WFD.