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Assessing potential bioavailability of metals in sediments: A proposed approach

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Abstract

Due to anthropogenic inputs, elevated concentrations of metals frequently occur in aquatic sediments. In order to make defensible estimates of the potential risk of metals in sediments and/or develop sediment quality criteria for metals, it is essential to identify that fraction of the total metal in the sediments that is bioavailable. Studies with a variety of benthic invertebrates indicate that interstitial (pore) water concentrations of metals correspond very well with the bioavailability of metals in test sediments. Many factors may influence pore water concentrations of metals; however, in anaerobic sediments a key phase controlling partitioning of several cationic metals (cadmium, nickel, lead, zinc, copper) into pore water is acid volatile sulfide (AVS). In this paper, we present an overview of the technical basis for predicting bioavailability of cationic metals to benthic organisms based on pore water metal concentrations and metal-AVS relationships. Included are discussions of the advantages and limitations of metal bioavailability predictions based on these parameters, relative both to site-specific assessments and the development of sediment quality criteria.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. US Environmental Protection Agency, 6201 Congdon Blvd., 55804, Duluth, Minnesota, USA

    Gerald T. Ankley & Nelson A. Thomas

  2. Hydroqual, Inc., 07430, Mahwah, New Jersey, USA

    Dominic M. Di Toro

  3. US Environmental Protection Agency, 27 Tarzwell Dr., 02882, Narragansett, Rhode Island, USA

    David J. Hansen

  4. Chemistry Department, Manhattan College, 10471, Bronx, New York, USA

    John D. Mahony

  5. SAIC Corporation, 27 Tarzwell Dr., 02882, Narragansett, Rhode Island, USA

    Walter J. Berry

  6. US Environmental Protection Agency, Hatfield Marine Science Center Marine Science Drive, 97365, Newport, Oregon, USA

    Richard C. Swartz

  7. SAIC Corporation, 411 Hackensack Ave., 07601, Hackensack, New Jersey, USA

    Robert A. Hoke

  8. US Environmental Protection Agency, College Station Rd., 30605, Athens, Georgia, USA

    A. Wayne Garrison

  9. Department of Civil Engineering, University of Delaware, 19716, Newark, Delaware, USA

    Herbert E. Allen

  10. US Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M Street S.W., 20460, Washington, DC, USA

    Christopher S. Zarba

Authors
  1. Gerald T. Ankley
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  2. Nelson A. Thomas
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  3. Dominic M. Di Toro
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  4. David J. Hansen
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  5. John D. Mahony
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  6. Walter J. Berry
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  7. Richard C. Swartz
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  8. Robert A. Hoke
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  9. A. Wayne Garrison
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  10. Herbert E. Allen
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  11. Christopher S. Zarba
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Ankley, G.T., Thomas, N.A., Di Toro, D.M. et al. Assessing potential bioavailability of metals in sediments: A proposed approach. Environmental Management 18, 331–337 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02393863

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