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A Comparative Toxicity Assessment of Materials Used in Aquatic Construction

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Abstract

Comparative toxicity testing was performed on selected materials that may be used in aquatic construction projects. The tests were conducted on the following materials: (1) untreated wood species (hemlock [Tsuga ssp], Western red cedar (Thuja plicata), red oak [Quercus rubra], Douglas fir [Pseudotsuga menziesii], red pine [Pinus resinosa], and tamarack [Larix ssp]); (2) plastic wood; (3) Ecothermo wood hemlock stakes treated with preservatives (e.g., chromated copper arsenate [CCA], creosote, alkaline copper quaternary [ACQ], zinc naphthenate, copper naphthenate, and Lifetime Wood Treatment); (4) epoxy-coated steel; (5) hot-rolled steel; (6) zinc-coated steel; and (7) concrete. Those materials were used in acute lethality tests with rainbow trout, Daphnia magna, Vibrio fischeri and threespine stickleback. The results indicated the following general ranking of the materials (from the lowest to highest LC50 values); ACQ > creosote > zinc naphthenate > copper naphthenate > CCA (treated at 22.4 kg/m3) > concrete > red pine > western red cedar > red oak > zinc-coated steel > epoxy-coated steel > CCA (6.4 kg/m3). Furthermore, the toxicity results indicated that plastic wood, certain untreated wood species (hemlock, tamarack, Douglas fir, and red oak), hot-rolled steel, Ecothermo wood, and wood treated with Lifetime Wood Treatment were generally nontoxic to the test species.

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Acknowledgments

Materials for toxicity testing were provided by members of the Canadian Institute of Treated Wood (CITW), Enviroage Plastics, and Bois Ecothermo Wood. Additional materials were purchased by Environment Canada. Toxicity testing was conducted at Environment Canada’s Atlantic Region Toxicity Laboratory, Moncton, New Brunswick. The authors thank the members of the CITW for their assistance as well as Bois Ecothermo Wood and Enviroage Plastics for provision of their samples.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Water Science and Technology Directorate, Environment Canada, 45 Alderney Dr, Dartmouth, NS, B2Y 2N6, Canada

    Benoit A. Lalonde, William Ernst, Gary Julien & Rebecca Schaefer

  2. Atlantic Laboratory for Environmental Testing, Water Science and Technology Directorate, Environment Canada, Moncton, NB, E1A 3E9, Canada

    Paula Jackman & Ken Doe

  3. 6080 Pepperell St Apt 12, Halifax, NS, B3H 2N7, Canada

    Rebecca Schaefer

Authors
  1. Benoit A. Lalonde
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  2. William Ernst
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  3. Gary Julien
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  4. Paula Jackman
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  5. Ken Doe
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  6. Rebecca Schaefer
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Correspondence to Benoit A. Lalonde.

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Lalonde, B.A., Ernst, W., Julien, G. et al. A Comparative Toxicity Assessment of Materials Used in Aquatic Construction. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 61, 368–375 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-010-9631-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-010-9631-1

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