United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Great Lakes National
Program Office
536 South Clark Street
Chicago, Illinois 60605
EPA-905/3-84-007
November 1984
v>EPA
Flow-through Bioassay
For Measuring
Bioaccumulation of
Toxic Substances From
Sediment
Do not WEED. This document
should be retained in the EPA
Region 5 Library Collectioii.
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EPA-905/3-84-007
November 1984
Flow-through Bloassay For Measuring
Bloaccumulatlon of Toxic Substances From Sediment
Michael J. Mac
Carol C. Edsall
Robert J. Hesselberg
Richard E. Sayers, Jr.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Great Lakes Fishery Laboratory
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105
Final Report
May 1984
Interagency Agreement DW 930095-01-0
Project Officer
Anthony Klzlauskas
Remedial Program Staff
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
GREAT LAKES NATIONAL PROGRAM OFFICE
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
536 SOUTH CLARK STREET, ROOM 958
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60605
^/Contribution No. 616 of the Great Lakes Fishery Laboratory
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Sowlwartf, 12m Ffosf
Chicago.lt 60604-3590
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DISCLAIMER
This report has been reviewed by the Great Lakes National Program
Office, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and approved for publication.
Approval does not signify that the contents necessarily reflect the views
and policies of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, nor does mention of
trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation
for use.
J!
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FOREWORD
The Great Lakes National Program Office (GLNPO) of the United States Enviro-
mental Protection Agency was established in Region V, Chicago, to focus
attention on the significant and complex natural resource represented by the
Great Lakes.
GLNPO implements a multi-media environmental management program drawing on
a wide range of expertise represented by universities, private firms. State,
Federal, and Canadian governmental agencies, and the International Joint
Commission. The goal of the GLNPO program is to develop programs, practices
and technology necessary for a better understanding of the Great Lakes Basin
ecosystem and to eliminate or reduce to the maximum extent practicable the
discharge of pollutants into the Great Lakes system. GLNPO also coordinates
U.S. actions in fulfillment of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement of
1978 between Canada and the United States of America.
iii
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CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 1
MATERIALS AND METHODS 2
RESULTS 8
DISCUSSION 11
REFERENCES 15
IV
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FIGURES
PAGE
1. D1 agram of Sediment Exposure System 3
TABLES
1. Physical and Chemical Characteristics from the Three Collections.
Dates of Collection and Dates of Various Tests are also Presented 6
2. Summary of Test Conditions and Mortality of Organisms 9
3. Mean Weight, Lipid Content, and PCB and Zn Concentrations in
Analyzed Samples 10
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The authors acknowledge the technical assistance of David Nortrup,
Susan Praasterink, and Dr. James G. Seelye. We also acknowledge
personnel at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Hammond Bay
Biological Station for assistance with collection of ollgochaetes.
This work was supported In part by the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, Great Lakes National Program Office under Interagency Agree-
ment DW 930095-01-0 with the U.S. F1sh and Wildlife Service, Great
Lakes Fishery Laboratory.
v1
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Introduction
Over 10 million cubic meters of sediment are dredged annually from Great
Lakes waterways. Because much of this material is taken from harbors,
connecting channels, and other nearshore areas that often are contaminated
with toxic substances, the sediments proposed for dredging need to be
evaluated for the presence of bioavailable contaminants and the potential for
toxicity to the biota. Sound decisions on the appropriate disposal of the
dredged material can be made only after such an evaluation. Presently, no
standardized procedure exists for evaluating dredged material in freshwater
systems although criteria for discharge of dredged material into marine waters
have been developed (USEPA/CE 1977). In the ocean discharge guidelines, it is
recommended that bioassays be conducted on liquid, solid, and suspended
particulate phases of dredged material. Because it appears that the solid
phase has the greatest potential for environmental damage and because
measuranents of bioaccumulation must be made to evaluate sediments for
disposal (USEPA/CE 1977, Seelye and Mac 1983), we developed a bioassay for
testing the solid phase of dredged material that measures the survival of
organisms and, perhaps more important, the bioaccumulation of toxic
substances. Although other workers ^have demonstrated the bioaccumulation of
toxic substances by aquatic organisms from naturally contaminated sediments
(Peddicord et al . 1980; Rubinstein et al . 1980, 1983; Seelye et al. 1982),
several have used testing methods that result in unacceptable mortality to
control organisms (Bahnick et al. 1981, Prater et al. 1983).
Our bioassay is intended to estimate the potential for bioaccumulation of
contaminants from sediments that are not acutely toxic to test organisms, but
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are suspected of containing persistent contaminants. By using test organisms
that are not highly susceptible to toxic compounds, the bioaccumulation test
allows estimation of the potential food-chain accumulation of contaminants
that may occur in local biota from surficial sediments. In practice,
bioaccumulation observed in this bioassay by organisms exposed to test
sediments (sediments to be dredged) would be compared to bioaccumulation
observed from sediments collected from a reference site (e.g. a disposal site
or open lake), and also from control sediments (relatively clean sediment).
Decisions could then be based on a comparison of results between test and
reference sediments to determine if disposal would cause degradation to the
habitat, and between reference and control sediment to determine if even the
reference material is seriously contaminated. Although the test is not
intended to be a toxicity test per se, use of test, reference, and control
sediments enables interpretation of any mortality of organisms that may occur
during the bioassays. High mortality in bioassays with test or reference
sediment would indicate acute toxicity of sediments in the project area.
However if high mortality occurs in all three sediments, it can be assumed
that the organisms were not in a healthy state at tne time of testing.
We describe the results of 10-day sediment bioassays in which both
mortality and bioaccumulation were measured in four aquatic organisms. We
exposed two infaunal organisms and two species of fish to test and control
sediments in the laboratory.
Materials and Methods
Sediment bioassays were conducted in a flow-through system consisting of
eight 39-L glass tanks (Fig. 1). Each tank received 100 mL/min of 20°C water,
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RAW WELL WATER
DEIONIZED WATER
u>
CHILLER
HEATER
HEAD TANK
THERMO-
REGULATOR
.VALVE
WATER
LEVEL
-STANDPIPE
SEDIMENT
Figure 1. Diagram of sediment exposure system.
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softened to a hardness of about 120 mg/L (as CaCOs) by mixing deionized well
water with processed well water (hardness 442 mg/L, Seelye et al. 1982).
Prior to the start of a test, about 11 kg (5 cm depth) of sediment was added
to each tank; four tanks received contaminated (test) sediment and four
received clean (control) sediment. Water was then added to the tank and the
sediment was allowed to settle for 24 hours before test organisms were added.
Tests lasted 12 days. Organisms were exposed to sediment for 10 days and then
moved to identical tanks containing only flowing water for 2 days to allow for
clearance of ingested sediment from the gut. During the tests we monitored
water temperature, flow rate, hardness, dissolved oxygen, and sediment redox
potential. Suspended solids were measured only in the exposures involving
fish.
We tested two species of fish (fathead minnows, Pimephales promelas, and
yellow perch, Perca flavescens) and two species of invertebrates (an
oligochaete worm, Octolasion tyrtaeum, and the Asiatic clam, Corbicula
fluminea). Adult minnows (2-3g) and juvenile perch ( 2g) were obtained from
the National Fishery Research Laboratory, La Crosse, Wisconsin; the worms were
collected from the Black River near Onaway, Michigan; and the clams were
obtained from the Sacramento River delta in California. Test organisms were
held at the Great Lakes Fishery Laboratory for at least 2 weeks and acclimated
to softened water for at least 5 days before testing. During this time, fish
were fed Silver Cup!/ pellets, clams were fed algae (Chlorella), and
oligochaetes were maintained in forest duff in which organic matter was
available for food. Organisms were not fed during the tests.
i/Reference to trade names does not imply U.S. Government endorsement
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During testing, we also examined the suitability of two other
invertebrates: Chironomus larvae and Hexagenia limbata. Chironomus larvae
are easily cultured and an important food chain member in the Great Lakes. We
rejected them as a test organism, however, because their small size would
require large numbers of similarly aged individuals to obtain enough tissue for
contaminant analysis. Hexagenia limbata is another important food item in the
Great Lakes. We observed high mortality during both holding and testing of
this species. High mortality of IH. limbata has occurred in other published
sediment studies (Bahnick et al . 1981). Because of the small size of
Chironomus and the high mortality of J4. limbata, no further tests of these
organisms were attempted.
Either 10 fish, 14 oligochaete worms, or 30 clams were placed into each
tank at the start of the bioassay. We netted fish and collected worms and
clams by hand following 10 days of exposure to sediments. At the end of a
test, we froze all live organisms whole for contaminant analysis. In
addition, a sample of test organisms was frozen prior to the start of the test
for determination of preexposure contaminant concentrations. All organisms
were thawed and the clams shelled before homogenization and analysis.
Control and test sediments were collected just before each test to
minimize chemical changes in the sediment caused by storage (Table 1). Three
sets of test sediments were collected with a ponar dredge from the Raisin
River near Monroe, Michigan (41° 54' 1" N, 83° 21' 18" W), and three sets of
control sediments were shoveled from Meadowood Pond in Saline Township,
Michigan (42° 7' 44" N, 83° 47' 45" W). In the first exposure, two sets of
tanks were used with fathead minnows in one set and oligochaetes in the other.
Yellow perch were tested in sediments from the second collection and clams
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Table 1. Physical and chemical characteristics of sediments from the three collections. Dates of collection and
dates of various tests are also presented.
Physical composition (% dry wt.)
Exposures and dates
of test
1.
2.
3.
Fathead minnows
and oligochaetes
(10/20-11/2)
Control
Test
Yellow perch
(11/16-11/28)
Control
Test
Asiatic clams
(1/28-2/9)
Control
Test
Date
Collected
10/12
9/30
11/9
10/25
1/13
1/14
Sand
65
11
51
67
16
36
Silt
19
43
24
16
41
33
Clay
13
35
22
11
32
22
Volatile
solids
2
8
3
4
10
7
Contaminants
PCBs
0.016
31.72
0.013
12.78
0.014
19.60
(ug/g dry wt.)
Zn
34
244
31
147
67
162
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were tested In sediments from the third collection. Subsamples of sediment
were taken before placement in test tanks and frozen for later chemical and
physical analysis.
Sediments and test organisms were analyzed for PCBs and In to examine the
bioaccumulation potential of both an organic and an inorganic contaminant
directly from contaminated sediment. We analyzed PCBs in sediment and in test
organisms by gas chromatography (GC), using methods previously described by
Seelye et al. (1982). Samples of tissue and sediment for Zn analysis were
digested in HN03 according to the method of May and Brumbaugh (1982) except
that no perchloric acid was used, and Zn concentrations were determined on a
Perkin Elmer Model 228 atomic absorption spectrophotoraeter equipped with an
HGA2200 graphite furnace. Absorption values for 50-uL samples were compared at
307.6 nm with known standards. Graphite furnace conditions were as follows:
nitrogen flow, 20 mL/min; sample drying time, 60 sec with a 15-sec ramp
(20-120°C); ashing time, 50 sec with a 10-sec ramp (120° -500°C); and
atomization, 6 seconds at 2200°C.
We report concentrations of PCBs and Zn in both sediment and tissue on a
dry weight basis to alleviate discrepancies caused by varying water content.
Thus subsamples of all analytical samples were dried to measure water content.
A wet-to-dry conversion factor was calculated and applied to measured
wet-weight concentrations.
We compared PCB and Zn concentrations in test organisms between
preexposure samples and test and control samples after exposure, using analysis
of variance (ANOVA). For both species of fish and the oligochaetes, all
surviving test organisms in a tank were composited to form one analytical
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sample. Thus different tanks were considered replicates. Clams remaining
alive at the completion of the bioassay were divided into two analytical
samples so that within- and between-tank replicates, as well as replicate
tanks, were considered in the ANOVA.
Results
The two sediments used provided contrasting levels of PCBs and Zn.
Concentrations in test sediment (micrograms per gram, dry weight) ranged from
12.8 to 31.7 PCB and from 147 to 241 for Zn whereas those in control sediment
were < 0.02 for PCB and from 31 to 67 for Zn (Table 1). Although sediment was
collected three times, which resulted in some variation in both physical and
chemical composition, a large difference in the two contaminants of interest
between control and test sediment was always found.
Use of the flow-through bioassay produced nearly constant conditions
throughout testing, and mortality was low (£8.3%) in test organisms,
indicating that the test sediments were not acutely toxic to the organisms
tested (Table 2). Mortality was high in only one test where a mechanical
failure restricted flow to two tanks holding oligochaetes during exposure. In
these two tanks, all oligochaetes died and were not analyzed. Thus in the
contaminated sediment treatment only two replicates are reported.
All test organisms accumulated significant (££0.05) amounts of PCBs from
test sediments when compared with either organisms exposed to control sediments
or preexposure organisms (Table 3). Bioaccumulation factors (BF = dry wt
concentration in tissue divided by dry wt concentration in sediment) for
organisms exposed to test sediments indicated that oligochaetes were the most
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Table 2. Summary of test conditions and mortality of organisms,
Organism and Temp.
exposure (°C)
(No. of organisms
in parentheses)
Test Conditions
Dissolved
oxygen
(mg/L)
Hardness
(mg/L, CaCOs)
Sediment Eh
(mV)
Mortality
Fathead minnows
Control (10) 20.0
Test (10) 21.2
Perch
Control (10) 20.2
Test (10) 20.2
Oligochaetes
Control (14) 21.2
Test (14) 21.0
Clams
Control (30) 19.9
Test (30) 19.4
7.8
7.5
7.9
7.7
8.0
7.9
8.5
8.4
158.6
158.6
128.1
128.7
150.4
156.0
113.8
113.3
-146.3
-175.9
-227.5
-219.7
-154.5
-214.3
-272.5
-271.5
5.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
5.4
0.0
8.3
8.3
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Table 3. Mean weight, lipid content, and PCB and Zn concentrations in analyzed
samples. Standard errors in parentheses. All sample sizes equal 4 except
clams (N=8) and oligochaetes (N=2).
Organi sm and
exposure
Fathead minnows
Preexposure
Control
Test
Yellow perch
Preexposure
Control
Test
Oligochaetes
Preexposure
Control
Test
Asiatic clams
Preexposure
Control
Test
Weight
(9)
2.42
(0.16)
2.08
(0.08)
2.06
(0.09)
2.10
(0.04)
1.90
(0.03)
1.98
(0.09)
0.94*
(0.07)
0.64
(0.04)
0.58
(0.02)
1.05
(0.03)
1.22
(0.04)
1.12
(0.05)
Lipid
(%)
8.5
(0.29)
8.1
(0.18)
8.1
(0.08)
4.9*
(0.27)
3.9
(0.29)
3.6
(0.23)
0.6
(0.07)
0.6
(0.12)
0.5
(0.0)
1.5
(0.23)
1.8
(0.04)
1.9
(0.10)
Contaminants
PCB
1.0
(0.02)
1.4
(0.04)
45.4*
(1.96)
1.6
(0.0)
2.0
(0.18)
8.9*
(0.73)
0.4
(0.06)
0.5
(0.08)
125.5*
(1.88)
0.8
(0.17)
1.1
(0.04)
3.4*
(0.14)
(ug.g dry vrt.)
Zn
189.8
(13.36)
227 .6*
(13.34)
179.2
(3.95)
113.5
(6.92)
128.6
(8.15)
118.4
(12.79)
182.9
(24.96)
141.0
(11.47)
171.0
(36.64)
135.1
(9.64)
97.1*
(2.55)
117.8
(3.18)
*Denotes significant difference (£_< 0.05) from other two treatments based
on analysis of variance and Duncan's multiple range test.
10
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efficient accumulators (BF, 4) and clams were the least efficient (BF, of 0.2).
Both species of fish accumulated PCB—the BF was 1.4 in fathead minnows and 0.7
in ye11ow perch.
None of the organisms exposed to test sediments accumulated Zn in any of
the bioassays, although we did observe several statistically significant
changes in the Zn concentration in organisms from other treatments. Clams
exposed to control sediment were significantly lower (P_ < 0.001) in Zn
concentration than clams before exposure or those held in test sediments (Table
3). Apparently clams had high levels of Zn in tissues when we received them
and some depuration occurred in clean sediments. Fatheads exposed to control
sediments had significantly .higher (P_= 0.03) concentrations of Zn than
fatheads before exposure or those exposed to test sediments (Table 3). This
observation is unexplained.
The weight of oligochaetes and the lipid content of yellow perch both
decreased significantly during the bioassay (Table 3). The general trend of
decreasing weight and lipid content in both species of fish and in the
oligochaetes was expected because the organisms were not fed during the 12-day
test.
Discussion
System performance
The flow-through bioassay that we evaluated for use in assessing the
potential of bioaccumulation from sediments provided conditions allowing for
high survival of test organisms. Mortality did not exceed 8.3% in species and
half the tests resulted in no mortality. The water flow of 100 mL/min was
11
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sufficient for maintenance of good temperature control and a high oxygen
saturation (95%).
The 10-day exposure period, as suggested for evaluating dredged material
for ocean discharge (USEPA/CE 1977), was seemingly adequate to assess
bioaccumulation potential for organic contaminants with similar chemical
characteristics as PCBs. However, it is unlikely that test organisms had
reached a steady-state concentration , thus the maximum BFs had probably not
been attained (Rubinstein et al. 1983). We did not observe the accumulation of
Zn from test sediments in this study—perhaps because the Zn in our test
sediments was in a form that is biologically unavailable (Engel et al. 1981);
increasing the exposure time would not likely have affected the bioaccumulation
of Zn. Rubinstein et al. (1983). showed that increasing the time that marine
invertebrates were exposed to contaminated sediments from 10 to 100 days did
not result in accumulation of Hg or Cd. Seelye et al . (1982) provided evidence
that 10 days is sufficient for measuring bioaccumulation potential of
biologically available metals from sediments; they reported accumulation of Zn
and several other metals by yellow perch in a 10-day exposure. It thus appears
that 10 days is sufficient to measure bioaccumulation potential of metals that
are in available form; however not all factors that influence this availability
are understood.
The effects of not feeding organisms during the test are not certain. It
might be argued that withholding food might result in a loss of PCBs as lipids
are mobilized and lipophilic contaminants metabolized. However, if this was
occurring to any great extent then organisms exposed to control sediments would
have lower PCB levels than unexposed organisms. This loss of PCBs was not
12
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observed. Nevertheless, It Is possible that feeding would have enhanced
accumulation and perhaps feeding of organisms during the test should be
attempted. It may not be successful in tests with fish however due to the high
turbidity in aquaria caused by resuspension of fine sediments.
Species evaluation
We compared accumulation in two species of fish that have different
advantages for use as bioassay test organisms. The yellow perch 1s widely
distributed in the Great Lakes and the young are often found in areas of
dredging activity (Barnes 1979). Its commercial and sport fishing value make
it an economically important species. On the other hand, the fathead minnow,
although also widely distributed in the Great Lakes watershed, is neither as
abundant nor as economically important as the perch. It does offer certain
other advantages (a) it is routinely available because it is easy to culture,
(b) it is tolerant of a wider range of water temperature and dissolved oxygen
(Eddy and Underbill 1974), and c) it is widely used as a bioassay organism
(Committee on Methods for Toxicity Tests with Aquatic Organism 1975).
Our results show that fathead minnows accumulated higher concentrations
of PCBs than did perch. Although this difference was not critical in testing
sediments containing high levels of PCBs, the fathead minnow would be the
superior test organism for testing sediments with low concentrations of
contaminants. Higher lipid levels in fathead minnows (Table 3), as well as
behavioral differences between the two species, could account for their greater
uptake of PCBs. Fathead minnows were more active at the water sediment
interface than were yellow perch, resulting in a greater resuspension of the
sediment. This observation is supported by measurements of suspended solids in
13
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tanks of the two species duriny the bioassay. In control and test sediments,
used with fathead minnows suspended solids in control and test sediments were
125.8 and 200.8 my/L, respectively). In the yellow perch exposure these values
were only 23.5 and 27 mg/L.
0^. tyrtaeum was shown to be the preferred invertebrate test species
because it accumulated PCBs to a yreater extent than did the clams. Althouyh
this species is not readily available and not a common inhabitant of Great
Lakes nearshore areas we feel an ol iyochaete worm would provide a benthic
invertebrate for freshwater testiny similar to the polychaete Nereis used in
marine sediment evaluation (Rubinstein et al. 1983, Elder et al. 1979). Both
Nereis and 0_. tyrtaeum appear to accumulate oryanic contaminants readily and
are of adequate size to provide ample tissue for analysis.
The Asiatic clam is common in several areas of the country and has been
found in western Lake Erie (Scott-Wasilk et al. 1983). However, our results
suygest that its suitability as a test species for measuriny bioaccumulation is
questionable due to several factors: (a) it may cease feediny in certain
sediments, (b) it had the lowest BCF of all the species we tested, and (c) the
presence of the shell causes confusion as to what to use as an analytical
sample. Althouyh Asiatic clams accumulate metals in their shells (Clarke et
al. 1979), the ecoloyical and toxicological siynificance of this metal
accumulation is unknown. This leads to uncertainty as to whether shells should
be included in the contaminant analysis. Both oryanic and inorganic analyses
are often conducted on samples taken from the same preparation, but the
inclusion of shells in the oryanic analysis could result in analytical
problems.
14
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References
Bahnick, D. A., W. A. Swenson, T. P. Markee, D. 0. Call, C. A. Anderson, and
R. T. Morris. Development of bioassay procedures for defining pollution
of harbor sediments, Part I. CLSES Contract Publication No. 56. Center
for Lake Superior Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin,
Superior, 1981. 186 pp.
Barnes, M. D. Inventory and review of literature data sources pertaining to
ichthyological and fisheries research in the nearshore zone of Lake Erie.
Center for Lake Erie Area Research Technical Report No. 127. Ohio State
University, Columbus, Ohio, 1979. 82 pp.
Clarke, J. H., A. N. Clarke, D. J. Wilson, and J. 0. Frauf. On the use of
Corbicula fluminea as indicators of heavy metal contamination. In:
Proceedings, First International Corbicula Symposium, J. C. Britton, ed.
Texas Christian University Research Foundation, Fort Worth, Texas, 1979.
pp. 153-163.
Committee on Methods for Toxicity Tests with Aquatic Organisms. Methods for
acute toxicity tests with fish, macroinvertebrates and amphibians.
EPA-660/3-75-009, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Corvallis, Oregon,
1975. 61 pp.
Eddy, S., and J. C. Underhill. Northern Fishes. University of Minnesota
Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1974. 414 pp.
15
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Elder, D. L., S. W. Fowler, and G. G. Polikarpov. Remobilization of sediment
associated PCBs by the worm Nereis diversicolor. Bull. Environ. Contam.
Toxicol. 21:448-452, 1979.
Engel, D. W., W. G. Sunda, and B. A. Fowler. Factors affecting trace metal
uptake and toxicity to estuarine organisms. I. Environmental parameters.
In Biological monitoring of marine pollutants, F. J. Vernberg,
A. Calabrese, F. P. Thurberg, and W. B. Vernberg, eds. Academic Press,
New York, 1981. pp. 127-144.
May, T. W., and W. G. Brumbaugh. Matrix modifier and L'vov platform for
elimination of matrix interferences in the analysis of fish tissues for
lead by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. Anal. Chem.
54:1032-1037, 1982.
Peddicord, R., H. Tatem, A. Gibson, and S. Pedron. Biological assessment of
upper mississippi river sediments. Misc. Pap. EL-80-b, U.S. Army
Engineers Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, Mississippi, 1980. 82
pp.
Prater, B. L., R. L. Bennett, P. J. Crerar, and R. A. Laskowski-Hoke. An
evaluation and refinement of a 96-hour sediment bioassay procedure.
(Draft report) EPA 68-01-6471. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Chicago, Illinois, 1983. 90 pp.
16
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Rubinstein, N. I., C. N. Asaro, and C. Sommers. The effects of contaminated
sediments on representative estuarine species and developing benthic
communities. In: Contaminants and Sediments, Vol. 1, R.A. Baker, ed.
Ann Arbor Science, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1980. pp. 445-461.
Rubinstein, N. I., E. Lores, and N. R. Gregory. Accumulation of PCBs, mercury
and cadmium by Nereis virens, Mercenaria mercenaria and Palaemonetes pugio
from contaminated harbor sediments. Aquatic Toxicology 3:249-260, 1983.
Scott-Wasilk, J., G. G. Downing, and J. S. Lietzow. Occurrence of the Asiatic
clam Corbicula fluminea in the Maumee River and western Lake Erie. J.
Great Lakes Res. 9:9-13, 1983.
Seelye, J. G., R. J. Hesselberg, and M. J. Mac. Accumulation by fish of
contaminants released from dredged sediments. Environ. Sci. Technol.
16(8):459-464, 1982.
Seelye, J. G., and M. J. Mac. Bioaccumulation of toxic substances associated
with dredging and dredged material disposal: A literature review. EPA
AD-14-F-1-529-0. U. S. Envi romtental Protection Agency, Chicago,
Illinois, 1983. 45 pp.
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ocean waters; implementation manual for Section 103 of Public Law 92-532
(Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972). Environmental
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Vicksburg, Mississippi, 1977 (Second Printing 1978). 19 pp. and 8
appendices.
17
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TECHNICAL REPORT DATA
(Please read Inaructions on the reverse before completing)
i. REPORT NO.
EPA-905/3-84-007
3. RECIPIENT'S ACCE5SION>NO.
4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE
Flow-through Bioassay for Measuring Bioaccumulation
of Toxic Substances from Sediment
5. REPORT DATE
November 1984
6. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION CODE
7. AUTHOR(S)
Michael J. Mac, Carol C. Edsall, Robert J.
and Richard E. Savers. Jr.
B. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NO.
Hesselberg,
9. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Great Lakes Fishery Laboratory
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105
10. PROGRAM ELEMENT NO.
Contribution No. 616
11. CONTRACT/GRANT NO.
IAG-DW 930095-01-0
12. SPONSORING AGENCY NAME AND ADDRESS
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Great Lakes National Program Office
536 South Clark Street, Room 958
Chicago, Illinois 60605
13. TYPE OF REPORT AND PERIOD COVERED
Research Report 4/83 - 5/84
14. SPONSORING AGENCY CODE
Great Lakes National Program
Office-USEPA-Region V
16. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES
Anthony Kizlauskas
Project Officer
16. ABSTRACT
A bioassay was developed for testing the solid phase of dredged material that measures
the survival of organisms, and the bioaccumulation of toxic substances. This bioassay
is intended to estimate the bioaccumulation potential from sediments that are not
acutely toxic to test organisms, but are suspected of containing persistent
contaminants. Two species Of fish, Pimephales promelas and Perca flavescens, and
two invertebrate species, Octalasion tyrtaeum and Corbicula fluminea were used in
the evaluation of this flow-through bioassay. Although not intended as a toxicity
test per se, the test enables interpretation of any mortality that may occur during
bioassays.
17.
KEY WORDS AND DOCUMENT ANALYSIS
DESCRIPTORS
b.IDENTIFIERS/OPEN ENDED TERMS
:. COSATI Field/Group
Bioassessment Test
Aquatic Organism
Toxic Substances
Sediments
Dredging
19.
DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT
Document is available to the public
through the National Technical Information
Service, Springfield, Virginia*22161
19. SECURITY CLASS (This Report)
UNCLASSIFIED
21. NO. OF PAGES
26
20. SECURITY CLASS (This page)
UNCLASSIFIED
22. PRICE
EPA Form 2220-1 (9-73)
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1985-555-055/497
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