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A screening procedure for assessing the transport and degradation of solid waste constituents in subsurface and surface waters
Author(s) -
Falco J. W.,
Mulkey L. A.,
Swank R. R.,
Lipcsei R. E.,
Brown S. M.
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
environmental toxicology and chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1552-8618
pISSN - 0730-7268
DOI - 10.1002/etc.5620010203
Subject(s) - environmental science , groundwater , degradation (telecommunications) , contamination , environmental chemistry , surface water , organic chemicals , waste management , environmental engineering , chemistry , computer science , ecology , geology , engineering , telecommunications , geotechnical engineering , biology
An evaluation procedure was developed to rapidly screen chemicals for their potential to contaminate both subsurface and surface waters after disposal and subsequent release from landfills and lagoons. The procedure estimates movement and degradation of chemicals based on the physical and chemical properties of the compound and a defined range of environmental conditions that the compound potentially experiences in groundwater and in rivers, ponds, and reservoirs. After high and low estimates are established, qualitative descriptors are assigned to describe the transport and persistence of the compound in subsurface and surface waters. This procedure has been used to evaluate 193 compounds that were projected to be constituents of solid wastes from 75 manufacturing operations. The results of a sensitivity analysis indicate that where individual environmental process descriptions are defined, changes in rates of degradation of an order of magnitude are required to cause a significant number of changes in qualitative descriptors that define the transport and persistence of the compounds assessed. The results of this application indicate that the procedure provides a means of qualitatively screening organic chemicals when specified process rate data are available. The evaluation of the small number of metals included in this assessment are speculative. Further research is required to adequately screen metals.