Premium
Development and validation of site‐specific water quality criteria for copper
Author(s) -
Carlson Anthony R.,
Nelson Henry,
Hammermeister Dean
Publication year - 1986
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.5620051108
Subject(s) - ceriodaphnia dubia , effluent , water quality , environmental science , copper , environmental chemistry , aquatic ecosystem , water pollution , copper toxicity , cladocera , hydrology (agriculture) , toxicity , environmental engineering , ecology , acute toxicity , chemistry , biology , geotechnical engineering , organic chemistry , crustacean , engineering
Comparative acute toxicity values for Ceriodaphnia dubia, Scapholeberis sp. and Pimephales promelas exposed to copper were used to calculate water effect ratios (e.g., site water LC50 value/reference water LC50 value), which reflect the difference in the biological availability and/or toxicity of copper between water from the Naugatuck River, Connecticut and Lake Superior reference water. These ratios were used to modify U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ambient aquatic life criteria for copper to site‐ and station‐specific criteria, using the indicator procedure of the U.S. EPA guidelines for deriving site‐specific water quality criteria. A water effect ratio of 1.0 was established using unpolluted upstream water, resulting in a site‐specific criterion maximum concentration (CMC) and criterion continuous concentration (CCC) of 8.7 and 6.2 μg/L copper, respectively. Mean water effect ratios of 3.9 to 7.0, reflective of reduced biological availability and/or toxicity of copper, were determined for four successive downstream stations where the water contained copper and other industrial and domestic wastes. The resulting station‐specific CMCs and CCCs ranged from 32 to 57 and 22 to 39 μg/L copper, respectively. These copper criteria were compared with effluent‐contributed ambient copper concentrations and ecological survey data from each downstream station to ascertain impact on aquatic life. It was concluded that the national and site‐specific criteria derived for copper would be protective of the river's aquatic life because a relatively healthy aquatic community existed where these criteria were exceeded slightly. Whether or not the station‐specific criteria were protective could not be determined because these criteria were not exceeded at stations with healthy communities; however, where they were exceeded, impaired aquatic communities were evident. Generally, C. dubia survival and young production data from receiving water tests and copper addition tests, conducted just prior to the acute toxicity tests, were also indicative of reduced copper biological availability and/or toxicity in the Naugatuck River at downstream stations.