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ECOLOGICAL RISK‐ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY: A UK CASE STUDY FOR LANDFILLS
Author(s) -
Redfearn A.,
Roberts D.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
water and environment journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.437
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1747-6593
pISSN - 1747-6585
DOI - 10.1111/j.1747-6593.2004.tb00515.x
Subject(s) - biomagnification , bioaccumulation , environmental science , leachate , pollutant , risk assessment , water framework directive , environmental resource management , ecological assessment , environmental impact assessment , wildlife , environmental planning , ecology , environmental engineering , environmental protection , environmental chemistry , water quality , computer science , biology , chemistry , computer security
The paper presents an ecological risk‐assessment methodology which (a) addresses surface‐water exposures to aquatic mammals and birds, and (b) accounts for long‐term accumulation and biomagnification of pollutants. The methodology has been adapted from those developed in the USA for compliance with US Environmental Protection Agency requirements, and combines predicted or measured surface‐water concentration data with information on the natural history of wildlife species and chemical‐specific bioaccumulation factors, to determine whether estimated exposures would exceed toxicological criteria. Whilst the methodology is applied to metals in leachate discharges from landfill sites, the general approach is applicable to other industrial sites. The approach could provide the basis for a shift towards more numerical risk‐based ecological assessments in a wide variety of contexts.