Baseline ecological risk assessment of the Calcasieu Estuary, Louisiana: Part 2. An evaluation of the predictive ability of effects-based sediment-quality guidelines.

ABSTRACT

Three sets of effects-based sediment-quality guidelines (SQGs) were evaluated to support the selection of sediment-quality benchmarks for assessing risks to benthic invertebrates in the Calcasieu Estuary, Louisiana. These SQGs included probable effect concentrations (PECs), effects range median values (ERMs), and logistic regression model (LRMs)-based T50 values. The results of this investigation indicate that all three sets of SQGs tend to underestimate sediment toxicity in the Calcasieu Estuary (i.e., relative to the national data sets), as evaluated using the results of 10-day toxicity tests with the amphipod, Hyalella azteca, or Ampelisca abdita, and 28-day whole-sediment toxicity tests with the H. azteca. These results emphasize the importance of deriving site-specific toxicity thresholds for assessing risks to benthic invertebrates.