Sediment contamination is a widespread environmental problem that can potentially pose a threat to a variety of aquatic ecosystems. The sediment test methods in this manual will be used by The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to make decisions under a range of statutory authorities concerning such issues as: dredged material disposal, registration of pesticides and toxic substances, superfound site assessment, and assessment and cleanup of hazardous waste treatment, storage, and disposal facilities. The use of uniform sediment testing procedures by USEPA programs is expected to increase data accuracy and precision, facilitate test replication, increase the comparative value of test results, and ultimately, increase the efficiency of regulatory processes requiring sediment tests.

Completely revised and updated with 18 new chapters, this second edition includes contributions from over 75 international experts. Also, a Technical Review Board reviewed all manuscripts for accuracy and currency. Focusing on toxic substance and how they affect the ecosystems worldwide, the book presents methods for quantifying and measuring ecotoxicological effects in the field and in the lab, as well as methods for estimating, predicting, and modeling in ecotoxicology studies. This is the definitive reference for students, researchers, consultants, and other professionals in the environmental sciences, toxicology, chemistry, biology, and ecology - in academia, industry, and government.

All toxicity data developed by the Columbia National Fisheries Research Laboratory since 1965 was evaluated for quality, and a database established for 4,901 tests with 410 chemicals (mainly pesticides) and 66 species of aquatic animals. Insects were the most sensitive group, followed by crustaceans, fishes, and amphibians. Rainbow trout was found to be highly sensitive.