PARENT SESSIONSaturday All-Day Short Courses
- 1. Addressing Environmental Problems to Stimulate Undergraduate Learning.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Marriott
4. Toxicity Identification and Reduction Evaluations.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 150 A
Concepts of toxicity identification evaluation/toxicity reduction evaluations (TI/RE) for effluents are presented. The primary objective of this course is to provide a level of awareness of TI/RE procedures to professionals who are relatively unfamiliar with the process. The course will benefit regulators and permittees who require a basic understanding of TI/REs and how they are performed. For environmental services professionals who wish to perform TI/REs, this course will serve to introduce them to the topic and allow them to begin to effectively participate in the TI/RE programs. Topics covered include: related permitting issues, TI/RE procedures including characterization, identification and confirmation approaches, toxicity treatment evaluations, helpful suggestions for performing TI/REs, and case examples of a number of different types of TI/REs. Ample time is provided for questions/discussions and interactions with course attendees. The target audience is industrial and municipal professionals who are responsible for NPDES compliance and who have a need to understand the general framework for TI/REs, Environmental services and regulatory professionals who are relatively new to the field of effluent toxicology and permitting will also benefit.
Level of difficulty: Intermediate
Attendance limit: 100
Instructors:
John Baummer, EA Engineering
Matt Mathews, NC DENR
Wayne McCulloch, EA Engineering
Dennis McIntyre, Great Lakes
Jim Pletl, Hampton Road Sanitation District
Greg Smith, Great Lakes Environmental Center
Doug Drury, Inland Empire Utilities Agency
Bryrn Phillips, University of California-Davis
Barbara Albrecht, Ensafe Environmental Consultants
5. Predicting the Toxicity of Metals to Aquatic Organisms: An Introduction to the Biotic Land Model.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 150 B
Water quality criteria (WQC) for metals have been developed to protect the integrity of aquatic systems. However, tests used to develop WQC were performed in laboratory waters that often are not representative of natural waters. Water effect ratio (WER) tests account for the effects of substances that alter the toxicity of metals in natural waters but can be costly and time consuming.
The biotic ligand model (BLM), a computationally efficient alternative to conducting WER tests, has been developed. The BLM may assist in developing technically defensible site-specific criteria, waste load allocations, and ecological risk assessments. It is intended to promote more focused and efficient uses of resources in the regulation and control of metals and the protection of the environment. The BLM is under review by regulatory agencies and is being considered for use in refining water quality criteria in the United States, South America, and elsewhere.
This course provides an introduction, background and rationale for the BLM, a description of its applications and case examples. The course will cover special considerations, data needs and data quality objectives, and model demonstrations. Demonstrations will be brief scenarios using hypothetical data sets and will cover model navigation, data input, and model outputs.
Level of difficulty: Introductory
Instructors:
Ray Arnold, Copper Development Association, Inc.
Bob Santore, HydroQual, Inc.
Paul Paquin, HydroQual, Inc.
Charles Delos, U.S. EPA
6. Total Maximum Daily Loads: Understanding the Challenges.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 150 C
More than 40% of assessed waters in the U.S. still do not meet the water quality standards established by states, territories, and authorized tribes. Under Section 303(d) of the CWA, states, territories, and authorized tribes are required to develop lists of waters that do not meet state water quality standards, even after the application of technology-based and other required controls. States must establish priority rankings for waters on the list and develop TMDL's for these waters. This workshop will present the fundamentals of the TMDL program and will highlight the critical steps and technical issues associated with both the waterbody listing and TMDL development process. The workshop topics include the data used by states, territories, and authorized tribes for developing the TMDL lists, including a review and summary of example state credible data rules; water quality standards and related topics such as when and how to apply use attainability analysis and site-specific criteria; and progressive implementation options, such as trading and watershed based permitting. The information will be presented through both lectures on specific aspects of TMDL analyses and will be further demonstrated using relevant case study examples. Each attendee will receive a course notebook with copies of the presentation materials.
Level of difficulty: Intermediate
Attendance limit: 100
Instructors:
John Craig, Tetra Tech, Inc.
Debra Denton, U.S. EPA
John Whitehead, Utah Department
of Environmental Quality
Matt Moore, USDA-ARS
John Rodgers, Clemson University
Pat Downey, FTN Associates
Ronda L. Sandquist, Baker and Hostetler, LLP
Jeroen Gerritsen, Tetra Tech, Inc.
7. Use of Chemometric Methods in Environmental Forensics Investigations.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 150 D
Environmental forensic analysis has significantly evolved from the early days of qualitative fingerprint evaluations. The need for quantitative rigor has made the use of chemometric methods critical in identifying and mapping contaminant sources in environmental forensics investigations. Given multiple contaminant sources, the scientist is faced with the challenge of data analysis focused towards identification and mapping multiple plumes with overlapping spatial and temporal distributions. Available methods each carry strengths, weaknesses, and assumptions. The focus of this course will be on gaining an understanding of the advantages, disadvantages, and pitfalls of chemometric methods as applied to chemical fingerprinting investigations. The class will be in two parts. The first part (morning session) will be a general review of environmental forensics and environmental chemistry, with a focus on sources and environmental fate considerations for common classes of chemicals often addressed through use of multivariate statistical methods (polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/furans, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and inorganics). The second part will address various numerical methods commonly applied to such studies (principal components analysis, target transformation factor analysis, polytopic vector analysis, positive matrix factorization, and self-modeling curve resolution). The day concludes with presentation of case studies where these methods have been applied.
Level of difficulty: Intermediate
Attendance limit: 40
Instructors:
Glenn W. Johnson, University of Utah
Robert I. Haddad, Applied Geochemical Strategies
8. Application of Geographic Information System (GIS) Technology to Water Quality Problems.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Off-site
The course introduces geographic information system (GIS) technology and its application to water quality problems. It starts with an introduction of the basic GIS concepts, such as layering, zooming, attribute data, data structures (Vector vs. Raster) and map projections. Current software (e.g. ArcView) and data sources (e.g. national hydrography dataset, NHD) are reviewed. An overview of EPA's BASINS system is presented. BASINS is a collection of data and models for total maximum daily load (TMDL) development. A step-by-step procedure for adding "your" data (e.g. a set of sampling locations) to GIS is presented. In the afternoon, more advanced applications of GIS technology are presented. The theory and tools for automatically delineating watersheds and streams is presented. A tool for source water protection and nonpoint source load estimation is presented. The course contains four hands-on sessions (making a basemap, adding "your" data to GIS, watershed delineation and nonpoint source load estimation). The hands-on sessions will be conducted with ESRI's ArcView software.
Note: This class will be held off-site. Participants will be transported from the Convention Center 30 minutes prior to the class. Transportation will be provided by SETAC. Look for a sign at Registration.
Level of difficulty: Introductory
Attendance limit: 50
Instructors:
Ferdi Hellweger, HydroQual, Inc.
Bill Saunders, Applied Science Associates, Inc.
Daniel Ames, Utah State University
Jeffery Horsburg, Utah State University
9. Geostatistics for Environmental, Ecological, and Site Characterization Studies.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Room 150 E
With the advent of more powerful desktop computers and user-friendly mapping and analysis software, RI/FS and risk management decisions increasingly rely on geographic information systems (GIS) analyses. The increase in descriptive information has proven invaluable for risk/resource managers although, over-reliance on graphical displays may result in a false sense of confidence in remedial and risk management decisions. Standard geostatistical methods available in most software packages are often designed for contouring and small-scale estimation, and may not be directly applicable to risk management decisions, remedial design and resource damage assessment decisions. This workshop includes a review of standard geostatistical tools, the variogram, kriging and conditional simulation, and proceeds through specifically integrating GIS analyses and valid statistical inferences for management decisions. Actual site data from superfund and NRDA sites are used to illustrate geostatistical and other spatial methods for cost benefit analysis, remedial alternatives analysis, risk management, and NRDA analysis. The presentation is heavy on conceptual and graphical material appropriate for risk managers, soil scientists, and wildlife biologists interested in using spatial data to make valid statistical inference for regulatory decisions.
Level of difficulty: Introductory to Intermediate
Attendance limit: 30
Instructors:
John Kern, KERN Statistical Services, Inc.
10. Soil Toxicity Evaluation: Current Practice and Applications.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 150 F
The toxicity of soils and the bioavailability of chemicals in soils are increasingly being considered under the auspices of various legislative and regulatory mandates, especially within the context of ecological risk assessment or natural resource damage assessment. Many of these assessment tools are biological in character, although the physicochemical characterization of soils being considered in the evaluation process should be completed in parallel with the biological assessment to account for non-chemical stressors that may be associated with adverse biological effects. Within the context of soil toxicity assessment, evaluations may be completed using soils (1) from potentially contaminated sites, (2) from reference sites, (3) from spiked-addition studies using artificial, reference or site soils, and (4) site-soil amended with artificial or reference soils. Data derived from these tests are intended to characterize lethal or sublethal effects or bioaccumulation in various test species and provide measures of exposure and effects for ecological risk assessment and the development of generic soil screening levels such as the U.S. EPA's ecological soil screening levels (EcoSSLs). Through the combined efforts of instructors who have been active in the development of tools for the evaluation of chemicals released to soils, the short course will consider (1) soils and their physical and chemical properties that influence their biological activity, and (2) the evaluation of soils within the context of exposure and effects assessments common to ecological risk assessment (e.g. U.S. EPA, ASTM, Eco-RBCA, EcoSSLs) and injury assessments (e.g. NRDA). The assessment tools will focus primarily on biological and chemical methods that have been developed, or are currently being developed, for field and laboratory use, including techniques that have been standardized or that are available from a long history of use in soil science. In conjunction with these summaries of biological and chemical tools, the instructors will also highlight the physicochemical properties that must be evaluated as part of the assessment process. To help short course attendees acquire a working knowledge of these assessment tools, the instructors will illustrate their application through case studies where biological assessments have proven critical to the overall evaluation of exposure and adverse effects associated with these exposures.
Level of difficulty: Introductory to Moderate
Registration limit: 50
Instructors:
Roman Lanno, Ohio State University
Steve Siciliano, University of Ghent
Roman Kuperman, GEO-CENTERS Inc.
Gladys Stephenson, ESG International Inc.
Charlie Menzie, Menzie-Cura & Associates
11. Ecological Risk Analysis on the Effects of Hard-Rock Mining.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 151 B
Mining of minerals has been considered the natural heritage of a country with vast potential unextracted mineral wealth that could be used in a positive fashion to enhance their national economic position and spur regional economies. Within the last decade profound changes in investment policies have attracted large sums of foreign investment in mining and prospecting for mineral wealth particularly in developing countries. Along with the obvious advantages of economic development due to exploitation of mineral resources, is the potential for severe environmental impact.
The accelerated rate at which new mining technologies are developed and employed in developing countries is paralleled by the risk that unregulated development may inflict on natural resources, and even human health. Moreover, some newer technological practices remain poorly assessed even in developed countries. Historically the United States has experienced large scale environmental degradation due to the uncontrolled exploitation of mineral resources, which are still impacting natural resources decades, even a century after mining and mining related activity has ceased. Because of the experience of the mining industry, U.S. EPA, USGS, and consultants in regulating and assessing the impacts of mining in the environment, there is a wealth of information that can be shared relative to both inappropriate and safe mining practices. In-depth study of the impact of mine processing chemicals, fugitive metals, and acid rock-drainage over the past decade provides the basis for offering a SETAC course that provides details on state-of-the-science approaches for assessing environmental risks from metal including assessments of toxicity, bioaccumulation environmental mobility and ecological effects. The course will be team taught by a team of geologists, environmental chemists, environmental toxicologists, and ecotoxicologists. This course is intended to be introductory in that it addresses in a survey format the topics that should be considered in assessing the impact of mineral development. It is largely directed at the development of minerals, including effects from mining and smelting.
Level of difficulty: Introductory
Attendance limit: 50
Instructors:
Terence P. Boyle, USGS
Jon Rauscher, U.S. EPA
Geoffrey S. Plumlee, USGS
Craig A. Johnson, USGS
John Michael Besser, USGS
William J. Adams, Kennecott Utah Copper Corp.
William H. Clements, Colorado State University
Igor Linkov, ICF Consulting
Rick D. Cardwell, Parametrix, Inc.
12. A Toolbox of Techniques to Generate Data for Ecological Risk Assessments - Characteristics, Costs, and Case Studies.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 151 A
This short course, which is designed to provide a comprehensive overview of available techniques, is composed of three segments: (1) field sampling and assessment of bioaccumulation; (2) laboratory and field-testing methods; and (3) field surveys for ecological characterization and biomonitoring. Within each section, why a particular tool is chosen, what information it provides, what its cost is, how the information can be used, and whether the information can be used to answer more than one question in the site investigation will be discussed. The background, development, and current state of the art for each technique will be presented with at least one-third of each session devoted to problem solving and case examples to illustrate a tool’s utility, along with its regulatory acceptance. Instructors will include representatives from both the industrial and regulatory sectors to provide a balance in perspective. This course is designed for advanced scientists who are, or will be involved in developing field sampling plans for ecological risk assessments.
Level of difficulty: Advanced
Attendance limit: 40
Instructors:
Cheryl R. Montgomery, Montgomery & Associates, Inc.
Tamara Sorell, Malcolm-Pirnie
Mark Sprenger, U.S. EPA
John Lortie, Woodlot Alternatives, Inc.
Arthur Putt, Springborn Smithers Laboratories
13. Sediment Toxicity Design, Assessment, and Interpretation.
Saturday, 16 November 2002
8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Room 150 G
Aquatic toxicity testing and regulatory programs aimed at improving water quality have been essential in achieving improved conditions in freshwater, estuarine, and marine surface waters. However, the sediments of these ecosystems have only recently begun to receive similar attention. These sediments and their associated benthic organisms are critically important in maintaining the overall health and productivity of aquatic ecosystems. As the repository for particulate matter, sediments are the primary sink for nutrients and contaminants in aquatic systems. Benthic recycling is fundamental to ecosystem health as fish and waterfowl rely on benthic organisms as key food items. As a result, sediments can be the most sensitive component of the aquatic system, and assessment of sediment toxicity has become an increasingly important in a number of applications.
This short course is designed to provide basic information needed to guide the appropriate design, interpretation, and regulatory use of sediment toxicity testing, important for the accurate assessment of ecological and potential human health effects of contaminated sediment. The first half of the course will emphasize important characteristics of whole sediment toxicity testing, test method and species selection, and present new developments available for sediment assessment. The second part of the course will review specific applications of sediment toxicity testing, including (1) ecological risk assessment, (2) remediation, (3) dredging, (4) TMDL regulations, and (5) biological assessment. Case studies and “lessons learned" will be presented in the context of national and state regulatory guidelines and stakeholder perspectives. Each section will conclude with a panel discussion and question-and-answers session.
Level of difficulty: Introductory
Attendance limit: 50
Instructors:
Scott Ogle, Pacific EcoRisk
Stephen Clark, Pacific EcoRisk
Cynthia Erickson, URS Corporation
Kathy Dadey, U.S. EPA
Peter Chapman, EVS Consultants
Allen Burton, Wright State University
Walter Berry, U.S. EPA