T4 PM Endangered Species and Environmental Contaminants: Status of the Science (Part 2)
Tuesday, 15 November 2005: 1:50 PM - 5:30 PM in Ballroom 4

(SCH-1118-073878) Risk Assessment and Endangered Species Management at a Military Installation.

Schmidt, A¹, Tyrell, K², ¹ BHE Environmental, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio, USA² BHE Environmental, Inc., Knoxville, Tennessee, USA

ABSTRACT- A predictive ecological risk assessment (ERA) was completed to assess toxicological effects of the proposed use of fog oil, terephthalic acid smoke pots and smoke grenades, colored smoke grenades, titanium dioxide, and other military training materials to federally endangered Indiana bats (Myotis sodalis), gray bats (Myotis grisescens), and federally threatened bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that occur on Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri (FLW). The ERA was completed as part of a biological assessment (BA) of the proposed Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) relocation of the U.S. Army Chemical School from Fort McClellan, Alabama to FLW. The BRAC realignment implements fog oil obscurant (smoke) training at FLW. The BA and ERA were completed to support compliance with requirements of the Endangered Species Act and National Environmental Policy Act. The ERA focused on adults and certain nonadult life cycle stages of each species. Exposure concentrations of fog oil and other training materials were predicted using air dispersion models that incorporated input parameters developed from proposed training scenarios for FLW. Intake equations were developed using site-specific receptor information for each receptor and life cycle stage. Toxicity values (estimated NOAELs) were derived from published values and modified using uncertainty factors. Risks were defined using a Hazard Quotient method. Direct effects were assessed quantitatively, and indirect effects were evaluated qualitatively. This information was used to evaluate training scenarios with the goal of managing risk to sensitive receptors. Since the inception of fog oil training at FLW several years ago, monitoring studies have been conducted to identify post-implementation effects of this mission on environmental receptors. We will discuss approaches used to predict risk to sensitive receptors, evaluate actual effects of fog oil training, and the ways in which these techniques have been successfully used to support ongoing compliance and conservation efforts at FLW.

Key words: Myotis sodalis, Myotis grisescens, Endangered Species Management, Risk Communication on Military Installations