Acute, chronic, and behavioral toxicity of fluorine-free foams to earthworm species Eisenia fetida and Dendrobaena veneta.

Aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF) containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are widely used as fire suppressants. Due to rising health and environmental concerns, fluorine-free foams (F3) are being developed and tested as safer alternatives. However, the impact of these replacement products on ecologically important earthworms has not been adequately studied.

A Comparison of Two Macroinvertebrate Multi-Plate Sampling Methods to Inform Great Lakes Monitoring and Remediation Efforts.

Hester-Dendy (HD) multi-plate samplers have been widely used by state and federal government agencies for bioassessment of water quality through use of macroinvertebrate community data. To help guide remediation and restoration efforts at the Niagara River Great Lakes Area of Concern site, a multi-agency study was conducted in 2014 to assess the contribution of seven major urban tributaries on the US side of the river toward the impairment of the Niagara River. As part of this study, macroinvertebrate communities were sampled using two co-located versions of HD samplers: one version used by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) and another by the US Environmental Protection Agency Office of Research and Development.

Examining historical mercury sources in the Saint Louis River estuary: How legacy contamination influences biological mercury levels in Great Lakes coastal regions.

Industrial chemical contamination within coastal regions of the Great Lakes can pose serious risks to wetland habitat and offshore fisheries, often resulting in fish consumption advisories that directly affect human and wildlife health. Mercury (Hg) is a contaminant of concern in many of these highly urbanized and industrialized coastal regions, one of which is the Saint Louis River estuary (SLRE), the second largest tributary to Lake Superior. The SLRE has legacy Hg contamination that drives high Hg concentrations within sediments, but it is unclear whether legacy-derived Hg actively cycles within the food web.

Comparison of Three Macroinvertebrate Sampling Methods for Use in Assessment of Water Quality Changes in Flashy Urban Streams.

The unique challenges associated with sampling of macroinvertebrates in flashy urban streams create a methods gap. These streams form isolated pools for much of the year, interspersed with spates that scour and deposit excessive amounts of sediment. Commonly used stream grab sampling methods, such as nets and Hess and Surber fixed-area samplers, work well in wadable streams with perennial flow.

Evaluation of a sustainable remediation option: beneficial reuse of petroleum-contaminated sediment as an energy source.

The characteristics of petroleum-contaminated sediment (PCS) have been evaluated to assess whether the practice of its beneficial reuse as a sole or supplemental energy source is sustainable relative to other sediment remediation options such as monitored natural recovery (MNR), capping, or off-site disposal. Some of these remediation options for PCS are energy-intensive and/or require land utilization. The energy and compositional analysis results indicate a low carbon content (15-17%(wt)) and corresponding low energy values of 5,200 kJ/kg (2,200 Btu/lb) to 5,600 kJ/kg (2,400 Btu/lb).