Limitations on Development of Polychlorinated Biphenyl Tissue Concentration Thresholds for Survival, Growth, and Reproduction in Fish.

Polychlorinated biphenyl exposure-response relationships for ecologically relevant endpoints in fish vary greatly whether based on lowest-effect thresholds (Berninger and Tillitt 2019) or all-response data (sensitivity analyses), which precludes use of a single fitted model per endpoint to predict risk or injury to mixed fish populations. PCB = polychlorinated biphenyl.

Critical evaluation of the sediment effect concentrations for polychlorinated biphenyls.

In 2000, a set of sediment effect concentrations (SECs) was published for evaluating the toxicity of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in freshwater, estuarine, and marine sediments. According to the developers, these consensus-based SECs reconcile existing sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) that have been developed using various approaches, reflect causal rather than correlative effects, and can be used to determine the spatial extent of injury to sediment-dwelling organisms. In the present study, a critical evaluation of the SECs was conducted based on the original documents and databases used to develop the underlying SQGs for the SECs, as well as the original documents and data sets used to determine the predictive ability of the SECs.

Evaluation of potential toxicity and bioavailability of chromium in sediments associated with chromite ore processing residue.

Recent studies by researchers at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.