FINAL REPORT Sediment Ecosystem Assessment Protocol (SEAP): An Accurate and Integrated Weight-of-Evidence Based System SERDP Project ER-1550 JANUARY 2011 G. Allen Burton University of Michigan Bart Chadwick Gunther Rosen SPAWAR Systems Center San Diego Marc Greenberg USEPA Table of Contents List of Tables ............................................................................................................................................... v List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................. ix Acronyms ................................................................................................................................................... xv EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................... xvii 1.0 LITERATURE REVIEW SUMMARY ........................................................................................... 1-1 2.0 SHORT LIST TEST SPECIES SELECTION ................................................................................ 2-1 3.0 EFFECTS OF TEMPERATURE AND SALINITY ON TOXICITY TO SELECT ORGANISMS .................................................................................................................................... 3-1 3.1. Methods .................................................................................................................................. 3-1 3.2. Eohaustorius estuarius Copper LC50 Confirmation .............................................................. 3-2 3.3. E. estuarius Salinity/Temperature Experiment ...................................................................... 3-2 3.4. Leptocheirus plumulosus Copper LC50 Determination ......................................................... 3-4 3.5. Amphipod (L. plumulosus) Salinity/Temperature Experiment .............................................. 3-5 3.6. Mussel embryo-larval development salinity/temperature experiment ................................... 3-7 3.7. Bioluminescence Reduction (QwikLite) Salinity/Temperature Experiment .......................... 3-8 3.8. Polychaete Post Exposure Feeding Copper EC50 Determination ........................................ 3-10 3.9. Conclusions .......................................................................................................................... 3-12 3.10. References ............................................................................................................................ 3-12 4.0 POREWATER SCREENING EVALUATION .............................................................................. 4-1 4.1. First Experiment (Small Scale) .............................................................................................. 4-1 4.2. Second Experiment (Full Scale) ............................................................................................. 4-4 4.2.1. Control Performance ........................................................................................................ 4-5 4.2.2. Pore water toxicity ........................................................................................................... 4-8 4.2.3. Comparison of toxicity with SPME contaminant concentrations .................................. 4-10 4.2.4. Methods for SPME fiber analysis of pore water ............................................................ 4-12 4.3. References ............................................................................................................................ 4-13 5.0 EFFECTS OF CAGING ON ORGANISMS IN THE LABORATORY ...................................... 5-1 5.1. Caged Organisms in Laboratory Microcosm Exposures ........................................................ 5-1 5.2. Chamber Design Development for Smaller Test Organisms- Mussel Embryo-Larval Development Tests ................................................................................................................. 5-3 5.2.1. Chamber Design Exposure Comparison .......................................................................... 5-3 5.2.2. Chamber Equilibration Study .......................................................................................... 5-5 5.3. Shaker Experiments ................................................................................................................ 5-7 5.4. References ............................................................................................................................ 5-10 ii 6.0 DEVELOPMENT AND REFINEMENT OF NEW AND EXISTING TOOLS .......................... 6-1 6.1. Sensitivity Evaluation of New Commercial QwikLite Technology ....................................... 6-1 6.2. Method Development for Polychaete Post-Exposure Feeding Rate Assay ............................ 6-2 6.3. References .............................................................................................................................. 6-3 7.0 DEVELOPMENT OF A POST-EXPOSURE FEEDING RATE ASSAY USING THE MARINE POLYCHAETE NEANTHES ARENACEODENTATA SUITABLE FOR LABORATORY AND IN SITU EXPOSURES (submitted to Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry) ....................................................................................................................................... 7-1 7.1. Overview ................................................................................................................................ 7-1 7.2. Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 7-1 7.3. Methods .................................................................................................................................. 7-2 7.4. Results .................................................................................................................................... 7-6 7.5. Discussion ............................................................................................................................ 7-10 7.6. Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. 7-12 7.7. References ............................................................................................................................ 7-12 8.0 DETAILED SEA RING HARDWARE DESCRIPTION .............................................................. 8-1 8.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 8-1 8.2. Main platform ......................................................................................................................... 8-1 8.3. Exposure chambers ................................................................................................................. 8-1 8.4. Exposure chamber closure ...................................................................................................... 8-4 8.5. Organism delivery to sediment chambers .............................................................................. 8-4 8.6. Integrated water circulation .................................................................................................... 8-4 8.7. Water quality sensing ............................................................................................................. 8-4 8.8. Deployment approach ............................................................................................................. 8-4 8.9. Recovery approach ................................................................................................................. 8-5 8.10. Refinements ............................................................................................................................ 8-5 9.0 AN INTEGRATED EXPOSURE AND EFFECTS ASSESSMENT APPROACH INVOLVING IN SITU AND LABORATORY TOOLS ALONG THREE CONTAMINATION GRADIENTS ................................................................................................. 9-1 9.1. Overview ................................................................................................................................ 9-1 9.2. Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 9-2 9.3. Materials and Methods ........................................................................................................... 9-3 9.3.1. Approach .......................................................................................................................... 9-3 9.3.2. Test organisms ................................................................................................................. 9-3 9.3.3. Controls and reference sites ............................................................................................. 9-4 9.3.4. Toxicity and Bioaccumulation Exposures ....................................................................... 9-4 9.3.5. Passive Samplers- SPME ................................................................................................. 9-5 iii 9.3.6. Passive Samplers- DGT ................................................................................................... 9-5 9.3.7. Water quality monitoring ................................................................................................. 9-6 9.3.8. Parallel laboratory toxicity testing