Biological monitoring of chemical contamination at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge PDF
Preview Biological monitoring of chemical contamination at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge
" ST-4 TZBERG HER iCCOUNT & ,/RUB/S Ti-n-e — /"> V.BlTEiN^^^^- DONOI MO. K (J Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from CARLI: Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois http://archive.org/details/biologicalmonitoOOmcke BIOLOGICAL MONITORING OF CHEMICAL CONTAMINATION AT CRAB ORCHARD NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE by Michael J. McKee1 Cooperative Wildlife Research Laboratory Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Illinois FINAL REPORT Prepared for the United States Department of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service July 1993 1 Present address: Monsanto, The Agricultural Group, C2SE, 800 N. Lindbergh Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63167 ABSTRACT Several hazardous waste sites have been identified at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge near Carterville, IL. Area 9 Landfill, Job Corp Landfill, and the Old Refuge Shop have soil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls, lead and cadmium. The objectives of this research were to establish baseline levels for these contaminants in terrestrial biota, determine the extent of biological effects, and establish the degree of ecological risk posed by the sites. PCBs, but not lead, readily move from contaminated soils into the terrestrial community. Pre-remediation levels were established in this report for June beetle adults, tree bark, honeysuckle, white-footed mice, starlings and Canada geese. June beetles and tree bark are particularly good monitoring organisms because they are relatively easy to collect and will probably be only moderately impacted by remediation activities. PCBs at the landfills were associated with biological effects in earthworms, white-footed mice, and starlings. Acute risk was apparent for soil dwelling invertebrates. Hepatic effects were evident in white-footed mice occupying Area 9 Landfill and Job Corp Landfill. Carcass concentrations of PCBs found in white-footed mice were also likely to be associated with decreased reproduction, based on laboratory studies. Reproductive effects, in the form of reduced hatching success, were documented in starlings occupying nest boxes next to Area 9 Landfill. The reduced hatch appeared to be related to decreased parental attentativeness rather than direct effects on embryos. The ecological risk assessment clearly establishes risk to individual organisms associated with landfills at Crab Orchard NWR, especially those containing PCBs. Individual risk is high for organisms occurring on or near the landfills. The risk of population decline over a large geographic area is li
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