Probabilistic Ecological Risk Assessment of Tributyltin in the Chesapeake Bay211 Watershed

摘要

The goal of the study was to conduct a probabilistic ecological risk assessment211u001efor tributylin (TBT) in estuarine areas of the Chesapeake Bay watershed by using 211u001ethe following distinct phases: problem formulation, analysis and risk 211u001echaracterization. This probabilistic ecological risk assessment characterized 211u001erisk by comparing the probability distributions of environmental saltwater 211u001eexposure concentrations with the probability distributions of species response 211u001edata determined from laboratory studies. The overlap of these distributions was a 211u001emeasure of risk to aquatic life. Comparative risk from TBT exposure was 211u001edetermined for various basins (tributaries) in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. 211u001eTributylin saltwater exposure data from the Chesapeake Bay watershed were 211u001eavailable from over 3,600 water column samples from 41 stations in nine basins 211u001efrom 1985 through 1996. Most of the stations were located in the Virginia waters 211u001eof Chesapeake Bay, primarily the James, Elizabeth and York Rivers. In Maryland 211u001ewaters of the Bay, various marina, harbor and river systems were also sampled.