Ecological Soil Benchmarks
SADA allows for soil ecological benchmark retrieval and provides ratios of contaminant
concentrations to benchmark values. These ratios can be provided on a point by point basis for
visual display,
determining cleanup areas, or
locating additional samples.
Alternatively, the ratios can be provided for each contaminant in a defined area using a
representative summary statistic. The below figure shows how one can browse benchmark values for a
given set of contaminants.
References for soil benchmarks include:
- EPA Soil Screening Levels
Draft Ecological Soil Screening Level (Eco-SSL) Guidance. The Eco-SSL guidance provides a set of risk-based
soil screening levels (Eco-SSLs) for many of the soil contaminants that are frequently of
ecological concern for terrestrial plants and animals at hazardous waste sites.
It also describes the process used to derive these levels and provides guidance for their use.
EPA 2000. Ecological Soil Screening Level Guidance DRAFT. Office of Emergency and Remedial Response.
- California Wildlife Exposure Factor and Toxicity Database
- Environmental Residue-Effects Database
US Army Corp of Engineers/ US EPA
- Dutch
The Netherlands bases the prevention and remediation of contaminated soil on its Soil Protection Act.
Target, limit, and intervention values have been established for soil and groundwater as part of a
general framework of risk-based environmental quality objectives. Target values represent background
concentrations in which risk is considered negligible. If target values are currently not met, limit
values may be applied to define general concentrations which must be attained.
Assink, J.W., and van den Brink, W.J., eds., 1986. Contaminated soil: First International TNO
Conference on Contaminated Soil. Utrecht, The Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, Dordrecht,
Lancaster.
- ORNL Terrestrial Plants (pdf)
Efroymson, R.A., M.E. Will, G.W. Suter II, and A.C. Wooten. 1997. Toxicological Benchmarks for
Screening Contaminants of Potential Concern for Effects on Terrestrial Plants: 1997 Revision.
Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Environmental Management. Oak Ridge National
Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN. ES/ER/TM-85/R3.
- ORNL Terrestrial Invertebrates (pdf)
Efroymson, R.A., M.E. Will, and G.W. Suter II. 1997. Toxicological Benchmarks for Contaminants
of Potential Concern for Effects on Soil and Litter Invertebrates and Heterotrophic Process:
1997 Revision. Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Environmental Management.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN. ES/ER/TM-126/R2.
- ORNL Terrestrial Microbes (pdf)
Efroymson, R.A., M.E. Will, and G.W. Suter II. 1997. Toxicological Benchmarks for Contaminants
of Potential Concern for Effects on Soil and Litter Invertebrates and Heterotrophic Process:
1997 Revision. Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Environmental Management.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN. ES/ER/TM-126/R2.
- ORNL Terrestrial Wildlife PRGs (pdf)
Efroymson, R.A., G.W. Suter II, B.E. Sample, and D.S. Jones 1997. Preliminary Remediation Goals
for Ecological Endpoints. Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Environmental
Management. Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN. ES/ER/TM-162/R2.
- EPA Region 4 (pdf)
EPA 1995. Supplemental Guidance to RAGS: Region 4 Bulletins No. 2. Ecological Risk Assessment.
Region IV, Waste Management Division. Office of Health Assessment. Values presented
are as updated Aug. 1999.
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