Toxic Contaminants and Ecosystem Health: A Great Lake Focus

The presence of toxic substances and their effects on living organisms in the Laurentian Great Lakes region are major concerns of scientists, environmentalists, and the several federal, state, and provincial agencies responsible for the protection of these and other aquatic systems. Based on a 1985 symposium/workshop organized by the International Joint Commission's Health of Aquatic Communities Task Force and sponsored by the Science Advisory Board of the same organization, this book reports on the effects of persistent toxic substances on the health of Great Lakes biota, discusses better methods of investigating these effects, and offers recommendations for improved research and surveillance design. Toxic Contaminants and Ecosystem Health: A Great Lakes Focus begins with a commentary on the protection of six groups of Great Lakes biota (phytoplankton, zooplankton, benthos, fish, aquatic birds and mammals, and humans), the effects of toxic substances on their well-being, and the problems researchers encountered in understanding such toxic effects. Next, the book discusses a wide range of state-of-the-art techniques for investigating the effects of toxic substances on Great Lakes and other communities. Such techniques include the use of various bioassay methods to assess in situ toxicity; the study of morphological deformities in chironomoids to provide information on spatial and historic gradients in toxicity; mesocosm and modeling studies to provide valuable information on the complex interactive effects of organic loadings, nutrients, hydrocarbons, and metals, new methods for assessing the effects of prenatal toxic exposure on cognitive functioning in humans; and a recommendation for ecosystem-based (in addition to chemically-based) water quality objectives for the Great Lakes. The volume concludes with strong recommendations for a broader-based, more integrative approach for investigating toxic effects on aquatic communities. Toxic Contaminants and Ecosystem Health: A Great Lakes Focus is a thorough summary of the problems encountered in assessing toxic effects, and of the scientific methods that need to be developed to better protect Great Lakes ecosystems against such harmful effects-methods which will have broad application to other aquatic and marine regions of the world.Evans, Marlene S. is the author of 'Toxic Contaminants and Ecosystem Health: A Great Lake Focus' with ISBN 9780471855569 and ISBN 0471855561.