Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP)

Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP) Overview of FCSAP Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments at Federal Contaminated Sites Real Property Institute of Canada Federal Contaminated Sites National Workshop Toronto,April 30 May 3, 2012 Ute Pott Environment Canada

FCSAP Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments Ecological Risk Assessment: Comprehensive ERA Guidance and Technical Modules Environmental Site Assessment: Site Characterization Federal Interim Groundwater Guidelines FCSAP Database of Environmental Quality Guidelines FCSAP Program Requirements: Tool for Risk Assessment Validation (TRAV) as part of Site Closure Tool NCS Supplemental Guidance Tool for Priority Assessment

Ecological Risk Assessment Guidance Comprehensive Ecological Risk Assessment Guidance Technical guidance for all phases of ERA Supplemental to CCME 1996, 1997 guidance Project of the FCSAP Ecological Risk Assessment Focus Group Authors: Azimuth & Golder Available Spring 2012 Appendices = Technical Modules Module A: Toxicity Test Selection & Interpretation Module B: Selection & Development of Toxicity Reference Values Module C: Standardization of Wildlife Receptor Characteristics Module D: Causality Assessment

FCSAP Comprehensive ERA Guidance Problem Formulation Exposure Assessment Effects Assessment Iterative feedback at all stages Risk Characterization

Problem Formulation Assessment Endpoint A Assessment Endpoint B Line of Evidence 1 Line of Evidence 2 Line of Evidence 3 Exposure Assessment Effects Assessment Exposure Assessment Effects Assessment Line of Evidence Evaluation Line of Evidence Evaluation Risk Characterization (Weight of Evidence) Risk Characterization (Weight of Evidence) Overall Risk Characterization 5

Problem Formulation + ERA Strategy Assessment Endpoint A Assessment Endpoint B Line of Evidence 1 Line of Evidence 2 Line of Evidence 3 Exposure Assessment Effects Assessment Exposure Assessment Effects Assessment Line of Evidence Evaluation Line of Evidence Evaluation Risk Characterization (Weight of Evidence) Risk Characterization (Weight of Evidence) Overall Risk Characterization 6

Problem Formulation Framing the Issues Site Management Goals Regulatory Context Review of Existing Site Information Selection of Contaminants of Potential Concern (COPCS) Selection of Receptors of Concern (ROC) Identification of Exposure Pathways Development of Conceptual Site Model Designing and Planning the ERA Clarification of Protection Goals and Acceptable Effect Levels Identification of Assessment & Measurement Endpoints Identification of Lines of Evidence Pre-determine Evaluation Strategy for Lines of Evidence Development of ERA Strategy

FCSAP Comprehensive ERA Guidance Selection of Receptors of Concern Important to consider all possibly present receptors Identify relevant receptors and surrogate receptors Selection of Exposure Pathways Risk may vary substantially depending on how the receptors (ROCs) are exposed to the contaminants (COCs). Consider all possible exposure pathways for the selected ROCs Identify relevant pathways and follow those through the risk assessment Selection of Lines of Evidence Identify how the risk to receptors exposed through selected exposure pathways get examined and evaluated. ALWAYS Document your Rationale!! Use Tables in ERA Guidance!!

Table 2-4. Template for ROC selection and rationale in terrestrial ecosystems. Terrestrial Receptor Group Terrestrial Receptor Type Included in ERA? (Yes/No) Rationale Surrogate Receptor Primary Producer Moss/Grass/Forb/ Shrub/Tree Invertebrate Ground-dwelling Aerial Herbivorous Mammal Insectivorous Carnivorous Omnivorous Herbivorous Bird Insectivorous Carnivorous Omnivorous Amphibian Carnivorous Reptile Carnivorous 9 9

Table 2-6: Example 1 of tabular format for justifying exposure pathway selection in terrestrial ecosystems. Receptor Group Primary Producer Invertebrate Mammal Bird Exposure Pathway Direct Contact (Soil) Groundwater Uptake Direct Contact (Soil) Water Consumption Food Consumption Incidental Soil Ingestion Dermal Exposure Inhalation Water Consumption Food Consumption Incidental Soil Ingestion Dermal Exposure Included (yes/ no) Rationale Inhalation 1 This table should be adapted on a site-specific basis and in many cases should have additional detail for receptor types (e.g., carnivorous vs insectivorous birds) 10 10

Terrestrial Receptor Group Terrestrial Receptor Type Exposure Pathway Assess. Endpoint Measure. Endpoint Lines of Evidence Invertebrate Grounddwelling Direct Contact (Soil) 1. 2. Food Consumption Herbivorous Incidental Soil Ingestion Food Consumption Mammal Insectivorous Incidental Soil Ingestion Food Consumption Bird Insectivorous Incidental Soil Ingestion Dermal Exposure Carnivorous Food Consumption Amphibians Incidental Soil Ingestion 11

FCSAP Comprehensive ERA Guidance Problem Formulation Identify Lines of Evidence (LOEs) Ensure LOEs are adequate to evaluate risk for all assessment endpoints Pre-determine how LOEs will be evaluated (assign Weights to be used in Weight of Evidence Approach) Exposure/Effects Assessment: Data for each Line of Evidence is collected (i.e. magnitude of response) During Risk Characterization: All LOEs for one assessment endpoint are integrated using the evaluation approach determined in Problem formulation.

Ecological Risk Assessment Guidance Module A: Toxicity Test Selection and Interpretation Module B: Selection and Development of Toxicity Reference Values both modules available now contact Ute.Pott@ec.gc.ca Module C: Standardization of Wildlife Receptor Characteristics Public review completed, final version expected summer 2012 Module D: Causality Assessment (DFO) Internal Review 2011/12 Interested in reviewing? Contact Ute.Pott@ec.gc.ca

Technical Module A: Selecting Toxicity Tests for ERAs Overview of Different Roles of Toxicity Testing in Ecological Risk Assessment (e.g. Line of Evidence, Development of Toxicity Reference Values) Guidance on Interpretation of Toxicity Test Results in a Risk Assessment Weight-of-Evidence Framework Guidance on Selecting Appropriate Toxicity Tests for Ecological Risk Assessment Format: Guidance Text and Interactive Excel Tables

Technical Module B: TRV Selection and Development Overview of Different Types of Toxicity Reference Values (TRVs): dose based, tissue/media concentration based Use of TRVs in Ecological Risk Assessments Guidance on how to select TRVs from published sources Guidance on derivation of site specific TRVs Tentative future amendment to include default TRVs for Screening Level ERAs

Technical Module C: Standardization of Receptor Characteristics Provides default Receptor Characteristics for 26 Wildlife Species Habitat Type Home Range Size Body Weight Foraging Guild Foraging Behaviour Diet Proportions Food Ingestion Rate Water Ingestion Rate Incidential Soil/Sediment Ingestion Not intended to standardize selection of receptors! Resource to be used after site specific, ecological relevant surrogate receptors have been selected If default values shown to not apply at site other maybe used (with rationale) Public review completed. Final version Summer 2012. Contact Ute.Pott@ec.gc.ca

Environment Canada FCSAP Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments Ecological Risk Assessment: Comprehensive ERA Guidance and Technical Modules Environmental Site Assessment: Site Characterization Federal Interim Groundwater Guidelines FCSAP Database of Environmental Quality Guidelines FCSAP Program Requirements: Tool for Risk Assessment Validation (TRAV) as part of Site Closure Tool NCS Supplemental Guidance Tool for Priority Assessment

Site Characterization Guidance Guidance Manual for Environmental Site Characterization in Support of Environmental and Human Health Risk Assessment: Volume 1: Guidance Manual Volume 2: Checklists Volume 3: Suggested Operating Procedures Volume 4 (planned): Analytical Guidance Developed by CCME as update of CCME 1993 Site Characterization Guidance, from: existing HC guidance (soil, groundwater, soil vapour, indoor air and general info on Conceptual Site Models & QA/QC) new guidance by EC (sediment, surface water and biological tissues) Distribution for public review on CCME list serve EC contract lead: Chris.Allaway@ec.gc.ca

Interim Federal Groundwater Guidelines Interim Federal GW guidelines apply on FCSAP sites until CCME develops groundwater guidelines In conjunction with HC Drinking Water Guidelines applies at > 10m distance to surface water Tier 1 and 2, Guidelines for: agricultural (incl. wildlands), residential/parkland,commercial/industrial) Fine & coarse soil Metals, Hydrocarbons, Halogenated Aliphatics, chlorinated aromatics, phenols, pesticides, other organics Pathway Specific Guidelines (Tier 2): Groundwater flow to surface water (Aquatic Life & Wildlife Watering), Direct Contact Vapour Generation (Human Inhalation) Irrigation and Livestock Watering Contact for Technical Questions: Xing.Wu@ec.gc.ca Available on IDEA website or by request from FCSAP.PASCF@ec.gc.ca

FCSAP Database of Environmental Quality Guidelines Database of Environmental Guideline Values to be used when CCME guidelines are not available or applicable: Guidelines from various jurisdictions: e.g. Provinces, USEPA, various European sources Values for 600+ chemicals Media specific for: Soil, Soil vapour, Surface Water, Ground water, Pore water Sediment, Air, Tissue Includes information on what the guideline is meant to protect and to what level (= protected receptors & protection goals) Preliminary draft version available upon request to Al.Hodaly@ec.gc.ca

Environment Canada FCSAP Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments Ecological Risk Assessment: Comprehensive ERA Guidance and Technical Modules Environmental Site Assessment: Site Characterization Federal Interim Groundwater Guidelines FCSAP Database of Environmental Quality Guidelines FCSAP Program Requirements: Tool for Risk Assessment Validation (TRAV) as part of Site Closure Tool NCS Supplemental Guidance Tool for Priority Assessment

Tool for Risk Assessment Validation (TRAV) TRAV is a component of PWGSC Site Closure Tool: Excel based site closure documentation (available 2012/13) To be completed by site custodian Summarizes site assessment/remediation/risk management activities Demonstrate that contamination at the site has been removed or managed so that risk is now acceptable Indicates No further work required Records site restrictions (e.g. landuse = industrial, water not to be used for drinking water) TRAV component applies to risk-assessed sites Selected spreadsheets within the site closure tool Validates risk assessment methods and conclusions Standard Statement of Work will be provided by FCSAP to ensure ERA contracts meet TRAV requirements (2012/13)

Tool for Risk Assessment Validation Were there any Major Deficiencies in the Risk Assessment? NO YES Site closure not possible. Risk may still be present. Further work required: = address deficiencies in risk assessment. Did the Risk Assessment Identify Unacceptable Risk? NO YES Site closure not possible. Risk still present. Further work required: = implement risk management or remediate. Site Closure Possible No Further Work Required

Supplemental Guidance and Requirements ES project eligibility review - NCSCS/ASCS National Classification System for Contaminated Sites (NCSCS) or Aquatic Sites Classification System (ASCS) required for FCSAP funding application. Objective of Supplemental Guidance: improve the overall NCSCS/ASCS score reliability reduce areas of subjectivity in current guidance Supplemental Guidance includes information on: FCSAP specific program requirements When and how to complete NCSCS/ASCS Importance of providing rationale and supporting documentation Clarification on how to interpret and answer individual questions in spreadsheets Contact FCSAP.PASCF@ec.gc.ca

Priority for Assessment Tool (PAT) 6-Step Flowchart prioritizes federal sites for assessment based on: Sensitive Site Conditions Hazardous Activities Socio-Economic Factors Prioritisation of assessment work is mandatory at departmental level New requirement for custodians starting April 2012 Departments must document internal assessment prioritisation No formal review by FCSAP expert support, but assessment prioritisation could be requested for audit purpose Different prioritization methods acceptable: PAT Modified version of PAT as long as it is used consistently Departmental prioritisation tool PAT was distributed Nov 2011, review and update (if necessary) in 2013. Contact FCSAP.PASCF@ec.gc.ca

Environment Canada FCSAP Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments Ecological Risk Assessment: Comprehensive ERA Guidance and Technical Modules Environmental Site Assessment: Site Characterization Federal Interim Groundwater Guidelines FCSAP Database of Environmental Quality Guidelines FCSAP Program Requirements: Tool for Risk Assessment Validation (TRAV) as part of Site Closure Tool NCS Supplemental Guidance Tool for Priority Assessment

Acknowledgements FCSAP Staff in Headquarters and in the Regions FCSAP Ecological Risk Assessment Focus Group FCSAP Groundwater Working Group Health Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans Public Works and Government Services Canada External Authors: Azimuth, Golder, Environ, Meridian, Stantec Reviewers: consultants, analytical labs, CSMWG, federal departments, provincial and territorial governments

Contact Information FCSAP.PASCF@ec.gc.ca For all general enquiries Ute.Pott@ec.gc.ca 604-666-3487 For presentation related questions