Funding Program:
Contaminant Biology
Statement of Problem: This research is being coordinated through an interagency agreement (IAG) between USEPA and CERC entitled, "Protectiveness of Aquatic Life Water Quality Criteria for Early Life Stages of Freshwater Mussels." Research on this project will complement ongoing projects with USEPA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) designed to evaluate the sensitivity of freshwater mussels and snails to contaminants of interest. Information generated from this project will also be used in the ongoing national consultation between USEPA and USFWS on existing or new water quality criteria (WQC). Specifically, there is a need to determine if existing WQC for arsenic, lead, cadmium, nickel, zinc, silver, copper, chlorine or ammonia are adequately protective of freshwater mollusks. Results of this research will also improve consultations procedures for USEPA approval of State and Tribal standards and permits.
Objectives: The objective of this research is to evaluate the influence of pH on the toxicity of ammonia to juvenile fatmucket.