Ecological Evaluation Technical Guidance - State of New Jersey

Man-made habitat is excluded from sampling for background contaminantlevel purposes. Background area locations with comparable habitat,community structure and maturity, and the same soil type and lithology as thestudy area are preferable. Because of soil heterogeneity, at a minimum,several background area samples are strongly recommended to establish arange of background contaminant levels. At a minimum, background areasamples should receive the same chemical analyses as site-related samples tomake direct comparisons with the data.For more detailed guidance on biota sampling approaches, techniques, andtissue residue analytical methods, the investigator is referred to the literature(e.g., USEPA, 1994a and 1997a; and ASTM, 2004).6.2.3.5 Surface Soil Toxicity TestsWhen surface soil analytical data exceed the soil criteria listed in the NJDEPESC Table, soil toxicity tests can provide an indication of potential effects onsoil invertebrates and plants.Populations of soil organisms (e.g., invertebrates and plants) can be impactedwhen the quality of the soil in which they live is changed. The magnitude ofthe impact depends on the magnitude of the change to either physicalparameters (e.g., Eh/pH, grain size, total organic matter) or chemicalparameters (e.g., concentrations of salts, nutrients, and chemicals). Soiltoxicity testing is used to measure the effects of these changes on soilorganism survival, growth, or reproduction using a standardized suite oflaboratory organisms (e.g., earthworms and plants), following standardizedtesting protocols.Soil toxicity tests should follow established guidance as published byAmerican Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), Standard Guide forConducting Laboratory Soil Toxicity or Bioaccumulation Tests with theLumbricid Earthworm Eisenia Fetida and the Enchytraeid PotwormEnchytraeus albidus (ASTM, 2004), and Standard Guide for ConductingTerrestrial Plant Toxicity Tests (ASTM, 2009).Detailed specifics regarding soil toxicity test procedures can be found inAppendix H.6.3 Ecological Risk Assessment ReportUpon completion of the ERA, the investigator should document the findings andconclusions in a concise report for review and acceptance by the LSRP. The ERAshould outline the process followed in completing the ERA, and the data collected, insupport of its development. The investigator should employ a weight-of-evidenceapproach in outlining what the potential ecological impacts associated with identifiedreleases in the site-related ESNRs may be. The investigator, at a minimum, shouldincorporate the following information into the report: Executive Summary: providing a summary description of the basis andbackground of the project, and the findings of field investigations;Ecological Evaluation Technical Guidance Document 67Version 1.2 8/29/12