Summary

Description

Surface runoff or leachate from two landfills East Lake Landfill and the Dare County Construction and Demolition Debris Landfill have the potential to impact fish and wildlife resources associated with Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, Dare and Hyde Counties, North Carolina. Sediments were collected in March 2000 from 14 locations in canals downgradient from the landfills for laboratory assessment of sediment quality. Sediments were analyzed for metal As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Se, Zn and organic contaminants PAHs and organochlorine pesticides. Chronic toxicity of the sediments was determined using 28d static renewal exposures with Hyalella azteca Crustacea: Amphipoda with survival and growth as the test endpoints. Acute toxicity was evaluated using static 96h exposures of H. azteca to sediment pore water. Sediments from four locations were selected for a 28d bioaccumulation study with Lumbriculus variegatus freshwater oligochaete based on the toxicity evaluation. Solidphase sediments were not acutely toxic to H. azteca, but length was significantly reduced in sediments from five locations. Pore waters from sediments collected at four locations were acutely toxic to H. azteca Bioaccumulation studies exhibited uptake of several metals and PAHs, demonstrating the availability of these contaminants to the biota. Residue analyses of the sediments showed that several metals and PAHs exceeded sediment quality guidelines, and pore water concentrations of several metals exceeded water quality criteria for the protection of aquatic wildlife. These data demonstrate that runoff or leachate from the landfills have reduced sediment quality and have the potential to adversely affect resident fish and wildlife resources associated with Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge.