EPA webinar reviews the draft aluminum aquatic life criteria

Washington, D.C. — On Sept. 14, 2017 from 2:00-3:00 p.m. EST, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will host a webinar to review the agency’s recently published draft aluminum aquatic life water quality criteria document.

EPA first released freshwater criteria for aluminum in 1988 to protect aquatic life from harmful effects of aluminum toxicity, which can inhibit an aquatic organism’s ability to regulate salt concentrations and clog fish gills, potentially resulting in death or affecting growth and reproduction.

EPA is updating the aluminum criteria to better reflect the latest science and respond to a consent decree for Oregon to propose aluminum standards. Studies have shown that three water chemistry parameters — pH, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and hardness — can affect the toxicity of aluminum by impacting aquatic species’ overall exposure to aluminum. Unlike the fixed values recommended by EPA in 1988 document, this draft document provides users the flexibility to develop site-specific criteria based on a site’s water chemistry. To support the development of site-specific criteria, EPA is providing lookup tables as well as an Aluminum Criteria Calculator.

Register for the webinar at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/us-epa-webinar-reviewing-the-draft-aluminum-aquatic-life-criteria-tickets-37491588350?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery.

Comment on the draft document at https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0260&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery. The comment period closes on Sept. 26, 2017.