Useful Links for Developing Ecological Risk Assessments
Links to pages on this and other sites that have useful information for developing ecological risk assessments.
On this page:
- About These Links
- TCEQ Documents and Rules
- Ecological Guidance
- U.S. EPA
- Sediment
- Soil
- Surface Water
- Wildlife—General
- Mammals
- Birds
- Amphibians and Reptiles
- Fishes
- Threatened and Endangered Species
- Toxicologial Profiles
- Radionuclides
- Defense Site–Related Research/Munitions
- Chemical Names and CAS Numbers
- ECO Maps
- General Sites
- Publications Sites
Useful Links for Developing Ecological Risk Assessments
These online resources are meant to be a service to persons preparing ecological risk assessments for submittal to the agency. As you use these resources, keep these points in mind:
- Most of these links exit our website.
- This list is not an endorsement of the information contained on the site.
- These links are sources of useful information; however, the information may not be directly applicable to the preparation of ERAs for submittal to the TCEQ. The primary source of information pertinent to ecological risk assessments submitted to TCEQ is available on our TCEQ Ecological Risk Assessment Program Webpage.
- Some of these sites contain more generalized information and so might include both ecological-and human health–related information.
- We will strive to update these links periodically. Please let us know if a link is broken or if you want to recommend an addition to the list. (techsup@tceq.texas.gov)
- TCEQ Ecological Risk Assessment Program Webpage (main ERA page; including guidance and benchmarks)
- Texas Risk Reduction Program (TRRP) (Includes links to rules and guidance)
- TCEQ/WTAMU PCL Calculator Database (Google Chrome recommended)
- 2018 Texas Surface Water Quality Standards
- Procedures to Implement the Texas Surface Water Quality Standards
- TCEQ Natural Resource Trustee Program
- TCEQ Coordination with Natural Resource Trustees Under TRRP (see 7.124)
Ecological Guidance
- TCEQ Ecological Risk Assessment Program Webpage (main ERA page; including guidance and benchmarks)
- EPA EcoBox (A Toolbox for Ecological Risk Assessors) (huge multi-subject website including links to databases, tools, models, and many US EPA documents and other agency (state, federal, DOD) publications; see search function on list of subjects)
- USEPA Superfund Risk Assessment (variety of links)
- USEPA Screening Level Ecological Risk Assessment Protocol for Hazardous Waste Combustion Facilities (archived material)
- USEPA Guidelines for Ecological Risk Assessment
- USEPA Ecological Risk Assessment Tools (table of guidance documents, handbooks, framework documents, standard operating procedures, and other related materials)
- USEPA Risk Tools and Databases
- USEPA Ecological Risk Assessment Products and Publications (A-Z list of agency publications, memos, conference proceedings and journal articles)
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
- Ecological Benchmark Tool
- Benchmark and Ecological Guidance Publications
- Physical Parameters Search (includes plant and fish uptake factors and chemical/physical parameters)
- US ACE Ecological Guidance
- New Zealand Ecological Risk Assessments
- Canadian Environmental Quality Guidelines
- US Navy Guidance and Policy on Ecological Risk Assessments
- California Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessment (EcoNOTEs)
- Los Alamos National Laboratory Ecorisk Database
- Ohio Environmental Protection Agency Guidance
- New Jersey Ecological Evaluation Technical Guidance
- New Mexico Soil Screening Guidance for Ecological Risk Assessments
U.S. EPA (other than above)
- Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)
- ECOTOX Knowledgebase (aquatic and terrestrial toxicological data)
- EPA Office of Water (links to sediment guidance, water quality standards, and other useful topics)
- EPA People Locator
- Region 4 Ecological Screening Values (2018)
- Region 5 Ecological Screening Levels (archived material)
- Combustion Guidance for Human Health (some defaults in here used at times)
- Superfund and Natural Resource Damages
- US EPA Wildlife Scenario Builder and User's Guide
Sediment
- USEPA Superfund Sediments Webpage (policy links and very comprehensive collection of useful guidance beyond the Superfund Realm)
- USEPA CLU-IN Website (links to numerous US EPA, DOD, other federal agency papers, and journal article publications)
- US Navy Sediments Webpage (tools, policy, guidance, other resources)
- US EPA BSAF Database (archived material)
- Sediment Management Work Group
- Washington State Sediment Management
- ITRC Sediments Webpage
Soil
Surface Water
- 2018 Texas Surface Water Quality Standards
- TCEQ Surface Water Quality Monitoring Guidelines
- USEPA Water Quality Criteria
- Texas Surface Water Data Tool (download surface water data by parameter, station location, and segment)
Wildlife—General
- USEPA Wildlife Exposure Factors Handbook (provides species specific exposure factors, allometric equations, and BCFs)
- USGS Eastern Ecological Science Center (for toxicological data and life history information)
- California Ecotox Database (toxicological data and life history information)
- Biology of the Rio Grande Region, USGS Bibliography
- Texas Parks and Wildlife Fact Sheets
- Marine Organisms of Texas
- NatureServe Explorer
- Invasive Species Resources (various links compiled by USDA specific to Texas)
- Bird and Mammal Invasive Species
Mammals
- Mammalian Society Papers (click on excel file link for list of species and links to papers)
- Animal Diversity Web, Mammal Life Histories
- Mammals of Texas Online Edition (note more recent 2016 print edition is available)
Birds
- Animal Diversity Web, Bird Life Histories (searchable by species)
- Bird Checklists of Texas (by region and county)
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Birds of North America (requires a subscription; very detailed species accounts)
- Ebird (search by species and location)
- INaturalist Birds of Texas
Amphibians and Reptiles
- INaturalist Herps of Texas (search for species and locations and pictures)
- Center for North American Herpetology
- USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative
- Amphibia web
- Savannah River Ecology Laboratory Herpetology
- Amphibian Species of the World
Fishes
- North America Freshwater Fish Checklist
- Texas Freshwater Fishes
- World Register of Marine Species (fish and invertebrate information)
- Aquatic Species of Texas – TPWD links for information about freshwater and marine fish
- Fishes of Texas
Threatened and Endangered Species
- Protected Species, Listing by Taxonomic Group, TPWD
- Rare, Endangered and Threatened Species by County, TPWD
- Protected Species, Searchable by County and Species Name, USFWS
Toxicological Profiles and Chemical Information
- ATSDR Toxicological Profiles
- USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program Bibliography
- USGS Contaminant Hazard Reviews (Eisler Papers)
- NIH TOXNET Databases (includes HSDB and Toxline)
- US ACE Environmental Residue-Effects Database (a collection of residue-effects data obtained from peer-reviewed literature and reports submitted by U.S. government agencies)
- Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Database
- OPP Pesticide Ecotoxicity Database
- NWRC Chemical Effects Database (bioassay records and data for chemicals analyzed and evaluated for repellency, toxicity, reproductive inhibition, and immobilization)
- USEPA ChemView Database (information for chemicals regulated under TSCA)
- US EPA - Aquatic Life Benchmarks and Ecological Risk Assessments for Registered Pesticides
- Canadian Environmental Protection Act Toxic Substances List
- Canada Domestic Substances List
- European Chemicals Agency Information on Chemicals
- European Chemicals Agency Candidate List of Substances of Very High Concern (includes chemical properties and data from hazard assessments)
- European Chemicals Agency's Dissemination Portal (portal with information on chemical substances registered under REACH)
- Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Existing Chemicals Database
- List of Chemical Databases (list of 64 databases, not evaluated by TCEQ)
Radionuclides
- RESRAD-BIOTA (implements the U.S. Department of Energy's graded approach methodology for evaluating radiation doses to aquatic and terrestrial biota)
- US EPA - Preliminary Remediation Goals for Radionuclide Contaminants
- ERICA Assessment Tool
- USEPA - Radiation Risk Assessment at CERCLA Sites: Q & A
- European Radioecology Alliance (European Radioecology Alliance; information hub for European radioecological research, links to databases and publications)
- Radiological Protection of the Environment - Sharing Knowledge (website with MANY links to databases, assessment tools, and international organizations and government entities)
- International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) (many publications available)
- International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP)
- International Union of Radioecology (IUR)
- Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
- NY DEC - Assessment of Risks to Fish and Wildlife (good summary document)
- Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission
- DOD Environmental Research Programs (SERDP/ESTCP) (extensive descriptions of ongoing and completed research studies for defense related COCs (munitions and PFCs), contaminated sediments, and risk assessments – and available reports as pdf files)
- US Army Wildlife Toxicity Assessment (links to other army toxicology programs and contact information regarding wildlife TRVs)
- CAS Number or Name Search
- Abbreviations of Chemical Names
- Chemical Synonym Search Engine (also provides structure, CAS number, molecular and chemical/physical information)
Maps
- TXDOT County Maps
- Topozone
- TCEQ Surface Water Quality Viewer (can click on locations to identify segment, basin, surface water monitoring station number)
- USFWS Wetlands Mapper
General Sites
- Risk World
- Society for Risk Analysis
- Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC)
- Society of Toxicology
- Risk Science Center at the University of Cincinnati
- US DOE Office of Environment, Health, Safety & Security
- National Academy of Sciences
- Guidelines and Standards (compilation of links to multiple government standards for various media)
- NIH ToxTutor
Publication Sites
- Ecology WWW
- USGS Columbia Environmental Research Center
- PubMed (literature search database for the fields of biomedicine and health, covering portions of the life sciences, behavioral sciences, chemical sciences, and bioengineering)
