Evaluating Risks From Contaminated Sediments at Industrial Ports and Harbors.

The management of surface waters and sediments is one of several activities at commercial and industrial shipping ports and harbors critical to maintaining environmental quality that safeguards surrounding communities and the environment. This chapter discusses a possible framework for assessing and managing risks to the aquatic environment, focusing primarily on sediments. Risk assessment provides a useful foundation for understanding the environmental benefits, residual hazards, and engineering limitations of different management strategies, as well as identifying and ranking management options. Understanding the important pathways for contaminant exposure, the human and wildlife populations potentially at risk, and the possible hazards associated with the implementation of different engineering options contributes to informed risk management decision making with regard to short- and long-term effectiveness and implementability of different sediment management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]