An ecological risk assessment involves examining the impacts of environmental hazards (e.g., oil spills) in and around the area where a release occurs. Conducting this assessment requires information on the occurrence and distribution of natural resources. Knowledge of the distribution of a species relative to the site of release/contamination can facilitate the evaluation of the impacts of contaminated locations by allowing a rapid ecoscreening in the event of a toxic release.
For this pilot project, we gathered data from a variety of sources to create a comprehensive database of species occurrences and their susceptibility to environmental contaminants. We selected several terrestrial and aquatic species, such as the American Kestrel, the mink, and the fantail darter. We chose these species for our pilot project based on expert opinion, availability of data sets, and whether they are good indicators of environmental contamination. We included both those species that prefer specific habitats (specialists) as well as others that prefer a wide variety of habitats (generalists).
The project locations are in DuPage, Grundy, Kankakee, Kane, Kendall, and Will counties of northeastern Illinois. We chose this area because it is undergoing rapid urban development that may increase the need for ecological risk assessments. Parts of these counties represent an expanding suburban/rural interface where human and wildlife interactions are intensified. Additionally, this area includes important natural areas, such as Midewin Tallgrass Prairie, Goose Lake Prairie State Natural Area, and Des Plaines Conservation Area, as well as portions of the Fox, Illinois, and Kankakee River watersheds.
We began by building a database of species locations using data associated with scientific collections, such as those located at the Illinois Natural History Survey, and from a variety of other sources such as wildlife surveys and bird banding records. Also, we determined the preferred habitats in our research area for each species by researching scientific literature. Concurrently, we classified satellite imagery from spring, summer, and fall dates in 1999 into vegetation types within our project area. The habitats preferred by each species were then assigned to the corresponding vegetation types in order to determine a predicted distribution for each species. The point locations were used as an accuracy assessment for each predicted distribution.
In developing our ecoscreening tool, we created a computer interface using geographic information system (GIS) technology. The interface can be used with ArcView 3.2 (ESRI 1999), and includes the predicted distributions of our selected species within northeastern Illinois. We also incorporated characterizations of a species' relative susceptibility to contaminants, as well as other relevant spatial databases, such as Illinois vegetative classifications, public lands, streams, watershed basins, major interstates, roads, and topographic maps. This pilot project applies data collected as part of the Illinois Gap Analysis Project to ecological risk assessment (see http://www.inhs.uiuc.edu/cwe/gap/gapintro.html for more information).
Our GIS interface incorporates predicted species distributions and other spatial database layers as well as toxicological profiles and species' habitat associations to enhance the process of ecological risk screening. Additional spatial data, such as the location of contaminated areas, can be added into the interface. Our database is more informative, encompassing, and efficient than what is currently available for initial ecological screening. The expansion of the pilot project to include additional species and other geographic regions would allow for greater protection of Illinois' natural resources. Similarly, the development of additional applications would expand the utility to natural resource professionals.
This project was jointly funded by the Waste Management and Research Center, and Office of Realty and Environmental Planning, both of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
Shana Lavin, Tari Weicherding, Jeff Levengood, and Jocelyn Aycrigg, Center for Wildlife Ecology
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