Sediment-bound Contaminant Resiliency and Response (SCoRR) Strategy

Natural and anthropogenic contaminants, pathogens, and viruses are found in soils and sediments throughout the United States. Enhanced dispersion and concentration of these environmental health (EH) stressors in coastal regions can result from sea level rise and storm-derived disturbances. The combination of existing environmental health stressors and those mobilized by natural or anthropogenic disasters could adversely impact the health and resilience of coastal communities and ecosystems.

As part of the US Geological Survey (USGS) response to Hurricane Sandy, a Sediment-bound Contaminant Resiliency and Response (SCoRR) strategy has been developed to define baseline and post-event sediment-bound environmental health stressors. This strategy will be demonstrated as a pilot study in the Northeastern US. The SCoRR strategy utilizes a tiered, multi-metric approach to:

1. Identify and map contaminant sources and potential exposure pathways for human and ecological receptors,
2. Define the baseline mixtures of EH stressors present in sediments (Resilience Mode),
3. Document post-event changes in EH stressors present in sediments (Response Mode), and
4. Establish and apply metrics to quantify changes in coastal resilience associated with sediment-bound contaminants.

Integration of this information provides a means to more fully assess the baseline status of a complex system and more adequately assess the significance of changes in contaminant hazards due to storm induced disturbances.

Science Team

Partnerships

• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
• National Park Service (NPS)
• Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)
• Numerous state and local agencies within the study area

Information about USGS activities related to Sediment-bound Contaminant Resiliency and Response

• Meeting the Science Needs of the Nation in the Wake of Hurricane Sandy - A U.S. Geological Survey Science Plan for Support of Restoration and Recovery
• Hurricane Sandy Science Plan - Impacts of Environmental Quality and Persisting Contaminant Exposures
• Estuarine Bed-Sediment-Quality Data Collected in New Jersey and New York after Hurricane Sandy, 2013
• Inland Storm-Tide Monitoring

Other Internet Resources

• Toxic Substances Hydrology Program
• The Organic Geochemistry Research Laboratory (OGRL)
• Eastern Geographic Science Center