Acute toxicity of in situ shale oil process wastewater and its major components to Daphnia magna [Groundwater]

The authors objective was to assess the potential environmental hazard of an in situ shale oil process wastewater to aquatic organisms by determining the acute toxicity (48 h) of this effluent to Daphnia magna , a microcrustacean commonly found in lakes in northern and western North America and a sensitive test organism for many toxicity studies. The effluent under study, designated Omega-9 water, was obtained from the Laramie Energy Technology Center's experimental true in situ shale oil site near Rock Springs, Wyoming. Though the water was collected in 1976, it has undergone little apparent deterioration because of stringent storage procedures such as maintenance at 4 degree C.