Bioavailability refers to the extent to which humans and ecological receptors are exposed to contaminants in soil or sediment. Although long employed in toxicology and agricultural sciences, the concept of bioavailability has recently piqued the interest of the hazardous waste industry as an important consideration for deciding how much waste to clean up. The rationale is that if contaminants in soil and sediment are not bioavailable, then more contaminant mass can be left in place without creating additional risk. To date, the concept has affected clean up goals at a small number of sites (Table 1), and enthusiasm for the idea is growing.
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