activated carbon was used for the collection and concentration of trace 

 materials from stream water and drinking water supplies so they could be 

 identified and quantified. Carcinogenic substances were found to be pre- 

 sent in small quantities in some water supplies. The carbon-filter techni- 

 que for the removal and concentration of trace materials from water used 

 for domestic supplies has in recent years brought to light the presence of 

 undesirable substances in water supplies hundreds of miles from their point 

 of discharge. It has also resulted in more emphasis on the detection and 

 control of toxic and harmful materials in drinking water supplies. With 

 the development of better analytical equipment and techniques, many 

 problems are being detected and solved that 30 years ago were impossible to 

 solve because of the lack of equipment and methods to detect and analyze 

 materials occurring in very small quantities in our waters. 



DEVELOPMENT, USE, AND STANDARDIZATION OF BIOASSAY METHODS 



Bioassays with fish as test organisms have been used for some time to 

 determine the acute toxicity of materials and wastes to selected test 

 species. In 1885 McDonald reported on his studies of the toxic effects 

 upon young shad of wastes from the Page ammoniacal works. In 1902 Knight 

 reported on his bioassay studies, and Moore and Kellermann reported results 

 of their bioassays in 1903 and 1905. In 1905 Marsh reported on studies of 

 the toxicity of some industrial wastes to fish. In the same year Levy 

 reported to the State Water Committee of Virginia on the investigation of 

 the effects of trade wastes (sulphite waste liquor) on the waters of the 

 James River at Richmond. In 1907 Marsh reported on the lethal dose of 

 copper sulphate in waters of different quality. Clark and Adams reported 

 results of their bioassay studies in Massachusetts in 1912. Wells 

 conducted extensive bioassys, and in 1913 he reported on reactions and 

 resistance of fishes to different concentrations of C0 2 and 2 and in 1915 

 on reactions and resistance of fishes to salts in their natural environment. 



The use of bioassays increased between 1910 and 1920. In 1914 Adrian 

 Thomas conducted bioassays to test the toxicity of road tar. He used one 

 trout fingerling in each 1500-ml container and exposed the test fish to two 

 concentrations, 66 and 13 ppm by volume, for 3-19 days. Water in the test 

 chambers was changed once a week or more often. Aeration was very heavy, 

 and it may have removed some of the volatile components. In 1916 Shelford 

 and Wells reported on the use of sunfish to determine the toxicity of gas 

 house wastes. These were short-term acute toxicity bioassays of only 1-hr 

 duration. An important observation was that fish do not avoid this waste, 

 but swim into it. In 1917 Shelford reported on his continuing studies of 

 the effects of gas house wastes on fish. In 1917 Powers described his 

 bioassay studies in which he used the goldfish ( Carassius carassius ) as the 

 test animal. He reported additional work in 1920 on the influence of 

 temperature and concentration on the toxicity of salts to fishes. In 1919 

 Thomas of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries of Virginia presented 

 a paper before the American Fisheries Society on the effects of certain 

 oils, tars, and creosotes on brook trout. 



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