August 2009

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Science and Technology,
has released an enhanced version of the aquatic ecosystem simulation model
AQUATOX.  AQUATOX is a PC-based ecosystem model that predicts the fate of
nutrients and organic chemicals in water bodies, as well as their direct and
indirect effects on the resident organisms.  AQUATOX Release 3 contains many
enhancements that increase the realism and utility of the model.  The most
important enhancements include:
       Capability to represent estuaries at a screening level
       Capability to model multiple linked river and reservoir segments
       Enhanced nutrients analysis, including nutrient release from
sediments, daily dissolved oxygen fluctuations, and toxicity from low oxygen
and ammonia
       Capability to simulate biological effects of suspended and bedded
sediments
       Calculation of biological metrics
       Enhanced sensitivity and uncertainty analyses
       Toxicity data estimation from ICE (Interspecies Correlation
Estimation)
       Expanded data management, graphics and statistical analysis
       The software is now open source, meaning that other modelers can
customize AQUATOX for their particular application

Visit the AQUATOX web site at http://epa.gov/ost/models/aquatox/ for more
information or for downloading the model and its associated documentation.

Marjorie Coombs Wellman
wellman.marjo...@epa.gov
202-566-0407 (phone)

Mailing address:
SHPD/Office of Science and Technology
USEPA (MC 4305T)
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC  20460