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Robert Pastorok, Ph.D.

Robert Pastorok, Ph.D.
Associate of Integral

Robert Pastorok, Ph.D.

Associate of Integral

Dr. Robert Pastorok is an internationally recognized expert in ecological modeling and risk assessment to support FIFRA/ESA pesticide assessments, Superfund site evaluations, NRDAs, and management of natural resources. As an ecologist with more than 30 years of experience, he has led the development of risk management decision frameworks, ecotoxicological empirical methods, and new ecological models to assess population- and ecosystem-level effects of chemicals and other stressors. Dr. Pastorok has been a key participant in efforts to improve risk assessment methods including the EPA Framework for Ecological Risk Assessment, European programs advancing population modeling for eco...

Dr. Robert Pastorok is an internationally recognized expert in ecological modeling and risk assessment to support FIFRA/ESA pesticide assessments, Superfund site evaluations, NRDAs, and management of natural resources. As an ecologist with more than 30 years of experience, he has led the development of risk management decision frameworks, ecotoxicological empirical methods, and new ecological models to assess population- and ecosystem-level effects of chemicals and other stressors. Dr. Pastorok has been a key participant in efforts to improve risk assessment methods including the EPA Framework for Ecological Risk Assessment, European programs advancing population modeling for ecological risk assessment of pesticides (LEMTOX, CREAM, and MODELINK), the 2014 CropLife America Science Forum on Population Modeling for Assessing Risks of Pesticides to Endangered Species, the 2015 CropLife America Workshop on Guidance for Assessing Risks of Pesticides to Endangered Species, and the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis work group to model impacts of toxic chemicals on ecosystem services. He has designed and taught EPA courses and an industry-targeted continuing education course on population and ecological modeling. His earlier work on wildlife exposure modeling was incorporated into EPA’s ECOFRAM guidance on pesticide risk assessment. Dr. Pastorok led Superfund ecological risk assessments at the Upper Clark Fork River (Montana), Elliott Bay (Washington), McCormick & Baxter Creosoting Site (Oregon), and other sites.

Dr. Pastorok has authored more than 25 peer-reviewed publications and was the lead author and editor of the seminal book Ecological Modeling in Risk Assessment: Chemical Effects on Populations, Ecosystems, and Landscapes (2000, CRC Press).

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Risk Assessment

Pesticide Ecological Risk Modeling, European Union Senior science advisor providing technical review of ecological modeling for pesticide risk assessment in support of EU registration activities, including development of tiered population and ecosystem modeling framework.
Population Modeling of Bird and Mammal Species for Pesticide Risk Bright Lines, U.S. Senior scientist to develop a probabilistic approach for population-level risk assessment of pesticide effects on seven species of birds and mammals using RAMAS Metapop.
Deepwater Horizon, Gulf of Mexico Senior science advisor on team providing technical support related to injury assessment.
Evaluation of Population Risk from Pesticides on an Endangered Songbird: Influence of Alternative Behavioral Models, U.S. Senior scientist to analyze the influence of alternative habitat selection behaviors in streaked horned lark on magnitude of pesticide exposure and related population responses using a newly developed HexSim simulation model.
Development of AQUATOX Ecosystem Models to Assess Risks of an Herbicide Senior advisor, modeler, and report author for development of a mesocosm-mimic model and a generalized stream model to assess risks of an herbicide to key aquatic species and ecosystem function in support of an industry registration submittal using FOCUS-generated daily exposure profiles.
Methods for Pesticide Risk Assessment and Jeopardy Determination, U.S. Presenter and participant in a workshop to develop methods for assessing risks of pesticides to endangered species.
Salmon Population Model for Pesticide Risk Assessment, U.S. Senior scientist to critique and improve a model of salmon populations used by the National Marine Fisheries Service to assess risks of pesticide exposure to Pacific salmon as part of its biological opinions supporting the pesticide registration process.
Development of a TK/TD Population Model for the Aquatic Macrophyte Lemna Senior advisor and technical reviewer for development of a population model to assess risks of an herbicide to an aquatic macrophyte species in support of an industry registration submittal.
Improvements in Applications of Models in Ecological Risk Assessment, U.S. Managed the compilation and evaluation of ecological models for population-, ecosystem-, and landscape-level endpoints for use in ecological risk assessment; lead author of report.
Everglades Wading Birds Ecological Risk Assessment, Florida Developed a study plan and technical reviews for comparative ecological risk assessment for phosphorus enrichment and mercury effects on wading birds in the Everglades agricultural areas.
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Reassessment, Alaska Evaluated population modeling for harlequin ducks and sea otters to assess natural resource recovery status after the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound.
Guidance for Aquatic Habitat Restoration, U.S. Chaired a work group to develop the planning process for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers environmental restoration projects.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Comparative Risk Analysis, U.S. Coordinated a national workshop and developed a modeling framework for comparative risk analysis of dredged material disposal options.
Guidance for Habitat Restoration after Oil Spills, Worldwide Evaluated potential ecological impacts and recovery in marine habitats affected by oil spills and cleanup operations.
Impacts of Sewage Discharges in Coastal Waters, U.S. Evaluated sewage discharge impacts on marine and estuarine biota and designed monitoring programs for more than 20 sites under Clean Water Act Section 301(h) applications.
Berry’s Creek Superfund Site, New Jersey Participated on a team developing study design and analysis approaches for a food web study to support exposure analysis and ecological risk assessment.
Upper Columbia River RI/FS Ecological Risk Assessment, Washington Technical expert for development of study design and decision framework for ecological risk studies for the Upper Columbia River remedial investigation; presenter and co-leader of wildlife group at technical workshop with client, consultants, and regulatory agencies.
Hanford Waste Management Area C Performance Assessment, Washington Senior scientist to develop approaches to ecological risk assessment as part of the performance assessment for Waste Management Area C at Hanford nuclear reservation.
Hudson River Ecological Structure and Function, New York Analyzed ecological structure and function relationships for freshwater systems to guide the selection of indicators for monitoring the success of habitat restoration projects.
Hudson River Ecological Risk Assessment, New York Managed ecological risk studies of the Hudson River, New York. The project involved investigating the role of aquatic vegetation communities and associated food web structure in the transfer of PCBs to fish, birds, and mammals, and the status of key species.
Clark Fork River Superfund Site RI/FS Ecological Risk Assessment, Montana Managed a field investigation of bioaccumulation and effects of mining-related metals in riparian vegetation, small mammals, and wildlife in the Upper Clark Fork River basin.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Environmental Program Support, Northwestern U.S. Managed a series of environmental studies, including wetlands and eelgrass inventories, sediment bioassays of dredged material, and development of chronic toxicity tests.
Environmental Monitoring Design for Fresh Waters, Washington Developed a long-term monitoring program for point and nonpoint sources, including surface fresh waters.
Environmental Monitoring Design for Dredged Material Disposal, Washington Managed the development of a comprehensive environmental monitoring program for confined aquatic disposal of contaminated dredged material in Port Gardner.
Impacts of Oil Platform Drilling Muds, Alaska Evaluated potential effects of drilling mud discharges on plankton of the Beaufort, Chukchi, and Bering seas; Cook Inlet; and northeast Gulf of Alaska.
Wetland Ecological Risk Assessment, Ohio Developed an RI/FS study design for ecological assessment of a lead-contaminated wetland.
Commencement Bay Superfund Site Field Sampling Design, Washington Evaluated 78 available data sets and designed field investigations of sediment contamination, water quality, bioaccumulation, and biological effects at the Commencement Bay Superfund site.
Work Plans for Ecological Risk Assessment, Western U.S. Developed RI/FS work plans for ecological assessments at hazardous waste sites contaminated with pesticides, creosote, and dioxins.
Aeration/Circulation for Lake Restoration, U.S. Reviewed literature and evaluated aeration/circulation techniques for lake restoration.
Impacts of Aeration/Circulation in Reservoirs, U.S. Evaluated physical, chemical, and biological effects of aeration/circulation techniques in reservoirs.
Long-Term Monitoring of Biological Communities in Lakes, Washington Performed a 3-year field and laboratory evaluation of population dynamics and community interactions of zooplankton and fish in two Washington lakes.

Ecological Modeling

National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis: Dynamic Models to Link Organism Performance to Ecosystem Service Delivery for Ecological Risk Assessment of Chemicals Member of work group and team to prepare conference manuscripts.
Waterborne Environmental Expert Work Group to develop Guidance for Assessing Risks of Pesticides to Endangered Species Member of work group and team to prepare conference presentations.
CropLife America Science Workshop on Guidance for Assessing Risks of Pesticides to Endangered Species, U.S. Member of organizing committee and facilitator of breakout group on methods for terrestrial species.
CropLife America Science Forum on Population Modeling of Endangered Species: Evaluating Available Models for Understanding Potential Effects of Crop Protection Products on Exposed Populations, U.S. Keynote speaker on salmonid population modeling, and panel member for follow-up session at the CropLife/RISE Spring Conference.
MODELINK, Europe Participant and keynote speaker in two workshops to develop case studies and guidance on use of population models in pesticide risk assessments.
CREAM, Europe Keynote speaker for final conference of a 3-year training and development program to develop toxicokinetic/toxicodynamic and population models for use in ecological risk assessments supporting pesticide regulatory evaluations.
Modeling Ecological Risks of Agricultural Pesticides, U.S. Instructor for population modeling section of continuing education course for pesticide industry ecotoxicologists, policy analysts, and managers.
Population Modeling Course, U.S. Developed and served as principal instructor for an EPA course on population modeling in ecological risk assessment.
Ecological Risk Assessment Framework, Montana Developed an ecological risk assessment framework for a major Superfund site involving mining waste in the Clark Fork River basin, Montana.
Ecological Risk Assessment Framework, U.S. Developed a seminal framework for ecological risk analysis used in natural resource damage assessments at Superfund sites.
Bioaccumulation Monitoring Guidance, U.S. Technical supervisor to develop national guidance manuals on estimating the bioaccumulation potential of toxic pollutants, selecting target species, and selecting sampling strategies for bioaccumulation monitoring.
Workshop on Ecological Modeling for Risk Assessment, U.S. Workshop leader for an American Chemistry Council workshop titled “Workshop on Evaluation of Ecological Models for Use in Chemical Risk Assessment.”
Habitat Selection Functions Course, U.S. Co-instructor for a short course at the Annual Meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry titled “Use of Habitat Selection Functions in Ecological Risk Assessment.”
Ecological Risk Assessment Course (3), U.S. Primary developer of a short course for the American Industrial Hygiene Council titled “Ecological Risk Assessment.”
Ecological Risk Assessment Course, Korea Instructor for a short course on ecological risk assessment for Korea Power Engineering Company Inc. engineers.
Ecological Risk Assessment Course (2), U.S. Instructor for a short course on ecological risk assessment for an environmental consulting firm.
Workshop on Aquatic Habitat Restoration, U.S. Workshop leader for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers workshop titled “Guidance for Restoration of Aquatic Habitats.”
Ecological Risk Assessment Course (2), Worldwide Co-instructor of a short course on ecological risk assessment for a major automobile manufacturer.
Ecological Risk Assessment Course (1), Worldwide Co-instructor of short courses for E3 on ecological risk assessment at several locations throughout the U.S.
Ecological Risk Assessment Course (1), U.S. Workshop leader for a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers workshop titled “Models for Comparative Risk Analysis of Dredged Material Disposal Options.”
Ecological Sciences Courses, Washington Taught undergraduate and graduate-level courses on models in population biology, general ecology, invertebrate zoology, animal biology, and other topics at the University of Puget Sound, University of Washington, and Western Washington University.

Natural Resource Damage Assessment

Natural Resource Damage Assessments at Various Sites, U.S. Evaluated natural resources and NRDA issues for the Hudson River in New York, Saginaw River in Michigan, and several other sites.
Technical Seminar, Minnesota Key presenter at NRDA technical seminar for attorneys and regulatory agency staff hosted by Barr Engineering. Topic presented was scientific issues in NRDA.
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Reassessment, Alaska Key technical expert for population assessments for the State of Alaska assessment of lingering oil and resource injuries from the Exxon Valdez oil spill, 15 years after the spill. Summarized natural resource status and recovery issues in Prince William Sound, including analysis of ecosystem connectivity (food webs), population modeling, and development of a decision framework to evaluate status of natural resources and causes of non-recovery.
Habitat Restoration after Oil Spills, U.S. Evaluated the relative benefits and costs of habitat cleanup and restoration techniques following oil spills in coastal environments.
Ongoing Research Defining metrics that are instrumental for NRDA injury assessment and habitat restoration performance evaluation based on analysis of relationships between ecological structure and function.
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