Case Study: Kennecott Utah Copper achieves accurate selenium exposure assessment and improved Great Salt Lake wetland water quality with Palisade's @RISK and BestFit

Kennecott Utah Copper - Customer Case Study

Kennecott Utah Copper, the second-largest copper producer in the United States, faced concerns about high selenium levels in the Kennecott Southshore Wetlands—more than 2,000 acres of vital habitat for migratory shorebirds and waterfowl. To assess risk to nesting birds, Kennecott engaged ecological modeler Dr. John Toll and used Palisade software (@RISK and BestFit) to conduct a site-specific probabilistic exposure assessment of selenium in aquatic food webs and bird eggs.

Palisade’s BestFit was used to characterize selenium concentration distributions and @RISK ran probabilistic trophic-transfer and Bayesian Monte Carlo analyses to generate spatially distributed egg selenium predictions, reducing the need for extensive destructive egg sampling. The Palisade-driven modeling produced reliable exposure estimates that led to corrective actions improving wetland water quality, enabled a site-specific bioaccumulation model aligned with EPA’s proposed selenium criterion, and supported Kennecott’s broader stewardship including the 3,670‑acre Inland Sea Shorebird Reserve that now attracts about 150,000 migratory birds annually.

Kennecott Utah Copper

John Toll

Ecological Modeler