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Publication on validation of a method to determine transformation of chemicals in manure

Manure is widely used as a fertilizer and applied to agricultural land. It may contain highly active chemicals like veterinary medicinal products or biocides, which enter the environment by this pathway. This is recognized by several regulatory frameworks, however, a detailed method for examining the transformation of chemicals in manure was lacking. The present publication […]

Critical review and proposal for multigenerational testing in standard soil invertebrates

Standard laboratory tests to evaluate the effects of stressors (in most cases chemicals) on soil organisms offer a good compromise between feasibility and outcome, i.e. they should be reproducible and provide robust results. However, these tests may underestimate potential effects of prolonged exposures, particularly for persistent contaminants. In the last years, there was an increase […]

ECT contributes to the 4th EMCEI Conference

The 4th Euro-Mediterranean Conference for Environmental Integration (EMCEI) takes place on 01-04 November 2022 in Sousse, Tunisia. Its main objective is to promote the exchange of scientific knowledge and to foster collaboration among Euro-Mediterranean communities. Jörg Römbke contributes with the following plenary presentation to the EMCEI conference: J. Römbke, R. Schmelz, A. Van der Veen, […]

New test guideline: Anaerobic transformation of chemicals in liquid manure

New test guideline: Anaerobic transformation of chemicals in liquid manure

On 30 June 2022, the OECD published test guideline No. 320: ‘Determining anaerobic transformation of chemicals in liquid manure’. This guideline describes a standardised method to investigate transformation of chemical substances in pig and cattle liquid manure under anaerobic conditions. The experiments are performed to determine the rate of transformation of the test substance, the […]

Publication on enhanced ready biodegradability screening tests

In persistence assessment, enhanced ready biodegradability tests (eRBT) are used to close the gap between screening tests and complex simulation tests. However, only few data from such tests are available, and neither guidance on the design and interpretation of eRBTs, nor suitable validity criteria have been established so far. In a practical testing programme, five […]