All projects

Examination of soil values with regard to protection of soil organisms and validation of soil assessment methods

On the basis of ecotoxicological tests performed with soil organisms, recommendations for precautionary values were given for 16 metals and 10 organics. In the case of three substances (antimony, beryllium, vanadium), the amount of data was not sufficient for such a derivation, while for arsenic, lead, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, nickel, mercury, selenium, thallium, […]

Environmental risk assessment of veterinary medicines: Are there data gaps and how can the new legal requirement be met?

The most likely entry pathways of veterinary medicinal products (VMPs) into the environment are via slurry or manure from intensively reared animals to soil, and via dung or urine from animals grazing on pasture. Surface water may be contaminated via run-off or leaching and drainage, or  by direct excretion of pasture animals into water. According […]

Relevance of endocrine disrupting substances and pharmaceuticals for surface waters – Reassessment of occurrence, development of concepts for monitoring and measures to reduce entry into surface waters

The aim of the project was to evaluate the environmental relevance of potential endocrine disrupters in surface waters by comparing measured concentrations of the respective substances to newly proposed environmental quality standards (EQS). As a key action of the  European Commission’s strategy for endocrine disrupting chemicals, 564 potential endocrine disrupters had been listed. Further 88 […]

Development of an integrated land management for sustainable water and material usage in North-Eastern Germany (ELaN)

Treated wastewater is commonly disposed of in Germany by discharge into surface waters. Within the project ELaN, alternative approaches were investigated for dealing with treated wastewater. Main focus was placed on re-use to recycle valuable nutrients and to help prevent falling water levels in Northeast Germany. In part F (‘Ecotoxicology’) of the project, ECT investigated […]

Iron-based nanoparticles and nanocomposite structures for removal of contaminants from groundwater and sewage

In the project ‘Iron-based nanoparticles and nanocomposite structures for removal of contaminants from groundwater and sewage’ (Fe-Nanosit), Carbo-Iron®, a nanocomposite for remediation of contaminated groundwater and Pd-doted magnetite and magnetite-zeolith for treatment of industrial wastewater were developed. Since no data on ecotoxicity of these particles were available, ecotoxicity of the nanocomposites was investigated using standard […]