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Best chemical risk assessment professionals for maximum ecosystem services benefit (PRORISK)

PRORISK is a European Training Network funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. It creates a platform for training early-stage researchers in the field of advanced environmental risk assessment. Environmental risk assessment procedures are nowadays changing, incorporating for instance mechanistic, ecological, and socio-economic information. Consequently, risk assessments are becoming more comprehensive. […]

HP 14 classification of mirror entries in the List of Wastes – proposals for further developing the German ‘Recommendations for the ecotoxicological characterization of wastes’

According to Directive 2008/98/EG in connection with Decision 2000/532/EC (European List of Wastes, LoW), waste has to be classified as hazardous or non-hazardous. The LoW contains ‘absolute hazardous entries’ (wastes that are hazardous without further assessment), ‘absolute non-hazardous entries’ (wastes that are non-hazardous without further assessment) and ‘mirror entries’ (wastes that can be classified as […]

New project started: ARISTO

As acknowledged by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) soil microorganisms play a key role in ecosystem functioning and there is a lack of appropriate methods to assess impacts on them. ARISTO, the European Industry-Academia Network for Revising and Advancing the Assessment of the Soil Microbial Toxicity of Pesticides, started in 2021 and addresses this […]

The European industry-academia network for revising and advancing the assessment of the soil microbial toxicity of pesticides (ARISTO)

The European Commission has imposed a stringent regulatory scheme for pesticide authorisation, which includes an assessment of potential risks for aquatic organisms and terrestrial macro-organisms. However, the assessment of the toxicity of pesticides on soil microorganisms relies on a protocol that does not identify effects on key microbial functions and on microbial diversity. As acknowledged […]

New project started: ‘Prioritisation and risk evaluation of medicines in the environment’ (PREMIER)

The Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) project PREMIER aims to develop a centralised, user-friendly digital assessment system accessible for all relevant stakeholders. PREMIER will also explore options to incorporate environment considerations earlier in the drug development process to inform drug design and to reduce the need of animal testing. ECT is involved in this project as […]

Prioritisation and risk evaluation of medicines in the environment (PREMIER)

The Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) project ‘Prioritisation and risk evaluation of medicines in the environment’ (PREMIER) aims to develop a centralised, user-friendly and transparent digital assessment system accessible for all relevant stakeholders such as regulatory agencies, pharmaceutical industry, water managers and environmental non-governmental organisations. Furthermore, PREMIER will explore the options to incorporate environment considerations earlier […]

Effects of insecticides on survival and reproduction of microarthropods in African and European soils

New publication: Effects of insecticides on survival and reproduction of microarthropods in African and European soils

In many parts of Africa, pesticides are used indiscriminately. Yet, ecotoxicological data relevant for the protection of soil organisms have usually been obtained under temperate conditions. In order to assess the effects of three commonly used insecticides (deltamethrin, dimethoate, chlorpyrifos) on microarthropods in African soils, uncontaminated natural soils were collected from Nigeria and Tunisia. In […]

Further news on the Euro-Mediterranean Conference on Environmental Integration

Further news on the Euro-Mediterranean Conference on Environmental Integration

About 500 scientists representing more than 20 countries participated in the 1st Euro-Mediterranean Conference on Environmental Integration (EMCEI) that took place in Sousse (Tunisia) from 22 to 25 November 2017. ECT co-organised this conference, actively contributing via a keynote speech on environmental risk assessment of pesticides in soil, and by chairing two sessions on environmental […]