Evaluation of soil ecotoxicity tests with functional endpoints for the risk assessment of plant protection products

This paper outlines the state-of-the-art in discussing tests with functional endpoints for the soil compartment for regulatory purposes. In spite of the fact that organic matter decomposition is one of the most important functions in the soil ecosystem, this process has not been the subject of a test requirement for risk assessment of plant protection products until very recently. Since EU Directive 91/414/EEC concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market requires in its Annex III, point 10.6.2 (entitled “Effects on other soil, non-target macro-organisms”), the evaluation of effects on organic matter breakdown, there is an urgent need to fulfil this requirement. The use of functional endpoints in terrestrial model ecosystems is also under discussion in the framework of the notification process for chemicals. Four potential methods (bait-lamina-test, litterbag test, minicontainer test, cotton-strip assay) taken from ecological literature are briefly reviewed and evaluated in this paper using several defined criteria regarding their usefulness for registration purposes. In this context, areas for further research are identified. The insecticide Dimilin (a.i. diflubenzuron) is used as an example to show how such a test improves risk assessment. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that a guidance paper describing the main principles of at least one test method on organic matter decomposition should be written in order to realise the EU requirement.     

Correction to: Pesticide resurrection

Environmental Chemistry Letters -     

Bridging legal and economic perspectives on interstate municipal solid waste disposal in the US

Managing municipal solid waste (MSW) within and across regions is a complex public policy problem. One challenge regards conceptualizing precisely what commodity is to be managed across space and time. The US Supreme Court view is that waste disposal is the article of commerce per se. Some justices, however, have argued that while waste disposal is the article of commerce, its interstate flow could be impeded by states on the grounds that they have the authority to regulate natural resource quality within their boundaries. The argument in this paper is that adopting the economic theory view of the article of commerce as landfill space brings the majority and dissenting US Supreme Court views—and the resulting sides of the public policy dispute—into closer alignment. We discuss waste management policy tools that emerge from this closer alignment that are more likely to both withstand judicial scrutiny and achieve economic efficiency.     

Decision-making in controlling development of driving/piloting situations

This paper introduces the presentation of several works carried out, in France, in the field of transport ergonomics and psychology. It aims at pointing out the original features of the French ergonomics approach of dynamic situations; these features are related to the method used (the analysis of an activity in actual working conditions is emphasized) and the specific definitions of several concepts such as the concepts of ‘work activity’, ‘task’ and ‘situation’. This introductory paper proposes to define these notions and to show their relevance to an analysis of driving activities.     

Comparison of solid-phase bioassays and ecoscores to evaluate the toxicity of contaminated soils

Five bioassays (inhibition of lettuce germination and growth, earthworm mortality, inhibition of springtail population growth, avoidance by springtails) were compared, using four coke factory soils contaminated by PAHs and trace elements, before and after biotreatment. For each bioassay, several endpoints were combined in an ‘ecoscore’, a measure of test sensitivity. Ecoscores pooled over all tested bioassays revealed that most organisms were highly sensitive to the concentration of 3-ring PAHs. When four soils were combined, behavioural tests using the springtail Folsomia candida showed higher ecoscores, i.e. they were most sensitive to soil contamination. However, despite overall higher sensitivity of behavioural tests, which could be used for cheap and rapid assessment of soil toxicity, especially at low levels of contamination, some test endpoints were more sensitive than others, and this may differ from a soil to another, pointing to the need for a battery of bioassays when more itemized results are expected.     

Moving a hospital: simulation – a way to co-produce safety healthcare facilities

Moving a hospital is a critical period for quality and safety of healthcare. Change is very stressful for professionals. Workers who have experienced relocation of their place of work report deterioration in health status. Building a new hospital or restructuring a unit could provide an opportunity for improving safety and value in healthcare and for ensuring better quality of worklife for the staff. We used in situ simulation to promote experiential learning by training healthcare workers in the workplace in which they are expected to use their skills. In situ simulation was a way to design, plan, assess and implement a new healthcare environment before opening its doors for patient care. We can envisage that simulation will soon be used formally to identify potential problems in healthcare delivery and in staff quality of worklife in new healthcare facilities. Simulation is a way to co-produce a safe and valuable healthcare facility.     

Place Attachment,Climate Friendly Behavior,and Support for Climate Friendly Management Action among State Park Visitors

This study examined the role of place attachment in determining visitors’ willingness to engage in climate friendly behavior in parks and support for management actions to minimize climate-change impacts. The sample consisted of visitors to Missouri State Parks (n = 1775). Place attachment was measured using 12 items of place identity, place dependence, and social bonding. Exploratory factor analysis of climate friendly behavior items revealed two dimensions: Visit based (i.e., short-term, immediate actions individuals could take during their visit) and Big Picture (i.e., advocacy actions that suggest a long-term engagement with parks). A path analysis demonstrated that the dimensions of place attachment predict climate friendly behavior and support for climate friendly management action in different ways. Specifically, place identity increased climate friendly behavior (big picture) and place dependence increased both climate friendly behavior (visit based) and support for climate friendly management action. Findings from this study provided evidence for the importance of place attachment as a means for engaging visitors in climate-related actions both in and beyond the park setting.     

Indicators of carbon storage in U.S. ecosystems: baseline for terrestrial carbon accounting

Policymakers, program managers, and landowners need information about net terrestrial carbon sequestration in forests, croplands, grasslands, and shrublands to understand the cumulative effects of carbon trading programs, expanding biofuels production, and changing environmental conditions in addition to agricultural and forestry uses. Objective information systems that establish credible baselines and track changes in carbon storage can provide the accountability needed for carbon trading programs to achieve durable carbon sequestration and for biofuels initiatives to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions. A multi-sector stakeholder design process was used to produce a new indicator for the 2008 State of the Nation's Ecosystems report that presents metrics of carbon storage for major ecosystem types, specifically change in the amount of carbon gained or lost over time and the amount of carbon stored per unit area (carbon density). These metrics have been developed for national scale use, but are suitable for adaptation to multiple scales such as individual farm and forest parcels, carbon offset markets and integrated national and international assessments. To acquire the data necessary for a complete understanding of how much, and where, carbon is gained or lost by U.S. ecosystems, expansion and integration of monitoring programs will be required.