Revising REACH guidance on information requirements and chemical safety assessment for engineered nanomaterials for aquatic ecotoxicity endpoints: recommendations from the EnvNano project

The European Chemical Agency (ECHA) is in the process of revising its guidance documents on how to address the challenges of ecotoxicological testing of nanomaterials. In these revisions, outset is taken in the hypothesis that ecotoxicological test methods, developed for soluble chemicals, can be made applicable to nanomaterials. European Research Council project EnvNano—Environmental Effects and Risk Evaluation of Engineered, which ran from 2011 to 2016, took another outset by assuming that: “The behaviour of nanoparticles in suspension is fundamentally different from that of chemicals in solution”. The aim of this paper is to present the findings of the EnvNano project and through these provide the scientific background for specific recommendations on how ECHA guidance could be further improved. Key EnvNano findings such as the need to characterize dispersion and dissolution rates in stock and test media have partially been addressed in the updated guidance. However, it has to be made clear that multiple characterization methods have to be applied to describe state of dispersion and dissolution over time and for various test concentration. More detailed information is called for on the specific characterization methods and techniques available and their pros and cons. Based on findings in EnvNano, we recommend that existing algal tests are supplemented with tests where suspensions of nanomaterials are aged for 1–3 days for nanomaterials that dissolve in testing media. Likewise, for daphnia tests we suggest to supplement with tests where (a) exposure is shortened to a 3 h pulse exposure in daphnia toxicity tests with environmentally hazardous metal and metal oxide nanomaterials prone to dissolution; and (b) food abundance is three to five times higher than normal, respectively. We further suggest that the importance of considering the impact of shading in algal tests is made more detailed in the guidance and that it is specified that determination of uptake, depuration and trophic transfer of nanomaterials for each commercialized functionalization of the nanomaterials is required. Finally, as an outcome of the project a method for assessing the regulatory adequacy of ecotoxicological studies of nanomaterials is proposed.     

Levels and homologue profiles of PCDD/Fs in sediments along the Swedish coast of the Baltic Sea

Background, aim, and scope  The primary aim of this study was to explore the variations in PCDD/F levels and homologue profiles of Baltic surface sediments by comprehensively analyzing polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) in samples from a large number of sites, encompassing not only previously known hotspot areas, but also sites near other potential PCDD/F sources, in pristine reference areas (in which there was no industrial activity) and offshore sites. Materials and methods  Surface sediment samples (146 in total) were collected at various points along the Swedish coast and offshore areas. In addition, bulk deposition was sampled, monthly, at a single site in northern Sweden during 1 year. The concentrations of tetra- through octa-substituted CDD/Fs were determined in both matrices. Results  Highly elevated concentrations of PCDD/Fs were found at many sites in coastal areas and concentrations were also slightly elevated in some offshore areas. Homologue profiles varied substantially amongst samples from coastal sites, while those from offshore and other pristine sediments were relatively similar. The offshore sediments showed different profiles from those observed in the deposition samples. Sediment levels of PCDD/Fs were not generally significantly correlated to organic carbon levels, except in some pristine areas. Comparison of data obtained in this and previous studies suggest that both their levels and profiles are similar today to those observed 20 years ago in coastal and offshore areas. The only detected trend is that their levels appear to have decreased slightly in the offshore area of the Bothnian Sea. Discussion  The localization of hotspot areas along the coast, the lack of consensus between PCDD/F profiles of sediments and general background, and their weak correlations with organic carbon suggest that PCDD/Fs in the study area largely originate from local/regional emissions. However, due to complicating factors such as sediment dynamics and land upheaval, it is not possible to conclude whether these pollutants derive from recent emissions or from a combination of recent emissions and re-distribution of previous inputs. Conclusions  The results show that: elevated levels of PCDD/Fs are present in both coastal and offshore areas of the Baltic Sea, the major hotspots are close to the shore, and there are large variations in profiles, indicating that local emissions are (or have been) the major causes of pollution. Recommendations and perspectives  In order to identify other hotspot areas and trace sources, comprehensive analysis of PCDD/Fs in surface sediments is needed in all areas of the Baltic Sea that have not been previously investigated. The high levels of PCDD/Fs observed in surface sediments also indicate a need to elucidate whether they are due mainly to current emissions or a combination of recent pollution and re-distribution of historically deposited pollutants. To do so, better understanding of sediment dynamics and present-day inputs, such as riverine inputs, industrial effluents, and leakage from contaminated soil is required. There are indications that contaminated sediments have a regional impact on fish contamination levels. However, as yet there is no statistically robust evidence linking contaminated sediments with elevated levels in Baltic biota. It should also be noted that the Baltic Sea is being massively invaded by the deep-burrowing polychaete Marenzielleria ssp., whose presence in sediments has been shown to increase water concentrations of hydrophobic pollutants. In awareness of this, it is clear that high levels in sediments cannot be ignored in risk assessments. In order to investigate the emission trends more thoroughly, analysis of PCDD/Fs in offshore sediment cores throughout the Baltic Sea is also recommended. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Temporal pessimism and spatial optimism in environmental assessments: An 18-nation study

The personal assessments of the current and expected future state of the environment by 3232 community respondents in 18 nations were investigated at the local, national, and global spatial levels. These assessments were compared to a ranking of each country's environmental quality by an expert panel. Temporal pessimism (“things will get worse”) was found in the assessments at all three spatial levels. Spatial optimism bias (“things are better here than there”) was found in the assessments of current environmental conditions in 15 of 18 countries, but not in the assessments of the future. All countries except one exhibited temporal pessimism, but significant differences between them were common. Evaluations of current environmental conditions also differed by country. Citizens' assessments of current conditions, and the degree of comparative optimism, were strongly correlated with the expert panel's assessments of national environmental quality. Aside from the value of understanding global trends in environmental assessments, the results have important implications for environmental policy and risk management strategies.     

Conservation resource allocation,small population resiliency,and the fallacy of conservation triage

Some conservation prioritization methods are based on the assumption that conservation needs overwhelm current resources and not all species can be conserved; therefore, a conservation triage scheme (i.e., when the system is overwhelmed, species should be divided into three groups based on likelihood of survival, and efforts should be focused on those species in the group with the best survival prospects and reduced or denied to those in the group with no survival prospects and to those in the group not needing special efforts for their conservation) is necessary to guide resource allocation. We argue that this decision-making strategy is not appropriate because resources are not as limited as often assumed, and it is not evident that there are species that cannot be conserved. Small population size alone, for example, does not doom a species to extinction; plants, reptiles, birds, and mammals offer examples. Although resources dedicated to conserving all threatened species are insufficient at present, the world's economic resources are vast, and greater resources could be dedicated toward species conservation. The political framework for species conservation has improved, with initiatives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals and other international agreements, funding mechanisms such as The Global Environment Facility, and the rise of many nongovernmental organizations with nimble, rapid-response small grants programs. For a prioritization system to allow no extinctions, zero extinctions must be an explicit goal of the system. Extinction is not inevitable, and should not be acceptable. A goal of no human-induced extinctions is imperative given the irreversibility of species loss.     

Accelerated carbonation of steel slags in a landfill cover construction

Steel slags from high-alloyed tool steel production were used in a full scale cover construction of a municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill. In order to study the long-term stability of the steel slags within the final cover, a laboratory experiment was performed. The effect on the ageing process, due to i.e. carbonation, exerted by five different factors resembling both the material characteristics and the environmental conditions is investigated. Leaching behaviour, acid neutralization capacity and mineralogy (evaluated by means of X-ray diffraction, XRD, and thermogravimetry/differential thermal analysis, TG/DTA) are tested after different periods of ageing under different conditions.Samples aged for 3 and 10 months were evaluated in this paper. Multivariate data analysis was used for data evaluation. The results indicate that among the investigated factors, ageing time and carbon dioxide content of the atmosphere were able to exert the most relevant effect. However, further investigations are required in order to clarify the role of the temperature.     

Investigation of NiO/NiAl2O4 oxygen carriers for chemical-looping combustion produced by spray-drying

Chemical-looping combustion is a novel combustion technology with inherent separation of the greenhouse gas CO₂. The technology uses circulating oxygen carriers to transfer oxygen from the combustion air to the fuel. In this paper, oxygen carriers based on commercially available NiO and α-Al₂O₃ were prepared using the industrial spray-drying method, and compared with particles prepared by freeze-granulation. The materials were investigated under alternating oxidizing and reducing conditions in a laboratory fluidized bed, thus simulating the cyclic conditions of a chemical-looping combustion system. The particles produced by spray-drying displayed a remarkable similarity to the freeze-granulated oxygen carriers, with high reactivity when the bed was fluidized and similar physical properties when sintered at the same temperature. This is an important result as it shows that the scaling-up from a laboratory production method, i.e. freeze-granulation, to a commercial method suitable for large-scale production, i.e. spray-drying, did not involve any unexpected difficulties. A difference noticed between the spray-dried and freeze-granulated particles was the sphericity. Whereas the freeze-granulated particles showed near perfect sphericity, a large portion of the spray-dried particles had hollow interiors. Defluidization was most likely to occur for highly reduced particles, at low gas velocities. The apparent density and crushing strength of the oxygen carriers could be increased either by increasing the sintering temperature or by increasing the sintering time. However, the fuel conversion was fairly unchanged when the sintering temperature was increased but was clearly improved when the sintering time was increased.     

Investigation of amine amino acid salts for carbon dioxide absorption

The carbon dioxide capture potential of amine amino acid salts (AAAS), formed by mixing equinormal amounts of amino acids; e.g. glycine, β-alanine and sarcosine, with an organic base; 3-(methylamino)propylamine (MAPA), was assessed by comparison with monoethanolamine (MEA), and with amino acid salt (AAS) from amino acid neutralized with an inorganic base; potassium hydroxide (KOH). Carbon dioxide absorption and desorption experiments were carried out on the solvent systems at 40 °C and 80 °C respectively. Experimental results showed that amine amino acid salts have similar CO₂ absorption properties to MEA of the same concentration. They also showed good signs of stability during the experiments. Amino acid salt from an inorganic base, KOH, showed lower performance in CO₂ absorption than the amine amino acid salts (AAAS) mainly due to a lower equilibrium temperature sensitivity. AAAS showed better performance than MEA of same concentration. AAAS from neutralization of sarcosine with MAPA showed the best performance and the performance could be further enhanced when promoted with excess MAPA. The solvent comparison is semi-quantitative since the bubble structure, and thus gas–liquid interfacial area may not be the same for all experiments, however superficial gas velocities were kept constant.     

Selective uptake,distribution, and redistribution of 109Cd, 57Co, 65Zn, 63Ni,and 134Cs via xylem and phloem in the heavy metal hyperaccumulator Solanum nigrum L

The focus of this article was to explore the translocation of ¹⁰⁹Cd, ⁵⁷Co, ⁶⁵Zn, ⁶³Ni, and ¹³⁴Cs via xylem and phloem in the newly found hyperaccumulator Solanum nigrum L. Two experiments with the uptake via the roots and transport of ¹⁰⁹Cd, ⁵⁷Co, and ⁶⁵Zn labeled by roots, and the redistribution of ¹⁰⁹Cd, ⁶⁵Zn, ⁵⁷Co, ⁶³Ni, and ¹³⁴Cs using flap label in S. nigrum in a hydroponic culture with a standard nutrient solution were conducted. The results showed that ¹⁰⁹Cd added for 24 h to the nutrient medium of young plants was rapidly taken up, transferred to the shoot, and accumulated in the cotyledons and the oldest leaves but was not efficiently redistributed within the shoot afterward leading to a rather low content in the fruits. In contrast, ⁵⁷Co was more slowly taken up and released to the shoot, but afterward, this element was redistributed from older leaves to younger leaves and maturing fruits. ⁶⁵Zn was rapidly taken up and transferred to the shoot (mainly to the youngest leaves and not to the cotyledons). Afterward, this radionuclide was redistributed within the shoot to the youngest organs and finally accumulated in the maturing fruits. After flap labeling, all five heavy metals tested (¹⁰⁹Cd, ⁵⁷Co, ⁶⁵Zn, ⁶³Ni, ¹³⁴Cs) were exported from the labeled leaf and redistributed within the plant. The accumulation in the fruits was most pronounced for ⁶³Ni and ⁶⁵Zn, while a relatively high percentage of ⁵⁷Co was finally found in the roots. ¹³⁴Cs was roughly in the middle of them. The transport of ¹⁰⁹Cd differed from that previously reported for wheat or lupin and might be important for the potential of S. nigrum to hyperaccumulate cadmium.     

在瑞典白尾海雕(Haliaeetus albicilla)繁殖过程中DDE、PCB、共面PCB和蛋壳参数所起的作用

1964～1999年,对三个受不同污染的瑞典白尾海雕亚种群[波罗的海沿岸种群(Bp)、瑞典中部内陆种群(Ip)和拉普兰种群(Lp)]的繁殖进行了监测.