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Item type:Publication, Access status: without files , Strategien zur Sedimentbewertung : ein Überblick(Springer, 2009-04-01); ; ; ; Background Being an important determinant in aquatic ecosystems, sediments have gotten more and more into focus of scientific and public discussions. While water quality has been significantly improving during recent years, highly contaminated sediments in many European rivers will still have ongoing impact for several centuries from now. Hence, monitoring and assessment of sediment quality are crucial for national legislation as well as the implementation of the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). Aim On the occasion of the retirement of Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Volker Storch, this article reviews the various concepts of sediment assessment and introduces case studies in sediment toxicology which have been carried out in Heidelberg and surrounding areas. Results and Discussion Initially, the article portrays benefits and drawbacks of chemical analytics and biotest systems. The individual approach has only limited informative value, but combiningbothperspectives allows fora comprehensive characterization of the state of sediments. As examples of toxicity evaluation based on this strategy, weight-of-evidence studies for tiered investigations and integrated sediment assessment are presented. In addition, a combination of chemical fractionation, bioanalytic investigations and chemical analysis - known as 'effect-directed analysis' (EDA) - is discussed. This integrated concept eventually aims at the identification of hazardous substance classes or even of single compounds. Finally, the article raises the issue of sediment mobility as an important parameter for risk analyses of highly contaminated legacy sediments within further WFD implementation. Outlook Using various case studies, the article outlines the potentials of integrated approaches for cause-effect analysis of complex environmental samples within aquatic ecosystems as well as for action programs of management plans dealing with chemically polluted rivers. Effect-directed analysis in particular, but also the combined application of acute and mechanism-specific bioassays together with in-situ investigations, complemented by investigations on sediment mobility, appear promising with regard to comprehensive sediment assessment weight-of-evidence studies.Publicationtype: Review Article121 - Some of the metrics are blocked by yourconsent settings
Item type:Publication, Access status: without files , Entwicklung von ökotoxikologischen Instrumenten und ihre rechtliche Implementierung zur marinen ökologischen Risikobewertung von Chemikalien, Pestiziden und BaggergutBackground, aim, and scope The marine environment is often the final sink for pollutants, especially for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and for persistent, bio- accumulative and toxic (PBT) substances. The body burden of marine top predators in the Baltic Sea, in the North Sea and also in the Arctic seas is alarming. Thus, the question was investigated if the European environmental law considers a prospective marine ecological risk assessment of chemicals, pesticides and dredged material before they are launched on the market or disposed to the sea. Results The analysis of European environmental law showed that the European environmental protection goals demand a good quality status of coastal waters until 2015 (Waterframework Directive) and a good quality status of European seas until 2020 (Marine Strategy Directive), but a specific marine ecological risk assessment of chemicals and pesticides is not sufficiently required in current European legislation. Discussion It was shown that the ecological risk assessment for freshwater ecosystems is, due to the pecularities of pollutant impacts in the marine environment, not adequate to predict marine effects and to protect the marine environment sufficiently. A statistical analysis of international databases on the relative toxicity of narcotics revealed that marine organisms can be significantly more sensitive than freshwater organisms towards substances with an unspecific mode of action (narcotics). Approximately 60 % of the industrial chemicals are classified as narcotics by their mode of action. Thus, this substance class is of environmental importance. Due to the hydrophobic properties and the low solubility of narcotics in seawater, the ecotoxicological assessment of marine sediments was of interest. An estuarine and marine bioassay test set was established and further developed to assess the ecotoxicological potential of brackish and seawater sediments. It was important that the test procedures were adapted to brackish and marine conditions and were harmonised between each other as well as on the international level. Conclusions Beside two bioassays for the ecotoxicological assessment of elutriates of marine and brackish sediments (bacteria bioluminescence test and marine algae test), the implementation and further development of the whole sediment bioassay with the marine amphipod Corophium volutator was important for enhancing the risk assessment. In order to gain a more standardised, all-season available test organism the marine amphipod was for the first time reproduced under laboratory conditions the whole year round (also in winter), which is the essential basis for the urgently needed chronic whole sediment bioassay. The results of this investigation were implemented in the international (ISO), European (EN) and national (DIN) standardisations. Therefore, a standardised test set is ready for the implementation in the marine ecological risk assessment of chemicals, pesticides and dredged material in international, European and national legislation. Recommendations and perspectives Recommendations to mprove the implementation of a marine risk assessment in European regulations are given with the goal to reach the internationally required objective of a sustainable development of the seas.Publicationtype: Journal Article73