Antimicrobiële resistentie en residuen van diergeneesmiddelen (antibiotica) in een circulaire veehouderij : Tegengaan van verspreiding via mest en milieu

There is a large reservoir of manure in the Netherlands which can become a source of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and of residues of antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents. This can have consequences not only for public health but also for the health of animals and of the environment (One Health). However, it is not clear yet what the exact consequences thereof can be. At the same time, a process of change is taking place through which to make Dutch livestock production systems more sustainable. This research aims to reflect on the problem field of AMR and residues of veterinary medicines in the chain formed by livestock, manure, and ecosystems (soil and water) in the context of the future animal husbandry. Particularly, within the scope of circular agriculture. This from a technical, ecological, agronomic and policy perspective to enable the identification of relevant questions and dilemmas

Mapping Cumulative Environmental Risks: Examples from The EU NoMiracle Project

We present examples of cumulative chemical risk mapping methods developed within the NoMiracle project. The different examples illustrate the application of the concentration addition (CA) approach to pesticides at different scale, the integration in space of cumulative risks to individual organisms under the CA assumption, and two techniques to (1) integrate risks using data-driven, parametric statistical methods, and (2) cluster together areas with similar occurrence of different risk factors, respectively. The examples are used to discuss some general issues, particularly on the conventional nature of cumulative risk maps, and may provide some suggestions for the practice of cumulative risk mapping

Risico-evaluatie Bunschoten : een evaluatie van ecologische en landbouwkundige risico’s in de polder gelegen aan de Westdijk te Bunschoten

In het poldergebied gelegen achter de met TGG opgehoogde dijk te Bunschoten is sprake van verhoogde concentraties aan met name zouten in grond- en oppervlaktewater in de teensloot achter de dijk en, in mindere mate, in de sloten in het achterliggende poldergebied. Concentraties in het slootwater zijn met name hoog in de winterperiode en overschrijden dan voor chloride, ammonium en sulfaat de advieswaarden voor veedrenking en gewasgroei (gras). Aanvullende metingen van de bodemkwaliteit van met baggerspecie behandelde percelen laten een beperkte invloed zien van het opbrengen van bagger op de concentraties van stoffen in de bodem. Een toename van de concentratie is beperkt gemeten voor zouten en niet of veel minder voor niet-mobiele stoffen (o.a. metalen). Vo or de metalen geldt dat de samenstelling van de bagger zodanig is dat er volgens de huidige wetgeving geen beperking geldt voor het opbrengen op de kant. Echter voor chloride en sulfaat moet de zorgplicht worden aangehouden. Risico’s voor weidevogels lijken beperkt, gezien de geringe invloedvan de waterkwaliteit op de gebiedsgemiddelde omgevingskwaliteit. Lokaal zijn de bodemcondities zodanig dat effecten op bodemfauna en gewasgroei aannemelijk of reëel zijn, zeker bij de plekken waar zoutvorming is opgetreden. Deze effecten zijn echter vooralsnog beperkt tot kleine gebieden. Afdammen van de sloten grenzend aan de teensloot lijkt niet afdoende om de intrusie van zout te voorkomen, zoals blijkt uit de eenmalige monitoring van de concentraties aan zouten in een aantal afgedamde sloten. Korte-termijn-aanbevelingen zijn o.a. het continueren van het doorspoelen van de sloten, het niet gebruiken van het water uit de teensloot voor drinkwater (vee), het monitoren van het geleidingsvermogen in de afgedamde sloten gedurende het seizoen dat de percelen beweid worden en een aangepast baggerbeheer i.v.m. chloride en sulfaat

Vulnerability of coastal species in Svalbard to selected stressors : sustainable Arctic resource management

The objective of this project was to use the vulnerability mapping method to assess vulnerability of Arctic species to environmental stressors. The coastal environment of Svalbard served as a study case. The method of creating vulnerability maps combined three kinds of information: information on species, on stressors and geographical information. The result is a list of ranks of 22 characteristic Svalbard bird and mammal species with regard to vulnerability to oil pollution. Brünnich’s guillemot was judged as the most vulnerable of the selected species. We created a series of maps of the distribution of species that are vulnerable to oil. Finally, we compared a map of (touristic) boat landing sites to maps showing the distribution of a few species. The sites where most of these species occur are also visited by tourists. The exercises described in this study showed that a species vulnerability analysis for oil pollution and Svalbard marine birds and mammals can be used with the current level of information and that there is sufficient data on the distribution of these species in Svalbard to create species vulnerability maps

Pesticides in the Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania (SAGCOT) : a scoping study of current and future use, associated risks and identification of actions for risk mitigation

SAGCOT, the ‘Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzania’, is a coordinated initiative to boost agricultural output in southern Tanzania through public and private investment, to improve food security, reduce rural poverty and sustain the environment. The ‘Sustainability and Inclusion Strategy for Growth Corridors in Africa’ (SUSTAIN-Africa) programme by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) develops and demonstrates climate resilient solutions for water security and inclusive land resource and agricultural development in growth corridors and areas of intensive economic development in Africa. To develop an efficient, competitive and sustainable agricultural sector in SAGCOT, possible adverse effects of pesticide use need to be addressed and minimized. For this purpose a scoping study was conducted, consisting of a literature survey, a scoping mission and a stakeholder workshop. The study revealed that there are many issues related to pesticide management and pesticide risks that need attention when the SAGCOT is further developed and pesticide use increases. The most important recommendations of the study are (1) better implementation and enforcement of current rules and regulations for pesticides, (2) training and awareness creation for pesticide users, (3) creation of a multi-stakeholder platform for exchange on best pest and pesticide management practices in the SAGCOT, (4) a regulatory body at the local government authority level to enforce/monitor pesticide management and life cycle, and (5) development of a monitoring and evaluation framework on pesticides for the SAGCOT

Duiding van het rapport ‘Een onderzoek naar de mogelijke relaties tussen de afname van weidevogels en de aanwezigheid van bestrijdingsmiddelen op veehouderijen’ door Jelmer Buijs en Margriet Samwel-Mantingh

De auteurs van het rapport hebben een belangwekkend vraagstuk op tafel gelegd dat tot nu toe weinig aandacht heeft gekregen. De blootstelling aan bestrijdingsmiddelen via (kracht)voer en mest, en de negatieve effecten op voedsel van weidevogels (o.a. insecten en wormen) zou inderdaad een blinde vlek in onze noties t.a.v. de ontwikkeling van de weidevogels kunnen zijn. Het onderzoek heeft een belangrijke signalerende betekenis: bestrijdingsmiddelen verspreiden zich vanuit bedrijven, o.a. via aangekochtkrachtvoer en gebruik van vliegenverdelgers in de stal, niet alleen binnen gangbare maar ook binnen biologische bedrijven. Daarnaast komen diverse antiparasitaire diergeneesmiddelen in de mest terecht

Certainties and uncertainties in accessing toxicity of non-extractable residues (NER) in soil

Background: Discussion concerning the bioavailability and ecotoxicological relevance of non-extractable residues (NER) in soil is still ongoing. Is NER formation a detoxification process or a hidden hazard? The use of radiolabelled chemicals enables detection of NER, but the identity of NER is usually unknown. Regulations require clear measurable parameters and the approach of Ortega-Calvo et al. (Environ Sci Technol 49:10255–10264, 2015) defines these. Results: Following that approach, we studied the fate of three ecotoxic, NER-forming chemicals over a period of 6 months after application to three different soils. Initial 14C experiments showed formation of NER for all chemicals. For the chemical 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), NER-formation was reproducible in all soils. We applied a recently standardized method using Tenax® to remove the bioavailable fraction of the chemical at test start and test end. Removing the bioavailable fractions also removed toxicity. Further experiments without radiolabelled TNT clearly showed that the toxicity measured in applied soils was caused by the bioavailable chemical and not by NER. Conclusions: The tool developed can be used if the fate of the chemical including NER formation is well known and reproducible. The other selected chemicals, cypermethrin and carbendazim, showed unexpected behaviour in 14C-fate experiments. The degree of biodegradation was not reproducible for cypermethrin and unexpected losses occurred with carbendazim. This indicated a very large uncertainty when using non-radiolabelled compounds in NER experiments and thus the tool is not suitable in non-radiolabelled experiments.</p

Advances in the development of procedures to establish the toxicity of non-extractable residues (NER) in soil. LRI-ECO25

There is already a long discussion around the bioavailability and ecotoxicological relevance of Non Extractable Residues (NER) in soil. Is NER formation a detoxification process or should it be considered a hidden hazard? NER can only be established using labelled chemicals (e.g. 14C) and cannot be measured with conventional chemical analytics. Regulations ask for understandable and measurable parameters. Considered in the developed tool are three measurable parameters: 1) Chemical present in the water phase, 2) A potentially available fraction in equilibrium with the water phase. 3) The total extractable amount. NER is considered, but mentioned as non-measurable and non-bioavailable. The fates of three NER-forming chemicals were followed in a period of 6 months after addition also using 14C chemicals. For the chemical Tri-NitroToluene (TNT), NER-formation was reproducible and NER formation during aging removed toxicity. By removing the bioavailable fractions directly after spiking and after aging it was also possible to remove toxicity. The experiments showed that toxicity was caused by the bioavailable chemical and not by NER. With Cypermethrin and Carbendazim, results were less clear, because there was a large uncertainty in NER-formation. The degree of biodegradation was not reproducible for Cypermethrin and unexpected losses occurred with Carbendazim and it is not possible to draw conclusions from only a non-labelled experiments

Advances in the Development of Procedures to Establish the Toxicity of Non-Extractable Residues (NER) in Soil. LRI-ECO25

There is already a long discussion around the bioavailability and ecotoxicological relevance of Non Extractable Residues (NER) in soil. Is NER formation a detoxification process or should it be considered a hidden hazard? NER can only be established using labelled chemicals (e.g. 14C) and cannot be measured with conventional chemical analytics. Regulations ask for understandable and measurable parameters. Considered in the developed tool are three measurable parameters: 1) Chemical present in the water phase, 2) A potentially available fraction in equilibrium with the water phase. 3) The total extractable amount. NER is considered, but mentioned as non-measurable and non-bioavailable. The fates of three NER-forming chemicals were followed in a period of 6 months after addition also using 14C chemicals. For the chemical Tri-NitroToluene (TNT), NER-formation was reproducible and NER formation during aging removed toxicity. By removing the bioavailable fractions directly after spiking and after aging it was also possible to remove toxicity. The experiments showed that toxicity was caused by the bioavailable chemical and not by NER. With Cypermethrin and Carbendazim, results were less clear, because there was a large uncertainty in NER-formation. The degree of biodegradation was not reproducible for Cypermethrin and unexpected losses occurred with Carbendazim and it is not possible to draw conclusions from only a non-labelled experiments