Bernd Manfred Gawlik

Common implementation strategy for the water framework directive (2000/60/EC)

This Technical Guidance Document on Biota Monitoring (the Implementation of EQSbiota) aims to facilitate the implementation of environmental quality standards (EQS) in biota under the Water Framework Directive by addressing in particular the sampling strategies appropriate for monitoring programmes designed to assess compliance with biota EQS. It is Guidance Document No. 32 in the series of guidance documents prepared to support the Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) for the Water Framework Directive. It elaborates extensively on the content of Guidance Document No. 25 on Chemical Monitoring in Sediment and Biota under the Water Framework Directive, and is complemented by Guidance Document No. 33, the Technical Guidance Document on Analytical Methods for Biota Monitoring. Guidance Documents 32 and 33 together address the requirement for guidance on biota monitoring mentioned in Article 3(8a) of Directive 2008/105/EC as amended by Directive 2013/39/EU. The original Directive 2008/105/EC included biota standards for mercury, hexachlorobenzene and hexachlorobutadiene. In Directive 2013/39/EU, biota EQS were introduced for three other existing priority substances (fluoranthene, polyaromatic hydrocarbons and brominated diphenylethers), and set for four new priority substances (dicofol, perfluorooctane sulfonic acid and its derivatives, hexabromocyclododecane, and heptachlor/heptachlor epoxide). This guidance document takes into account the fact that trend monitoring in sediment and/or biota is required for several other priority substances as specified in Article 3(6), and indicates how trend monitoring data can be used to check compliance with biota EQS, but does not elaborate on trend monitoring as such. This document constitutes guidance and Member States are therefore not legally required to follow the recommendations contained in it. Member States are, however, required to use methods compliant with the requirements of the Environmental Quality Standards Directive 2008/105/EC and the Quality Assurance/Quality Control Directive 2009/90/EC.

The European technical report on aquatic effect-based monitoring tools under the water framework directive

The Water Framework Directive (WFD), 2000/60/EC, requires an integrated approach to the monitoring and assessment of the quality of surface water bodies. The chemical status assessment is based on compliance with legally binding Environmental Quality Standards (EQSs) for selected chemical pollutants (priority substances) of EU-wide concern. In the context of the mandate for the period 2010 to 2012 of the subgroup Chemical Monitoring and Emerging Pollutants (CMEP) under the Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) for the WFD, a specific task was established for the elaboration of a technical report on aquatic effect-based monitoring tools. The activity was chaired by Sweden and co-chaired by Italy and progressively involved several Member States and stakeholders in an EU-wide drafting group. The main aim of this technical report was to identify potential effect-based tools (e.g. biomarkers and bioassays) that could be used in the context of the different monitoring programmes (surveillance, operational and investigative) linking chemical and ecological status assessment. The present paper summarizes the major technical contents and findings of the report.

The SOLUTIONS project: Challenges and responses for present and future emerging pollutants in land and water resources management

SOLUTIONS (2013 to 2018) is a European Union Seventh Framework Programme Project (EU-FP7). The project aims to deliver a conceptual framework to support the evidence-based development of environmental policies with regard to water quality. SOLUTIONS will develop the tools for the identification, prioritisation and assessment of those water contaminants that may pose a risk to ecosystems and human health. To this end, a new generation of chemical and effect-based monitoring tools is developed and integrated with a full set of exposure, effect and risk assessment models. SOLUTIONS attempts to address legacy, present and future contamination by integrating monitoring and modelling based approaches with scenarios on future developments in society, economy and technology and thus in contamination. The project follows a solutions-oriented approach by addressing major problems of water and chemicals management and by assessing abatement options. SOLUTIONS takes advantage of the access to the infrastructure necessary to investigate the large basins of the Danube and Rhine as well as relevant Mediterranean basins as case studies, and puts major efforts on stakeholder dialogue and support. Particularly, the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) working groups, International River Commissions, and water works associations are directly supported with consistent guidance for the early detection, identification, prioritisation, and abatement of chemicals in the water cycle. SOLUTIONS will give a specific emphasis on concepts and tools for the impact and risk assessment of complex mixtures of emerging pollutants, their metabolites and transformation products. Analytical and effect-based screening tools will be applied together with ecological assessment tools for the identification of toxicants and their impacts. The SOLUTIONS approach is expected to provide transparent and evidence-based candidates or River Basin Specific Pollutants in the case study basins and to assist future review of priority pollutants under the WFD as well as potential abatement options.

Polychlorinated organic compounds in Yangtse River sediments

Polychlorinated organic compounds (PCOCs) were analyzed in Yangtse River sediments. The results show that the concentrations of PCOCs in Yangtse River sediments followed the order of DDTs > HCB > HCHs > PCBs. High PCOCs concentrations were detected in sediments from station Y02a and Y02b, which are located in the main input of the Yangtse River (Nanjing section). Results also show that the PCOCs values were highly correlated with organic carbon content and heavy metal contamination.

Atmospheric mercury concentrations observed at ground-based monitoring sites globally distributed in the framework of the GMOS network

Long-term monitoring of data of ambient mercury (Hg) on a global scale to assess its emission, transport, atmospheric chemistry, and deposition processes is vital to understanding the impact of Hg pollution on the environment. The Global Mercury Observation System (GMOS) project was funded by the European Commission (http://www.gmos.eu) and started in November 2010 with the overall goal to develop a coordinated global observing system to monitor Hg on a global scale, including a large network of ground-based monitoring stations, ad hoc periodic oceanographic cruises and measurement flights in the lower and upper troposphere as well as in the lower stratosphere. To date, more than 40 ground-based monitoring sites constitute the global network covering many regions where little to no observational data were available before GMOS. This work presents atmospheric Hg concentrations recorded worldwide in the framework of the GMOS project (2010-2015), analyzing Hg measurement results in terms of temporal trends, seasonality and comparability within the network. Major findings highlighted in this paper include a clear gradient of Hg concentrations between the Northern and Southern hemispheres, confirming that the gradient observed is mostly driven by local and regional sources, which can be anthropogenic, natural or a combination of both.

Modelling lake macroinvertebrate species in the shallow sublittoral: relative roles of habitat, lake morphology, aquatic chemistry and sediment composition

Macroinvertebrates are one of the key components of lake ecosystems and are required to be monitored alongside other biological groups to define ecological status according to European Union legislation. Macroinvertebrate communities are highly variable and complex and respond to a diverse series of environmental conditions. The purpose of this study was to examine the relative importance of environmental variables in explaining macroinvertebrate abundance. A total of 45 sub-alpine lakes were sampled for macroinvertebrates in the shallow sublittoral. Environmental variables were grouped into four types: (1) aquatic physical and chemical parameters, (2) littoral and riparian habitat, (3) lake morphometric parameters and (4) sediment chemical characteristics. Nonparametric multiplicative regression (NPMR) was used to model the abundance of individual macroinvertebrate taxa. Significant models were produced for nine out of the 24 taxa examined. Sediment characteristics were the group most frequently included in models and also the factors to which taxa abundance was the most sensitive. Aquatic physical and chemical variables were the next group most frequently included in models although chlorophyll a was not included in any of the models and total phosphorus in only one. This indicates that many taxa may not show a direct easily interpretable response to eutrophication pressure. Lake morphometric factors were included in several of the models although the sensitivity of macroinvertebrate abundance tended to be lower than for sediment and aquatic physical and chemical factors. Habitat factors were only included in three models although riparian vegetation was found to have a significant influence on the abundance of Ephemera danica indicating that ecotone integrity is likely to play a role in its ecology. Overall, the models tended to be specific for species with limited commonality across taxa. Models produced by NPMR indicate that the response of macroinvertebrates to environmental variables can be successfully described but further research is required focussing in more detail on the response of key taxa to relevant environmental parameters and anthropogenic pressures.

An expanded conceptual framework for solution-focused management of chemical pollution in european waters

BackgroundThis paper describes a conceptual framework for solutions-focused management of chemical contaminants built on novel and systematic approaches for identifying, quantifying and reducing risks of these substances.MethodsThe conceptual framework was developed in interaction with stakeholders representing relevant authorities and organisations responsible for managing environmental quality of water bodies. Stakeholder needs were compiled via a survey and dialogue. The content of the conceptual framework was thereafter developed with inputs from relevant scientific disciplines.ResultsThe conceptual framework consists of four access points: Chemicals, Environment, Abatement and Society, representing different aspects and approaches to engaging in the issue of chemical contamination of surface waters. It widens the scope for assessment and management of chemicals in comparison to a traditional (mostly) perchemical risk assessment approaches by including abatement- and societal approaches as optional solutions. The solution-focused approach implies an identification of abatement- and policy options upfront in the risk assessment process. The conceptual framework was designed for use in current and future chemical pollution assessments for the aquatic environment, including the specific challenges encountered in prioritising individual chemicals and mixtures, and is applicable for the development of approaches for safe chemical management in a broader sense. The four access points of the conceptual framework are interlinked by four key topics representing the main scientific challenges that need to be addressed, i.e.: identifying and prioritising hazardous chemicals at different scales; selecting relevant and efficient abatement options; providing regulatory support for chemicals management; predicting and prioritising future chemical risks. The conceptual framework aligns current challenges in the safe production and use of chemicals. The current state of knowledge and implementation of these challenges is described.ConclusionsThe use of the conceptual framework, and addressing the challenges, is intended to support: (1) forwarding sustainable use of chemicals, (2) identification of pollutants of priority concern for cost-effective management, (3) the selection of optimal abatement options and (4) the development and use of optimised legal and policy instruments.

Dioxins and dioxin-like compounds in composts and digestates from European countries as determined by the in vitro bioassay and chemical analysis

Aerobic composting and anaerobic digestion plays an important role in reduction of organic waste by transforming the waste into humus, which is an excellent soil conditioner. However, applications of chemical-contaminated composts on soils may have unwanted consequences such as accumulation of persistent compounds and their transfer into food chains. The present study investigated burden of composts and digestates collected in 16 European countries (88 samples) by the compounds causing dioxin-like effects as determined by use of an in vitro transactivation assay to quantify total concentrations of aryl hydrocarbon receptor-(AhR) mediated potency. Measured concentrations of 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibeno-p-dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD) equivalents (TEQbio) were compared to concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and selected chlorinated compounds, including polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/furans (PCDD/Fs), co-planar polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), indicator PCB congeners and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). Median concentrations of TEQbio (dioxin-like compounds) determined by the in vitro assay in crude extracts of various types of composts ranged from 0.05 to 1.2 with a maximum 8.22μg (TEQbio)kg(-1) dry mass. Potencies were mostly associated with less persistent compounds such as PAHs because treatment with sulfuric acid removed bioactivity from most samples. The pan-European investigation of contamination by organic contaminants showed generally good quality of the composts, the majority of which were in compliance with conservative limits applied in some countries. Results demonstrate performance and added value of rapid, inexpensive, effect-based monitoring, and points out the need to derive corresponding effect-based trigger values for the risk assessment of complex contaminated matrices such as composts.

The Emerging Contaminants in the Context of the EU Water Framework Directive

The WFD (Water Framework Directive) requires that good chemical status of surface waterbodies is achieved by all member states of the European Union by 2015. The assessment of the chemical status is based on monitoring of the list of priority substances included in the Annex X of the WFD. In August 2013, the Directive 2013/39/EU has been published and contains a revised list of priority substances for the European aquatic environments and the derivation of environmental quality standards in the water column and biota: 12 new substances were selected through a procedure of prioritisation based on a simplified risk assessment methodology with the use of monitoring and modelling data collected over a period of 4 years. In the list of the 12 new substances, also emerging contaminants and some biocides are included. The Commission is establishing a so-called watch list of substances for which Union-wide monitoring data are to be gathered for the purpose of supporting future prioritisation exercises. For the substances diclofenac, beta-estradiol (E2) and 17-alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2), the Directive has foreseen a monitoring obligation in order to gather data to facilitate the determination of appropriate measures to address the risk to surface waters posed by those substances. Furthermore, on the basis of the outcome of a study on the risks posed by medicinal products in the environment and of other relevant studies and reports, the Commission shall develop a strategic approach to pollution of water by pharmaceutical substances.

The scientist, the politician, the artist and the citizen: how water united them

The Urban Water Atlas for Europe constitutes an original overview of Urban Water Management in Europe, explaining and illustrating water in an unprecedented way and reflecting how water, the essence of life, flows through the arteries of our cities. Leading experts in water sciences and technologies, together with climate change researchers, have joined artists and children in order to show how thirsty our cities really are and how we can cope with their growing demand for the most precious resource of our planet. The result is the first major publication of the Science and Knowledge Service of the European Commission, the JRC, which within a movement stemming from its Sci-Art Programme seeks to explore the important opportunities arising from the cross-fertilisation between science and art. The Atlas itself establishes the benchmark for over 40 cities, both European and from farther afield, in 30 different countries, in a manner which permits a vast range of municipalities to confront one of the greatest global challenges by employing local solutions in order to ensure a supply of water for all. It contains 95 scientific indicators and parameters, over 700 graphs, original illustrations and never seen before photographs and combines the work of 40 contributors from 22 organisations. Yet, the true value of this publication lies in the process of ensuring that the underlying scientific knowledge is available for societal uptake. The resolving of conflicts which stem from an exclusive self-understanding of traditional natural sciences, the difficulty to communicate the purpose of technological solutions and the challenge to engage in peer-to-peer discussion between the sciences, politics and the citizen constitute worthy lessons for both environmental experts and their social science counterparts.