Regionally Based
Assessment of Persistent
A
Toxic Substances
GEF
MEDITERRANEAN REGION
Minutes of the
Priority Setting Meeting
26-28 June 2002, Barcelona (Spain)
Rapporteurs:
Prof.
J.
Albaigés
Dr.
Fouad
Abousamra
Regional
Coordinator
MED
POL
Programme
Officer
Department of Environmental Chemistry (CSIC)
UNEP/MAP
Barcelona,
Spain
11635
Athens,
Greece
E-mail:
albqam@cid.csic.es
E-mail:
fouad@unepmap.gr
Prof. Assem O. Barakat
Prof. Jean-François Narbonne
Faculty
of
Science
Lab. of Biochemical Toxicology
University of Alexandria
University of Bordeaux I
21511 Alexandria, Egypt
33405 Talence Cedex, France
E-mail: abarakat@dataxprs.com.eg
E-mail:
jf.narbonne@lptc.u-
bordeaux.fr
Prof. Jordi Bruno
Environmental Science and Waste Management Chair
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya
Campus Nord, Edifici B2
08034-Barcelona, Spain
E-mail: Jordi.Bruno@upc.es
Organizational details
The Meeting was held in Barcelona (Spain) at the premises of the Institut d'Estudis Catalans,
Carme 47, Barcelona, Spain, an historic building of the XVII century which hosts the
Academy of Catalan Language (http://www.iec.es).
The Meeting was attended by 41 participants, including the Regional Team (Annex 1), who
contributed with oral presentations and discussions within the working groups.
The Agenda of the Meeting was as follows:
Agenda of the PSM
Wednesday, June 26, 2002
09.30 - 11.00 Opening addresses
- General Director of Environmental Quality. Ministry of Environment
(Catalonia, Spain)
- President of the Institut d'Estudis Catalans
Overview of the GEF RBA PTS Project J. Albaigés (Spain)
Presentation of the Regional Report (RR)
11.00 - 11.30
Coffee break
11.30 - 12.15
Draft of RR Presentation of the chapter on Sources J. Bruno (Spain).
General discussion
12.15 - 13.00 Draft of RR Presentation of the chapter on Levels in biotic and abiotic.
Compartments A. Barakat (Egypt), M. Picer (Croatia), J. Diaz (Spain).
General discussion
13.00 13.30 Draft of RR Presentation of the chapter on Effects in humans and in the
environment - E. de Felip (Italy), J.F. Narbonne (France).
General discussion
13.30 - 15.00
Lunch
15.00 15.30 Draft of RR Presentation of the chapter on Transboundary transport J.
Albaiges (Spain).
General discussion
15.30 - 16.30
Draft of RR Presentation of the chapter on Capacity building and
management J. Bruno (Spain), F. Abousamra (Syria), A. Iacomelli (Italy).
16.30 - 17.00
Coffee break
16.30 - 18.30
General discussion and specific presentations of countries:
- Croatia (S. Herceg)
- Cyprus (A. Patsias, S. Canna-Michaelidou)
- Israel (G. Zimand)
- Jordan (N. Akeel)
- Lebanon (A. Kaskas)
- Portugal (A. Marcolino)
- Syria (A. Al-Marsy)
- Tunisia (A. Jrad)
- Turkey (D. Kolankaya, N. Ergin)
- Yugoslavia (M. Vojinovic-Miloradov)
19.00
Official reception by the Catalan Government
Thursday, June 27, 2002
09.30 - 10.00
Plenary: "PTS and sustainable development in the Mediterranean region"
V. Macià. Director of the Regional Center for Cleaner Production (Spain).
10.00 - 10.30
Working group sessions.
The participants will be divided into two groups:
-sources and management
-levels and effects
to analyse the presentations and the background documents, to identify
gaps and define priorities and recommendations
10.30 - 11.00
Coffee break
11.00 - 13.30
Working groups
13.30 - 15.00
Lunch
15.00 - 16.15
Working groups
16.15 - 16.45
Coffee break
16.45 - 18.30
Working groups
20.30 - ....
Common dinner
Friday, June 28, 2002
09.30 - 10.30
Working groups. Scoring exercise
10.30 - 11.00
Coffee break
11.00 - 14.00
Plenary session. Overview of working group results. Areas of major concern
14.00 - 14.30
Final recommendations. Closing address
14.30 - 16.00
Buffet
Summary of Conclusions of the Working Groups
1. SOURCE
CHARACTERISATION
For many Mediterranean countries no detailed information exist on the releases of PTS from point
sources (industry and urban centres). In addition, the local or national authorities do not routinely
monitor most of the PTS considered. Therefore no useful data sets are available. Larger, multinational
companies often have information regarding the amount of PTS used, produced and/or emitted by
their plants in the Mediterranean region. However, the small and medium enterprises in the area do
not have either the means, or the required know-how to monitor PTS.
The main sources, environmental vectors and reservoirs of PTS for the Region are summarised in the
following Table.
Table 1. Main sources, environmental vectors and reservoirs for PTS in the Region.
Compound type
Air sources
Soil sources
Freshwater
Seawater sources
sources
Pesticides
Agriculture use, Stockpiles,
Runoff from
Major rivers
spraying/land
production waste agriculture use. and coastal
application
DDT, dicofol
DDT, dicofol
runoff
production
production.
PCB's
Emissions from Equipment
Leakage from
Major rivers
equipment and stocks and
equipment
and coastal
stocks
landfills
runoff
PCCD's
Emissions from Byproducts of
Byproducts from Major rivers and
combustion.
PCB's
industrial
coastal runoff
processes
Unintentional
sources
PAH's
Emissions from Timber
Oil spills,
Oil spills in
combustion, oil, preservation
sewage runoff
shipping and
transport
refineries
TBT's
Release of
antifouling paint
from shipping
The most important sources as agreed upon at the expert Workshop in Athens are shown in bold.
For PTS pesticides, including lindane, the sources are multiple and diffuse. Although, these
compounds have a tendency to disappear as a result of the implementation of the PIC procedure and
the associated conventions, there is a worrisome lack of control regarding the existing stockpiles in
the countries of the Mediterranean region. The use of lindane is severely restricted in the Region, but
in countries like France and Spain the estimated atmospheric emissions are quite large.
DDT is still being used in the Region as precursor of dicofol, information about the amounts being
used is uncertain.
Some hot spots have arisen as a consequence of mismanagement of former production sites. This is
particularly true for lindane. In the case of toxaphene and other pesticides, the dumping of obsolete
stocks in the southern countries of the region is deemed to have created potential hot spots.
For PCB's atmospheric emissions, they show a decreasing trend in the EMEP countries of the Region
which coincide with the more industrialised and consequently with the larger amounts of PCB
containing equipment. However, there is a clear lack of reliable information concerning the amounts
of equipment in use and the status of the stockpiles of faced out equipment and PCB oils. Potential
hot spots have arisen from the destruction of electrical and military equipment during the Balkans
conflict.
For dioxins and furans, the main sources derive from thermal processes. The controls on incineration
plants have achieved a decrease on the emission levels from municipal waste incineration. However,
other remaining sources are the metallurgical industry, the uncontrolled combustion of waste in
landfills and wood combustion. There is a need for a comprehensive Regional Inventory, which
should include most of the thermal sources. Emission estimates indicate a decrease during the last
decade in the EMEP countries of the Region. No other information exists for the other countries.
The main source for PAH's in the Region appear to be oil shipping operations, they could be as large
as 1.000 tons per year. The estimated PAH's emissions in the Mediterranean are of the same order of
magnitude than the overall riverine inputs (some 40 tons per year). Inputs from coastal refinery
operations are less important, of the order of 1 ton per year. PAH's emissions in the region are
uncertain, ranging between 40 and 700 tons per year depending on the estimate.
Release from antifouling painting in commercial shipping is the main source of TBT's in the Region.
The present release rates estimates are in the order of some 240 tons per year. Commercial harbours
in the Northwestern and Adriatic areas constitute potential hot spots.
In terms of setting priorities to reduce PTS sources in the Mediterranean region, it would appear that a
better control in the activities associated to shipping and its mismanagement of oil transportation
remains a key issue to effectively reduce PAH's emissions in the area. The same industrial sector is
responsible for the release of sizeable amounts of TBT's into the Mediterranean sea, although the
adoption in October 2001 of the International Convention on the control of harmful antifouling
systems on ships will certainly modify the situation.
Another priority objective would be the production of PCB inventories and the implementation of
reasonable destruction plans. The remaining stockpiles in the northern part of the region are enormous
and contribute to the remaining emissions in the area. The negative impact of the Balkans conflict in
the widespread of PCB's in the region will have to be addressed.
Although the consideration of emission factors as a method for the quantitative estimation of releases
from point and diffuse sources could be relevant in the actual context of the region, the uncertainties
of this approach should be taken into account, due to the heterogeneity of the industrial sectors in the
region.
2. LEVELS and EFFECTS in biotic and abiotic compartments
- LEVELS
Data representativeness
· Available data indicate that contaminants are widely, but not uniformly, distributed in the
Mediterranean region. In general, the data available deal with local and limited studies, or hot
spot situations. Data are mainly the result of research campaigns rather than the existence of
monitoring networks.
· Local and or regional findings/results cannot be presented in isolation without dealing with the
interrelationships to the system-at-large. Single data are usually not representative and should not
be considered unless specific reasons exist.
· Comprehensive studies have been conducted in a limited number of cases, e.g. in the NW
Mediterranean, in the Adriatic coast, including the Venice Lagoon. Apart from areas of intense
local contamination, compounds of regional concern are PCBs, DDT, HCH, PAHs, HCB and
organotin compounds. Other compounds e.g., phthalates, alkylphenols, PBDE/PBBs are
suspected to be ubiquitous but data are lacking.
· Most of the monitoring programs are related to products banned on trade.
· In many occasions, data series are discontinued, that makes temporal assessment difficult.
Uncertainty as to whether or not the levels of some environmental contaminants are decreasing.
Data quality and harmonization
· A large number of determinations of OC pesticides were performed in the 80's and levels usually
show an extremely large span of concentrations. It seems that this is more the result of analytical
difficulties than real differences of level of pollution
· These historical data were difficult to assess due to changes in analytical methodology and results
expression. In general it appears that recent data show lower concentrations, but are not sufficient
for statistical treatment. In addition, variable results as a function of the analytical method used to
quantify PTS have been obtained.
· The lack of standardized methodologies makes difficult to compare and use data in a regional
assessment.
Trends
· Few long-term temporal trend monitoring in fish, mussels and seabird eggs has been carried out
in the Northern Mediterranean. A general decline of DDTs has been reported for marine biota
along the Mediterranean coast of France and Italy, and from the Adriatic Sea between 1960s and
1990s, which is consistent with the regulatory restrictions on production and use of this
compound. A similar trend was observed in the Ebro River for DDT and HCB for the period
from 1980 to 1990; and for DDT, HCHs and PAHs in the French monitoring network of coastal
pollution during the period 1979-1998, showing general decreasing trends in the order:
DDT>HCHs>PAHs. DDE levels have decreased markedly in heron eggs since 1978.
· PCBs, in general, do not exhibit such clear trends. Analyses of PCBs in eggs of fish eating birds
of River Po delta between 1977 and 1981 and fish samples from the Mediterranean Sea collected
in 1980 and 1992 showed similar or increasing levels of PCB, indicating a steady source of these
contaminants in the Mediterranean ecosystem. Results also suggest that atmospheric
concentrations of PCBs have remained approximately constant during the past decade.
· Based on a few dated sediment core studies levels DDTs, HCHs, HCB and chlordane compounds
in the coastal lagoon of Manzala (Egypt) increased rapidly from early 60's to a maximum
recorded in the 80's. However, HCHs were still increasing till 1993. A similar trend was observed
in the Nile River except for HCB which exhibits a steady increasing trend.
· Analyses of dated sediment cores from the Rhone and Ebro prodeltas exhibited maximum
accumulation rates of PAHs in the 1920-1940 and the 1975-1990 periods, although with a steep
decrease since 1985 in the Rhone area.
· Comparison between Western and Eastern Mediterranean basins has been approached using the
Audouin's Gull (Larus audouinii) eggs. Levels are significantly and consistently (less variable)
higher in the Western than in the Eastern basin. Total DDT medians are significantly higher in the
Mediterranean than in the North Atlantic or the Arctic. The results obtained confirm that in
Mediterranean dolphins the accumulation of contaminants is higher than in similar species living
in the Atlantic.
Data gaps
· Information on contaminant levels and trends, is still lacking for certain contaminants and media
in certain areas.
· Data are often missing in some compartments, particularly, atmosphere, ground waters, drinking
waters, sewage sludges, soils, storages (industrial products, pesticides), etc....
· Significant geographical data gaps exists, particularly for the South and South-eastern basin.
Recommendations
· Monitoring activities should be established in the corresponding countries to fill the geographical
data gaps. Regional surveys of emerging PTS and compounds actually on the market (e.g., PBDE,
triclosan,...) or those difficult to analyze (e.g., PCDD/F) should be particularly envisaged.
· Intensive monitoring of temporal trends in appropriate abiotic and biotic media at a few key
locations, and occasionally over wider areas and continuation of existing time trend series should
be advisable. The establishment of archives of environmental samples (specimen banking) should
be considered.
· Monitoring programs should include standardized sampling and analytical methods and improved
quality assurance/quality control protocols, possibly linked to other international programs. An
integral part of PTS management is the establishment of environmental quality data and database
systems.
· Monitoring strategies need to be adequate to the technical and economical possibilities of the
different countries. Regional accredited laboratories may assist contracted monitoring institutions
in the development of quality assurance systems. In any case, a regional network of national
intercalibrated laboratories contributing to regional monitoring could better improve data quality
and fill data gaps.
- ECOTOXICOLOGY EFFECTS
· Microorganisms biotests are available for risk assessment in soils but monitoring data is very
scarce. Microbiological monitoring of surface fresh waters has revealed increased resistance in
polluted estuaries.
· Direct effects on plants are not well documented. Investigations refer to the transfer from air
emissions to herbivores. Some aquatic plants (e.g. alga) have been observed to concentrate POPs
from their surroundings, but toxic effects have not been studied.
· Many laboratory experiments have investigated the toxicity of PTS to invertebrates (mainly
marine organisms). Daphnia, Dressenia, Ceriodaphnia, Eisenia, Corbicula, mussels and urchins
were among of those studied. Spermi, embryo and larvae are used for genotoxicity and
developmental effects. Imposex is the main effect observed of TBT on gasteropods
· A range of symptoms is shown by fish exposed to PTS. In general, studies refer to metabolism.
End point deal with growth, endocrine disruption, CYP and drug metabolism induction,
biochemical parameters and genotoxicity. Redistribution of POPs from maternal tissues to the
developing eggs, represent the important route of exposure for critical early life stages.
Bioaccumulation in fish deserves continued attention with respect to PTS transfer to humans.
· Laboratory studies have shown bird species to be susceptible to exposure to PTS displaying
decreased egg production, embryotoxicity and thickness of the egg shell. Field evidence in the
region is very limited.
· Effects of POPs were studied in mammals, particularly in laboratory rats and mice. The
laboratory findings appear to be applicable to wild populations of mammals in field observations
and experiments. Exposure of marine mammals to certain PTS has been demonstrated.
Environmental risk assessment
· A number of reports have illustrated the development of the ecotoxicology studies in the region.
These studies provide guidelines for the identification of hot spots, particularly in costal areas
(e.g. Adriatic, Seine, Po and Nile estuaries, Izmir bay) and inland areas (e.g. middle Po and Ebro
rivers, MSWI in France, etc.). Furthermore, the combination of chemical and biological methods
can provide early identification and response to new emerging problems.
· Different approaches have been proposed for risk assessment: PEC / PENEC, Hazard Quality
ratio (HQs), Intrinsic properties of chemicals (PBT), Development and application of
Environmental Quality Standards (multi media) and Reliable Environmental Data. However, most
of them have been developed in northern European countries and there is a need for their
adaptation and testing also in the southern countries.
Recommendations
· There is a lack of ecotoxicological data for many PTS in the region (e.g. alkyl phenols, PBDEs,
phthalates, PAHs,...). Special attention should be paid to chronic toxicity studies and to the
incorporation of biomarkers to environmental quality indices.
· There is a need for a uniform approach and framework for evaluation and monitoring of receiving
waters in the region. Water Quality Indices should be improved (various types of indices have
been developed which need to be evaluated and integrated). Multidisciplinary approaches should
be applied, especially for estuaries and deltas.
· Sediment exposure (reservoirs) and effects to aquatic biota are important to be assessed by the
particular hydrogeographical characteristics of the region. In this respect, mesocosm studies
(validation of biological parameters and biomarkers) should be encouraged.
· Modelling is a complementary tool for risk assessment and is barely applied in the region.
Monitoring and modelling will require much attention in particular for improving the estimates of
the pools of existing PTS and the emissions. A task of particular importance will be the
improvement of communication between existing chemical and toxicological information for PTS
and ecosystem and trophic web models.
- LEVELS AND EFFECTS IN HUMANS
Exposure
In spite of the "weight of evidence" of PTS toxicity for humans, available data on their levels in
human tissues show a substantial paucity which appears even more striking if compared to the
amount of data available for environmental matrices, biota and food. Taking into account that the
human body ("internal dose") is the most appropriate dose metric for PTS exposure and the most
accurate procedure to correlate PTS dose and the related adverse effects, this scarcity of data severely
hinders an adequate human risk assessment.
A common bias of most gathered data is their lack of representativeness, since the generally small
size of population sampled does not allow an extrapolation to the general population. Also, data
comparability, even on a Country basis, is in most cases affected by a number of factors inherent to
both study design (individual vs/pooled samples, characteristics of the sampled groups) and to
intrinsic factors (type oh human specimen, analytical procedure, expression of results, number of
congeners/isomers analysed, time of the study).
Effects
For many PTS, toxicological effects are still unknown or not fully clarified, and mechanistic
information lacking. This feature is not limited to new classes of compounds but it also holds for
chemicals which have been under focus for many years. A typical example of this latter case is
represented by PCB: for the most abundant congeners the hazard identification is still poorly defined,
having the attention of researchers being mainly focused on the "dioxin-like" congeners and hence on
the AhR-mediated effects.
Even for those PTS for which a considerable amount of toxicological information is available, low-
dose effects, subtle effects and long-term effects are far to have been characterized. An increasing
number of studies indeed suggests that some PTS can cause biological effects at levels far below of
deemed safe doses. Furthermore, the exposure of the developing organisms, in utero and via breast
feeding, may result in subtle effects with respect to highly sensitive endpoints (i.e.
neurodevelopmental, endocrine).
Finally, the characterization of the effects following exposure to complex mixtures of PTS still
remains one of the most ambitious goals of toxicology. Indeed, besides the difficulty to define the
mixtures of congeners/compounds present in human tissues, not necessarily similar to those occurring
in the environment, the multiple toxicological interactions occurring in the human body are at present
very poorly characterized.
Recommendations
Exposure
· Monitoring programs on PTS in humans should be activated and periodically carried out on a
Country basis in order to collect information on the general population exposure. In this context,
total diet studies taking into account regional habits are of primary interest.
· An harmonized approach for the selection of representative populations, sampling strategies,
analytical methods should be encouraged in the Region in order to provide comparable results.
· Monitoring design should allow to assess any correlation of PTS body-burden with factors as age
and gender groups, dietary habits, occupation and education. Body burdens should be estimated
by the analysis of human tissues (blood, milk) which are also exposure sources for developing
organisms.
· Monitoring programs should be integrated in international networks including training programs
and exchange of expertise among the Mediterranean Countries.
Effects
· Research on low doses effects, indirect effects, subtle effects, long term effects should be
continued and their clinical, epidemiological and social relevance assessed.
· The effects (additive, synergistic, antagonist) from simultaneous exposure to mixtures of PTS
should also be characterized.
· The development of new, relevant and validated biomarkers of exposure and susceptibility should
be encouraged.
· The protection of vulnerable groups, in particular infants and children, as a sanitary and ethical
priority, should be a driving issue in promoting the most precautionary actions at a regulatory
levels.
· A better knowledge of exposure, toxicological properties and mechanisms of actions obtained in
an integrated approach of research could help in the protection of the general population.
Researchers are asked to assess the significance of a plethora of possible risks, Government and
public health officials are asked to reduce them.
3. TRANSPORT
PATHWAYS
Atmospheric transport
Although there are a lot of data on levels of various PTS in biotic and abiotic samples, data are scarce
for the atmospheric compartment preventing a solid assessment of the regional transport trends. In
general, it is difficult to assess what source(s) are controlling environmental levels and whether they
can be further controlled or affected by long range transport processes. However, it appears that the
Mediterranean is a sink for PTS, particularly the Western basin, where the atmospheric inputs exceed
those of rivers.
Based on meteorological modelling, transcontinental scale transport of air pollutants between Europe,
Asia and Africa is evident, the Europe to Africa direction prevailing over the others, and the warm
period of the year being the most effective. Air masses from Europe reach the mid-tropospheric layers
of the Equatorial Zone within a time period of a 4-6 days. These processes are further complicated by
the appearance of desert dust particles, the role of which on the environmental fate of PTS is
unknown. Moreover, there are indications of a massive upward transport of various aged pollutants in
the coastal zones which may also involve the cycling of PTS, although this aspect has not been
investigated.
Modelling of long range transport of PTS developed by the MSC-East Center, from EMEP data, and
the issued deposition estimates are rather comprehensive for northern and central Europe but much
less reliable for the southern part. More emission data and environmental measurements of known
quality are needed for an accurate assessment of sources and receptors in the region and the transport
pathways.
Riverine and wastewater discharges
Localised inputs or "hot spots" of PTS have been identified near sewage outfalls from highly
industrialised and populated cities such as Marseille, Barcelona, Naples, and Nice. Other substantially
contaminated sediments arise from freshwater discharges from the major rivers (e.g. Rhône, Po, Ebro,
Seine, etc). However, beyond the zone of influence of these discharges, concentrations drop rapidly
reflecting the enhanced sedimentation processes, which take place at the freshwater-seawater interface. In
fact, 80% of the terrestrial sediments are trapped on the continental shelf and only currents to deep-sea
sediments transport the finest particles. Therefore, it appears that these discharges have limited
significance regarding the transport of PTS at regional scale.
Nonetheless, a significant improvement in knowledge is needed in order to be able to better evaluate
the coastal impact of river discharges, both in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Variations in
measurement procedures and the lack of long temporal series render it difficult to make comparisons
from place to place, and over time. Recent studies indicate that most part of toxics coming from rivers
are linked with flooding with suspended solids: the knowledge of flows to the costal areas should
imply to define sampling strategies and adapt measurement protocols, consequently.
It is suggested to incorporate in the reports the average annual discharge of pollutant carriers (e.g.,
rives, effluents, rainfalls) in order to provide at least preliminary information on annual fluxes,
including the contribution of incidental events (e.g. floods) vs. the contribution of baseline conditions.
Biological indicators
Bioaccumulation of PTS in marine biota is a well know process, and it will continue for a long time
as a result of the environmental redistribution pathways after a substance has been banned. Terrestrial
vegetation is also an important receptor of long range transported PTS. The assessment of long-range
transport of PTS using biological indicators deserves consideration. Indicator species should be
defined and monitored for temporal trends assessment.
All these issues require well-conceived and conducted monitoring programmes to provide the
evidence and there is little sign yet of concerted multi-national programmes at this respect. Cost-
effective monitoring and modelling can be used to help improve our understanding, and address the
regulatory needs of signatories to the international PTS conventions.
4. MANAGEMENT
Many countries of the region share a lack of adequate capacities and capabilities to achieve sound
management of PTS. These include:
· Inadequate capabilities to assess the potential toxicity and to control the nature and purity of
imported or domestically produced chemicals.
· Inadequate legal framework for the proper management of chemicals and the implementation and
enforcement of regulations for industrial and consumer hazardous substances.
· Insufficient guidelines that governs handling, transport, and storage of these products.
· Lack of adequate system and facilities for treatment and disposal of hazardous wastes.
· Inadequate means of coping with accidental spillages, including the treatment of victims and the
subsequent rehabilitation of the environment.
More specifically, the following aspects were emphasized among participants:
Monitoring activities
Due to the lack of data in many areas, countries are invited to set up their own monitoring programs
for PTS. Monitoring programmes should be oriented toward the identification of emerging issues
related to PTS. These should include:
- Analysis of abiotic samples or sentinel species in the environment to evaluate the
background situation and identify hot spots. The variability of the compartment (e.g.
water courses) is a key factor in the design of the interpretation of results.
- Analysis of foods to evaluate the general exposure of the population and to detect
abnormal increases due to different cases of contamination (hot spots, local uses, feed
contamination, accidents,...). In case of risk assessment for human health an accurate
knowledge of diet composition for classes of population is needed.
- Analysis of human tissues for human risk evaluation and validation of exposure model.
Although this kind of assessment presents a number of both technical and ethical
problems, monitoring of human tissues (mainly breast milk and blood) provides the best
information on human exposure to PTS.
Monitoring strategies should be defined with particular attention to the technical and economical
possibilities of countries. A convenient funding is to be ensured, considering the support and
involvement of the stakeholders, such as industry.
The preparation of an inventory of laboratories dealing with PTS analysis in the region together with
the establishment of supporting networks and exchange of experiences between institutions could be a
valuable initiative. To this end, UNEP/MEDPOL could play a major role in the elaboration of
regional and national monitoring programmes, in developing capacity building programmes as well as
in harmonizing the reporting system on status of sources, emissions and levels.
Regulatory framework
It is necessary to develop a regional policy and strategy for governance of PTS in the region. The
EU directives may act as a driving force to develop the national regulatory and enforcement systems.
It was indicated that conceptual frameworks are necessary for the design of monitoring activities, the
subsequent interpretation of data and establishment of regulatory indicators. The DPSIR (Driving
forces, Pressures, State, Impacts and Reactions) proposed by the EEA (European Environmental
Agency) and the ERA (Environmental Risk Assessment, based on sources-routes-targets schematic
proposed by EPA and SETAC) approaches are recommended because of their wide acceptance by
scientific and technical communities.
National funding systems should be implemented for PTS treatment and disposal.
Technology transfer
The socioeconomic differences among countries of the region are a good challenge for know-how
transfer on PTS management and offer opportunities of institutional cooperation. In particular:
· to develop a regional technology transfer strategy on the basis of the provisions of Stockholm
convention
· develop criteria for the selection of treatment and disposal technology for PTS
· develop pilot project between North-South and South-South
· consider the cleaner technology concepts alternatives for waste management
Concerns and priorities
· No comprehensive information exists on obsolete stocks of PCBs, DDT and other pesticides.
Identification and survey of sources, stocks and reservoirs of PTS is needed. Capacity building
plans to actively manage the generation of data for improving emission inventories are required.
· Safe storage, disposal and re-use of contaminated items need to be addressed.
· Present legislation on import/export, monitoring and enforcement need to be updated in the
different countries of the region according to the Stockholm Convention.
· No data is available related to control of POPs release into inland waters, sea, air and soil.
Inadequate information exists on polluted or contaminated sites (hot spots).
· There is a need to establish national accredited laboratories to assist contracted monitoring
institutions in the development of quality assurance systems. An integral part of PTS management
is the establishment of environmental quality data and database systems.
· Contamination issues need to be integrated at different educational levels in order to raise general
environmental and scientific literacy and promoting public awareness including altitude towards
municipal and industrial waste management.
· Tools and procedures to improve the visibility and usefulness of available data should be
developed.
· A regular regional training activity need to be organised to face with the PTS issues and the
implementation of networks for transfer of knowledge (sources, levels, toxicology, etc.) and
technologies is highly recommended.
· The experience in recent decades in the European Union and the UN/ECE has demonstrated the
advantages of an integrated science based approach, linking population, activities, emissions,
transport and effects in a coherent international cooperative risk assessment framework. Such an
approach is cost effective in making better use of available scientific and technical resources and
in helping policy makers to design effective environmental policies.
Scoring for Prioritising PTS for Environmental and Human Effects
Mediterranean Region
SCORING BY MATRIX
Chemical Sources
Data
Env.
Data Ecotox Data
Human Data
Gaps
Levels Gaps Effects Gaps
Effects Gaps
Dieldrin, Aldrin
& Endrin
Chlordane
Heptachlor
DDT
Toxaphene
Mirex
HCB
PCBs
Dioxins & Furans
HCH
Endosulfan
Chlorinated
Paraffins
PCP
PBBs and PBDEs
PAHs
Phthalates
Alkylphenols
Org. Tin Compds.
Org. Mercury
Compds.
Scores:
Score = 0 chemical is of no concern
Score = 1 chemical has local concern
Score = 2 chemical has regional concern
Annex 1. List of participants
Fouad ABOUSAMRA
UNEP/MAP
Athens,
Greece fouad@unepmap.gr
Nageh AKEEL
Royal Scientific Sociey
Amman
Jordan nageh@rss.gov.jo
Adib AL-MARSY
Ministry of Environment
Damascus,
Syria
env-min@net.sy
Joan ALBAIGES
CID-CSIC
Barcelona,
Spain
albqam@cid.csic.es
Michalis ANGELIDIS
University of the Aegean
Mytilene,
Greece
magel@aegean.gr
Assem BARAKAT
University of Alexandria
Alexandria,
Egypt
abarakat@dataxprs.com.eg
Alamir BARKAHOUM
Hôpital de Bab El Qued
Alger,
Algeria
cnt@ibnsina.ands.dz
Estefania BLOUNT
CCOO
Madrid,
Spain
eblount@istas.ccoo.es
Jordi BRUNO
Polytechnical University of Catalonia
Barcelona,
Spain
Jordi.Bruno@upc.es
Stella CANNA-MICHAELIDOU
State General Laboratory
Nicosia,
Cyprus stellacm@spidernet.com.cy
Emilija CUPEVA
Ministry of Environment
Skopje,
Macedonia
ema-cupeva@yahoo.com
Marc CHEVREUIL
Univ. P. et M. Curie
Paris,
France
chevreui@biogeodis.jussieu.fr
Elena DE FELIP
Istituto Superiore di Sanità
Rome,
Italy
defelip@iss.it
Jordi DIAZ
Institut Quimic de Sarriá
Barcelona,
Spain
jdiaz@iqs.es
Xavier DURAN
TV3
Barcelona,
Spain
xduranl@tvcatalunya.com
Nur ERGIN
Poison Research Center
Ankara
,
Turkey nurerg@yahoo.com
Régis FARRET
INERIS
Paris,
France
Regis.Farret@ineris.fr
Ahmed
GAMAL
EEAA
Cairo,
Egypt
agamal_74@yahoo.com
Ramon GUARDANS
Madrid,
Spain
ramon.guardans@soundplots.com
Snjezana HERCEG ROMANIC
Intitute for Medical Research
Zagreb,
Croacia sherceg@imi.hr
Aldo IACOMELLI
Ministry of Environment
Rome,
Italy
iacomelli.aldo@minambiente.it
Mateo JAUME
ANE EUROCHLOR
Barcelona,
Spain
mateo.jaume@solvay.com
Eric JOVER
Consultant
Andorra ejcqam@iiqab.csic.es
Amel JRAD
CITET
Tunis,
Tunisia
labo@citet.nat.tn
Alia KASKAS
Ministry of Environment
Antelias,
Lebanon
a.kaskas@moe.gov.lb
Nilgun KIRAN CILIZ
Bogazici University
Istambul,
Turkey
cilizn@boun.edu.tr
Durdane KOLANKAYA
University of Hacettepe
Ankara,
Turkey durdane@hacettepe.edu.tr
Josep Enric LLEBOT
IEC
Barcelona,
Spain
ellebot@iec.es
Alberto MARCOLINO
Ministry of Environment
Lisbon,
Portugal
alberto.marcolino@iambiente.pt
Victor MASIA
Regional Clean Production Center
Barcelona,
Spain
cleanpro@cema-sa.org
Jean-François NARBONNE
University of Bordeaux I
Bordeaux,
France
jf.narbonne@lptc.u-bordeaux.fr
Marko NOTAR
National Chemical Bureau
Ljubljana,
Slovenia
marko.notar@ljubljana.si
Andreas PATSIAS
Department of Agriculture
Nicosia,
Cyprus doagrg@cytanet.com.cy
Mladen PICER
Institute Rudjer Boskovic
Zagreb,
Croacia picer@rudjer.irb.hr
Anton PIZZUTO
Cleaner Technology Centre
Malta
apizzuto@arts.um.edu.mt
Miquel PORTA
IMIM
Barcelona,
Spain
mporta@IMIM.ES
Arseen SEYS
CEFIC/EUROCHLOR
Brussels,
Belgium
ase@cefic.be
Adrian VECINO
Ministry of Environment
Madrid,
Spain
adrian.vecino@sgcips.mma.es
Mirjana VOJINOVIC-MILORADOV
University of Novi Sad
Novi
Sad,
Yugoslavia
miloradov@uns.ns.ac.yu
Gilly ZIMAND
Ministry of Environment
Israel
giliz@environment.gov.il
Adnan ZAWAHREH
ZEPD
Amman,
Jordan Zawahreh2001@yahoo.com
(Mrs. Alamir Barkahoum and Mr. Ahmed Gamal were finally unable to attend the meeting)
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