Advantages and challenges associated with implementing an ecosystem services approach to ecological risk assessment for chemicals

Wildlife ecological risk assessment in the 21st century: Promising technologies to assess toxicological effects

Despite advances in toxicity testing and the development of new approach methodologies (NAMs) for hazard assessment, the ecological risk assessment (ERA) framework for terrestrial wildlife (i.e., air-breathing amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals) has remained unchanged for decades. While survival, growth, and reproductive endpoints derived from whole-animal toxicity tests are central to hazard assessment, nonstandard measures of biological effects at multiple levels of biological organization (e.g., molecular, cellular, tissue, organ, organism, population, community, ecosystem) have the potential to enhance the relevance of prospective and retrospective wildlife ERAs. Other factors (e.g., indirect effects of contaminants on food supplies and infectious disease processes) are influenced by toxicants at individual, population, and community levels, and need to be factored into chemically based risk assessments to enhance the "eco" component of ERAs. Regulatory and logistical challenges often relegate such nonstandard endpoints and indirect effects to postregistration evaluations of pesticides and industrial chemicals and contaminated site evaluations. While NAMs are being developed, to date, their applications in ERAs focused on wildlife have been limited. No single magic tool or model will address all uncertainties in hazard assessment. Modernizing wildlife ERAs will likely entail combinations of laboratory- and field-derived data at multiple levels of biological organization, knowledge collection solutions (e.g., systematic review, adverse outcome pathway frameworks), and inferential methods that facilitate integrations and risk estimations focused on species, populations, interspecific extrapolations, and ecosystem services modeling, with less dependence on whole-animal data and simple hazard ratios. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2024;20:725-748. © 2023 His Majesty the King in Right of Canada and The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC). Reproduced with the permission of the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada. This article has been contributed to by US Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.

Sensitivity of spiders from different ecosystems to lambda-cyhalothrin: effects of phylogeny and climate

BACKGROUND

In spite of their importance as arthropod predators, spiders have received little attention in the risk assessment of pesticides. In addition, research has mainly focused on a few species commonly found in agricultural habitats. Spiders living in more natural ecosystems may also be exposed to and affected by pesticides, including insecticides. However, their sensitivity and factors driving possible variations in sensitivity between spider taxa are largely unknown. To fill this gap, we quantified the sensitivity of 28 spider species from a wide range of European ecosystems to lambda-cyhalothrin in an acute exposure scenario.

RESULTS

Sensitivity varied among the tested populations by a factor of 30. Strong differences in sensitivity were observed between families, but also between genera within the Lycosidae. Apart from the variation explained by the phylogeny, spiders from boreal and polar climates were more sensitive than spiders from warmer areas. Overall, the median lethal concentration (LC50 ) of 85% of species was below the recommended application rate of lambda-cyhalothrin (75 ng a.i. cm-2 ).

CONCLUSION

Our study underlines the high sensitivity of spiders to lambda-cyhalothrin, which can lead to unintended negative effects on pest suppression in areas treated with this insecticide. The strong differences observed between families and genera indicate that the functional composition of spider communities would change in affected areas. Overall, the variation in spider sensitivity suggests that multispecies investigations should be more widely considered in pesticide risk assessment. © 2023 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Linking ecotoxicological effects on biodiversity and ecosystem functions to impairment of ecosystem services is a challenge: an illustration with the case of plant protection products

There is growing interest in using the ecosystem services framework for environmental risk assessments of chemicals, including plant protection products (PPPs). Although this topic is increasingly discussed in the recent scientific literature, there is still a substantial gap between most ecotoxicological studies and a solid evaluation of potential ecotoxicological consequences on ecosystem services. This was recently highlighted by a collective scientific assessment (CSA) performed by 46 scientific experts who analyzed the international science on the impacts of PPPs on biodiversity, ecosystem functions, and ecosystem services. Here, we first point out the main obstacles to better linking knowledge on the ecotoxicological effects of PPPs on biodiversity and ecological processes with ecosystem functions and services. Then, we go on to propose and discuss possible pathways for related improvements. We describe the main processes governing the relationships between biodiversity, ecological processes, and ecosystem functions in response to effects of PPP, and we define categories of ecosystem functions that could be directly linked with the ecological processes used as functional endpoints in investigations on the ecotoxicology of PPPs. We then explore perceptions on the possible links between these categories of ecosystem functions and ecosystem services among a sub-panel of the scientific experts from various fields of environmental science. We find that these direct and indirect linkages still need clarification. This paper, which reflects the difficulties faced by the multidisciplinary group of researchers involved in the CSA, suggests that the current gap between most ecotoxicological studies and a solid potential evaluation of ecotoxicological consequences on ecosystem services could be partially addressed if concepts and definitions related to ecological processes, ecosystem functions, and ecosystem services were more widely accepted and shared within the ecotoxicology community. Narrowing this gap would help harmonize and extend the science that informs decision-making and policy-making, and ultimately help to better address the trade-off between social benefits and environmental losses caused by the use of PPPs.

Variation in the Chemical Sensitivity of Earthworms from Field Populations to Imidacloprid and Copper

The chemical risk of pesticides for nontarget soil macroorganisms has mainly been assessed using the compost earthworm Eisenia fetida. However, E. fetida does not occur in agroecosystems, and it is generally less sensitive than other earthworm species. Thus, the extrapolation of its response to pesticides to other earthworm species may lead to uncertainties in risk assessment. Because toxicity data for other earthworms are scarce, we assessed the chemical sensitivity of five species (Allolobophora chlorotica, Aporrectodea caliginosa, Aporrectodea longa, Aporrectodea rosea, and Lumbricus rubellus) from different habitats (forests, wetlands, and grasslands), as well as E. fetida, to imidacloprid and copper in single-species acute toxicity tests. In addition, we examined the relationship between earthworm traits (ecotype and weight), habitat characteristics (ecosystem type and soil pH), and chemical sensitivity. The lower limits of the hazardous concentration affecting 5% (HC5) of species were 178.99 and 0.32 mg active ingredient/kg dry weight for copper and imidacloprid, respectively. Some concentrations that have been measured in European agroecosystems for both pesticides were above the HC5s, indicating toxic risks for these organisms. Furthermore, soil pH from the sampling habitat played a significant role, with earthworms sampled from extremely acidic soils being less sensitive to copper than earthworms from neutral soils. In addition, endogeic earthworms were more sensitive to imidacloprid than epigeic earthworms. This may translate to changes in soil functions such as bioturbation, which is mainly carried out by endogeic earthworms. Our results suggest that risk assessment should include a wider range of earthworms covering different habitats and ecosystem functions to achieve a better protection of the biological functions carried out by these key soil organisms. Environ Toxicol Chem 2023;42:939-947. © 2023 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.

Linking freshwater ecotoxicity to damage on ecosystem services in life cycle assessment

Freshwater ecosystems provide major benefits to human wellbeing-so-called ecosystem services (ES)-but are currently threatened among others by ecotoxicological pressure from chemicals reaching the environment. There is an increased motivation to incorporate ES in quantification tools that support decision-making, such as life cycle assessment (LCA). However, mechanistic models and frameworks that can systematically translate ecotoxicity effect data from chemical tests into eventual damage on species diversity, functional diversity, and ES in the field are still missing. While current approaches focus on translating predicted ecotoxicity impacts to damage in terms of species loss, no approaches are available in LCA and other comparative assessment frameworks for linking ecotoxicity to damage on ecosystem functioning or ES. To overcome this challenge, we propose a way forward based on evaluating available approaches to characterize damage of chemical pollution on freshwater ES. We first outline an overall framework for linking freshwater ecotoxicity effects to damage on related ES in compliance with the boundary conditions of quantitative, comparative assessments. Second, within the proposed framework, we present possible approaches for stepwise linking ecotoxicity effects to species loss, functional diversity loss, and damage on ES. Finally, we discuss strengths, limitations, and data availability of possible approaches for each step. Although most approaches for directly deriving damage on ES from either species loss or damage to functional diversity have not been operationalized, there are some promising ways forward. The Threshold Indicator Taxa ANalysis (TITAN) seems suitable to translate predicted ecotoxicity effects to a metric of quantitative damage on species diversity. A Trait Probability Density Framework (TPD) approach that incorporates various functional diversity components and functional groups could be adapted to link species loss to functional diversity loss. An Ecological Production Function (EPF) approach seems most promising for further linking functional diversity loss to damage on ES flows for human wellbeing. However, in order to integrate the entire pathway from predicted freshwater ecotoxicity to damage on ES into LCA and other comparative frameworks, the approaches adopted for each step need to be harmonized in terms of assumptions, boundary conditions and consistent interfaces with each other.

Conceptual methodological framework for the resilience of biogeochemical services to heavy metals stress

The idea of linking stressors, services providing units (SPUs), and ecosystem services (ES) is ubiquitous in the literature, although is currently not applied in areas contaminated with heavy metals (HMs), This integrative literature review introduces the general form of a deterministic conceptual model of the cross-scale effect of HMs on biogeochemical services by SPUs with a feedback loop, a cross-scale heuristic concept of resilience, and develops a method for applying the conceptual model. The objectives are 1) to identify the clusters of existing research about HMs effects on ES, biodiversity, and resilience to HMs stress, 2) to map the scientific fields needed for the conceptual model's implementation, identify institutional constraints for inter-disciplinary cooperation, and propose solutions to surpass them, 3) to describe how the complexity of the cause-effect chain is reflected in the research hypotheses and objectives and extract methodological consequences, and 4) to describe how the conceptual model can be implemented. A nested analysis by CiteSpace of a set of 16,176 articles extracted from the Web of Science shows that at the highest level of data aggregation there is a clear separation between the topics of functional traits, stoichiometry, and regulating services from the typical issues of the literature about HMs, biodiversity, and ES. Most of the resilience to HMs stress agenda focuses on microbial communities. General topics such as the biodiversity-ecosystem function relationship in contaminated areas are no longer dominant in the current research, as well as large-scale problems like watershed management. The number of Web of Science domains that include the analyzed articles is large (26 up to 87 domains with at least ten articles, depending on the sub-set), but thirteen domains account for 70-80% of the literature. The complexity of approaches regarding the cause-effect chain, the stressors, the biological and ecological hierarchical level and the management objectives was characterized by a detailed analysis of 60 selected reviews and 121 primary articles. Most primary articles approach short causal chains, and the number of hypotheses or objectives by article tends to be low, pointing out the need for portfolios of complementary research projects in coherent inter-disciplinary programs and innovation ecosystems to couple the ES and resilience problems in areas contaminated with HMs. One provides triggers for developing innovation ecosystems, examples of complementary research hypotheses, and an example of technology transfer. Finally one proposes operationalizing the conceptual methodological model in contaminated socio-ecological systems by a calibration, a sensitivity analysis, and a validation phase.

Heterogeneity in biological assemblages and exposure in chemical risk assessment: Exploring capabilities and challenges in methodology with two landscape-scale case studies

Chemical exposure concentrations and the composition of ecological receptors (e.g., species) vary in space and time, resulting in landscape-scale (e.g. catchment) heterogeneity. Current regulatory, prospective chemical risk assessment frameworks do not directly address this heterogeneity because they assume that reasonably worst-case chemical exposure concentrations co-occur (spatially and temporally) with biological species that are the most sensitive to the chemical's toxicity. Whilst current approaches may parameterise fate models with site-specific data and aim to be protective, a more precise understanding of when and where chemical exposure and species sensitivity co-occur enables risk assessments to be better tailored and applied mitigation more efficient. We use two aquatic case studies covering different spatial and temporal resolution to explore how geo-referenced data and spatial tools might be used to account for landscape heterogeneity of chemical exposure and ecological assemblages in prospective risk assessment. Each case study followed a stepwise approach: i) estimate and establish spatial chemical exposure distributions using local environmental information and environmental fate models; ii) derive toxicity thresholds for different taxonomic groups and determine geo-referenced distributions of exposure-toxicity ratios (i.e., potential risk); iii) overlay risk data with the ecological status of biomonitoring sites to determine if relationships exist. We focus on demonstrating whether the integration of relevant data and potential approaches is feasible rather than making comprehensive and refined risk assessments of specific chemicals. The case studies indicate that geo-referenced predicted environmental concentration estimations can be achieved with available data, models and tools but establishing the distribution of species assemblages is reliant on the availability of a few sources of biomonitoring data and tools. Linking large sets of geo-referenced exposure and biomonitoring data is feasible but assessment of risk will often be limited by the availability of ecotoxicity data. The studies highlight the important influence that choices for aggregating data and for the selection of statistical metrics have on assessing and interpreting risk at different spatial scales and patterns of distribution within the landscape. Finally, we discuss approaches and development needs that could help to address environmental heterogeneity in chemical risk assessment.

Functional measures as potential indicators of down-the-drain chemical stress in freshwater ecological risk assessment

Conventional ecological risk assessment (ERA) predominately evaluates the impact of individual chemical stressors on a limited range of taxa, which are assumed to act as proxies to predict impacts on freshwater ecosystem function. However, it is recognized that this approach has limited ecological relevance. We reviewed the published literature to identify measures that are potential functional indicators of down-the-drain chemical stress, as an approach to building more ecological relevance into ERA. We found wide variation in the use of the term "ecosystem function," and concluded it is important to distinguish between measures of processes and measures of the capacity for processes (i.e., species' functional traits). Here, we present a classification of potential functional indicators and suggest that including indicators more directly connected with processes will improve the detection of impacts on ecosystem functioning. The rate of leaf litter breakdown, oxygen production, carbon dioxide consumption, and biomass production have great potential to be used as functional indicators. However, the limited supporting evidence means that further study is needed before these measures can be fully implemented and interpreted within an ERA and regulatory context. Sensitivity to chemical stress is likely to vary among functional indicators depending on the stressor and ecosystem context. Therefore, we recommend that ERA incorporates a variety of indicators relevant to each aspect of the function of interest, such as a direct measure of a process (e.g., rate of leaf litter breakdown) and a capacity for a process (e.g., functional composition of macroinvertebrates), alongside structural indicators (e.g., taxonomic diversity of macroinvertebrates). Overall, we believe that the consideration of functional indicators can add value to ERA by providing greater ecological relevance, particularly in relation to indirect effects, functional compensation (Box 1), interactions of multiple stressors, and the importance of ecosystem context. Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:1135-1147. © 2022 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC).

Towards a comprehensive sustainability methodology to assess anthropogenic impacts on ecosystems: Review of the integration of Life Cycle Assessment, Environmental Risk Assessment and Ecosystem Services Assessment

Nowadays, a variety of methodologies are available to assess local, regional and global impacts of human activities on ecosystems, which include Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) and Ecosystem Services Assessment (ESA). However, none can individually assess both the positive and negative impacts of human activities at different geographical scales in a comprehensive manner. In order to overcome the shortcomings of each methodology and develop more holistic assessments, the integration of these methodologies is essential. Several studies have attempted to integrate these methodologies either conceptually or through applied case studies. To understand why, how and to what extent these methodologies have been integrated, a total of 110 relevant publications were reviewed. The analysis of the case studies showed that the integration can occur at different positions along the cause-effect chain and from this, a classification scheme was proposed to characterize the different integration approaches. Three categories of integration are distinguished: post-analysis, integration through the combination of results, and integration through the complementation of a driving method. The literature review highlights that the most recurrent type of integration is the latter. While the integration through the complementation of a driving method is more realistic and accurate compared to the other two categories, its development is more complex and a higher data requirement could be needed. In addition to this, there is always the risk of double-counting for all the approaches. None of the integration approaches can be categorized as a full integration, but this is not necessarily needed to have a comprehensive assessment. The most essential aspect is to select the appropriate components from each methodology that can cover both the environmental and socioeconomic costs and benefits of human activities on the ecosystems.

The use of ecological models to assess the effects of a plant protection product on ecosystem services provided by an orchard

The objective of this case study was to explore the feasibility of using ecological models for applying an ecosystem services-based approach to environmental risk assessment using currently available data and methodologies. For this we used a 5 step approach: 1) selection of environmental scenario, 2) ecosystem service selection, 3) development of logic chains, 4) selection and application of ecological models and 5) detailed ecosystem service assessment. The study system is a European apple orchard managed according to integrated pest management principles. An organophosphate insecticide was used as the case study chemical. Four ecosystem services are included in this case study: soil quality regulation, pest control, pollination and recreation. Logic chains were developed for each ecosystem service and describe the link between toxicant effects on service providing units and ecosystem services delivery. For the soil quality regulation ecosystem service, springtails and earthworms were the service providing units, for the pest control ecosystem service it was ladybirds, for the pollination ecosystem service it was honeybees and for the recreation ecosystem service it was the meadow brown butterfly. All the ecological models addressed the spatio-temporal magnitude of the direct effects of the insecticide on the service providing units and ecological production functions were used to extrapolate these outcomes to the delivery of ecosystem services. For all ecosystem services a decision on the acceptability of the modelled and extrapolated effects on the service providing units could be made using the protection goals as set by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Developing quantitative ecological production functions for extrapolation of ecosystem services delivery from population endpoints remains one of the major challenges. We feel that the use of ecological models can greatly add to this development, although the further development of existing ecological models, and of new models, is needed for this.

Assessing the coastal sensitivity to oil spills from the perspective of ecosystem services: A case study for Canada's pacific coast

Coastal environment is one of the most important ecological and socioeconomic areas. However, increasing energy demand and economic development lead to a continuous gas and oil exploration, production, and traffics, which notably raise the risk of oil spill accidents in coastal areas. Sensitivity assessment aiming to determine the coastal features that would be severely impaired by spill incidents is a crucial part of the response planning. In this study, an innovative framework for coastal sensitivity mapping that incorporated ecosystem service (ES) valuation and multidimensional assessment was proposed. Sensitivity was computed by valuing physical, biological, and social-economical indicators from ES perspective and separating each indicator into specific coastal domains. For different ES typologies, provisioning services contributed most to the overall ES value followed by culture services, supporting services, and regulating services. For ES value in different coastal domains, the highest value was recorded in the water column followed by water surface, shoreline, and seabed. However, the shoreline ranked highest regarding the ES value per ha. Sensitivity assessment revealed that sensitive areas differed in different domains, both in distribution and extent. Compared with the scoring method, the ES valuation method showed more coincidence with Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSA), representing a more precise and practical approach for sensitivity assessment. A three-dimensional (3D) oil spill model was also applied to generate maps of oil contamination probability in shoreline, water surface, and water column. The obtained results highlighted the significance of incorporating different coastal domains into oil spill responses, and the urgent demand to broaden and deepen our understanding of ecological processes across the vertical coastal zones.

Assessing chemical risk within an ecosystem services framework: Implementation and added value

An ecosystem services (ES) approach to chemical risk assessment has many potential advantages, but there are also substantial challenges regarding its implementation. We report the findings of a multi-stakeholder workshop that evaluated the feasibility of adopting an ES approach to chemical risk assessment using currently available tools and data. Also evaluated is the added value such an approach would bring to environmental decision making. The aim was to build consensus across disparate stakeholders and to co-produce a common understanding of the regulatory benefits and feasibility of implementing an ES approach in European chemicals regulation. Workshop discussions were informed by proof of concept studies and resulted in the development of a novel tiered framework for assessing chemical risk to ES delivery. There was consensus on the substantial added value of adopting an ES-based approach for regulatory decision making. Ecosystem services provide a common currency and a 'unifying approach' across environmental compartments, stressors and regulatory frameworks. The ES approach informs prioritisation of risk and remedial action and aids risk communication and risk management. It facilitates a more holistic assessment, enables ES trade-offs to be compared across alternative interventions, and supports comparative risk assessments and a socio-economic analysis of management options and decisions. Key to realising this added value is a shift away from using a single threshold value to categorise risk, towards a consideration of the exposure-effect distribution for individual ES of interest. Also required is the development of an integrated systems-level approach across regulatory frameworks and agreement on specific protection goals and scenarios for framing environmental risk assessments. The need to further develop tools for extrapolating toxicity data to service providers and ES delivery, including logic chains and ecological production functions, was highlighted. Also agreed was the need for methods and metrics for ES valuation to be used in assessing trade-offs.

Identifying ecological production functions for use in ecosystem services-based environmental risk assessment of chemicals

There is increasing research interest in the application of the ecosystem services (ES) concept in the environmental risk assessment of chemicals to support formulating and operationalising regulatory environmental protection goals and making environmental risk assessment more policy- and value-relevant. This requires connecting ecosystem structure and processes to ecosystem function and henceforth to provision of ecosystem goods and services and their economic valuation. Ecological production functions (EPFs) may help to quantify these connections in a transparent manner and to predict ES provision based on function-related descriptors for service providing species, communities, ecosystems or habitats. We review scientific literature for EPFs to evaluate availability across provisioning and regulation and maintenance services (CICES v5.1 classification). We found quantitative production functions for nearly all ES, often complemented with economic valuation of physical or monetary flows. We studied the service providing units in these EPFs to evaluate the potential for extrapolation of toxicity data for test species obtained from standardised testing to ES provision. A broad taxonomic representation of service providers was established, but quantitative models directly linking standard test species to ES provision were extremely scarce. A pragmatic way to deal with this data gap would be the use of proxies for related taxa and stepwise functional extrapolation to ES provision and valuation, which we conclude possible for most ES. We suggest that EPFs may be used in defining specific protection goals (SPGs), and illustrate, using pollination as an example, the availability of information for the ecological entity and attribute dimensions of SPGs. Twenty-five pollination EPFs were compiled from the literature for biological entities ranging from 'colony' to 'habitat', with 75% referring to 'functional group'. With about equal representation of the attributes 'function', 'abundance' and 'diversity', SPGs for pollination therefore would seem best substantiated by EPFs at the level of functional group.

Assessing the feasibility and value of employing an ecosystem services approach in chemical environmental risk assessment under the Water Framework Directive

The feasibility and added value of an ecosystem services approach in retrospective environmental risk assessment were evaluated using a site-specific case study in a lowland UK river. The studied water body failed to achieve good ecological status temporarily in 2018, due in part to the exceedance of the environmental quality standard (annual average EQS) for zinc. Potential ecosystem service delivery was quantified for locally prioritised ecosystem services: regulation of chemical condition; maintaining nursery populations and habitats; recreational fishing; nature watching. Quantification was based on observed and expected taxa or functional groups within WFD biological quality elements, including macrophytes, benthic macroinvertebrates and fish, and on published functional trait data for constituent taxa. Benthic macroinvertebrate taxa were identified and enumerated before, during and after zinc EQS exceedance, enabling a generic retrospective risk assessment for this biological quality element, which was found to have good ecosystem service potential. An additional targeted risk assessment for zinc was based on laboratory-based species sensitivity distributions normalised using biotic-ligand modelling to account for site-specific, bioavailability-corrected zinc exposure. Risk to ecosystem services for diatoms (microalgae) was found to be high, while risks for benthic macroinvertebrates and fish were found to be low. The status of potential ecosystem service delivery (ESD) by fish was equivalent to high ecological status defined under the WFD, while ESD was higher for benthic macroinvertebrates than defined by WFD methods. The illustrated ecosystem services approach uses readily available data and adds significantly to the taxonomic approach currently used under the WFD by using functional traits to evaluate services that are prioritised as being important in water bodies. The main shortcomings of the illustrated approach were lack of: representation of bacteria and fungi; WFD predicted species lists for diatoms and macrophytes; site-specific functional trait data required for defining actual (rather than potential) ecosystem service delivery.

Sulfamethoxazole-Altered Transcriptomein Green Alga Raphidocelis subcapitata Suggests Inhibition of Translation and DNA Damage Repair

Occurrence of sulfonamide antibiotics has been reported in surface waters with the exposures ranging from < 1 ng L^–1 to approximately 11 μg L^–1, which may exert adverse effects on non-target algal species, inhibiting algal growth and further hindering the delivery of several ecosystem services. Yet the molecular mechanisms of sulfonamide in algae remain undetermined. The aims of the present work are: (1) to test the hypothesis whether sulfamethoxazole (SMX) inhibits the folate biosynthesis in a model green alga Raphidocelis subcapitata; and (2) to explore the effects of SMX at an environmentally relevant concentration on algal health. Here, transcriptomic analysis was applied to investigate the changes at the molecular levels in R. subcapitata treated with SMX at the concentrations of 5 and 300 μg L^–1. After 7-day exposure, the algal density in the 5 μg L^–1 group was not different from that in the controls, whereas a marked reduction of 63% in the high SMX group was identified. Using the adj p < 0.05 and absolute log₂ fold change > 1 as a cutoff, we identified 1 (0 up- and 1 downregulated) and 1,103 (696 up- and 407 downregulated) differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the 5 and 300 μg L^–1 treatment groups, respectively. This result suggested that SMX at an environmentally relevant exposure may not damage algal health. In the 300 μg L^–1 group, DEGs were primarily enriched in the DNA replication and repair, photosynthesis, and translation pathways. Particularly, the downregulation of base and nucleotide excision repair pathways suggested that SMX may be genotoxic and cause DNA damage in alga. However, the folate biosynthesis pathway was not enriched, suggesting that SMX does not necessarily inhibit the algal growth via its mode of action in bacteria. Taken together, this study revealed the molecular mechanism of action of SMX in algal growth inhibition.

Integrative analyses of transcriptomics and metabolomics in Raphidocelis subcapitata treated with clarithromycin

As a macrolide antibiotic, clarithromycin (CLA) has a high detection rate in surface water and sewage treatment plant effluents worldwide, posing a considerably high ecological risk to aquatic ecosystem. However, algal transcriptome and metabolome in response to CLA remains largely unknown. In this study, a model alga Raphidocelis subcapitata (R. subcapitata), was exposed to CLA at the concentrations of 0, 3, 10, and 15 μg L^-1. Transcriptomic analysis was performed for all the treatment groups, whereas metabolomics was merely applied to 0, 3, and 10 μg L^-1 groups because of the limited amount of algal biomass. After 7 d cultivation, the growth of R. subcapitata was significantly hindered at the concentrations above 10 μg L^-1. A total of 115, 1833, 2911 genes were differentially expressed in 3, 10, and 15 μg L^-1 groups, respectively; meanwhile, 134 and 84 differentially accumulated metabolites (DAMs) were found in the 3 and 10 μg L^-1 groups. Specifically, expression levels of DEGs and DAMs related to xenobiotic metabolism, electron transport and energy synthesis were dysregulated, leading to the produced reactive oxygen species (ROS). To confront the CLA-induced injury, the biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids and carotenoids of R. subcapitata in 3 μg L^-1 were up-regulated; although the photosynthesis was up-regulated in both 10 μg L^-1 and 15 μg L^-1 groups, the energy synthesis and the ability to resist ROS in these two groups were down-regulated. Overall, this study shed light on the mechanism underlying the inhibitory effects of macrolide antibiotics in algae.

Adequacy and sufficiency evaluation of existing EFSA guidelines for the molecular characterisation, environmental risk assessment and post-market environmental monitoring of genetically modified insects containing engineered gene drives

Advances in molecular and synthetic biology are enabling the engineering of gene drives in insects for disease vector/pest control. Engineered gene drives (that bias their own inheritance) can be designed either to suppress interbreeding target populations or modify them with a new genotype. Depending on the engineered gene drive system, theoretically, a genetic modification of interest could spread through target populations and persist indefinitely, or be restricted in its spread or persistence. While research on engineered gene drives and their applications in insects is advancing at a fast pace, it will take several years for technological developments to move to practical applications for deliberate release into the environment. Some gene drive modified insects (GDMIs) have been tested experimentally in the laboratory, but none has been assessed in small-scale confined field trials or in open release trials as yet. There is concern that the deliberate release of GDMIs in the environment may have possible irreversible and unintended consequences. As a proactive measure, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has been requested by the European Commission to review whether its previously published guidelines for the risk assessment of genetically modified animals (EFSA, 2012 and 2013), including insects (GMIs), are adequate and sufficient for GDMIs, primarily disease vectors, agricultural pests and invasive species, for deliberate release into the environment. Under this mandate, EFSA was not requested to develop risk assessment guidelines for GDMIs. In this Scientific Opinion, the Panel on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) concludes that EFSA's guidelines are adequate, but insufficient for the molecular characterisation (MC), environmental risk assessment (ERA) and post-market environmental monitoring (PMEM) of GDMIs. While the MC,ERA and PMEM of GDMIs can build on the existing risk assessment framework for GMIs that do not contain engineered gene drives, there are specific areas where further guidance is needed for GDMIs.

Transcriptomic analysis suggests the inhibition of DNA damage repair in green alga Raphidocelis subcapitata exposed to roxithromycin

Macrolide antibiotics are common contaminants in the aquatic environment. They are toxic to a wide range of primary producers, inhibiting the algal growth and further hindering the delivery of several ecosystem services. Yet the molecular mechanisms of macrolides in algae remain undetermined. The objectives of this study were therefore to: 1. evaluate whether macrolides at the environmentally relevant level inhibit the growth of algae; and 2. test the hypothesis that macrolides bind to ribosome and inhibit protein translocation in algae, as it does in bacteria. In this study, transcriptomic analysis was applied to elucidate the toxicological mechanism in a model green alga Raphidocelis subcapitata treated with 5 and 90 μg L^-1 of a typical macrolide roxithromycin (ROX). While exposure to ROX at 5 μg L^-1 for 7 days did not affect algal growth and the transciptome, ROX at 90 μg L^-1 resulted in 45% growth inhibition and 2306 (983 up- and 1323 down-regulated) DEGs, which were primarily enriched in the metabolism of energy, lipid, vitamins, and DNA replication and repair pathways. Nevertheless, genes involved in pathways in relation to translation and protein translocation and processing were dysregulated. Surprisingly, we found that genes involved in the base excision repair process were mostly repressed, suggesting that ROX may be genotoxic and cause DNA damage in R. subcapitata. Taken together, ROX was unlikely to pose a threat to green algae in the environment and the mode of action of macrolides in bacteria may not be directly extrapolated to green algae.

Environmental risk assessment of pesticides currently applied in Ghana

Registration of pesticides for use in Ghana is based on prospective environmental risk assessment (ERA) to assess the risks of future pesticide use on the environment. The present study evaluated whether pesticides currently used by Ghanaian farmers may harm the aquatic and terrestrial environment under day-to-day farm practice by performing a 1st tier ERA for terrestrial and aquatic environment and a 2nd tier ERA for the aquatic environment using existing scenarios and models. Results of the 1st tier risk assessment indicated that in the investigated regions in south Ghana, many pesticides might pose an acute risk to aquatic ecosystems adjacent to the treated fields while lambda cyhalothrin, chlorpyrifos, cypermethrin, dimethoate, mancozeb, carbendazim, sulphur, maneb and copper hydroxide may pose the highest chronic risks. Butachlor, dimethoate and carbendazim may pose acute risks to the terrestrial soil ecosystem, while glyphosate, chlorpyrifos, imidacloprid, dimethoate, mancozeb, carbendazim, maneb, copper hydroxide and cuprous oxide may pose the highest chronic risks. Many insecticides and some fungicides may pose acute risks to bees and terrestrial non-target arthropods. The 2nd tier acute aquatic risk assessment showed that most risks were substantiated using species sensitivity distribution (SSD). Actual pesticide use was a factor of 1.3-13 times higher than the recommended label instructions, indicating a general practice of overdosing. The case study shows that the PRIMET model in combination with the SSD concept may offer pesticide registration authorities in Ghana a means to assess environmental risks associated with pesticide usage in a user-friendly and cost-effective manner.

Toward Sustainable Environmental Quality: Priority Research Questions for Asia

Environmental and human health challenges are pronounced in Asia, an exceptionally diverse and complex region where influences of global megatrends are extensive and numerous stresses to environmental quality exist. Identifying priorities necessary to engage grand challenges can be facilitated through horizon scanning exercises, and to this end we identified and examined 23 priority research questions needed to advance toward more sustainable environmental quality in Asia, as part of the Global Horizon Scanning Project. Advances in environmental toxicology, environmental chemistry, biological monitoring, and risk-assessment methodologies are necessary to address the adverse impacts of environmental stressors on ecosystem services and biodiversity, with Asia being home to numerous biodiversity hotspots. Intersections of the food-energy-water nexus are profound in Asia; innovative and aggressive technologies are necessary to provide clean water, ensure food safety, and stimulate energy efficiency, while improving ecological integrity and addressing legacy and emerging threats to public health and the environment, particularly with increased aquaculture production. Asia is the largest chemical-producing continent globally. Accordingly, sustainable and green chemistry and engineering present decided opportunities to stimulate innovation and realize a number of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Engaging the priority research questions identified herein will require transdisciplinary coordination through existing and nontraditional partnerships within and among countries and sectors. Answering these questions will not be easy but is necessary to achieve more sustainable environmental quality in Asia. Environ Toxicol Chem 2020;39:1485-1505. © 2020 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.

Natura 2000 Areas and Sites of National Interest (SNI): Measuring (un)Integration between Naturalness Preservation and Environmental Remediation Policies

The Natura 2000 network was established as a tool to preserve the biological diversity of the European territory with particular regard to vulnerable habitats and species. According to recent studies, a relevant percentage of Natura 2000 sites are expected to be lost by the end of this century and there is widespread evidence that biodiversity conservation policies are not fully effective in relation to the management plans of the protected areas. This paper addresses the issue by analyzing a specific case in which there is a problem of integration between different competences and sectoral policies that leads to the lack of a monitoring system of territorial management performances. The study area, located in the Basilicata Region (Southern Italy), includes a Site of National Interest (SNI), for which several reclamation projects are still in the submission/approval phase, and a partially overlapping Natura 2000 network site. The tool used to monitor biodiversity in the study area is the degradation map obtained through the “habitat quality and degradation” InVEST tool which is used to assess the current trend and thus define a baseline for comparison with two medium and long-term scenarios applicable to the SNI’s procedure of partial and total remediation. The proposed methodology is intended to be a part of a larger and more complex monitoring system that, developed within the framework of ecosystem services, allows for the overcoming of the limits related to fragmentation and contradictions that are present in land management by offering a valuable support to decision makers and the competent authorities in biodiversity conservation policy design.

Applying ecosystem services for pre-market environmental risk assessments of regulated stressors

Ecosystem services (ES) are the benefits that people obtain from ecosystems. Investigating the environment through an ES framework has gained wide acceptance in the international scientific community and is applied by policymakers to protect biodiversity and safeguard the sustainability of ecosystems. This approach can enhance the ecological and societal relevance of pre‐market/prospective environmental risk assessments (ERAs) of regulated stressors by: (1) informing the derivation of operational protection goals; (2) enabling the integration of environmental and human health risk assessments; (3) facilitating horizontal integration of policies and regulations; (4) leading to more comprehensive and consistent environmental protection; (5) articulating the utility of, and trade‐offs involved in, environmental decisions; and (6) enhancing the transparency of risk assessment results and the decisions based upon them. Realisation of these advantages will require challenges that impede acceptance of an ES approach to be overcome. Particularly, there is concern that, if biodiversity only matters to the extent that it benefits humans, the intrinsic value of nature is ignored. Moreover, our understanding of linkages among ecological components and the processes that ultimately deliver ES is incomplete, valuing ES is complex, and there is no standard ES lexicon and limited familiarity with the approach. To help overcome these challenges, we encourage: (1) further research to establish biodiversity–ES relationships; (2) the development of approaches that (i) quantitatively translate responses to chemical stressors by organisms and groups of organisms to ES delivery across different spatial and temporal scales, (ii) measure cultural ES and ease their integration into ES valuations, and (iii) appropriately value changes in ES delivery so that trade‐offs among different management options can be assessed; (3) the establishment of a standard ES lexicon; and (4) building capacity in ES science and how to apply ES to ERAs. These development needs should not prevent movement towards implementation of an ES approach in ERAs, as the advantages we perceive of using this approach render it more than worthwhile to tackle those challenges. Society and the environment stand to benefit from this shift in how we conduct the ERA of regulated stressors.

Environmental DNA Shaping a New Era of Ecotoxicological Research

Aquatic ecosystems, such as rivers and lakes, are exposed to multiple stressors from anthropogenic activity and changes in climate, which have resulted in a general decrease in biodiversity, alteration of community structures, and can ultimately result in reduction of resources provided by natural ecosystems. Adverse outcomes caused by pollutants to ecosystems are determined not only by toxic properties but also ecological contexts of ecosystems, including indigenous biodiversity and community composition. It is therefore important to identify key factors, such as diversity of species and traits that determine the vulnerability of structures and functions of ecosystems in response to toxic substances. Detection and quantification of biodiversity and its activities using environmental DNA (eDNA) is arguably one of the most important technical advances in ecology in recent years. A huge opportunity has appeared to allow more relevant approaches for assessments of risks posed to ecosystems by toxic substances. eDNA approaches provide effective and efficient tools to evaluate the effects of chemical pollutants on (1) the occurrences and population of wildlife, (2) communities, and (3) the function of ecosystem in the field. Here a conceptual framework of adverse outcome pathways to relate molecular initiating events to apical ecosystem-level responses is proposed to connecting laboratory-based prediction to observations under field conditions. Particularly, future research opportunities on effects on biodiversity, community structure, and ecosystem function by toxic substances will be discussed.

Priorities and opportunities in the application of the ecosystem services concept in risk assessment for chemicals in the environment

The ecosystem services approach has gained broad interest in regulatory and policy circles for use in ecological risk assessment. Whilst identifying several challenges, scientific experts from European regulatory authorities, the chemical industry and academia considered the approach applicable to all chemical sectors and potentially contributing to greater ecological relevance for setting and assessing environmental protection goals compared to current European regulatory frameworks for chemicals. These challenges were addressed in workshops to develop a common understanding across stakeholders on how the ecosystem services concept might be used in chemical risk assessment and what would need to be done to implement it. This paper describes the consensus outcome of those discussions. Knowledge gaps and research needs were identified and prioritised, exploring the use of novel approaches from ecology, ecotoxicology and ecological modelling. Where applicable, distinction is made between prospective and retrospective ecological risk assessment. For prospective risk assessment the development of environmental scenarios accounting for chemical exposure and ecological conditions was designated as a top priority. For retrospective risk assessment the top priority research need was development of reference conditions for key ecosystem services and guidance for their derivation. Both prospective and retrospective risk assessment would benefit from guidance on the taxa and measurement endpoints relevant to specific ecosystem services and from improved understanding of the relationships between measurement endpoints from standard toxicity tests and the ecosystem services of interest (i.e. assessment endpoints). The development of mechanistic models, which could serve as ecological production functions, was identified as a priority. A conceptual framework for future chemical risk assessment based on an ecosystem services approach is presented.

Evidence-based logic chains demonstrate multiple impacts of trace metals on ecosystem services

Trace metals can have far-reaching ecosystem impacts. In this study, we develop consistent and evidence-based logic chains to demonstrate the wider effects of trace metal contamination on a suite of ecosystem services. They demonstrate knock-on effects from an initial receptor that is sensitive to metal toxicity, along a cascade of impact, to final ecosystem services via alterations to multiple ecosystem processes. We developed logic chains to highlight two aspects of metal toxicity: for impacts of copper pollution in soil ecosystems, and for impacts of mercury in freshwaters. Each link of the chains is supported by published evidence, with an indication of the strength of the supporting science. Copper pollution to soils (134 unique chains) showed a complex network of pathways originating from direct effects on a range of invertebrate and microbial taxa and plants. In contrast, mercury pollution on freshwaters (63 unique chains) shows pathways that broadly follow the food web of this habitat, reflecting the potential for mercury bioaccumulation. Despite different pathways, there is considerable overlap in the final ecosystem services impacted by both of these metals and in both ecosystems. These included reduced human-use impacts (food, fishing), reduced human non-use impacts (amenity value) and positive or negative alterations to climate regulation (impacts on carbon sequestration). Other final ecosystem goods impacted include reduced crop production, animal production, flood regulation, drinking water quality and soil purification. Taking an ecosystem services approach demonstrates that consideration of only the direct effects of metal contamination of soils and water will considerably underestimate the total impacts of these pollutants. Construction of logic chains, evidenced by published literature, allows a robust assessment of potential impacts indicating primary, secondary and tertiary effects.

Ecological Recovery and Resilience in Environmental Risk Assessments at the European Food Safety Authority

A conceptual framework was developed by a working group of the Scientific Committee of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to guide risk assessors and risk managers on when and how to integrate ecological recovery and resilience assessments into environmental risk assessments (ERA). In this commentary we advocate that a systems approach is required to integrate the diversity of ecosystem services (ES) providing units, environmental factors, scales, and stressor-related responses necessary to address the context dependency of recovery and resilience in agricultural landscapes. A future challenge in the resilience assessment remains to identify the relevant bundles of ecosystem services provided by different types of agroecosystem that need to be assessed in concert. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2018;14:586-591. © 2018 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC).