The persistence of a chemical in the environment – how resistant it is to being broken down in nature – is hard to predict. Its tendency to build up in living organisms – to bioconcentrate or bioaccumulate – is similarly complex. Understanding these factors fully is nonetheless essential in assessing any risks to human health or the environment, and in developing regulations based on sound science. This project will investigate persistence and bioconcentration of a diverse range of chemical types, including man-made and naturally-occurring ones, in the oceans and on land. An open workshop will be held to discuss the literature in this area, and to select chemicals to be examined. Experiments will then be designed to find out how biological and non-biological processes lead to breakdown of chemicals under natural conditions. A second workshop will be held to examine new test methods developed during the project.
Review of persistence of chemicals in the terrestrial and marine environments (Dec 2000) Understanding and measurement of persistence in the marine and terrestrial environment - Selection of chemicals Posters
Development of in situ biodegradation methods: Respiration and DNA analysis of 13C-labeled substrates added to soil in the field
E.L. Madsen, S. Padmanabhan, P. Padmanabhan, D.J.Gannon, A.L. Gray, C. Jeon, and J. Snape Multi-Media models simulations
A. Riddle Stable Isotope Probing to Interrogate the in situ Biodegradation of Naphthalene: Establishing a Basis for Extrapolation
J. Snape, C. Jeon, W. Park, P. Padmanabhan, C. DeRito, E.L. Madsen The Impact of Concentration, Temperature, Nutrient Limitation & Inoculum on the Marine Biodegradability of Naphthalene
Ann Gray, Jason Snape, Berhard Fuchs, Gary Roberts, Ted Gillings, Fabrice Peurou &Tracy Jones-Hughes