Intermediate-tier options in the environmental risk assessment of plant protection products for soil invertebrates-Synthesis of a workshop.

The European environmental risk assessment (ERA) of plant protection products follows a tiered approach. The approach for soil invertebrates currently consists of two steps, starting with a Tier 1 assessment based on reproduction toxicity tests with earthworms, springtails, and predatory mites. In case an unacceptable risk is identified at Tier 1, field studies can be conducted as a higher-tier option. For soil invertebrates, intermediate tiers are not implemented. Hence, there is limited possibility to include additional information for the ERA to address specific concerns when the Tier 1 fails, as an alternative to, for example, a field study. Calibrated intermediate-tier approaches could help to address risks for soil invertebrates with less time and resources but also with sufficient certainty. A multistakeholder workshop was held on 2-4 March 2022 to discuss potential intermediate-tier options, focusing on four possible areas: (1) natural soil testing, (2) single-species tests (other than standard species), (3) assessing recovery in laboratory tests, and (4) the use of assembled soil multispecies test systems. The participants acknowledged a large potential in the intermediate-tier options but concluded that some issues need to be clarified before routine application of these approaches in the ERA is possible, that is, sensitivity, reproducibility, reliability, and standardization of potential new test systems. The definition of suitable assessment factors needed to calibrate the approaches to the protection goals was acknowledged. The aims of the workshop were to foster scientific exchange and a data-driven dialog, to discuss how the different approaches could be used in the risk assessment, and to identify research priorities for future work to address uncertainties and strengthen the tiered approach in the ERA for soil invertebrates. This article outlines the background, proposed methods, technical challenges, difficulties and opportunities in the ERA, and conclusions of the workshop. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2024;20:780-793. © 2023 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC).

Reflections on bird and mammal risk assessment for plant protection products in the European Union: Past, present, and future.

The use of plant protection products on agricultural crops can result in exposure of birds and mammals to toxic chemicals. In the European Union, the risks from such exposures are assessed under the current (2009) guidance document from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), designed to increase the realism of the theoretical risk assessments in comparison to its predecessor (SANCO/4145/2000). Since its adoption over 7 yr ago, many plant protection products have been evaluated successfully using the 2009 EFSA guidance document. However, there are still significant areas of improvement recommended for future revisions of this guidance. The present Focus article discusses experiences to date with the current scheme, including levels of conservatism in input parameters and interpretation by regulatory authorities together with proposals for how the guidance document could be improved when it is revised in the not too distant future. Several areas for which further guidance is recommended have been identified, such as the derivation of ecologically relevant bird and mammal reproductive endpoints and the use of modeling approaches to contextualize risk assessments. Areas where existing databases could be improved were also highlighted, including the collation of relevant focal species across Europe and expansion of the residue database for food items. To produce a realistic and useable guidance document in the future, it is strongly recommended that there is open and constructive communication between industry, regulatory authorities, and the EFSA. Such collaboration would also encourage harmonization between member states, thus reducing workloads for both industry and regulatory authorities. Environ Toxicol Chem 2017;36:565-575. © 2017 SETAC.

Sublethal effects and predator-prey interactions: implications for ecological risk assessment.

Ecological risk assessments tend to focus on contaminant effects on single species in isolation. However, additional effects from interactions between species (e.g., predator-prey interactions) may also occur in natural systems. The present study investigated the consequences of sublethal contaminant effects in prey on predator-prey interactions, particularly the interaction between prey behavioral changes and predation by predators with different hunting strategies. Ambush (Ischnura elegans Vander Linden [Insecta, Odonata]) and active (Notonecta glauca Linnaeus [Insecta, Heteroptera]) predator species were used in conjunction with three prey species (Asellus aquaticus Linnaeus [Crustacea, Isopoda], Cloion dipterum Linnaeus [Insecta, Ephemeroptera], and Chironomus riparius Meigen [Insecta, Diptera]). Immobilized prey demonstrated the importance of prey behavior for determining predation rates for both single- and multiple-prey species. Chironomus riparius was less responsive following exposure to cadmium, becoming more vulnerableto attack by the active but not the ambush predator. Some evidence was also observed for reduced general activity in C. dipterum following cadmium exposure. Sublethal exposure of prey did not affect the prey choice of active predators, possibly because of prey behavioral changes being insufficient to influence their relative availabilities. However, cadmium exposure of prey did alter their susceptibility to ambush predators. There was a reduced proportion of C. dipterum and an increased proportion of A. aquaticus in the diet of ambush predators, possibly because of reduced activity in C. dipterum affecting their relative encounter rates with predators. Sublethal exposures can therefore result in reduced prey survival that would not be predicted by single-species toxicity tests.