Archive of wca's blogs from 2019
Antibiotics in the Water Environment: Occurrence, Detection, Fate
December 17, 2019 by Grace Panter
Grace attended the Water Science Forum conference on “Antibiotics in the Water Environment: Occurrence, Detection and Fate”, in London, UK. The aim was to understand the significance and extent of antibiotic pollution through its impact on freshwater ecology, wastewater treatment and likely contribution to antibiotic resistance.
Report on the application of food and organic garden waste (FOGO) to land for the NSW Environment Protection Authority
October 25, 2019 by Graham Merrington
Ed and Graham have been working recently with Resource Recovery Policy Branch of NSW Environment Protection Authority to assist in the development of an evidence-base to assist decision making around the application of food and organic garden waste (FOGO) to land.
Clarification of provisions for phase-in substances under REACH published by European Commission
October 21, 2019 by Sylwia Kosmala-Grzechnik
Although the REACH registration deadline for phase-in substances passed in May 2018, it is not a closed topic for many companies. The European Commission has recently published Regulation (EU) 2019/1692 which clarifies the rules on registration and data-sharing for phase-in substances after the final registration deadline for phase-in substances.
Assessing the risks of Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (PiE) at wca
October 17, 2019 by Becky Brown
The assessment of the risks of pharmaceuticals in the environment is one of wca’s core work areas. We cover a range of activities from waiver statements through to bespoke one-off assessment and advocacy work.
User-Friendly Tools to account for metals bioavailability, Training Seminar with Spanish Regulators, at the Ministry for the Ecological Transition, Madrid
September 27, 2019 by Graham Merrington
Graham and Adam along with Diego Garcia Carvajal from the European Copper Institute were fortunate to be invited to run a seminar for Spanish regulators in Madrid on the 26th of September.
Employee Ownership – what it means to us
September 13, 2019 by Becky Marks
Last week, Rhiannon and Becky attended the Employee Ownership Association’s Midlands Regional Network meeting hosted by Scott Bader. At wca we are proud to be part of an employee-owned company and were keen to learn more about how other companies are approaching employee-ownership.
Environmental Impact of Pharmaceuticals in Developing Countries
September 5, 2019 by Becky Brown
Next week Becky Brown will be attending a workshop in Nairobi aimed at understanding the environmental and non-therapeutic health risks of increasing access to medicines in low- and middle-income countries.
bio-met v5.0 released
July 8, 2019 by Iain Wilson
The new version of bio-met, version 5, was released in June 2019. This tool estimates the potential risk to the aquatic environment posed by copper, nickel, zinc and lead after considering bioavailability.
Pharmacology beyond the patient – The environmental risks of human drugs
July 5, 2019 by Dean Leverett
Dean and Becky Marks have recently co-authored a paper, Pharmacology beyond the patient – The environmental risks of human drugs with pharmaceutical industry and academic colleagues on the Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) of pharmaceuticals.
Are the Biotic Ligand Models (BLM) suitable for assessing the ecological risk of metals in Nordic freshwaters? Project for the Nordic Council of Ministers.
June 17, 2019 by Graham Merrington & Adam Peters
Adam and Graham attended the final project meeting at the Finnish Environment Institute SYKE, in Helsinki last week. The meeting discussed the data that were produced from testing local tests species, snails, daphnids and algae in waters from Sweden, Norway and Finland to validate bioavailability concepts for copper, nickel and zinc.
Implementing bioavailability-based approaches for metals compliance; ISPRA May 2019
June 5, 2019 by Graham Merrington
Graham and a group of colleagues representing Eurometaux ran a workshop during May in Rome for local and regional regulatory organisations on implementing bioavailability-based approaches for metals compliance assessment under the Water Framework Directive.
SETAC Helsinki 2019 Day 3
May 29, 2019 by Ed Stutt
It’s a glorious sunny day in Helsinki but wca are locked inside at SETAC on Day 3 doing their bit to further the ‘one health’ perspective that is the overarching theme of this conference, linking environmental and human health.
SETAC Helsinki 2019 Day 2
May 28, 2019 by Iain Wilson
wca have had another busy day on Tuesday at SETAC Helsinki; with Adam and Iain presenting in a platform session on wca's work; and continuing to meet acquaintances old and new. Find out more of our activities on our blog.
SETAC Helsinki 2019 Day 1
May 27, 2019 by Iain Wilson
wca are at SETAC Helsinki 2019 (booth 44); and have been very busy meeting new acquaintances and renewing old while attending numerous scientific sessions.
wca at SETAC-Europe 2019 (26 – 30 May 2019)
May 24, 2019 by Iain Wilson
wca have a long history of involvement with, and support for, the Society for Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC). This year is no different and wca will be attending SETAC Europe from 26th to 30th May.
Decide on your K-REACH legal entities and Only Representatives soon!
May 20, 2019 by Rhiannon Smith
Are you a non-Korean company looking to pre-register under K-REACH before the 30 June 2019 deadline? Like EU REACH, Only Representatives (OR) can be assigned under K-REACH for legal entities based outside the state. Changes of OR are allowed for pre-registration, but this must be done BEFORE the pre-registration deadline, i.e. 30 June 2019.
Polymers under Korea REACH……?
May 15, 2019 by Rhiannon Smith
Do you produce a polymer? Have you registered the monomer under EU REACH? Are you looking to obtain/maintain market access for your polymer in Korea? There are some key differences that you should be aware of when it comes to polymers under EU REACH and K-REACH.
Effects of silver nitrate are a conservative estimate for the effects of silver nanoparticles on algae growth and Daphnia magna reproduction
May 15, 2019 by Dean Leverett
Last May, I highlighted some work that I had been involved in to compare the ecotoxicity of ionic and nano forms of silver using standardised toxicity tests. I am pleased to announce that the follow-up paper detailing the results of the comparative testing in water has been published.
The deadline for pre-registration under Korea REACH is approaching!
May 14, 2019 by Rhiannon Smith
Now that the registration phase of EU REACH has passed, many companies are looking at their global supply chains. Like many companies, much of our focus has been on the fast approach pre-registration deadline for Korea REACH. wca has experience with a range of different global legislations.
Comparison of the Chronic Toxicity of Nickel to Temperate and Tropical Freshwater Species
May 13, 2019 by Adam Peters
Graham, Dean, Iain, and I have recently published an article in collaboration with Chris Schlekat and Emily Garman at NiPERA comparing the sensitivity of tropical and temperate aquatic ecosystems to nickel.
Improving environmental risk assessment of chemicals: Step towards evidence-based ecotoxicology
May 10, 2019 by Grace Panter
Grace has just co-authored a paper, which was discussed during a Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) Pellston Workshop titled “Improving environmental risk assessment of chemicals: Step towards evidence-based ecotoxicology." in Environment International.
wca at SETAC Helsinki
April 25, 2019 by Dean Leverett
wca have a long history of involvement with, and support for, the Society for Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC). Our staff have, over the years, attended and presented our work at SETAC conference in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. We are sustaining members of SETAC Europe, and pride ourselves on getting involved as possible in the scientific programme of SETAC Europe conferences, as well as having a presence in the exhibition hall. We are looking forward to presenting our work at SETAC-Europe 2019 in Helsinki this May.
Workshop on Advances in risk assessment tools with relevance to tropical southeast Asia and Melanesia
March 20, 2019 by Adam Peters
Graham and I recently attended a workshop on “Advances in risk assessment tools with relevance to tropical southeast Asia and Melanesia” in Singapore organised by the NiPERA. The workshop was about developing ecological risk assessments for the region.
rsa Conference on The Toxicology of Mixtures and Application of Cumulative Risk Assessment
March 7, 2019 by Kate Roylance & Grace Panter
In January (22nd – 23rd) Kate and Grace attended the Regulatory Science Associates (rsa) Conference on The Toxicology of Mixtures and Application of Cumulative Risk Assessment, Cranage Hall, UK. Pesticide mixtures and the risk assessment of pesticide residues are “hot topics” on agendas both in Europe and the US.
Expert advice in designing fish and amphibian tests for endocrine disruption
February 19, 2019 by Becky Brown
At wca we specialise in Endocrine Disrupter (ED) assessments for chemicals. In recent years we have conducted ED assessments for pharmaceuticals, general chemicals under REACH, and for multiple plant protection products (PPPs). The European Commission (EC) is strengthening regulation in this area through the introduction of ED criteria for biocides and PPPs, with associated guidance. The draft new guidelines for the environmental risk assessment of pharmaceuticals also includes special provision for endocrine active substances.
Comparison of the chronic toxicity of nickel to temperate and tropical freshwater species
February 13, 2019 by Iain Wilson
Reliable ecotoxicity data are required to derive thresholds protective for aquatic life that are scientifically defensible and practically implementable as environmental risk assessment and management tools. Adam Peters, Graham Merrington, Dean Leverett and I, along with Chris Schlekat and Emily Garman of NiPERA have recently published a paper regarding this issue in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.
Priorities for the UK chemicals sector - challenges, opportunities and the future for regulation post-Brexit
February 11, 2019 by David Taylor
After a keynote address by Steve Elliot, Chief Executive of the Chemical Industries Association there were two discussion sessions. The first on future priorities for the UK Chemicals Sector and secondly key issues for the post BREXIT regulation of chemicals. These two discussion sessions were chaired by Angela Smith MP, a member of the House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee and Julie Girling MEP, a member of the EP Environment Committee. The seminar concluded with an update from DEFRA and HSE on the implications of BREXIT for chemicals regulation in the UK.
Assessing Compliance of European Fresh Waters for Copper: Accounting for Bioavailability
February 5, 2019 by Iain Wilson
A new paper has been published, with Adam Peters as lead author, on assessing the compliance of European freshwaters for copper, accounting for bioavailability in the Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology.
REACH update - Dossier evaluation decisions
January 21, 2019 by Cleanncy Hoppie
As the new year begins, it is important to be aware of the changes to the dossier evaluation process that ECHA announced last year, and to take proactive action to keep your REACH dossiers updated.
Ecolabelling in the UK after Brexit
January 18, 2019 by Olivia Tran
The UK’s plan for ecolabelling after Brexit was briefly discussed in the Resources and Waste Strategy, published in December 2018. In summary, the UK will consider options for developing a domestic ecolabel, but it will also be critical in assessing the extent to which an ecolabel leads to environmentally-responsible decisions among consumers.
What happens under REACH if there is no deal?
January 16, 2019 by Rhiannon Smith
Given the recent turmoil in the UK parliament, do you have questions on Brexit? Yes, so does everyone else and, while nothing has been finalised yet, here is a brief summary of what we have found out so far from the UK HSE and ECHA in case there is a no-deal Brexit…
Latest updates
January 14, 2021 by Dean Leverett
Since the formation of wca environment Ltd in 2005, the company has operated out of a single office in southern England. During 2020, with the end of the Brexit transition period looming, the management team explored options for opening a European office.
December 14, 2020 by Adam Peters
Adam and Graham have been working with researchers from the Wilfred Laurier University and the University of Waterloo in Canada, the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology in the UK, and Unilever to investigate the speciation of silver in both wastewaters and natural waters.
December 2, 2020 by Grace Panter
It was a busy week for Adam and Graham participating in the virtual SETAC North America 41st Annual Meeting - SETAC SciCon2 between the 15th and 19th of November 2020. wca were involved in a number of presentations and posters on topics.