The project's objective is to support JRC IPTS in revising the existing Ecolabel and GPP criteria of personal computers and notebook computers. The priority in this revision process is to first analyse which of the existing criteria and the supporting evidence are still valid and to identify the additional research that should be carried out. Potential additional criteria can be developed, if identified as necessary in the course of the study. The study starts with a definition of the scope; the necessarity for new or revised Ecolabel and GPP criteria is based on a market analysis and a technical analysis with research on the most significant environmental impacts during the whole life cycle of the products. This also includes the application of a consistent methodological approach regarding the hazardous substances criteria. Based on these findings, the improvement potential will be derived resulting in a proposal for a revised Ecolabel and GPP criteria set for desktop and notebook computers which will be discussed in a European stakeholder process.
The project's objective is to support JRC IPTS in revising the existing Ecolabel and GPP criteria of televisions. The priority in this revision process is to first analyse which of the existing criteria and the supporting evidence are still valid and to identify the additional research that should be carried out. Potential additional criteria can be developed, if identified as necessary in the course of the study. The study starts with a definition of the scope; the necessarity for new or revised Ecolabel and GPP criteria is based on a market analysis and a technical analysis with research on the most significant environmental impacts during the whole life cycle of the products. This also includes the application of a consistent methodological approach regarding the hazardous substances criteria. Based on these findings, the improvement potential will be derived resulting in a proposal for a revised Ecolabel and GPP criteria set for televisions which will be discussed in a European stakeholder process.
Ziel der Forschungsarbeit ist die Klassifizierung von Boden-Biozönosen in ausgewählten Feldrainen. In drei Naturräumen (Lössböden der Jülicher Börde, Muschelkalkböden in Mainfranken und pleistozäne Sande bei Leipzig) werden typische Lebensgemeinschaften von Collembola und Gamasina (Taxozönosen) beschrieben. Der wesentliche Unterschied zu anderen Klassifikations-Ansätzen liegt in der induktiven Vorgehensweise: Biozönosen werden allein aufgrund der Artenzusammensetzung an den Standorten typisiert. Vegetationskundliche Kriterien dienen als entscheidendes Hilfsmittel zur Vorauswahl von Flächen mit ähnlichen Standortbedingungen. Hierbei wird gleichzeitig die aufgenommene Vegetation als ein weiteres Taxon der zu beschreibenden Biozönose angesehen. Die typische Artenzusammensetzung ist das integrierte Ergebnis aller denkbaren ökologischen Vorgänge. Ein Ziel der Arbeit ist somit die prospektive Formulierung von Erwartungswerten für Collembolen und Raubmilben auf der Basis vegetationskundlicher Daten. Es sollte daher möglich sein, dieses Mehrarten-System mit hoher Sensibilität zur Bioindikation von Standortveränderungen einzusetzen. Die Kenntnis der Artenstruktur wiederkehrender Lebensgemeinschaften kann der funktionellen Ökosystemforschung hilfreiche Hinweise bieten.
Das Projekt ÖkoKauf der Stadt Wien hat es sich zum Ziel gesetzt, durch die Erstellung von ökologischen Kriterien, Pilotprojekte und durch Bewusstseinsarbeit das Beschaffungswesen im Magistrat Wien weiter zu ökologisieren. In diesem Rahmen widmete sich der Arbeitskreis 'Desinfektionsmittel unter der Leitung der Wiener Umweltanwaltschaft (WUA) der Aufgabe, für Hygienefachleute ein Instrument zur Beurteilung der Auswirkungen von Desinfektionsmitteln auf Gesundheit und Umwelt zu erstellen. Das Österreichische Ökologie-Institut führte eine Daten- und Literaturrecherche durch, das Umweltbundesamt nahm ergän-zende ökotoxikologische Tests an Wirkstoffen und -produkten vor und 'die umweltberatung ermittelte stationsbezogene Desinfektionsmittelverbräuche in Wiener Krankenanstalten. Die Recherche- und Testergebnisse zu Desinfektionsmittelwirkstoffen und -produkten wurden in einer vom IFZ konzipierten und von der Magistratsabteilung 14 realisierten Datenbank zusammengefasst. Um die ökotoxikologischen Produkteigenschaften vergleichbar zu machen, wurde vom IFZ ein Bewertungsraster entwickelt und in die Datenbank integriert. Dabei werden nachteilige Wirkungen auf die Gesundheit anhand von vier Wirkungskategorien erfasst: Akute Giftigkeit; Reizwirkung auf die Haut; Sensibilisierung, allergenes Potenzial sowie Erbgutschädigende, krebserzeugende und fruchtschädigende Eigenschaften. Zusammen mit der Berücksichtigung des Verhaltens in Oberflächengewässern (Abbauverhalten, Bioakkumulationspotenzial, Toxizität für Wasserorganismen) sowie dem Verhalten in Kläranlagen werden insgesamt sechs Bewertungszahlen generiert, die auf einer Skala von 1 (vernachlässigbar) bis 5 (sehr hoch) das gesamte Gefährdungsprofil des Stoffes beschreiben sollen. Das Gefährdungsprofil eines Handelsproduktes errechnet sich aus den Gefährdungsprofilen der darin enthaltenen Wirkstoffe anhand eines Algorithmus: Dabei wird die Annahme getroffen, dass die Produkteigenschaften von der Konzentration der darin enthaltenen Wirkstoffe abhängen. Bei der Bewertung ist außerdem zu gewährleisten, dass ein Wirkstoff mit einem hohen Gefährdungspotenzial angemessen berücksichtigt wird, auch und gerade wenn seine Konzentration im Produkt gering ist. In der Literatur wird dazu eine logarithmische Skalierung vorgeschlagen. Die Bewertung berücksichtigt derzeit die Wirkstoffe sowie Anwendungsverdünnungen. Die Zusammenfassung der Produkte in Verwendungs- bzw. Expositionskategorien ermöglicht letztlich eine vergleichende Bewertung. Da das Bewertungsraster gerade auf eine vergleichende Bewertung von Produkten abzielt, unterliegt er einer ständigen kritischen Diskussion, die auch häufig von den Herstellern geführt wird. Dieser Umstand sowie das Faktum von Produktlebenszyklen erfordern ein ständiges Update der in der Datenbank enthaltenen Informationen und eine Anpassung des Bewertungsmodells an den aktuellen Stand von Forschung sowie Standards der Stoff- und Produktpolitik.
Objective: Healthy housing and good indoor air quality are important goals of public health. However, biological indoor pollution due to dampness, moisture and mold is an emerging environmental health issue, as recognized in EU indoor air policy documents. Prevalence of dampness is remarkable, and may still increase due to demands of energy savings and extreme weather periods and floods associated with climate change. The exposure may lead to long-term impacts such as asthma. The documentation is strong on association between building mold and health, but the causative agents and disease mechanisms are largely unknown, which impedes recognition of a mold-affected patient in health care. Efficient control and regulation are hampered by the insufficient understanding of these causalities. Understanding of the links between building practices and health is lacking. There is an urgent need for European-wide knowledge to form a basis for establishing building-associated criteria for healthy indoor environments. The aim of this proposal is to clarify the health impacts of indoor exposures on children and adults by providing comprehensive exposure data on biological and chemical factors in European indoor environments.
Small molecule natural products are a prolific source of inspiration for the development of new drugs, and essential tools in basic biomedical research as probes of biological functions. The contribution of academic laboratories in natural products discovery has been essential. The limiting factor of traditional approaches in bioactivity-directed natural product research has been the tedious process of purification and identification of active molecules from a highly complex extract matrix. Recent technological advances enable substantial improvements in efficiency via a consequential miniaturization of the screening and discovery process, and automation of certain process steps. The aim of the project is to discover small molecule natural products leads from plants and fungi acting against clinically relevant and/or emerging targets in important disease areas. The targets have been selected on the basis of specific criteria, such as (i) novelty and importance of target; (ii) lack of specific/selective inhibitors; (iii) need for enhancement of structural diversity of ligands; (iv) difficulty/impossibility to use rational drug discovery approaches; (v) access to animal models. Indications include CNS (selective GABA-A receptor agonists), inflammation and cancer (modulation of angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis, inhibition of PI3 kinases). In addition, a screening for hERG channel inhibition will be carried out as the currently most critical anti-target in drug discovery & development. An extract library and a technology platform for the miniaturized discovery of natural products will be used. The library consists of currently 1000 plant and fungal extracts. An ethnomedicine-based focussed sub-library will be specifically tested for GABAA receptor agonistic properties. All process steps in the screening and consecutive lead identification are miniaturized, in part automated, and based on the 96-well microtiter footprint. Most of the assays are via external collaborations, and some assays involving cell signalling are established in-house. Prioritized extracts are submitted to HPLC-based activity profiling with microtiter-based fractionation of column effluent, and simultaneous on-line spectroscopic (PDA, ion-trap ESI and APCI-MS, and ESI-TOF) analysis. Compound dereplication and identification is supported by off-line microprobe NMR spectroscopy. Around the active target molecules, structurally related compounds will be characterized to generate small 'virtual' libraries for preliminary structure activity relationships. Calculation of physico-chemical data and secondary bioassays will characterize leads, and shortlisted compounds will be tested in vivo for proof of concept. For this purpose, compounds of interest are isolated in a targeted manner in amounts of up to several hundred mg.
Objective: The primary aim of the SIINN ERA-NET is to promote the rapid transfer of the results of nano-science and nanotechnology (N&N) research into industrial application by helping to create reliable conditions. In order to strengthen the European Research Area and to coordinate N&N-related R&D work, the project has the aim of bringing together a broad network of ministries, funding agencies, academic and industrial institutions to create a sustainable transnational programme of joint R&D in N&N. The commercial application of nano-materials (NMs) products is increasing rapidly, but one important question, the safety of NMs, still represents a barrier to their wide innovative use. Therefore the first priority of SIINN is to focus on developing a consolidated framework to address nano-related risks and the management of these risks for humans and the environment by investigating the toxicological behaviour of NMs. European R&D activities in N&N remain largely uncoordinated and fragmented, resulting in the sub-optimal use of available resources, such as human resources, research equipment and funding. Since available data on their toxicological behaviour is often scant, unreliable or contradictory, the SIINN Project will focus on ways of remedying this situation. After defining the criteria important for NM toxicology, the environmental health and safety (EHS) information currently available to Europe will be examined. Liaisons will strategically be established and maintained. They will network with organisations looking into the EHS of NMs within Europe and abroad with the aim of continually exchanging information with these. Available information will be examined for their reliability in respect of the assessment of the risks of NMs towards human health and to the environment and major knowledge gaps identified. At least two joint, transnational calls will be organised during the initial lifetime of SIINN in order to fill these gaps.
Auf Basis einer komplexen Lawinendatenbank werden die im Bereich des Forsttechnischen Dienstes für Wildbachverbauung/Lawinenverbauung vorhandenen Daten (Lawinenkataster, Projektsdaten, GZP, etc.) analysiert, mit aktuellen Wetterdaten verknüpft und für eine temporäre Gefahrenbeurteilung aufbereitet. Dadurch kann erstmals eine Verknüpfung der Chronikdaten mit einer aktuellen Gefahrensituation hergestellt werden. Dem Forsttechnischen Dienst steht somit ein Werkzeug zur Verfügung, um die Lawinenkommissionen und Gemeinden mit zusätzlichen Informationen zur aktuellen Gefahrenbeurteilung zu versorgen.
Objective: observatoryNANO brings together leading EU organizations who collectively have expertise in the technological; economic; societal/ethical; health, safety, and environmental analysis of nanotechnologies. Its primary aim is to develop appropriate methodologies to link scientific and technological development of nanotechnologies with socio-economic impacts. Both of these aspects will be enhanced by expert opinion, making this project unique in providing relevant web-based reports in a common format across all sectors, considered by all criteria, and widely publicized. observatoryNANO will become an industry leading and opinion forming catalyst for nanotechnology in the EU. The purpose is to avoid the exaggerated socio-economic impact of nanotechnologies and place developments in a realistic time-frame. It will present a reliable, complete, and responsible science-based and economic expert analysis of peer-reviewed literature, patents, national funding strategies, investment trends, and markets; in combination with information derived from questionnaires, interviews and workshops with academic and industry leaders, investors, and other key stakeholders.
The Nametech project is funded under the 7th European Framework Programme and harnesses benefits of nanotechnology to bring about improvements in membrane filtration for advanced water treatment. The general objective is to strengthen the European membrane market by making nanotechnology available to large scale European membrane manufactures. The projects brings together all required elements to enable the transfer of nanotechnology towards the field of water treatment. The broad engineering and application know-how of the partners has been brought together to realize cost reduction and process intensification strategies. The starting point of the project is development of the criteria for the identification of nanoparticles with relevance for water treatment applications. After identification and selection of appropriate nanoparticles, attachment of particles to membrane surfaces has been investigated. Another approach examined in the project is to prepare membranes from homogeneous casting solution containing nanoparticles. The major challenge is to identify binders/compounds keeping the nanoparticles stabilized in the casting solution and ensuring compatibility between the polymer, solvent and nanoparticles in order not to disturb the membrane forming process and ensure a desired distribution of built-in particles thereby inducing the maximal nanoparticles activity. Subsequently, laboratory module scale filtrations of both synthetic and real feed are envisaged to asses the filtration performance in terms of permeability and fouling propensity, as compared to unmodified membranes.
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