Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. 2001;50(2):87-159
The scientific and technical issues surrounding the application of the EU Framework Directive for community action in the field of water policy and its impact on the food processing industry were examined at a workshop on Assessing and Controlling Industrial Impacts on the Aquatic Environment (with Reference to Food Processing).
The workshop highlighted that, within an ecosystem, populations can be protected in a sustainable way but that not all individuals will be protected. The risk assessment process could therefore be driven by the small number of subhabitats and key species. Monitoring should cover different trophic levels, through the different life-cycle stages, for diverse taxonomic groups and sensitive species, with emphasis on measuring the function of ecosystems. It was agreed that adverse effects on the environment were those that do not permit the sustainability of populations. It was agreed that attempts to interpret ecological harm should emphasise the importance of natural variability. The participants also recognised the specificity of food industry issues (e.g. seasonality of effluents, non-specificity of wastes, relative rarity of emission of toxicants). They also agreed that a framework for protecting natural waters should use both ecological status and physico-chemical criteria, and should apply to river basins with their specific habitat types, geo- and hydromorphology, chemistry and ecology, soil types, and different land uses. The workshop summary report was published in the ILSI Europe Report Series, and the full proceedings of the workshop, including the workshop summary report, have been published in Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety.
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