BEAM Bridging effect assessment of mixtures to ecosystem situations and regulation
Country: EU Projects
Start Date:   1/2/2000         Duration: 39 months         Project Type: RTD
Contract Number: EVK1-CT-1999-00012
Organisation Type:  EC Project
Topics: 
Contaminated land-->Soil and groundwater processes-->Ecotoxicology
Water resources and their management -->Stresses, quality and ecological status
Project objectives: 
The aim of the project is to consider joint effects of toxicants in risk assessment procedures and regulatory measures for the protection of aquatic life.        
The specific objectives of BEAM were:        
• To achieve more environmental realism in the scientific hazard assessment of complex exposure situations by addressing the following questions:        
- what are realistic exposure scenarios with respect to mixtures,        
- how relevant are combination effects due to mixtures that are typically found  in the environment, and        
- may the toxicity of such mixtures be predictable from single substances toxicity data?        
	       
The project wanted to provide three new instruments for the assessment of mixture toxicity:        
- a swift biotest suitable for analysing effects of mixtures of pollutants on natural biological communities at ecological time scales,        
- a chemometric/QSAR methodology for grouping toxicants with unknown modes of action according to the predictive concepts of Concentration Addition and 
Independent Action, and        
- a framework of biometrical demands for the design of mixture toxicity experiments and the predictive assessment of mixture toxicity in terms of data quality 
and quantity.        
- to explore the options for implementation of predictive mixture toxicity assessment into regulation by:        
- compiling and reviewing existing approaches,        
- developing decision rules for the applicability of the concepts of Concentration Addition and Independent Action,        
- defining a framework for the risk assessment of mixtures of aquatic pollutants,        
- developing protocols for the classification of ecological water quality in relation to mixture fate and effects.
Project Summary: 
BEAM focuses on risk assessment of mixture toxicities resulting  from joint occurrence of environmental pollutants. Its objectives are (i) to provide tools 
for implementation of predictive  combined effect assessment in normative protocols, (ii) to generate instruments allowing for more environmental realism 
in the scientific assessment of complex exposure. The  workpackages interlink innovative multiple exposure identification methodology with advanced fast 
mixture toxicity testing which comprise population and community biotesting? The  experimental results compared with toxicity predictions generated from 
biometrical and chemometrical modeling approaches will allow conceptually based combined  effect  assessments . In conjunction with efforts that investigate 
the options for predictive mixture toxicity risk assessment, several tools will be delivered that shall provide a bridge between the  scientific assessment 
of pollutant mixtures, ecosystem situations and environmental regulations.
Achieved Objectives: 
The three main scientific objectives of the BEAM project were to       
- to achieve more environmental realism in the scientific hazard assessment of complex exposure situations by addressing the following questions       
- to provide new instruments for the assessment of mixture toxicity       
- to explore the options for implementation of predictive mixture toxicity assessment into regulations.       
       
other not public available
Product Descriptions: 
The available publications are:       
T. Backhaus, R. Altenburger, Å. Arrhenius, H. Blanck, F. Consolaro, M. Faust, A. Finizio, P. Gramatica, F. Grönvall, M. Scholze, M. Vighi, H. Walter, L. H. 
Grimme: Bridging the Gap between Science and Regulation of Chemical Mixtures: The 'BEAM' EU Research Project, Poster Presentation at the 3rd SETAC World Congress, 
Brighton, UK, 2000        
       
L. Horst Grimme, Rolf Altenburger, Åsa Arrhenius, Thomas Backhaus, Hans Blanck, Federica Consolaro, Michael Faust, Antonio Finizio, Paola Gramatica, 
Matthias Grothe, Marion Junghans, Manuela Pavan, Martin Scholze, Roberto Todeschini, Marco Vighi, Sara Villa, Helge Walter: Risk Assessment of Chemical 
Mixtures in the Aquatic Environment: An Outline of the BEAM Project EurOcean - 2000; The European Conference on Marine Science and Ocean Technology, Hamburg, 
Germany; Book of Project Synopses, Vol 1: 'Marine Processes, Ecosystems and Interactions', page 219-224, 2000
Additional Information:
Project Resources:

Bridging the Gap between Science and Regulation of Chemical Mixtures: The BEAM EU Research Project

Risk Assessment of Chemical Mixtures in the Aquatic Environment: An Outline of the BEAM Project
Weblink:
http://www.aquatox.uni-bremen.de/beam/
Funding Programme(s): 
EC Framework Programme 5
Link to Organisations:
Submitted by: EUGRIS Team Prof Paul Bardos  Who does what?  03/07/2003 17:48:00
Updated by: EUGRIS Team Professor Paul Bardos  Who does what?  29/09/2006 15:49:00