Ecological Models for Regulatory Risk Assessments of Pesticides: Developing a Strategy for the Future

Bringing together more than thirty influential regulators, academics, and industry scientists, Ecological Models for Regulatory Risk Assessments of Pesticides: Developing a Strategy for the Future provides a coherent, science-based view on ecological modeling for regulatory risk assessments. It discusses the benefits of modeling in the context of registrations, identifies the obstacles that prevent ecological modeling being used routinely in regulatory submissions, and explores the actions needed to overcome these obstacles.

The book focuses on the following issues:


Uncertainties in the process of model development, such as design, analysis, documentation, and communication
The availability of data and background information needed for optimal modeling
The limited knowledge of modeling
The lack of confidence in the outcome of ecological models and their reliability in pesticide risk assessment


It also suggests future solutions to these challenges, including:


A guidance document on the modeling process
Case studies that show how ecological models can provide reliable ecologically relevant risk assessments
Training the people who generate or evaluate results obtained by ecological models


Focusing on ecological models, such as unstructured population models, stage-structured matrix models, and individual- or agent-based models, this volume helps regulatory authorities, manufacturers, and scientists assess the risk of plant protection products in nontarget organisms. Armed with this knowledge, readers will better understand the challenges of using ecological modeling in the regulatory process.

Pernille Thorbek is an ecological modeler at Syngenta.
Valery E. Forbes is head of the Department of Environmental, Social and Spatial Change and professor of aquatic ecology and ecotoxicology at Roskilde University.

Volker Grimm is a senior scientist at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ and teaches at the University of Potsdam.

Fred Heimbach is a consultant scientist at RIFCon GmbH.

Udo Hommen is a senior scientist at the Fraunhofer Institute of Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology.
Hans-Hermann Thulke is a senior scientist at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ.

Paul J. van den Brink is a professor of chemical stress ecology at Wageningen University and a senior research scientist at the Alterra research institute.

Jörn Wogram is a biologist with Germany’s Federal Environment Agency (UBA).

Executive Summary of the LEMTOX Workshop: Lessons Learned and Steps to Be Taken, Volker Grimm, Valery E. Forbes, Fred Heimbach, Pernille Thorbek, Hans Hermann Thulke, Paul J. Van den Brink, Jörn Wogram, and Udo Hommen

Introduction to the LEMTOX Workshop, Pernille Thorbek

Short Introduction to Ecological Modeling, Volker Grimm

Regulatory Challenges for the Potential Use of Ecological Models in Risk Assessments of Plant Protection Products, Jörn Wogram

Development and Use of Matrix Population Models for Estimation of Toxicant Effects in Ecological Risk Assessment, John D. Stark

MASTEP: An Individual-Based Model to Predict Recovery of Aquatic Invertebrates Following Pesticide Stress, Paul J. Van den Brink and J.M. (Hans) Baveco

Incorporating Realism into Ecological Risk Assessment — An ABM Approach, Chris J. Topping, Trine Dalkvist, and Jacob Nabe-Nielsen

Ecological Models Supporting Management of Wildlife Diseases, Hans-Hermann Thulke and Volker Grimm

State of the Art of Ecological Modeling for Pesticide Risk Assessment: A Critical Review, Volker Grimm, Pernille Thorbek, Amelie Schmolke, and Peter Chapman

The Role of Ecological Modeling in Risk Assessments Seen from an Academic’s Point of View, Valery E. Forbes

Potential Role of Population Modeling in the Regulatory Context of Pesticide Authorization, Franz Streissl

Ecological Modeling: An Industry Perspective, Pernille Thorbek, Paul Sweeney, and Ed Pilling

References

Index