The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) document No. 54 provides assistance on the statistical analysis of ecotoxicity data to ensure scientifically robust and globally harmonized evaluations of biotests across various regions and regulatory sectors. However, some of the recommended methodologies are outdated due to significant advances in statistical techniques and regulatory requirements. In addition, practitioners have been calling for a more user-friendly structure, aiming to facilitate data analysis for users without extensive statistical expertise. To address these concerns, a research project was initiated by the German Environment Agency with the aim to update OECD No. 54. As part of this project, a dedicated workshop was convened to gather expert perspectives from different sectors (incl. academic, industry, and regulators) on revision needs of OECD No. 54 aiming to better reflect current scientific and regulatory standards. Key debates of the workshop included restructuring the document to improve user accessibility, clarifying terminology, addressing methodological gaps such as assessment approaches for ordinal and count data, and incorporating state-of-the-art modeling approaches for time-dependent toxicity assessment. In addition, the integration of modern statistical practices in hypothesis testing and the provision of clearer guidance on model selection for dose–response analyses were identified as crucial needs for updating OECD No. 54. This synthesis captures the workshop’s contributions and recommendations, outlining a roadmap for the revision of OECD No. 54, and highlights the ongoing collaboration with an ISO working group to ensure consistency of standards across regulatory frameworks. © The Author(s) 2025.
This conference summary proposes general goals and associated actions for a collaborative effort amongst European countries to address the problem of soil contamination by perfluorinated and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS). It reflects the discussions during the international conference “PFAS in soil – forever pollution, forever concern?” taking place in Berlin/Germany on 25th and 26th of March 2025. The five general goals derived from the discussions suggest to: (i) Strictly prevent future PFAS immissions into soils, (ii) Systematically identify PFAS-contaminated sites, (iii) Provide a powerful fit-for-routine chemical analysis of PFAS in soil, (iv) Establish effective management strategies for PFAS-contaminated sites and (v) Minimize human PFAS exposure via soil (food, feed, drinking water, direct contact). © The Author(s) 2026.
Die nanospezifischen Informationsanforderungen in der REACH-Verordnung (EG) Nr. 1907/2006 gelten nun seit etwas mehr als fünf Jahren. Aus diesem Grund wurden die Bundesoberbehörden vom BMUKN im Rahmen der Fachaufsicht gebeten, Bilanz zu ziehen. In den Blick genommen werden sollten dabei die mit den neuen Regelungen gemachten praktischen Erfahrungen, was lief gut - was weniger gut? Zusammengefasst kann festgehalten werden, dass die neu eingeführten nanospezifischen Informationsanforderungen ein guter erster Schritt waren, um die Datenlage zu Stoffen in Nanoform zu verbessern, die die Grundlage für eine Risikobewertung bildet. Die Erfahrungen haben aber gezeigt, dass weiterer Anpassungsbedarf zu den Regelungen für nanoskalige Stoffe besteht. Der Bericht beinhaltet hierzu ebenfalls konkrete Vorschläge. © Bundesanstalt für Arbeitsschutz und Arbeitsmedizin