Ecotoxicology

Services:

• ecotoxicological tests of chemical substances and mixtures according to the Act on Chemical Substances and Mixtures and for purposes of REACH,
• ecotoxicological tests of waste according to the Act of waste,
• detection of hazardous waste properties E14 Ecotoxicity,
• bacterial toxicity tests,
• monitoring of biodegradability of substances, biological analyzes.

In 2007 EMPLA AG Ltd. received the certificate of the Ministry of the Environment about a compliance of principles of the Good Laboratory Practice (GLP). The company was included into the national GLP program. It applies to the scope of activities: “Ecotoxicity on aquatic and terrestrial organisms, The behavioral study in water, soil and air, bioaccumulation”.
The list of the accredited tests is stated in the attachment “Accreditation Certificate”.

Ecotoxicological tests are used for:

• risk assessment of industrial wastes and sludges, their categorization and detection of their hazardous properties for the environment
• acute toxicity determination of chemical substances and mixtures in terms of harmfulness for the environment
• (Chemical Act, REACH)
• detection of a toxic contamination risk of drinking water, ground water and wastewater
• obtaining of initial information and findings during disasters connected with release of toxic substances into watercources and reservoirs
• municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants of all types (toxicity assessment of the inputs in wastewater treatment plants (WTP), inputs into activation, and outputs from WTP to verify the effectiveness of treatment processes)
• testing of products in order to obtain the “Environmentally Friendly Product”, awarded by the Ministry of the Environment
• special reproductive toxicity test for drinking and surface water – to assess the long-term effects of chemicals in trace concentrations on reproduction of aquatic organisms (Daphnia magna)
• testing of products, that come into a contact with drinking water and have a potential impact on its contamination (e.g. coatings of tanks) as well as packaging materials coming into a direct contact with food

Bacterial toxicity tests are used for:

• rapid toxicity assay of all water types
• screening rapid risk assessment of industrial wastes and sludges
• obtaining of initial information and findings during disasters connected with release of toxic substances into watercources and reservoirs
• monitoring and evaluation of the contamination extent and the hazard rate of old burdens and determination of its toxicity
• assessment of a potential soil contamination, the impact of landfill on the surrounding soil and water
• material processing for risk analysis of industrial plants, landfills, incinerators etc., and their impact on the environment

Monitoring of biodegradability of substances are used for:

• determination of biodegradability of chemical substances and mixtures in terms of harmfulness for the environment
• determination of biodegradability of detergents in the accordance with the ES Regulation on detergents
• testing of products in order to obtain the “Environmentally Friendly Product”, awarded by the Ministry of the Environment
• checkup of decontamination processes (continuous monitoring of biodegradability in natural or model conditions)
• municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants (WTP) of all types (degradation rate assessment of the inputs in WTP and to verify the effectiveness of treatment processes)

Biological analyzes are used for:

• biofouling control of drinking and surface water
• efficiency control of bactericidal or algicidal chemical products
• assessment of a activated sludge quality and checkup of the cleaning efficiency, time delays etc. in municipal wastewater treatment plants
• checkup of wastewater, traffic and cooling water in terms of an ingrowing by biological growths
• checkup of decontamination processes (continuous monitoring of microbial activity during biodegradability in natural or model conditions)

Offered tests
The tests are performed according to the current standards such as OECD, ISO, DIN, the European Community Directive, and Guidelines of the Ministry of the Environment

• acute toxicity test on aquatic vertebrates - fish Poecilia reticulata
• acute toxicity test on aquatic arthropods Daphnia magna
• growth inhibition test on green chlorococcal algae Scenedesmus subspicatus
• root growth inhibition test on seeds of Sinapis alba
• bacterial bioluminescence inhibition test
• assay of nitrification activity and inhibition
• chronic toxicity test on aquatic arthropods Daphnia magna
• degradability assay of organic compounds in aqueous medium – different methods (e.g. the test in sealed vials)
• toxicity test on springtails Folsomia candida
• toxicity test on enchytraeids Enchytraeus crypticus
• growth inhibition test on higher plants - lettice Lactuca sativa
• etc.