RIVM role

RIVM took a leading role in an Integrated Project under EU European Union (European Union) Sixth Framework Programme and entitled Models for Assessing and Forecasting the Impact of Environmental Key Pollutants on Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems and Biodiversity. This project was in line with the European Water Framework Directive (WFD) demands good ecological status of European surface waters by 2015.

Chemical stress due to environmental pollutants is one of the main causes of deterioration of ecological status and reduced biodiversity of freshwater and marine ecosystems. However, reliable diagnosis, prediction and forecasting of toxic impacts on aquatic ecosystems and efficient mitigation of toxic risks demand identification of respective stressors and reliable cause-effect relationships between chemical pollution and biodiversity deterioration. Gaps in knowledge impede evaluation and mitigation of the causes of ecological deterioration of many aquatic ecosystems. MODELKEY was designed to bridge these knowledge gaps.

Outcomes

Read more about MODELKEY and the key findings and recommendations for reaching the EU water framework directive's quality objectives.