Situation in the Netherlands remains concerning In the week from 10 to 16 March, 39,527 people received a positive test result for COVID-19, nearly 25% more than in the week before that. The reproduction number completely above 1 this week. Sander Koning
Prospects not looking good yet The number of people who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 increased by 20% last week. The number of people who tested positive rose by 7%. The reproduction number also rose above 1.
Care workers in nursing homes and small-scale residential facilities invited for COVID-19 vaccination starting today As of today, the ca. 269,000 care workers of nursing homes and small-scale residential facilities in the Netherlands are invited to make an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccination.
EU air policy gives an average of 6 extra years of life in the Netherlands Since the 1970s, European policies to improve air quality have resulted in fewer emissions in many countries.
Dutch air quality shows little improvement in 2017 In 2017, concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter in most parts of the Netherlands were below European limit values.
Discussion regarding health-based guidance value of PFOA The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a provisional health-based guidance value for perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).
Research: HPV vaccine is safe RIVM research shows no causal link between the vaccine against cervical cancer (HPV) and long-term fatigue symptoms in girls.
Rubber granulate on synthetic turf fields causes environmental impact Use of rubber granulate sourced from car tyres, on synthetic turf fields can be harmful to the environment in the close vicinity of these fields.
Climate change, ozone depletion and air quality need to be addressed coherently Ozone layer depletion, air pollution and climate change need to be addressed in connection with each other.
Scientific background information on rubber granulate now available in English In December 2016, RIVM published in Dutch the results of its research into the health risks of playing sports on synthetic turf pitches with rubber granulate.