Environmental exposure to wood preservatives

IRG/WP 00-50165

R-D Peek

The OECD Working Group on Pesticides will hold a workshop on Assessing Environmental Exposure to Wood Preservatives within the context of its Biocides Programme (cf. IRG/WP 99-20182). In the area of risk assessment, OECD countries have given highest priority to developing guidance on how exposure assessments for biocides should be performed. Wood preservatives have been selected since most countries have experience in regulating them. The workshop will cover environmental exposure resulting from professional and non-professional use during: ·the application of wood preservatives to treat wood, including the storage of treated timber prior to use; ·the use of the treated wood and products made from it; ·disposal (including burning, dumping, etc) and re-use/recycling. The workshop will also cover emissions to air, water/sediments and soil, as well as fate and behaviour in those compartments including exposure through the food chain. Regarding exposure via the food chain, the principal focus will be on secondary poisoning in the environment (e.g. worm-eating birds), although the potential for human exposure via the environment (e.g. via groundwater) may be also addressed to a limited extent. Since the outcome of the OECD workshop has a large potential of influencing wood preservation environmental research in the IRG member countries, a report will be given about the consequences of the OECD activities with special focus on the future objectives of IRG Section 5.


Keywords: OECD; ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE

Conference: 00-05-14/19 Kona, Hawaii, USA


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