• 한국지하수토양환경학회지:지하수토양환경
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• 제17권5호
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• pp.1-9
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• 2012

The purpose of ecological risk assessment in soil ecosystem is to protect ecological receptors and to provide a scheme of efficient management for soil contaminants. Developed countries have already prepared the methodologies of ecological risk assessment by considering their soil properties, land use, and ecological receptors. In this study, we compared the soil ecological risk assessment processes in the similarity and differences in methodology. Four countries, except for USA, adjusted the toxicological data for ecological risk assessment, based on their representative soil properties because the soil properties affect toxic effects to ecological receptors. The soil ecological risk assessment methodology of Netherlands and UK was based on 'Technical guidance document on risk assessment (TGD)' of European Chemical Bureau (ECB). Australia, USA, and Canada developed their autonomous methodology. In the Netherlands, UK, Australia, and Canada, they employed the species sensitivity distribution (SSD) approach if sufficient toxicity data are available. The USA determined the ecological soil screening level by obtaining the geometric mean of toxicological data for three species. Furthermore, all countries consider secondary poisoning in their soil ecological risk assessment. The latest risk assessment methodology of soil ecosystem that this study investigated can be used to explore what Korea needs to develop the Korean ecological risk assessment methodology of soil ecosystem in the future.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• 제25권2호
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• pp.169-177
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• 2010

Ecological risk assessment (ERA) has been used to establish environmental quality standards or evaluate ecological risk in site-specific areas. The scope of ERA was expanded based on regions, and the concept of regional-scale ecological risk assessment was recently introduced in developed countries. In the present study, regional ERA approaches of relative risk model (RRM), contaminants in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems (CATS) model, and procedure for ecological tired assessment of risks (PETAR) in advanced countries were extensively investigated. Regional ERA was compared with traditional ERA process. Stressors, receptor and response in traditional ERA were replaced with sources of stressors, habitats, and ecological impacts, respectively in regional ERA. This study introduces the concept and assessment process of regional ERA, and provides a wide perspective how the relative ERA could be applied in Korean ecosystem.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• 제18권4호
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• pp.241-246
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• 2013

For effective and efficient environmental management, developed countries, such as the Netherlands, UK, Australia, Canada, and United States apply ecological risk assessment, and they have an autonomous risk assessment methodology to protect native receptors. In this study, soil ecological protective concentration (EPC) of cadmium in Korea was derived using Korean ecological risk assessment methodology. The soil EPC of cadmium was calculated using probabilistic ecological risk assessment based on species sensitivity distribution. The soil EPC was calculated according to land use for residential/agricultural and industrial/commercial purposes. The chronic soil EPCs for residential/agricultural and industrial/commercial lands were derived to be 1.58 and 9.60 mg/kg, respectively. These values were similar to soil EPC of European Commission, the Netherlands, UK, and Canada. However, these values were lower than the established Korean soil standard, because the current soil standard was based on human risk. Therefore, the impact on an ecosystem when establishing environmental standard should be considered.

• 한국물환경학회지
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• 제25권4호
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• pp.494-501
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• 2009

Probabilistic Ecological risk assessment (PERA) is extensive approach to qualify and quantify risk on the multi species based on species sensitivity distribution (SSD). As a while, deterministic ecological risk assessment (DERA) considers the comparison of predicted no-effect concentration (PNEC) and predicted exposure concentration (PEC). DERA is used to determine if there is potential risk or no risk, and it doesn't consider the nature variability and the species sensitivity. But PERA can be more realistic and reasonable approach to estimate likelihood or risk. In this study, we compared PERA used in developed countries, and proposed PERA applicable for the Korean water environment. Taxonomic groups were classified as "class" level including Actinopterygill, Branchiopoda, Chlorophyceae, Maxillapoda, Insects, Bivalvia, Gastropoda, Secernentea, Polychaeta, Monocotyldoneae, and Chanophyceae in this study. Statistical extrapolation method (SEM), statistical extrapolation method $_{acutechronicratio}$ ($SEM_{ACR}$) and assessment factor method (AFM) were used to calculate the ecological protective concentration based on qualitative and quantitative levels of taxonomic toxicity data. This study would be useful to establish the PERA for the protection of aquatic ecosystem in Korea.

• 한국지하수토양환경학회지:지하수토양환경
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• 제15권3호
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• pp.7-14
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• 2010

Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) supports a decision-making process such as establishment of environmental quality criteria. Soil quality criteria (SQC) are essential to protect soil organisms from the exposure to various soil contaminants. In this study, ERA methodologies of advanced countries for soil pollution were extensively compared to propose the ERA approach suitable for soil ecosystem in Korea. The soil ERAs in European Chemical Bureau(ECB), The Netherlands, and Canada can be classified as deterministic ecological risk assessment (DERA), and probabilistic ecological risk assessment (PERA) based on species sensitivity distribution (SSD). We propose three ERA methods according to abundance and reliability of soil ecotoxicity data. The method considered land use such as residential/agricultural, and industrial/commercial uses. The taxonomic groups of soil organism were classified as 'Class' level including different trophic levels (Magnoliopsida or Liliopsida, Clitellata, and Insecta or Secernentea). This study can be used to estimate the soil quality criteria to protect soil biota.

• 한국환경보건학회지
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• 제49권6호
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• pp.334-343
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• 2023

Background: South Korea's Act on Registration and Evaluation, etc. of Chemicals (known as K-REACH) was established to protect public health and the environment from hazardous chemicals. 4,4'-Methylenedianiline (MDA), which is used as a major intermediate in industrial polymer production and as a vulcanizing agent in South Korea, is classified as a toxic substance under the K-REACH act. Although MDA poses potential ecological risks due to industrial emissions and hazards to aquatic ecosystems, no ecological risk assessment has been conducted. Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the ecological risk of MDA by identifying the actual exposure status based on the K-REACH act. Methods: Various toxicity data were collected to establish predicted no effect concentrations (PNECs) for water, sediment, and soil. Using the SimpleBox Korea v2.0 model with domestic release statistical data and EU emission factors, predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) were derived for ten sites, each referring to an MDA-using company. Hazard quotient (HQ) was calculated by ratio of the PECs and PNECs to characterize the ecological risk posed by MDA. To validate the results of modeling-based assessment, concentration of MDA was measured using in-site freshwater samples (two to three samples per site). Results: PNECs for water, sediment, and soil were 0.000525 mg/L, 4.36 mg/kg dw, and 0.1 mg/kg dw, respectively. HQ for surface water and sediment at several company sites exceeded 1 due to modeling data showing markedly high PEC in each environmental compartment. However, in the results of validation using in-site surface water samples, MDA was not detected. Conclusions: Through an ecological risk assessment conducted in accordance with the K-REACH act, the risk level of MDA emitted into the environmental compartments in South Korea was found to be low.

• 한국물환경학회지
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• 제24권5호
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• pp.592-597
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• 2008

Current water quality standard (WQS) in Korea is based on the protection of human health, not considering the protection of aquatic organisms. Most of chemicals can be toxic to ecological biota as well as human. Health of aquatic biota is closely related to the human health via food chain, therefore ecological risk based-WQS needs to be developed to protect the aquatic ecosystem. In this study, we selected the 31 chemicals in the Project entitled 'Development of integrated methodology for evaluation of water environment'. The methodology for calculating water quality criteria was derived from the Australian and New Zealand processes for deriving guideline trigger value for aquatic ecosystem. The available ecotoxicity data were collected from US EPA's ECOTOXicology Database (ECOTOX), TOX-2000 Database, European Chemicals Bureau (ECB)'s International Uniform Chemical Information Database (IUCLID) and Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA)'s report 'Ambient Water Quality Criteria (AWQC)'. The aquatic toxicity data for the Korean species were selected for risk assessment to reflect the Korean water environment. The monitoring values were calculated from the water quality monitoring data four main Korean rivers. We suggested the order of priorities of chemicals based on ecological risk assessment. We expect that these results can be useful information for establishing the WQS for the protection of aquatic ecosystem.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• 제24권4호
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• pp.271-286
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• 2009

This internet search was made to collect background information for a short-term training proposal for securing a national critical mass in ecological risk assessment the need of which is drastically increasing in every sector of Korean society due to the advent of new environmental regulations in industrialized countries, such as EU REACH. This study depended mainly on internet search engines and individual home pages of concerned universities, colleges, and organizations involved in short-term training. Out of lecture titles and syllabus of 200 Korean universities, 86 Japanese national universities, and numerous English speaking educational and training institutions in the world, 60 syllabi were selected and analysed for comparison purpose. Conclusion from the analysis is as follows: Firstly, individual component lectures for ecological risk assessment is provided at different departments in Korea, but no lecture is at present given under the sole title of ecological risk assessment. Secondly, several lectures under the title of ecological risk assessment are open in English-speaking industrialized countries. Lectures as well as technical training and field studies are emphasized in those courses. Lecturers from the regulatory authorities are also involved in those courses. Several short-term training courses are also under operation. Thirdly, it was concluded that the difference in the level of education/training in ecological risk assessment is originated from the substantive requirement of ecological risk in the concerned laws and regulations. Therefore, it is suggested that training of domestic man power in this area is urgent to cope with the industrial pressure imposed by the environmental regulations concerned with chemicals/articles import and export from/to industrialized countries and also to upgrade the domestic laws and regulations.

• 한국환경보건학회지
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• 제43권5호
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• pp.412-421
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• 2017

Objectives: To establish a system for integrated risk assessment of EDCs in Korea, infrastructure for providing toxicity data of ecological media should be established. Some systems provide soil ecotoxicity databases along with aquatic ecotoxicity information, but a well-structured ecotoxicity database system is still lacking. Methods: Aquatic and soil ecotoxicological information were collected by a toxicologist based on a human readable data (HRD) format for collecting ecotoxicity data that we provided. Among these data, anomalies were removed according to database normalization theory. Also, the data were cleaned and encoded to establish a machine-readable data (MRD) ecotoxicity database system. Results: We have developed a multi-purpose ecotoxicity database model focusing on EDCs, ecological species, and toxic effects. Also, we have constructed a web-based data searching system to retrieve, extract, and download data with greater availability. Conclusions: The results of our study will contribute to decision-making as a tool for efficient ecological risk assessment of EDCs in Korea.

• 환경영향평가
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• 제27권1호
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• pp.33-55
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• 2018

생물다양성 감소의 가장 주요한 원인으로 외래생물의 유입이 지적되고 있으며, 특히 침입외래종으로 인한 서식지 파괴, 경제적 손실, 인체 피해 등이 가속화되고 있다. 국내에 유입된 외래생물은 2167종으로 생태계위해성평가를 통해 위해성이 높은 꽃매미(Lycorma delicatula), 붉은불개미(Solenopsis invicta), 뉴트리아(Myocastor coypus), 갯줄풀(Spartina alterniflora) 등 21종이 생태계교란 생물로 지정되어 있다. 국내에 유입될 경우 생태계에 부정적인 영향을 줄 수 있는 위해우려종은 생태계위해성심사를 통해 127종이 지정되어 있다. 이처럼 외래생물을 목록화하여 유입을 사전에 예방하고, 유입된 외래생물에 대한 피해를 최소화하기 위해 생물다양성 보전 및 이용에 관한 법률이라는 국가차원의 관리제도가 마련되었으나, 위험도에 따른 체계적인 관리체계 구축이 부족한 실정이며, 위해성 예측시 평가기준 및 분류군별 생태적 특성을 반영한 위해성평가표가 개발되어야 할 것이다.