title: Assessing the environmental fate of chemicals of emerging concern: a case study of the polybrominated diphenyl ethers.
abstract: It is suggested that assessments of chemicals of emerging concern can be rationally structured around a multistage process in which fate and risk are evaluated with increasing accuracy as new data become available. An initial tentative and approximate assessment of fate and risk can identify key data gaps and justify and direct further investigations, which progressively improve the reliability of the assessment. This approach is demonstrated for a class of chemicals, the polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), which is of increasing concern, but about which there is presently a lack of comprehensive data on properties, sources, fate and effects. Specifically, 20 PBDE congeners are investigated using the suggested approach and research needs are identified.
authors.affiliation: Environmental Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Umeå University, Sweden.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Palm
authors.forename: Ian T
authors.initials: IT
authors.lastname: Cousins
authors.forename: Donald
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mackay
authors.forename: Mats
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tysklind
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Metcalfe
authors.forename: Mehran
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alaee
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D006842:Hydrocarbons, Brominated / Q000032:analysis*; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010647:Phenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis*; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D006842:Hydrocarbons, Brominated; D010647:Phenyl Ethers; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls; C086401:pentabromodiphenyl ether