State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution (City University of Hong Kong) leading an international team to identify priority research questions and address pressing environmental and health issues in Asia
Involved Member: Prof. Kenneth Mei Yee LEUNG
Asia is a home for around 4.6 billion people, making up more than half of the world’s population of 7.8 billion in 2020 and putting enormous pressure on natural resource and the environment. The United Nations have predicted that Asia will become the leading generator of global municipal solid waste by 2030. Air, soil and water pollution as well as food safety are consistently great challenges in this region.
The Global Horizon Scanning Project (GHSP) was launched in 2015 by the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) to identify top priority environmental quality and health issues around the world. This project has been carried out in Europe, Latin America, North America, and Oceania. This Asian effort and associated publication were recently accomplished.
The SETAC Asia-Pacific Geographic Unit consists of over 500 professional members working in environmental science, environmental engineering, environmental public health and management, as well as sustainable use of chemicals. As part of the GHSP, members of SETAC Asia-Pacific Geographic Unit were invited to suggest top priority research questions in these fields. Through a rigorous social science process, a multidisciplinary team of Asian researchers, government agencies and businesses leaders jointly identified 23 priority research questions for Asia with a view to tackling these pressing environmental quality issues and achieving sustainability in this region (Image 1; Table 1).
The results of this international effort have been published in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Professor Kenneth Leung Mei Yee, Director of State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution (SKLMP), Chair Professor of Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, is one of the leaders for this important Asian endeavour. Leung states that, “With the growing population and pollution problems in Asia, our environments are facing unprecedented challenges that require innovative and integrative solutions through environmental policy, science and technology. Outcomes of this Asia GHSP will beneficially inform the researchers, funding agencies, and regulatory authorities regarding key research priorities and knowledge gaps in the region. We hope that our efforts will help accelerate the establishment of practical solutions for improving the environmental quality and promoting sustainability in Asia.” His sentiments concerning the impact of the GHSP effort are shared by others.
“The priority questions presented by Leung et al. (2020) create a timely and important research roadmap towards achieving more sustainable environmental quality, which is necessary as we work together to protect human health, biodiversity and ecosystem services.” remarked by Professor Bryan Brooks, Distinguished Professor of Environmental Science and Biomedical Studies at Baylor University in the US, who has shepherded the GHSP.
“SETAC is very proud to have supported this international project. This publication by SETAC Asia-Pacific members is very timely and gives direction for future research. I hope their outcomes will turn into tangible solutions like environmental policy and international collaboration” said Dr. Charles Menzie, Global Executive Director of SETAC.
“Many of the identified research questions address the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, while some questions are specific for the Asian region. Our efforts pave the way for resolving the regional environmental problems. I also hope this initiative will escalate more international collaboration.” supplemented by Professor Jing You, School of Environment, Jinan University in China, and the President of SETAC Asia-Pacific Geographic Unit.
Professor Paul Lam, Former Director of SKLMP and Jeanie Hu Chair Professor of Science, City University of Hong Kong congratulated this international project. Lam added “Answering these priority research questions will not be easy, but this is prerequisite to achieve more sustainable environmental quality in Asia. I am very glad that our SKLMP has been part of this vital process.”
The published article:
Leung, K.M.Y., Yeung, K.W.Y., You, J., Choi, K.H., Zhang, X.W., Smith, R., Zhou, G.J., Yung, M.M.N., Arias-Barreiro, C., An, Y.J., Burket, S.R., Dwyer, R., Goodkin, N., Hii, Y.S., Hoang, T., Humphrey, C., Iwai, C.B., Jeong, S.W., Juhel, G., Karami, A., Kyriazi-Huber, K., Lee, K.C., Lin, B.L., Lu, B., Martin, P., Nillos, M.G., Oginawati, K., Rathnayake, I.V.N., Risjani, Y., Shoeb, M., Tan, C.H., Tsuchiya, M.C., Ankley, G.T., Boxall, A.B.A., Rudd, M.A., Brooks, B.W. (2020). Towards sustainable environmental quality: Priority research questions for Asia. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 39(8), 1485-1505. Link to the article: https://setac.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/etc.4788
| Table 1: The 23 priority questions identified by the Asian GHSP among four themes. | |
| 1 | How do we develop broad screen analytical methods integrating non-target directed analysis for identifying key chemical stressors responsible for observed toxicity? |
| 2 | How do we develop methods to identify and quantify nano- and microplastics in different environmental compartments (water, sediment, soil, biota) associated with potential toxicity or interactions with other contaminants? |
| 3 | What are the terrestrial and aquatic risks of atmospheric contaminants in Asia? |
| 4 | How can we improve methods to classify, identify and separate nano-materials contaminants from their bulk counterparts and differentiate effects caused by nano-materials in the environment? |
| 5 | How can we better use field data and incorporate new big data (e.g., ecological genome) approaches for improving ecological risk assessments and decision making? |
| 6 | How can we develop and advance laboratory (e.g., in vitro, in vivo, analytical) and theoretical (toxicokinetic, toxicodynamic) approaches to understand (prospective, retrospective) adverse outcomes of complex chemical mixtures (e.g., pesticides, surfactants, medicines, metals)? |
| 7 | How we can improve the current approaches to assess and manage risks of micro-pollutants and emerging contaminants? |
| 8 | How can we integrate high throughput screening with next generation computational toxicology tools to support hazard and risk assessment of individual chemicals and complex mixtures? |
| 9 | How can we develop advanced biological tools to better understand and predict toxic mechanisms and interactions across species in multiple highly biodiverse compartments for risk assessment and management of chemical contaminants in Asia? |
| 10 | How can we analyse big data and develop effective risk communication approaches (e.g., report card system, real-time reporting) for environmental status (e.g., ecosystem functions and services)? |
| 11 | How can we use new developments in nanoscience and nanotechnology to advance ecotoxicological research? |
| 12 | How can we strengthen the environmental quality criteria system (e.g., water, sediment, soil, air) to adequately protect ecosystems that are experiencing multiple stressors and changing climate? |
| 13 | What are the influences of changing landscapes and climate change on the resilience of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and how do we measure the ecological endpoints with reference to chemical pollution? |
| 14 | How can we develop an integrative and effective framework (e.g., environmental policy, green technologies) to manage nutrient loading and associated hypoxia in Asia? |
| 15 | How will changes to physicochemical characteristics (e.g., salinization/ion imbalance, pH, temperature, hypoxia due to enrichment) alter bioavailability and effects of chemical stressors in the environment? |
| 16 | How can we prioritize and apportion chemical stressors in complex scenarios to guide restoration efforts? |
| 17 | How can we identify adverse impacts of multiple stressors in the field to biodiversity (including multigenerational, evolutionary, and developmental), ecosystem services, and human health? |
| 18 | To what extent is seawater pH in South-East Asia impacted by terrestrial inputs (e.g., organic carbon, nutrients, other anthropogenic sources such as mining), how are these inputs changing due to human activities (including CO2), and how does this affect vulnerable coastal ecosystems such as coral reefs? |
| 19 | How can we develop new technology and promote green chemistry for enhancing reuse of waste and preventing environmental impacts? |
| 20 | Given increasing population growth and per capita demand for seafood in Asia, how can we develop sustainable aquaculture practices while protecting environmental quality, particularly in coastal waters? |
| 21 | How can we develop innovative solid waste management programs to protect environmental quality, particularly in rural areas of less developed regions in Asia? |
| 22 | What is the extent of antibiotic pollution in the environment and associated risks of antibiotic resistance in rural and urban regions of Asia? |
| 23 |
How can we develop sustainable development frameworks (e.g., green chemistry) to address, balance and manage the production (e.g., food production, forestry) and protection of ecosystem services? |
Image 1: A multidisciplinary team of Asian researchers, government agencies and businesses leaders
jointly identified 23 priority research questions for Asia via the GHSP
