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Reflections on Monitoring and Risk Assessment of Emerging Contaminants in China
Summary
This paper reviews China's evolving approach to monitoring and regulating emerging contaminants including microplastics, antibiotic resistance genes, and endocrine disruptors, describing the Ministry of Ecology's 2023 priority list.
In recent years, with the rapid development of China's industry, the risks of new pollutants have become increasingly apparent. From China's long-standing emphasis on "attaching importance to the governance of new pollutants" to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment's issuance of the "List of Key Controlled New Pollutants (2023 Edition)" in conjunction with relevant departments, screening, monitoring, and risk assessment of new pollutants in China have become particularly important. This article mainly introduces the continuous progress China has made in screening and identifying strategies and analytical methodologies, developing research strategies from "substance to risk" and "risk to substance", and building a high-throughput multifunctional group toxicity analysis system (ITA). It also establishes a methodological framework for evaluating the environmental behavior of potential pollutants. Currently, there are four types of new pollutants that have received widespread attention internationally, including persistent organic pollutants, endocrine disruptors, antibiotics, and microplastics. According to China's current research status and development trends of new pollutants, combined with the latest research progress on new pollutants, several reflections and suggestions are proposed, including strengthening research and technical exchanges on new pollutants, improving the investigation and monitoring technology system, improving laws and regulations, and establishing a sound standard and specification system.
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