Ecotoxicology
The term ecotoxicology was coined by René Truhaut in 1969 who defined it as "the branch of toxicology concerned with the study of toxic effects, caused by natural or synthetic pollutants, to the constituents of ecosystems, animal (including human), vegetable and microbial, in an integral context” (Truhaut, 1977).
Ecotoxicology is the integration of toxicology and ecology or, as Chapman (2002) suggested, “ecology in the presence of toxicants”. It aims to quantify the effects of stressors upon natural populations, communities, or ecosystems. Ecotoxicology differs from environmental toxicology in that it integrates the effects of stressors across all levels of biological organisation from the molecular to whole communities and ecosystems, whereas environmental toxicology focuses upon effects at the level of the individual and below (Maltby & Naylor, 1990). This broader remit is distinct from the anthropocentric nature of classical toxicology and the legislative approach of environmental toxicology. Ecotoxicology incorporates aspects of ecology, toxicology, physiology, molecular biology, analytical chemistry and many other disciplines. The ultimate goal of this approach is to be able to predict the effects of pollution so that the most efficient and effective action to prevent or remediate any detrimental effect can be identified. In those ecosystems that are already impacted by pollution ecotoxicological studies can inform as to the best course of action to restore ecosystem services and functions efficiently and effectively.
History
The publication in 1962 of Rachel Carson's seminal volume, Silent Spring catalysed the separation of environmental toxicology - and, subsequently, ecotoxicology - from classical toxicology. The revolutionary element in Carson's work was her extrapolation from single-organism effects to effects at the whole ecosystem and the "balance of nature" (Bazerman et al, 2006).
Although initially devoted to the study of anthropogenic toxicants the term is now used to describe research into the ecological effects of diverse abiotic and biotic stresses. Thereby integrating secondary effects of anthropogenic activities such as ocean acidification resulting from increased dissolution of carbon dioxide into the surface waters of the oceans (Harley et al., 2006). It has been proposed that this broadening of focus from purely toxicological effects to the consideration of more general stressors moves beyond the definition of "ecotoxicology". Van Straalen (2003) in particular, argued that the field had diversified to become Stress Ecology and that, as the effects of anthropogenic toxicants compound existing, natural stressors, exclusive study of their effects in an ecological context was nonsensical. Whilst this proposal is well argued, it is odd of Van Straalen to have specified solely "ecology" as the field when the original field of ecotoxicology was intended to cover all levels of biological organisation from molecular-level causes to ecosystem-level effects. Therefore the term Stress Biology would seem more appropriate.
See also
References
- Bazerman, Charles and René Agustin De los Santos. "Measuring Incommensurability: Are toxicology and ecotoxicology blind to what the other sees?" 9 January 2006.
- Chapman, P. M. 2002, "Integrating toxicology and ecology: putting the "eco" into ecotoxicology", Marine Pollution Bulletin, vol. 44, no. 1, pp. 7-15.
- Harley et al (2006). The impacts of climate change in coastal marine systems. Ecology Letters Vol. 9 Issue 2, Pages 228 - 241
- Maltby L., Naylor C. (1990). Preliminary Observations on the Ecological Relevance of the Gammarus `Scope for Growth' Assay: Effect of Zinc on Reproduction - Functional Ecology, Vol. 4, No. 3, New Horizons in Ecotoxicology (1990), pp. 393-397
- Truhaut, R. 1977, "Eco-Toxicology - Objectives, Principles and Perspectives", Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 151-173.
- Van Straalen N. (2003). Ecotoxicology becomes Stress Ecology. Environmental Science & Technology vol. 37 pp. 324A-329A