United Kingdom dredge disposal returns data, and associated disposal site dataset, for meeting obligations under OSPAR and London Convention/London Protocol.

This paper describes the data that is collected and analysed annually by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas), on behalf of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) and Jersey, Guernsey, and Isle of Man. The respective regulatory authorities provide data on the permits to dispose of dredged material that have been issued in a reporting year (January to December) as well as the amount of material that has been disposed within designated disposal sites within the same reporting year. The data are analysed to determine the contaminant loading that is placed at the respective disposal sites.

Susceptibility of Garden Plants to Phytophthora Root Rot.

Phytophthora root rot (PRR) is a serious disease of horticultural, forest, and ornamental plant species caused by species of the oomycete genus . Their wide host range makes the choice of resistant plants in the management of the disease difficult. We used the Royal Horticultural Society diagnostic dataset of PRR records from U.

Biosafety of GM Crop Plants Expressing dsRNA: Data Requirements and EU Regulatory Considerations.

The use of RNA interference (RNAi) enables the silencing of target genes in plants or plant-dwelling organisms, through the production of double stranded RNA (dsRNA) resulting in altered plant characteristics. Expression of properly synthesized dsRNAs in plants can lead to improved crop quality characteristics or exploit new mechanisms with activity against plant pests and pathogens. Genetically modified (GM) crops exhibiting resistance to viruses or insects expression of dsRNA have received authorization for cultivation outside Europe.

Susceptibility of Garden Trees and Shrubs to Armillaria Root Rot.

Armillaria root rot (ARR) is a serious disease of woody plants caused by several species of . isolates from diagnostic samples received in 2017 were identified by genus- and species-specific PCR and compared with isolates from an earlier survey (2004 to 2007). The results were comparable and, therefore, were combined for further analysis.

Shades of grey: Marine litter research developments in Europe.

European research efforts to address concerns in relation to increasing levels of marine litter and potential effects on ecosystems and human health have been launched. We assessed a total of 52 European projects which researched or contributed to the implementation of European marine litter legislation. These projects ranged from national initiatives, to large scale programmes involving multiple EU member states.

Response to Kruse-Plass et al. (2017) regarding the risk to non-target lepidopteran larvae exposed to pollen from one or more of three Bt maize events (MON810, Bt11 and 1507).

We respond to the paper of Kruse-Plass et al. (Environ Sci Eur 29:12, 2017), published in this journal, regarding the risk to non-target lepidopteran larvae exposed to pollen from one or more of three Bt maize events (MON810, Bt11 and 1507). We emphasise that what is important for environmental risk assessment is not the number of pollen grains per se, but the degree of exposure of a NT lepidopteran larva to Bt protein contained in maize pollen.

Assessing environmental impacts of genetically modified plants on non-target organisms: The relevance of in planta studies.

In legal frameworks worldwide, genetically modified plants (GMPs) are subjected to pre-market environmental risk assessment (ERA) with the aim of identifying potential effects on the environment. In the European Union, the EFSA Guidance Document introduces the rationale that GMPs, as well as their newly produced metabolites, represent the potential stressor to be evaluated during ERA. As a consequence, during several phases of ERA for cultivation purposes, it is considered necessary to use whole plants or plant parts in experimental protocols.

90-day rodent feeding studies on whole GM food/feed: Is the mandatory EU requirement for 90-day rodent feeding studies on whole GM food/feed fit for purpose and consistent with animal welfare ethics?

New EU regulation requires mandatory 90‐day rat feeding studies on whole GM feed to identify unintended hazards with GM food. However, these studies are not only unlikely to fulfil their purpose but are also inconsistent with EU policies to improve animal welfare in research. [Image: see text]

Cereal aphid colony turnover and persistence in winter wheat.

An understanding of spatial and temporal processes in agricultural ecosystems provides a basis for rational decision-making with regards to the management and husbandry of crops, supporting the implementation of integrated farming strategies. In this study we investigated the spatial and temporal distribution of aphid pests (Sitobion avenae and Metopolophium dirhodum) within winter wheat fields. Using an intensive sampling programme we investigated distributions at both the small (single shoot) and large (field) scales.

EFSA's scientific activities and achievements on the risk assessment of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) during its first decade of existence: looking back and ahead.

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and derived food and feed products are subject to a risk analysis and regulatory approval before they can enter the market in the European Union (EU). In this risk analysis process, the role of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which was created in 2002 in response to multiple food crises, is to independently assess and provide scientific advice to risk managers on any possible risks that the use of GMOs may pose to human and animal health and the environment. EFSA's scientific advice is elaborated by its GMO Panel with the scientific support of several working groups and EFSA's GMO Unit.

Estimating the effects of Cry1F Bt-maize pollen on non-target Lepidoptera using a mathematical model of exposure.

In farmland biodiversity, a potential risk to the larvae of non-target Lepidoptera from genetically modified (GM) Bt-maize expressing insecticidal Cry1 proteins is the ingestion of harmful amounts of pollen deposited on their host plants. A previous mathematical model of exposure quantified this risk for Cry1Ab protein. We extend this model to quantify the risk for sensitive species exposed to pollen containing Cry1F protein from maize event 1507 and to provide recommendations for management to mitigate this risk.

Feral genetically modified herbicide tolerant oilseed rape from seed import spills: are concerns scientifically justified?

One of the concerns surrounding the import (for food and feed uses or processing) of genetically modified herbicide tolerant (GMHT) oilseed rape is that, through seed spillage, the herbicide tolerance (HT) trait will escape into agricultural or semi-natural habitats, causing environmental or economic problems. Based on these concerns, three EU countries have invoked national safeguard clauses to ban the marketing of specific GMHT oilseed rape events on their territory. However, the scientific basis for the environmental and economic concerns posed by feral GMHT oilseed rape resulting from seed import spills is debatable.

A statistical assessment of differences and equivalences between genetically modified and reference plant varieties.

Background: Safety assessment of genetically modified organisms is currently often performed by comparative evaluation. However, natural variation of plant characteristics between commercial varieties is usually not considered explicitly in the statistical computations underlying the assessment.

Results: Statistical methods are described for the assessment of the difference between a genetically modified (GM) plant variety and a conventional non-GM counterpart, and for the assessment of the equivalence between the GM variety and a group of reference plant varieties which have a history of safe use.

Statistical aspects of environmental risk assessment of GM plants for effects on non-target organisms.

Previous European guidance for environmental risk assessment of genetically modified plants emphasized the concepts of statistical power but provided no explicit requirements for the provision of statistical power analyses. Similarly, whilst the need for good experimental designs was stressed, no minimum guidelines were set for replication or sample sizes. Furthermore, although substantial equivalence was stressed as central to risk assessment, no means of quantification of this concept was given.

Monoclonal antibodies reveal changes in predator efficiency with prey spatial pattern.

Spatially explicit predator-prey interactions can alter the predatory potential of natural enemies augmented through conservation biological control. To test hypotheses regarding such interactions and predatory efficiency, we used a combination of molecular techniques and mark-release-recapture to study the foraging behaviour of a generalist carabid predator, Poecilus cupreus, in response to spatial patterns of its cereal aphid prey (Metapolophium dirhodum and Sitobion avenae). Beetle and aphid numbers were measured across two grids of sampling locations, within which aphid spatial pattern had been manipulated to generate patchy and more homogenous distributions.

National-scale metacommunity dynamics of carabid beetles in UK farmland.

1. Understanding the wide-scale processes controlling communities across multiple sites is a foremost challenge of modern ecology. Here, data from a nation-wide network of field sites are used to describe the metacommunity dynamics of arable carabid beetles.

Weed seed resources for birds in fields with contrasting conventional and genetically modified herbicide-tolerant crops.

The UK Farm Scale Evaluations (FSEs) have shown that the use of broad spectrum herbicides on genetically modified herbicide-tolerant (GMHT) crops can have dramatic effects on weed seed production compared to management of conventional varieties. Here, we use FSE data and information on bird diets to determine how GMHT cropping might change the food resources available to farmland birds. More than 60 fields of each of four crops, spring- and winter-sown oilseed rape, beet and maize, were split, one half being sown with a conventional variety, the other with a GMHT variety.

Farm Scale Evaluations of spring-sown genetically modified herbicide-tolerant crops: a statistical assessment.

Primary results from the Farm Scale Evaluations (FSEs) of spring-sown genetically modified herbicide-tolerant crops were published in 2003. We provide a statistical assessment of the results for count data, addressing issues of sample size (n), efficiency, power, statistical significance, variability and model selection. Treatment effects were consistent between rare and abundant species.

Invertebrate biodiversity in maize following withdrawal of triazine herbicides.

Responses of key invertebrates within Farm Scale Evaluations (FSEs) of maize reflected advantageous effects for weeds under genetically modified herbicide-tolerant (GMHT) management. Triazine herbicides constitute the main weed control in current conventional systems, but will be withdrawn under future EU guidelines. Here, we reappraise FSE data to predict effects of this withdrawal on invertebrate biodiversity under alternative management scenarios.

Effects on weed and invertebrate abundance and diversity of herbicide management in genetically modified herbicide-tolerant winter-sown oilseed rape.

We evaluated the effects of the herbicide management associated with genetically modified herbicide-tolerant (GMHT) winter oilseed rape (WOSR) on weed and invertebrate abundance and diversity by testing the null hypotheses that there is no difference between the effects of herbicide management of GMHT WOSR and that of comparable conventional varieties. For total weeds, there were few treatment differences between GMHT and conventional cropping, but large and opposite treatment effects were observed for dicots and monocots. In the GMHT treatment, there were fewer dicots and monocots than in conventional crops.

Sensitive dependencies and separation distances for genetically modified herbicide-tolerant crops.

The amount of land available for the coexistent growing of both organic and genetically modified herbicide-tolerant (GMHT) crops depends on the separation distance between the two types of crop. The form of the decline in the proportion of land available for growing one of these crop types due to increasing separation distance is linear on a suitable scale, but with a slope and intercept that are sensitively dependent on the proportion of the other crop already present. Spatially explicit simulations from realistic scenarios indicate that a major increase in separation distances, currently under review by the UK government, may have serious implications for the future coexistence of organic and GMHT crops in the UK.

Density dependence, population persistence, and largely futile arguments.

Wolda and Dennis (1993) suggest that no valid conclusions about population regulation can be drawn on the basis of statistical tests of density dependence in time series data of population abundance. They give some examples in which a 'population' persists even if it is not regulated by a density-dependent process: a sequence of independent, identically distributed random variables, the numbers of the migrant moth Autographa gamma in Britain, annual rainfall data. We suggest that such time series data may show persistence because of a static constraint, which compels the numbers to remain within finite, positive limits, or to fit some prescribed distribution.