14 DAY TRIAL // Certain watery environments are a bit tricky to analyze, especially when talking about the deep sea, or the frozen lakes buried under hundreds of feet of ice. Additionally, when nanoparticles come into play, it's very difficult to distinguish between the effects that other factors have on the water, and the effect that the tiny constructs do. Understanding exactly how they act on aquatic ecosystems is the goal of a new, three-year study, led by experts at the University of Alberta and the National Research Council of Canada, with a $3.39-million grant.
“Nanotechnology is a very new and quickly developing field. Governments and regulating agencies around the world are seeking solid scientific data upon which to base their regulatory standards. This research will allow the nanotechnology industry to proceed with confidence [in the knowledge] that the environmental safety of their products can be properly assessed. In addition, the companies can use the knowledge gained to properly engineer their products with reduced environmental impact,” the Co-leader of the project, University of Alberta Professor of Biological Sciences Greg Goss, explains the purpose of the research.
Understanding exactly how the small particles interact with those in the aquatic ecosystems is fundamental in creating a nanotechnology industry that does not cripple the ecosystems it comes across, or adversely affect the animals in it. With the new assessment complete, authorities and companies that offer nanotechnology products could draw a set of regulations in common that would ensure this new field of technology is not harmful to us, because, ultimately, nearly every animal in the world is consumed by humans in one form or the other.
“NRC brings its extensive expertise in the development of tools and impact assessment methods to the collaboration. This expertise complements the wide-ranging research experience of our academic and private-sector collaborators,” the Co-leader of the project, Geoffrey Sunahara, adds. He is also the leader of the NRC Biotechnology Research Institute Applied Ecotoxicology Group. Moreover, he explains that the project will work on developing new tools for analyzing the impact of nanoparticles on water, because existing tests are not designed to handle constructs so small.