UNIFORM SYSTEM FOR THE EVALUATION OF SUBSTANCES .1. PRINCIPLES AND STRUCTURE

In April 1994, the first version of the Uniform System for the Evaluat ion of Substances (USES 1.0) was launched to comply with an action poi nt of the Netherlands National Environmental Policy Plan. USES is a to ol for the rapid, quantitative assessment of the hazards and risks of chemical substances, including new substances, existing substances, ag ricultural pesticides and biocides. It was developed to be applied as a decision-support system by the central government, by industry and i nstitutes in the private sector and by international fora. Since hazar d and risk assessment must be transparent to all users and easy to per form, USES 1.0 is well documented and available as a computer program. An overview of this system will be presented including its objectives , the national and international framework, the general principles inv olved, as well as the structure and the content of the models used.