The exposure assessment for veterinary medicinal products

The proposed methodology for the assessment of the environmental risks of t he use of veterinary medicinal products is the hazard quotient approach. Th is article will elaborate on the exposure assessment with exposure models a dapted to the Dutch agricultural situation. Based on the exposure assessmen t, decisions are made on the acceptability of the environmental risk of a p roduct. Therefore, regulatory authorities have to be careful in choosing ex posure scenarios. It will be shown that simple alterations of general model s with an eye for common agricultural practice change predicted exposure co ncentrations by a factor of 2-40. In addition, the current proposals for ef fect assessment are too diverse, and the triggers that lead to further exte nsive testing are either useless, or at the least inconsistent with each ot her. An interdisciplinary approach using knowledge of veterinary and agricu ltural practice, risk management, and environmental toxicology and chemistr y, is needed to determine relevant exposure scenarios. (C) 1999 Elsevier Sc ience B.V. All rights reserved.