Environmental monitoring in soil contamination and remediation programs: how practitioners are using the Internet to share knowledge

Internet listservers provide a means for professionals from all sectors of the industry and profession, to communicate and collaborate with each other , as well as other stakeholders (e.g., suppliers, academics, the general pu blic and community members) in real time. This article highlights key Inter net listservers in the field of environmental monitoring in soil contaminat ion and remediation and how to subscribe to them. The most active and relev ant listservers for environmental scientists, technologists and professiona ls in the soil contamination and remediation profession are the Bioremediat ion Discussion Group (BioGroup), Phytonet, Phytoremediation listserver, Gro undwater listserver and Environmental Forensics listserver. Other observati ons and lessons so far from the use of Internet listservers are: (i) that m oderators provide an important role in maintaining the level of quality and participation, (ii) do not underestimate the knowledge base held within th ese, and (iii) if not selected and managed properly, e-mail from listserver s can generate an excess of e-mail and waste time.