Criticità connesse all'applicazione della nuova Direttiva 2013/39/UE sulle sostanze prioritarie negli ambienti acquatici

The Directive 2013/39/EU of the European Parliament and of the European Union Council of 12 august 2013 amending Directives 2000/60/EC and 2008/105/EC as regards priority substances in the field of water policy sets out environmental quality standards (EQS) for 12 new substances belonging to different classes of chemicals as pesticides (dicofol, quinoxyfen, aclonifen, bifenox, cypermethrin, dichlorvos, heptachlor e heptachlor epoxide, terbutryn), biocides (cybutrine), chemicals used in a wide range of industrial products and supplies (perfluorooctan sulfonic acid and derivatives, PFOS), flame retardants (hexabromocyclododecane), products of incomplete combustion: (polychlorinated dibenzodioxins and dibenzofurans, and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls). The implementation of the Directive highlights some analytical challenges. EQS values set for new substances, sometimes with values less than 1 ng/L, need highly sensitive analytical methods to meet European regulatory requirements (limit of quantification, LOQ <= 1/3 SQA). Moreover, setting EQSs for biota requires the development of rapid and validated analytical methods for this environmental matrix.