IPHAB Task Team on Biotoxin Monitoring, Management and Regulations

Terms of Reference:

  • Establish and maintain regular contact with IAEA, WHO, and other regulatory or advisory bodies; follow-up on finalization of methodological annex of Codex standard 292-2008, in particular with reference to TEFs to clarify regulatory status of individual toxin analogs,
  • Contribute to the development of a Technical Guidance for the development and implementation of biotoxins monitoring and management to complement other relevant documents such as the “Joint FAO-WHO Technical guidance for the development of the growing area aspects of bivalve mollusk sanitation programmes”, the “Joint FAO-WHO Report on ciguatera poisoning”, and the “Joint FAO/IOC/IAEA Technical guidance for the implementation of early warning systems for harmful algal blooms”, as identified by different stakeholders,
  • Establish and maintain regular contact with relevant scientists and scientific organizations to ensure that the latest and most robust science is available to the Task Team in discharging its responsibilities,
  • Establish contact with national, regional and global risk evaluation agencies to evaluate the risk of freshwater cyanobacterial toxins in seafood,
  • Advise other Task Teams on aspects of toxinology, including emerging toxins, as requested,
  • Progress the development of the toxin database as a web-based tool for crosslinking knowledge on HAB organisms and toxins,
  • Communicate and disseminate information on training workshops (e.g. through the website or Harmful Algal News) and participate, as requested, in the organization of training workshops for toxin detection, monitoring and management,
  • Develop a concerted (inter-agency) effort and seek opportunities to get this effort funded on drafting guidance on mitigation (EWS, safeguarding shellfish during HAB-events, HAB-destruction and shellfish detoxification),
  • Recommend to IPHAB-XVII on revised priorities for research, capacity development and engagement with regulatory bodies to address the most pressing issues and threats posed by HAB toxins in the marine environment;
  • Contribute to the HAB-S Ocean decade proposal to integrate toxin detection, management & regulations into integrated and co-developed mitigation solutions for reducing HAB impacts.

Encourages relevant organizations to invite the IPHAB Task Team to participate as observer at the principal meetings of their respective groups to facilitate international compatibility of applied methodology and legislation with respect to HAB toxins,

Decides that the Task Team will be comprised by P. Hess (France) chair, Beatriz Reguera (Spain), and M. Broadwater (USA)The task team is supplemented by external experts John Ramsdell (USA) co-chair, Elisabeth Hamelin (USA), Wade Huang (USA), Raphe Kudela (USA/GlobalHAB SSC); Zhihong Wang (USA); Ana Gago Martinez (ES); Maria João Botelho (Portugal); Hanna Mazur (Poland), Christopher O. Miles (NO),  Beth Mudge (CA), Fabienne Hervé (FR), Manoëlla Sibat (FR), Toshiyuki Suzuki, (JP), Naomasa Oshiro (JP), Gonzalo Álvarez Vergara (CL), Aifeng Li (CN), Arjen Gerssen (NL), Tim Harwood (NZ), Bernd Krock (DE), Aida Zuberovic Muratovic (SE), the Task Team will invite scientists to contribute on specific toxin groups; the Task Team maybe expanded as required to fulfil its Terms of Reference.

Invites IAEA and WHO to be members of the Task Team,

Notes that the Task Team is established until otherwise decided by the Panel and that it will work by correspondence and/or meet on an opportunistic basis, and provide a progress report for the inter-sessional period to the Chair of IPHAB prior to IPHAB-XVII.

 

Contact : 

Philipp Hess, Directeur Adjoint de l’Institut Universitaire Mer et Littoral, FR-3473 (CNRS / Université de Nantes / IFREMER), Ifremer. E-mail: Philipp.Hess@ifremer.fr