Meeting of the International Standardisation Organisation Technical Committee 190 “Soil Quality” (ISO/TC190)

IUNG PIB Pulawy, 4 - 9 October 2010

organized within the PROFICIENCY project by the Department of Soil Science, Erosion and Land Protection

      The general aim of the ISO TC190 is to prepare the standards related to the description and evaluation of soil quality and site assessment. This includes terminology, sampling, data codification, analytical, biological and physical methods, screening methods, ecotoxicological tests and human exposure risk and bioavailibility aspects. Many ISO-TC190 standards are adopted by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN). On the country level the ISO TC190 standards are implemented, after translation, by the Polish Standardization Committee (PKN).

      The ISO TC190 includes 7 Scientific Committees embracing numerous working groups (WPs) preparing standards on different topics related to soil quality: 21 of the groups were working during the Meeting in Pulawy. The results of those works were summarized at the meetings of three subcommittees (SC7 “Soil and Site Assessment, SC4 “Biological Methods” and SC3 “Chemical methods”) and at the General Meeting of the ISO TC190 “Soil Quality”.
The ISO TC190 Meeting organized in Pulawy had a particular meaning since the 25th Anniversary of the activity of the Committee was celebrated on this occasion. The programme of the General Assembly of the ISO TC190 included also the election of a Chairman: the present Chairman, Mr Frank Lamé from Deltares, The Netherlands, was elected for the next 4-years period.
      One of the aims of the 25th Anniversary Meeting in Pulawy was to formulate the new challenges for the future work of the Committee such as climate change, nanoparticles, sustainable soil management and remediation/risk characterization. Some of these topics are closely related to the IUNG-PIB research programme – as it was stressed by prof. Wiesław Oleszek, Director of the Institute, during the opening address at the Meeting. This creates opportunity for some scientists from the IUNG-PIB to be more involve in the Committee works increasing the visibility of the Institute at ERA and on the world level.
      The meeting gathered nearly 60 participants – national experts from 13 countries such as Australia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Korea South, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, The UK and Sweden.

The IUNG-PIB Organizing Committee: Barbara Maliszewska-Kordybach, Rafał Gałązka, Agnieszka Klimkowicz-Pawlas, Bozena Smreczak, Beata Suszek.