170119 BNU


European Highlights

Priorities for the Maltese Presidency of the Council

Malta will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union during the first semester of 2017, following six months of Slovak Presidency. Research is one of the Maltese Presidency priorities, with a focus on strengthening the Euro-Mediterranean cooperation in research and innovation, primarily through ensuring legislative deliberations on the Partnership for Research and…

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EuCheMS Answer to the Interim Evaluation of H2020 Consultation

EuCheMS has recently submitted its response to the public consultation on the interim evaluation of Horizon 2020. In its answer, EuCheMS reaffirms the importance of Horizon 2020 as a research funding mechanism, the need for further simplification in the application process, the importance of further European collaboration as to avoid fragmentation and unnecessary duplication of…

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Council Approves the EU's Legislative Priorities for 2017

The Council of the European Union has recently approved the EU's legislative priorities for 2017 as agreed beforehand with the European Parliament and the European Commission. This will help the three EU institutions to pool their efforts and to ensure substantial progress in fields where they are most needed. In this concise document the EU…

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Commission Registers “Ban Glyphosate” European Citizens' Initiative

Earlier this month, the European Commission has decided to register a European Citizens Initiative (ECI) inviting the Commission "to propose to Member States a ban on glyphosate, to reform the pesticide approval procedure, and to set EU-wide mandatory reduction targets for pesticide use". Should the ECI receive one million statements of support within one year,…

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Car Emissions Committee: First Findings and Draft Recommendations

The ad hoc European Parliament Committee of Inquiry into Emission Measurement in the Automotive Sector (EMIS), has presented last month its findings and draft recommendations. The draft text is a result of 10 months’ intensive work to reconstruct the events and collect evidence, in particular on the role of the EU Commission and member states…

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New Rules for Member States to Drastically Cut Air Pollution

In order to achieve the 2030 objectives of the Clean Air Programme, the Directive on the reduction of national emissions of certain atmospheric pollutants has entered into force on 31 December 2016. This Directive sets national reduction commitments for the five pollutants (sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, ammonia and fine particulate matter) responsible…

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European Open Science Cloud

The European Parliament´s Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) Committee voted a draft resolution welcoming the European Open Science Cloud model proposed by the Commission, including the plan to extend its use to the industry and to governments. ITRE Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), stated that this open cloud initiative would allow development…

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ERC Consolidator Grants: € 605 million to 314 ambitious researchers

The European Research Council (ERC) has recently announced the awarding of its Consolidator Grants to 314 top researchers in Europe. The funding, worth a total of € 605 million, will give them a chance to have far-reaching impact on science and beyond. The grants fall under the ' Excellent Science' pillar of Horizon 2020, the…

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Towards 2017 - Progress made in Science, Research and Innovation in Western Balkans

In its 2016 annual Enlargement Package, the European Commission assessed where the countries of the Western Balkans and Turkey stand in implementing key political and economic reforms, and what needs to be done to address the remaining challenges. Related to Science, Research and Innovation there is a good level of preparation in Macedonia, Montenegro and…

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Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Scientific Advice to Support Step-by-Step Development of New Biosimilars

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) will launch a pilot project in February 2017 to test the added value and feasibility of tailored scientific advice for the development path of biosimilar medicines. Through this new initiative, EMA aims to provide developers of biosimilars with advice on the studies/tests they should be conducting, on the basis of…

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Chemical Safety for Workers Targeted by EU Enforcement Project

Enforcement authorities in the EU will inspect how safety information on hazardous chemicals is compiled, communicated in the supply chain and followed at workplaces. One of the objectives of this enforcement project is to ensure that workers handling hazardous chemicals, especially those dealing with substances of very high concern, receive sufficient and correct safety information.…

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Endocrine Disruptors: Guidance Plans Outlined

EFSA and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) have published an outline of the Guidance they are developing on how to identify substances with endocrine disrupting properties in pesticides and biocides.The Guidance will enable applicants and regulatory authorities to identify endocrine disruptors among chemical substances proposed as pesticides and biocides using hazard-based scientific criteria currently being…

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Consultations and Roadmaps

Public Consultation on Draft Guidance on Dermal Absorption of Chemical Plant Protection Products

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has made available for public consultation its draft Guidance on dermal absorption of chemical plant protection products (PPPs). The Guidance, which updates the document published by EFSA in 2012, was drafted in the light of newly available human in vitro studies. As requested by the European Commission, the…

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Public Consultation on the Active Substance Ampelomyces quisqualis AQ10

EFSA will assess all comments from interested parties regarding the active substance Ampelomyces quisqualis AQ10. Input is requested on the following: physical/chemical properties; details of uses and further information; methods of analysis; mammalian toxicology; residues; and environmental fate and behavior.
Deadline: 11 March 2017
Website: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/

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Roadmap - Initiative for the Sustainable Development of the Blue Economy in the Western Mediterranean

This initiative aims to promote sustainable economic and social prosperity of the western Mediterranean region through growth and jobs creation by improving its competitiveness and attractiveness, while at the same time preserving healthy and balanced marine and coastal ecosystems. The western Mediterranean Sea has an enormous wealth in natural resources, cultural assets and diversity of…

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Calls for Funding and Awards

EuCHeMS Events

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EuCheMS aisbl - Rue du Trône 62, 1050, Brussels, Belgium; www.euchems.eu. Produced for EuCheMS by Nineta Hrastelj, Bruno Vilela and Marta Kucza. This newsletter has been carefully prepared and only contains correct information to the best of EuCheMS´ knowledge, however this does not exclude the possibility of existence of incorrect information. EuCheMS cannot be liable for the use or misuse of any information, whether correct or incorrect, present at this newsletter. Intellectual property belongs to its rightful owners, always explicitly traceable on each article. Compilation Copyright © 2017 EuCheMS