The book ‘Pesticides and the Environment’ gives a transparent overview of facts and figures concerning pesticide use in the Netherlands and the impact of pesticides on the environment.

Improving environmental risk assessment of pesticides in surface waters

Promotores: W.J.G.M. Peijnenburg, G.R. de Snoo, Co-promotor: M.G. Vijver

The thesis describes terrestrial field trials aimed to detect side-effects of pesticides within the framework of pesticide registration procedures. Field trials were developed using vascular plants Brassica napus and Poa annua, caterpillars Pieris brassicae and effects on decomposition were studied…

A new regional atlas, with information about the presence of pesticides in surface waters, has been developed by the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML) in collaboration with Royal Haskoning DHV. The aim of the regional pesticide atlas is to support decision making at local and regional levels,…

Martina Vijver talks about the impact of pesticides on nature in many Dutch media outlets. This news is now also covered internationally. In Chemical & Engineering News, Vijver argues periodical reassessments of pesticides are crucial to prevent unexpected harm to nature.

Dutch book about pesticides and waterquality

On 24 September the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML) in Leiden will launch the new version of the Pesticides Atlas in cooperation with Rijkswaterstaat and Royal HaskoningDHV. The online tool is now faster, more user-friendly, more accessible and all data can be downloaded directly. Users can…

Nanotechnology has pervaded numerous industrial sectors over the past decades. Although many of us may not be aware of it, nanomaterials are now embedded within many of the the products we use in our daily lives. The agricultural sector might be next in line. Leiden environmental scientists Tom Nederstigt…

Leiden ecotoxicologist Martina Vijver helped shake a European policy proposal in a single weekend. Not with a new experiment, but with years of research on pesticides – and an urgent letter that reached Brussels.

There has been a lot of media attention for the report recently completed by the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML) from Leiden University. However, it has long been known that Dutch surface water contains too many toxic pesticides. ‘We will have to improve our ways of life together with many…

Martina Vijver talks about the impact of pesticides on nature in many Dutch media outlets. This news is now also covered internationally. In Chemical & Engineering News, Vijver argues periodical reassessments of pesticides are crucial to prevent unexpected harm to nature.

The environmental risks of new pesticides containing nanoparticles are inadequately researched, according to four Leiden scientists in the scientific journal Environmental Science & Technology. They call for an examination of the long-term and environmental effects of pesticides containing nanoparti…

Sprayable plant-based adhesives for crop protection against thrips Some plants, such as sundew and tomato, protect themselves with sticky hairs that repel or even trap arthropod herbivores.

Radio interview with CML researchers Martina Vijver and Henrik Barmentlo in the NTR radio programme: Nieuws en Co on Friday 24 March 2017. The researchers gave an overview of the research which will be conducted in the Living Lab in the coming year. The Living Lab is located in the BioScience Park in…

Tools and Data of the department of Environmental Biology

How can we make agricultural production systems more sustainable as the worldwide demand for healthy, safe food continues to grow? How can we develop healthy new food crops that have higher yields while requiring fewer harmful chemicals?

Chemical substances and nanomaterials are processed on a massive scale in diverse products, while their risks have not been properly assessed. Time and again synthesised substances have been shown to pollute the environment more than lab tests predicted. This is the warning given by Professor of Ecotoxicology…

Research from the Living Lab is important for society. For example, scientists from the Living Lab discovered that the pesticide thiacloprid is up to 2,500 times more harmful to insects than was thought on the basis of regular lab research. Partly because of this discovery, the European Commission decided…

The research at the Living lab attracts a great deal of press attention. Please find below a small selection of the many news reports that have been published. Also take a look at the Zembla programme about the Living Lab.

Leidse milieuwetenschappers doen onderzoek naar microplastics, bestrijdingsmiddelen en bemesting. En binnenkort naar lichtvervuiling en nieuwe materialen uit de nanotechnologie.

Information about the products of the extract library.

Soil is a home for an unbelievable diversity and abundance of microbial life that is essential for supporting life on our planet.

Interview in the popular journal for the agricultural sector Nieuwe Oogst with CML-researcher Martina Vijver about the Dutch policy on pesticides and it’s possible conflicts with the aims for clear surface and groundwater.

Pesticides can form a toxic cocktail when they occur in combination in surface water. This is the finding of research that Leiden University and the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) presented on Monday 14 October. The Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management…

Research truly comes to life when it contributes meaningfully to society. By sharing our findings, advising policymakers or contributing to community projects – we can make a real impact. Scroll down and discover how Science and society can mutually benefit from each other.

Increasing above- and belowground biodiversity in arable leek cultivation to stimulate pest control by natural enemies.

Identifying natural plant-associated bacteria that provide targeted inhibition of pathogens through the production of antimicrobial peptides.

They were called 'annoying brats', the group of campaigning scientists who in 1978 founded what is now an internationally acclaimed ecological research institute. Their stories and those of the current staff of the Institute of Environmental Sciences are described in the book 'Forty years of Leiden…

We investigate water quality and want to understand the effects of human interference on aquatic biodiversity.

Martina Vijver has been nominated as Teacher of the Year of the Faculty of Science. She gets this nomination for the course Ecotoxicology she taught in 2022. The 52 students who took the course were hugely enthusiastic, as can be read in their positive reviews. What is so great about this course then?…

Professor of Ecotoxicology Martina Vijver and lecturer Maarten Schrama are the founders and managers of the Living Lab. As well as these two researchers, a number of other ecologists and biologists are involved in the research at the Lab.

A management strategy has been developed for field margins to reduce pesticide drift to non-target areas and to promote biodiversity on arable land. To this end, 3 and 6 m wide strips along the edges of winter wheat, sugar beet and potato crops have been left unsprayed with herbicides and insecticides…

The applications of studying the early development of insects range from agriculture to material science.

Chemical-induced organ toxicity is a major concern in the development and use of chemicals, including drugs, pesticides, industrial chemicals and cosmetics. In the last decades, the onset and progression of chemical-induced organ toxicity has been linked amongst others to perturbation of mitochondri…

Using EcoFab 2.0 devices and omics services at JGI, we will examine a plant growth promoting microbial community during interaction with different plant species.

This research programme aims to increase the scientific understanding of how current and emerging anthropogenic threats affect biodiversity and ecosystem services to facilitate strategic management of natural resources. To this end, we address urgent challenges in relation to the mechanisms involved…

Breeding for resistance becomes more and more important because we want to reduce the use of pesticides. A fast and cheap alternative can be to make use of morphological or chemical markers.

How do chemical contaminants traverse and affect terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystems?

Plant Sciences' contribution to the Bioactive Molecules research theme is to identify new plant bioactive molecules, and unravel their mechanisms of action in plant development or health, and the regulatory networks and (bio)synthetic pathways required for their production.

What is the effect of pesticides, fertilizers or plastic on water quality? And how do wind and rain affect the data? These are just some of the things that Leiden environmental scientists study in the 32 ditches of the Living Lab.

Steering soil microbiomes for better crop quality: the holy grail to improve human health?

How do we approach education that facilitates creative confidence for students that leads to innovative solutions to society’s present day and future sustainability challenges? This education research project tackles a sustainability dilemma faced by households in everyday life viz.

Which plant leaf characteristics are involved in thrips resistance in tomato?

Research at the department of Environmental Biology