The regional multimedia distribution model incorporated into EUSES 1.0 is used for the estimation of regionally predicted
environmental concentrations in different European scenarios: a scenario representing a typical region in the north of Europe
(high fraction connected to sewer systems, lower environmental temperature, high fractions of surface water and natural soil
and a low fraction for agricultural soil) and another scenario representing a typical region in the south of Europe (low fraction
connected to sewer systems, higher environmental temperature, low fractions for surface water and natural soil, and a high
fraction for agricultural soil). The two scenarios are based on average data of countries in Northern and Southern Europe,
but are not realistic for any specific country located in these regions. Scenario calculations were carried out using these
two scenarios in addition to the generic standard region, given in EUSES 1.0 as a default scenario, and the North-Rhine Westphalian
region. The substance properties, including emissions, were left unchanged for all scenarios. For a number of substances,
the calculated concentrations in both the North and the South of Europe turned out to be higher than those calculated with
the standard generic scenario. Thus, the standard scenario cannot be considered as a ‘worst case’ scenario per se. Uncertainties
due to the regional heterogeneity within Europe are high. It is recommended to use these two additional scenarios for an improved
estimation of possible concentration ranges in Europe.
Keywords European scenarios - EUSES - regional distribution modelling - risk assessment