The SGL has a unique infrastructure in Cyprus to cover chemical, microbiological, virological, ecotoxicological and radiological aspects of monitoring and control pollution.
The three pillars of the applied approach are:
- Integration across disciplines
Seven specialized labs provide a wide range of highly sophisticated and state-of-the-art analytical services and undertake target oriented research. The seven Labs are the following:
Aims and Αchievements
The SGL aims to:
- support the development and implementation of the environmental policy and legislation, including chemical safety in workplaces, by providing data for legal compliance and risk assessment as well as adequate information to decision makers
- contribute to the development of effective mechanisms for pollution prevention and long-term safety and sustainability of water resources through:
- The holistic investigation and evaluation of the present environmental quality, the identification of changes and trends and the forecasting of future developments
- The early identification of emerging pollution and related priorities for prevention
To achieve these targets, the SGL has developed:
- Strong investigation capabilities to address point and diffuse sources of pollution as well as pollution originating from multiple sources. These capabilities are based on the integration of chemistry with microbiology and ecotoxicology
- Early warning system for accidental or emerging water pollution
- Holistic evaluation schemes based on integration of legal limits and scientifically sound quality criteria developed to address existing gaps in legislation
- Indicators to aggregate and transform data into management oriented information
Range of Activities
This includes monitoring, surveillance, pollution investigation, and target oriented research. Multipurpose-integrated programmes are designed and implemented in cooperation with other competent authorities, to fulfil both the requirements for compliance monitoring and the needs for early identification of emerging pollution. Although water and effluents are the main focus, the work covers almost all areas of environmental investigations. More specifically it includes:
- Evaluation of the chemical and microbial characteristics and quality of water
- Detection of viruses in environmental samples and effluents
- Determination of organic/inorganic pollutants in surface, ground, drinking and sea water, in effluents, in soil, in sediments, in air emissions and in the workplace
- Toxicity evaluation of effluents, water, soils, sludges, sediments, other environmental samples and in target chemicals
- Evaluation of the levels and profile of natural and technical radionuclides in Cyprus - creation of a data bank of the background levels in the environment
Target oriented research is done at national and at international level. It is primarily aimed at:
- identifying causes, sources of pollution and effects in order to resolve environmental problems and develop early warning systems
- identifying priorities for monitoring and providing a scientific background for the improvement of policies
- evaluating combined toxic effects and genotoxicity of target chemicals
- developing quality criteria to fill gaps in legal limitations and create environmental indicators to facilitate the integration of data into the decision-making process
- developing integrated investigation schemes addressing both receiving water bodies and effluents, to secure safe and sustainable reuse of treated urban wastes
A multi-objective Monitoring and Early Warning System are available to cope with needs related to:
- The implementation of the Water Acquis
- The early identification and prompt response to emerging or accidental pollution
- The provision of data for legal compliance and concrete information to decision-makers
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