Symposium and Workshops


Title

Date

Participants

17th Annual Research Meeting on Pesticides:
The Present and Future View of the Technology for Risk Reduction on the Agro-Chemicals


September
21-22,
2000
160

NIAES Symposium: Research on the Ecological Risk Assessment of Genetically Modified Crops
November
20,
2000
212

International Workshop on Monitoring and Modeling of Crop Production under Changing Environment
February
19-21,
2001
60

18th Workshop on Meteorology: Monitoring and Modeling on Greenhouse Gases in Terrestrial Ecosystems
March
3,
2001

170

18th Seminar on Soil and Water: Current Direction of Load Control on Total Nitrogen and
Phosphorus in Wide Areas around Large Enclosed Water Bodies and Future Research Assignments
March
8,
2001

160

3rd Seminar on Vegetation Science: Biodiversity in Agro-Ecosystem from the viewpoint of Chemical Ecology
March
9,
2001
165

1. The 18th Annual Research Meeting on Pesticides:
The present and future view of the technology for risk reduction on the rgro-chemicals

This meeting composed of 160 participants was held to discuss the problems concerning the technology to reduce the adverse effects of the chemicals such as pesticides and dioxins in agro-environment. The seven speakers presented papers on the risk assessment of chemicals, development of new formulation type and application method of pesticides, and technology of degradation and elimination of chemicals. Mr. H. Ono, Agricultural Chemicals Inspection Station, presented the topics related to the method for risk assessment developed mainly in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). With regard to the technology for reducing the concentration of chemicals in soil, presentations were made on the microbial degradation of dioxins by Dr. A. Nishida, Forestry and Forest Products Institute, and on the phytodegradation of PCBs by Dr. H. Takano, Taiheiyo Cement Co., LTD.

2. The 18th Workshop on Meteorology:
Monitoring and mdeling on greenhouse gases in terrestrial ecosystems

This workshop was held on March 6, 2001 with 7 speakers and about 100 participants in the NIAES meeting hall. In this workshop, we focused on the current problems and future prospects for methods on monitoring and modeling greenhouse gases. Speakers provided information on the present state of the budget and circulation of greenhouse gases in terrestrial ecosystem, especially agro- and forestry-ecosystems, and clarified methods for their modeling and monitoring. In the discussion after these presentations, there were some lively exchange on the given topics, and all participants recognized the current problems and future prospects. However, in the micrometeorological observation methods and remote sensing technique taken up in this workshop, we could not go as far as the discussion of the countermeasures to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, which is strongly called for worldwide.

3. The 18th Workshop on Soil and Water:
Current direction of load control on total nitrogen and phosphorus in wide areas around large enclosed water bodies and future research assignments

This workshop was held in March 2000. In addition to regulations based on concentrations of nutrient solutes, Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) have been set on the effluent flow of total nitrogen and phosphorus, implemented to enclosed water bodies such as Tokyo Bay. As a non-point source, the effluent flow from agricultural land is responsible for the eutrophication of these water bodies.
The purposes of this workshop were to discuss on the governmental regulation over enclosed water bodies and exchange information of on-going countermeasure research programs. More than 300 participants took part in this workshop from all over Japan.

4. The Third Seminar on Vegetation Science:
Biodiversity in agro-ecosystem from the viewpoint of chemical ecology

The third seminar on vegetation science was held on 9 March 2000. The main title of the seminar was "Factors Affecting the Establishment of Biodiversity in Agro-ecosystems from the Standpoint of Chemical Ecology." The seminar aimed at the discussion of safety of food production and protection of environment through healthy agro-ecosystems through ideal communication between component, such as plants, insects, microorganisms, and soil. Secondary metabolites emitted from these components, named allelochemicals, play an important role as a tool for chemical communication, directly or indirectly.
Seven speakers made their presentation, and their topics were: 1) plant and insect interaction by allelochemicals from plants (by R. Nishida, Kyoto University), 2) plant and bacterial interaction by allelochemicals, in the case of Burkholderia spp. (by K. Azegami, NIAES), 3) plant and soil interaction from the standpoint of allelopathy (by S. Hiradate, NIAES), 4) biodiversity of Himalayan medicinal plants from their chemical constituents (by Dr. T. Watanabe, Kitasato University), 5) biodiversity of alkaloids and their role as allelochemicals in plants (by Z. Iqbal, Noda Plants Technica), 6) DNA micro-array technique as a new tool for plant chemical ecology (by B. Scheffler, USDA-ARS), and 7) biodiversity and allelopathy (by Y. Fujii, NIAES).
The highlight of the seminar was the presentation by Dr. Scheffler from USDA, who explained their recent establishment of DNA micro-array technique as a tool for identifying modes of action of allelochemicals in agro-ecosystems. Dr. Nishida from Kyoto University also presented several evidence of chemical communication between plants and insects, with interesting data that some insects use toxins (aristolochic acid, Fig. 1) derived form toxic plants for the protection of their body against their enemy. Dr. Azegami reported his new finding of the allelochemical, tropolone from Burkholderia. The derivatives of this unique chemical are known as the special aroma of the Japanese Hinoki-tree oil. More than 180 scientists joined this symposium.

Fig. 1 Aristolochic acid.

 

Fig. 2 Tropolone.

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