Research projects on EHS aspects of nanotechnology in the 7th Framework Program of the EU (NanoTrust Dossier No. 030en – May 2012)

The funds for research on nanotechnologies (NMP – nanotechnology and nanosciences, new materials and new production processes), a funding priority established in 2002 by the EU Commission, were increased in the current 7th Framework Program. The expenditures for research on the environmental and health impacts of nanoparticles have shown a particularly large jump. Beyond increasing the budget for additional research projects, the funding structure was also improved. The Commission is pursuing two main goals. The first is to create synergies and help avoid redundancies on the national level by more strongly interlinking the scientific institutions. The second is to intensify the information exchange between the respective institutions by establishing international networks and communication platforms. EU institutions such as the Joint Research Centre are also substantially involved in these networks. One such network is the NanoSafety Cluster, which to date has encompassed more than thirty EHS projects (five of them still from the 6thFramework Programme). In the past, the research focus was mostly on the potential health impacts of synthetic nanomaterials; increasingly, efforts are being made to study the potential impacts on the environment and the protection of employees that produce and process nano-components. Finally, the funding of research proposals that deal with the necessary implementation of regulatory approaches (laboratory analytics, detection methodologies, development and adaptation of measuring instruments) was intensified