Provision of Expert Assistance to the European Environment Agency's Activities Supporting a Zero-pollution Ambition, Including Linkages between Environment, Health and Chemicals

Description

The work will contribute to EEA’s role in supporting the ongoing development and implementation of key elements of the European Green Deal, including on the zero- pollution ambition and chemicals strategy. Specifically, work will support the achievement of the over-arching objectives set out in the EEA’s Multi-Annual Work Programme (MAWP) 2014-2020 and the EEA/Eionet Strategy for 2021-2030 (currently being finalised), as well as ensuring delivery of specific activities in future annual work programmes. EEA assessment activities are increasingly focused upon developing knowledge about the systemic challenges facing Europe and how these impact on the health and wellbeing of the European population. Looking forward, a transition towards a low carbon, circular economy is foreseen, and it is important to assess how this transition might positively or negatively influence the environment, health and wellbeing nexus. Support the EEA with the following areas of expertise: • undertaking assessments of environmental stressors and how they impact on human health and well-being, both directly and by impacting on the ecosystem services that support health; • applying methodologies to assess population exposure to environmental stressors including noise, air pollution and individual chemicals, both individually and in combination; • health and epidemiological expertise for estimating the burden of disease resulting from human exposure to noise, air pollution and individual chemicals, both individually and in combination; • producing evidence-based assessments regarding the impacts of different environmental stressors on health in order to allow for comparison across stressors; • handling and analysing environmental data for different domains, including air, noise, water and land, as well as socio-economic and demographic data, in order to explore the relationship between exposure to environmental stressors and social parameters, such as income, age and employment status; • preparing assessments addressing environmental stressors, covering drivers, pressures, state, and impacts on environment and health including at the level of the main emitting sources; • assessing the benefits to health and well-being delivered by the environment, including at the distal level via ecosystems services and at the proximal level in terms of access to green and blue spaces in urban areas; • assessments of how chemicals flow through production and consumption systems, leading to environmental and human exposure, including how such flows may shift in the context of the transition to a circular economy; • facilitating meetings and supporting stakeholder involvement by assisting EEA to organise workshops, including the drafting of agendas and minutes, and supporting capacity-building and knowledge sharing with representatives from EEA’s Eionet network and other EEA stakeholders.