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The present Test Guideline addresses the human health hazard endpoint skin corrosion, following exposure to a test chemical. Skin corrosion is defined as the production of irreversible tissue damage, manifested as visible necrosis of the skin, according to the definition of the Globally Harmonised System for Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.
This Test Guideline describes an in vitro procedure allowing the identification of non-corrosive and corrosive substances and mixtures, based on three-dimensional human skin model which reliably reproduces histological, morphological, biochemical, and physiological properties of the upper layers of human skin, including a functional stratum corneum. The procedure on reconstituted human epidermis is based on the principle that corrosive chemicals are able to penetrate the stratum corneum by diffusion or erosion, and are cytotoxic to the underlying cell layers. Two tissue replicates are used for each treatment (or exposure time), and for controls. Corrosive materials are identified by their ability to produce a decrease in cell viability below defined threshold levels at specified exposure time. Cell viability is measured by enzymatic conversion of the vital dye MTT into a blue formazan salt that is quantitatively measured after extraction from tissues. Corrosive substances are evidenced by their capacity to reduce cell viability below the defined threshold.
Several validated methods are referenced in the Test Guideline and follow the procedure described above. Some of the methods referenced allow sub-categorisation among corrosive chemicals.
This Test Guideline also includes a set of Performance Standards (PS) for the assessment of similar and modified TER-based test methods.
This Test Guideline is a screening method for the evaluation of ready biodegradability of chemicals.
The test substance, normally at 20 mg C/L, as the sole source of carbon and energy, is incubated (during 28 days normally) in sealed bottles with aerobic condition containing a buffer-mineral salts medium, which has been inoculated with a mixed population of micro-organisms. In order to check the test procedure, a reference substance (aniline, sodium benzoate or ethylene glycol and 1-octanol) of known biodegradability should be tested in parallel. It is recommended that triplicate bottles be analysed after a sufficient number of time intervals. Also at least five test bottles (from test vessels, blank controls, and vessels with the reference substance) are analysed at the end of the test, to enable 95% confidence intervals to be calculated for the mean percentage biodegradation value. The CO2 evolution resulting from the ultimate aerobic biodegradation of the test substance is determined by measuring the Inorganic Carbon (IC) produced in the test bottles in excess of that produced in blank vessels containing inoculated medium only. The extent of biodegradation is expressed as a percentage of the theoretical maximum IC production (ThIC), based on the quantity of test substance added initially. Biodegradation >60% ThIC within the 10-d window in this test demonstrates that the test substance is readily biodegradable under aerobic conditions.
This Test Guideline is designed to assess the toxicity of chemicals on the growth of the rooted aquatic plants (Myriophyllum spicatum) growing in water-sediment system.
Shoot apices of healthy and non-flowering plant are potted in standardised, artificial sediment supplemented with additional nutrient and exposed to at least five concentrations of the chemical over a period of 14 days. A minimum of 6 replicates for the untreated control and 4 replicates for each test concentration should be used. The measured quantitative variables include growth of shoot length and development of fresh and dry weight, and the measured qualitative variables include presence or not of chlorosis and necrosis or growth deformities. Both average specific growth rate (r) and yield (y) are determined and then used to expressed ErCx and EyCx respectively (x can be e.g. 10, 20, 50.)
In addition, the lowest observed effect concentration (LOEC) and the no observed effect concentration (NOEC) may be statistically determined.
This Test Guideline is designed to assess the toxicity of chemicals on the growth of submerged aquatic plants Myriophyllum spicatum growing in a sediment-free test system.
In a modified Andrews’ medium Myriophyllum spicatum plant cultures are exposed to at least five different concentrations of the test chemical over a period of 14 days. A minimum of 10 replicates for the controls and 5 replicates for each test concentration should be used. The measured variables include growth of shoot length, of lateral branches and roots, development of fresh and dry weight, increase of whorls. Both average specific growth rate (r) and yield (y) are determined and then used to expressed ErCx and EyCx respectively (x can be eg. 10,20,50)
In addition, the lowest observed effect concentration (LOEC) and the no observed effect concentration (NOEC) may be statistically determined.
Taxing Wages provides unique information on the taxes paid on wages in OECD countries. It covers personal income taxes and social security contributions paid by employees; social security contributions and payroll taxes paid by employers and cash benefits paid by in-work families. The purpose is to illustrate how these taxes and benefits are calculated in each member country and to examine how they impact on household incomes. The results also enable quantitative cross-country comparisons of labour cost levels and the overall tax and benefit position of single persons and families on different levels of earnings.
The publication shows this information for eight household types which vary by income level and household composition and the results reported include the marginal and average tax burdens for one and two earner families and the total labour costs of employers. These data are widely used in academic research and in the preparation and evaluation of social and economic policy making.
Taxing Wages 2014 includes a special feature entitled: ‘Changes in Structural Labour Income Tax Progressivity over the 2000-2012 Period in OECD Member Countries.'
This study introduces the concept of “Tax Compliance by design”. It describes how revenue bodies can exploit developments in technology and the ways in which modern SMEs organise themselves to incorporate tax compliance into the systems businesses use to manage their financial affairs.
How can countries prepare teachers to face the diverse challenges in today’s schools? The OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) helps answer this question by asking teachers and school leaders about their working conditions and the learning environments at their schools. TALIS aims to provide valid, timely and comparable information to help countries review and define policies for developing a high-quality teaching profession. It is an opportunity for teachers and school leaders to provide input into educational policy analysis and development in key areas. This report presents the results of the second cycle of the TALIS survey conducted in 2013.
Ecosystem accounting is a relatively new and emerging field dealing with integrating complex biophysical data, tracking changes in ecosystems and linking those changes to economic and other human activity. Considering the increasing demand for statistics on ecosystems within analytical and policy frameworks on environmental sustainability, human well-being and economic growth and development, there has been an increasing urgency to advance this emerging field of statistics.
Although considerable experience exists in related areas of statistics such as land cover and land use statistics, the integration of these and other information into an ecosystem accounting framework is new. Also, there is considerable existing expertise in the ecosystem sciences and economics fields that is relevant, and again it is the focussing of these different areas of expertise on the proposed ecosystem accounting approach that is new.
SEEA-Experimental Ecosystem Accounting provides a synthesis of the current knowledge in this area and provides a starting point for the development of ecosystem accounting at national and sub-national levels. It represents an important step forward on ecosystem accounting, providing a common set of terms, concepts, accounting principles and classifications; an integrated accounting structure of ecosystem services and ecosystem condition in both physical and monetary terms; and the recognition of spatial areas as forming the basic focus for measurement.
Materials performance is critical to the safe and economic operation of any nuclear system. As the international community pursues the development of Generation IV reactor concepts and accelerator driven transmutation systems, it will be increasingly necessary to develop advanced materials capable of tolerating the more challenging environments of these new systems. The international community supports numerous materials research programmes, with each country determining its individual focus on a case-by-case basis. In many instances, similar alloys of materials systems are being studied in several countries, providing the opportunity for collaborative and cross-cutting research that benefits different systems.
This report is a snapshot of the current materials programmes supporting the development of advanced concepts. The descriptions of the research are grouped by concept, and national programmes
are described within each concept. The report provides an overall sense of the importance of materials research worldwide and the opportunities for synergy among the countries represented in this overview.
The Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information, developed by the OECD with G20 countries, represents the international consensus on automatic exchange of financial account information for tax purposes, on a reciprocal basis. Over 60 jurisdictions have committed to implementing the Standard and all financial centres have been called to match those commitments, as of July 2014.
This publication is the first edition of the full version of the Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information. It contains the text of the Model Competent Authority Agreement and the Common Reporting Standard, and the Commentaries thereon, as they read on 15 July 2014. It also includes multilateral and nonreciprocal versions of the Model Competent Authority Agreement, the technical modalities and a wider approach to the Common Reporting Standard.
This comprehensive review of public governance in Spain finds that it shares with other OECD countries the need for a whole-of-government approach to reform. This is especially needed given Spain’s high degree of decentralisation and institutional fragmentation throughout the public sector. The experience of OECD countries with administrative reform is that it is successful when it is not perceived as a one-off exercise, but rather as a process of continuous improvement to constantly identify waste, shortcomings, and opportunities to do things better. This is particularly relevant for the public administration to become a positive influence for growth and overcome the effects of the financial crisis Spain has been through.
This is the third edition of Society at a Glance Asia/Pacific, a regularly updated OECD overview of social indicators, which addresses the growing demand for quantitative evidence on social well-being and its trends. This report starts with an introductory chapter providing a guide to help readers understanding the OECD Social Indicator framework. Chapters 2 and three are special thematic chapters to address two increasingly topical issues in the social debate: Gender Equality in Education, Employment and Entrepreneurship and Social Protection Expenditure.
This seventh edition of Society at a Glance, the biennial OECD overview of social indicators addresses the growing demand for quantitative evidence on social well-being and its trends. It updates some indicators included in the previous editions published since 2001 and introduces several new ones; in total: 25 indicators. It includes data for the 34 OECD Member countries and where available data for key partners (Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia and South Africa) and for other G20 countries (Argentina and Saudi Arabia). This report features a special chapter on the social impact of the recent crisis (Chapter 1) and provides a guide to help readers understand the structure of OECD social indicators (Chapter 2). All indicators are available as a web book and e-book on OECD iLibrary, as is the related database.
This report examines the effects of recent economic growth in Viet Nam on social cohesion. It finds that recent rapid economic growth in Viet Nam has not resulted in an increase in overall inequality, but the level of inequality was already high. Growth was not particularly inclusive, benefiting most the middle class and the richest households, and favouring less households in the bottom 20th percentile. Income mobility was also high, and while a majority of households experienced upward income mobility, downward absolute income mobility affected one in five households. Economic growth was not particularly job rich with employment growth lagging behind economic expansion.
In particular, important challenges were identified in the area of education and skills policies relating to fast-changing labour market needs. Minimum wage policies had a small but positive effect on employment, but concerns were highlighted over partial coverage and weak compliance. Tax policy and specifically personal income tax had only a small impact on reducing inequality, but transfers from central to local governments produced an equalising effect, albeit with mixed results in terms of satisfaction with public services. Finally, social protection systems have been extended, but important coverage gaps remain among the poor and ethnic minority groups, and informality remains a key challenge for universal extension.
This book reviews recent work related to Slovenia and summarised key findings and recommendations in such areas as unemployment and the labour market, skills and productivity, product market competition, corporate governance, boosting innovation and moving up the value chain, public finances, the tax system, the financial system, and greening the economy.
This report identifies the key elements needed for the development of a sustainable strategic framework for public administration reform, situating them in the Slovak Republic's administrative, cultural, legal and political context. The report is particularly timely, as it provides insight into the activities conducted by the Slovak Ministry of Interior and other Slovak authorities toward meeting the ex-ante conditions for EU structural and investment funds for 2014-2020.
Higher level vocational education and training (VET) programmes are facing rapid change and intensifying challenges. What type of training is needed to meet the needs of changing economies? How should the programmes be funded? How should they be linked to academic and university programmes? How can employers and unions be engaged? This report synthesises the findings of the series of country reports done on skills beyond school.
Particle accelerators have evolved over the last decades from simple devices to powerful machines and are having an increasingly important impact on research, technology and daily life. Today, they have a wide range of applications in many areas including material science and medical applications. In recent years, new technological and research applications have helped to define requirements while the number of accelerator facilities in operation, being commissioned, designed or planned has grown significantly. Their parameters, which include the beam energy, currents and intensities, and target composition, can vary widely, giving rise to new radiation shielding issues and challenges.
Particle accelerators must be operated in safe ways to protect operators, the public and the environment. As the design and use of these facilities evolve, so must the analytical methods used in the safety analyses. These workshop proceedings review the state of the art in radiation shielding of accelerator facilities and irradiation targets. They also evaluate progress in the development of modelling methods used to assess the effectiveness of such shielding as part of safety analyses.
Cette brochure est publiée dans le cadre du Régime pour l'Application de normes internationales pour les fruits et légumes établi par l'OCDE en 1962. Elle fournit des notes explicatives et des illustrations en vue de faciliter l'interprétation commune des normes en vigueur pour les échalotes. Cette nouvelle brochure illustre le texte des normes sur les échalotes. Elle décrit les paramètres qualitatifs par des photographies de haute qualité. Elle constitue par conséquent un outil précieux pour les autorités de contrôle, les organes professionnels et les négociants qui manifestent leur intérêt pour le commerce international des melons. La version électronique de cette brochure est disponible sur le site de l’OCDE.