Summary of the comments received from the public on the draft Screening Assessment report

Of the following Micro-organisms:
Nitrobacter winogradskyi ATCC 25391,
Nitrobacter species 18132-6,
Nitrobacter species 16969-4,
Nitrosomonas europaea ATCC 25978,
Nitrosomonas species 16968-3,
Nitrosomonas species 18133-7,
Rhodopseudomonas palustris ATCC 17001,
Rhodopseudomonas species 18136-1

One comment was submitted by a member of the general public. The comment is summarized in the table below, along with the response.

Subject	Comment	Response
Weight of evidence and conclusion.	How can the statement regarding the lack of documented evidence for adverse effects related to these strains’ lead to the conclusion that ‘the estimated risk from human and environmental exposure resulting from all their known and potential uses is expected to be low for both the environment and human health’?	Given the ubiquity of these organisms in nature and their role in the ecosystem, the lack of documented evidence for adverse effects, following a thorough search of the primary literature, is considered to reflect a lack of hazard towards the environment or human health. Text was added to the summary of the report to better explain the elements that were considered and the basis for this conclusion (Sections ‘Hazard assessment’ and ‘Risk assessment’).