Ecotoxicological Assessment of Soils — Bioavailability from an Ecotoxicological Point of View

It is the aim of the Federal Soil Protection Act (Bundes-Bodenschutzgesetz, BBodSchG 1998) to protect or to restore the functions of the soil in a sustainable way. According to the BBodSchG (1998) the natural (ecological) functions of the soil include: the basis for life and habitat, for human beings, animals, plants and soil organisms (in one word: the biospherical function),as part of natural systems, especially as part of water and nutrient cycles,as a medium for decomposition, balance and restoration as a result of its filtering, buffering and substance-converting properties, especially for groundwater protection,