The Ecotoxicology Laboratory, based in Durban, has been at the forefront of estuarine and marine toxicity testing in South Africa for 40 years, providing insights into pollutant impacts on coastal and marine ecosystems. Toxicity tests are used to measure the combined effects of contaminants in environmental media on organisms, with the aim of protecting ecological health. Testing is offered for research and commercial purposes. 

The facility includes a temperature-controlled environmental chamber, a flow-through aquarium to maintain toxicity testing organisms, and sample preparation and processing laboratories. The laboratory is equipped to perform a range of toxicity tests using sea urchin gametes, embryos, larvae and amphipods on: 

• Wastewater (raw, dilution); 
• Environmental water (coastal and marine water, stormwater); 
• Sediment (whole, elutriates, porewater); and 
• Product toxicity verification (single contaminants or complex mixtures).