1. Profile of the specimen bank

The Yangtze Environmental Specimen Bank (YESB) was founded in 2010 as a joint initiative of Tongji University, Stockholm University and the Swedish Museum of Natural History. Relying on the Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment of Ministry of Education and the State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, the YESB is dedicated to collect, prepare and preserve representative environmental samples coming from the Yangtze River Basin and the Yangtze River Delta region. In 2011, the YESB was established in Tongji University as a campus demonstration bank. In 2013, YESB was completed with the support of Nanhu New District government of Jiaxing City in Zhejiang Province. It is now equipped with sample pretreatment room, underground cold storage, ultra-low temperature refrigerator room, science exhibition hall, information management room, analysis laboratory, etc., covering an area of about 3,000 square meters. At present, more than 30,000 samples of soil, sediment, municipal sludge, organisms and human tissues have been stored in the YESB. As a vital member of global environmental specimen bank alliance, the YESB is playing an increasingly important role in environmental science research, international exchanges and cooperation in the field of environment, and ecological environment of the popular science education. It will become an important scientific and technological infrastructure platform for China to promote the Yangtze River protection strategy and the Yangtze River Delta's ecological green integrated development strategy.

2. Work carried out

(1) Sample preparation and preservation

The YESB which handled by professionals, are equipped with a professional sample pretreatment room, room temperature storage room, cryopreservation room (4℃, -25℃ and -80℃), sample information management system and related equipment. The YESB is in charge of professionals and used to work for China Polar Research Center, Ecological Environment Bureau of Jiaxing City , and many other units and many scientific researchers provide sample preparation and preservation services. The YESB can also preserve precious environmental samples for a long time and carry out scientific research cooperation based on environmental samples.

(2) Analysis of physical and chemical indicators and biological indicators

The YESB is equipped with an advanced environmental analysis laboratory (covering an area of about 1000 square meters), which can carry out routine physical and chemical analysis of environmental samples, analysis of inorganic pollutants, organic pollutants and new pollutants, and analysis of microbial and biological toxicological indicators. It provides technical support for the identification, traceability, migration and transformation and ecological risk assessment of regional pollutants.

(3) International cooperation and exchanges

The YESB is an important member of global environmental specimen bank alliance. It provides a platform for the development of international cooperation in the ecological field. It undertook the China and Sweden Symposium on Environment and Health Risks, the 2013 International Environmental Specimen Bank Symposium (the conference papers are published in Environmental Science and Pollution Research), and the 2nd International Symposium on Endocrine Disruptors Chemicals (EDCs), etc.

(4) Ecological science education

The Green Tree Ring Volunteer Association has been established to carry out more than a hundred ecological science education activities for primary and secondary school students, college students and the public up to now. The YESB participated in organizing the Yangtze River aquatic life protection publicity activities, which were reported by CCTV Social and Law Channel "Life•Yangtze River" and Agriculture Press "Save the Elves in the River". The material of the YESB was selected into the Yangtze River protection documentary "Love of the Yangtze River". It has been approved successively as Jiaxing City Ecological Civilization Education Base and Zhejiang Province Ecological Civilization Education Base.

3. Contact information

lThe YESB: Meng Xiangzhou, xzmeng@tongji.edu.cn.

lKey Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education: Xiao Qianfen, qfxiao@tongji.edu.cn.

lState Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse: Zhang Hua, zhhua@tongji.edu.cn.

lWebsite of the YESB: https://esb.tongji.edu.cn/.

lThe YESB Official Account: