The three Rs: the way forward.

Laws that mandate replacement alternatives, reduction alternatives, and refinement alternatives (the Three Rs) in scientific research have been passed in the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, the United States, and the European Union over the past decade. Full implementation of this newly developed legislation depends upon scientists' ability to understand animal welfare issues and to accept the legitimacy of the public's interest in the conduct of science. The European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ECVAM), established by the European Commission in 1991 to promote the scientific and regulatory acceptance of alternative methods, recently sponsored a workshop to discuss the current status of the Three Rs and to make recommendations aimed at achieving greater acceptance of the concept ofhumane experimental technique. Twenty-one scientists professionally committed to the Three Rs were invited to attend the conference, which was chaired by Michael Balls, head of ECVAM, and Alan M. Goldberg, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT). The conference was held in Sheringham, Norfolk, UK on May 30, 1995-June 3, 1995. A report based on the conference was published by ECVAM (1) in December 1995 and is excerpted as follows.