EN
In Poland, there are eighteen local animal research committees, members of which include experts in biology, medicine, agriculture, veterinary science, and humanities, as well as representatives of non-governmental animal protection organizations. Committees authorize experiments at the request of persons in charge of a testing procedure. A testing procedure application must describe the procedure and specify its objective; this includes the list of all steps in the procedure, animal species and the number of animals to be used, as well as a justification of the need to use the animals. Local committees decide whether the procedure is ethically acceptable on the basis of the 3R principle, weighing the potential advantages and possible damage. Later, they monitor how the procedure is run. Committee members are entitled to inspect research units where the testing takes place.