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PLANNING OF HEALTH EFFECTS RESEARCH ON HAZARDOUS AIR POLLUTANTS AND APPLICATION TO RISK ASSESSMENT PROBLEMS
Citation:
Boyes, W K. AND W Russo. PLANNING OF HEALTH EFFECTS RESEARCH ON HAZARDOUS AIR POLLUTANTS AND APPLICATION TO RISK ASSESSMENT PROBLEMS. Presented at 2004 EPA Science Forum, Washington, DC, 6/1-3/04.
Description:
The Clean Air Act Amendment of 1990 designated a set of compounds as hazardous air pollutants or "air toxics" which may be released into the air from a variety of sources including stationary, mobile and indoor air sources. Determination of the risks to human health from exposures to the 188 chemicals and chemical classes on this list requires substantially more information regarding their potential effects on human health than is currently available. The National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory has developed a draft Air Toxics Research Implementation Plan which considers the programmatic needs for information to support regulatory actions in addition to the draft ORD Air Toxics Research Strategy and Multi-year Plans. The overall goals of the implementation plan include: (1) to develop a procedure for assessing the risks of acute exposures, (2) to improve the process for assessing risks of chronic exposures, and (3) to better assess the risks of exposures at the community level. The research accomplished to date has found specific risk applications including the use of dose-based duration adjustments in assessing risks as a function of concentration and duration of exposure. In addition, the research has potential applications to estimations of cost benefit analyses for a variety of emission control options. Future research should address development of biologically-based dose-response models for exposures of neurotoxic compounds and pulmonary irritants, and help delineate the shape of the dose response function of carcinogenic substances at low dose levels. This poster will highlight the research plans, recent accomplishments, and the impact of these efforts on agency decision-making.