Letter in Response to Fraas & Lutter Article: 'Uncertain Benefits Estimates for Reductions in Fine Particle Concentrations'

摘要

In their article, Fraas and Lutter argue that the U.S. EPA can, and should, do more to characterize uncertainty in its benefits estimates—and to that end, they pilot an array of quantitative uncertainty analyses.(1) We agree that additional probabilistic uncer tainty analysis is desirable and commend the authors for their creativity in identifying new approaches. However, we find that the article does not: (1) accu rately depict EPA's current methods for uncertainty analysis; (2) rely on data, but instead makes specious assumptions; and (3) document clearly their analyt ical approach. Taken together, these limitations un dermine the utility of their preferred approach to characterizing uncertainty.