Relying on risk

摘要

The US EPA's proposed limit for dioxins in sludge applied to land has been set after carrying out comprehensive risk assessments. keith hayward looks at the work that has gone into deriving the controls. To arrive at the controls on dioxins which it is proposing, the US EPA carried out risk assessments for exposure to such compounds resulting from sludge use and disposal. These risk assessments, known as a Comprehensive Hazard Identification Study, comprised four steps, namely: hazard identification, dose-response assessment, exposure assesssment, and risk characterisation.