A review of health-based comparative risk assessments in the United States.
Comparing the risks posed by specific environmental hazards has become attractive to policy makers and legislative bodies as an aid to budgeting and other policy decisions. This paper reviews the human health-based findings from the first federal comparative risk assessment project and subsequent reviews conducted by 15 states and local government agencies in the United States. Methods are described on conducting comparative risk assessments that include substantive involvement of the public and special interest organizations. A consolidation of the comparative risk assessments of 15 states revealed good agreement with federal health-based environmental hazard priorities and partial agreement with local-government health departments. In descending order of priority, indoor air pollutants (excluding radon), criteria air pollutants, hazardous air pollutants, indoor radon, lead contamination, inactive hazardous waste sites, and drinking water at the tap are the highest ranked environmental hazards to human health.
Johnson
B L
BL
Adjunct Faculty, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA.
D000393:Air Pollutants; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D000396:Air Pollutants, Radioactive; D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor; D001194:Asbestos; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D005506:Food Contamination; D017752:Greenhouse Effect; D015386:Hazardous Substances; D006256:Hazardous Waste; D006801:Humans; D007220:Industrial Waste; D010573:Pesticide Residues; D011886:Radon; D018570:Risk Assessment; D014481:United States; D014484:United States Environmental Protection Agency; D014873:Water Pollutants; D014881:Water Supply
D000393:Air Pollutants; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D000396:Air Pollutants, Radioactive; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D015386:Hazardous Substances; D006256:Hazardous Waste; D007220:Industrial Waste; D010573:Pesticide Residues; D014873:Water Pollutants; D001194:Asbestos; D011886:Radon