title: Perspectives on communicating risks of chemicals.
abstract: The Agrochemicals Division symposium "Perfecting Communication of Chemical Risk", held at the 244th National Meeting and Exposition of the American Chemical Society in Philadelphia, PA, August 19-23, 2012, is summarized. The symposium, organized by James Seiber, Kevin Armbrust, John Johnston, Ivan Kennedy, Thomas Potter, and Keith Solomon, included discussion of better techniques for communicating risks, lessons from past experiences, and case studies, together with proposals to improve these techniques and their communication to the public as effective information. The case studies included risks of agricultural biotechnology, an organoarsenical (Roxarsone) in animal feed, petroleum spill-derived contamination of seafood, role of biomonitoring and other exposure assessment techniques, soil fumigants, implications of listing endosulfan as a persistant organic pollutant (POP), and diuron herbicide in runoff, including use of catchment basins to limit runoff to coastal ecozones and the Great Barrier Reef. The symposium attracted chemical risk managers including ecotoxicologists, environmental chemists, agrochemists, ecosystem managers, and regulators needing better techniques that could feed into better communication of chemical risks. Policy issues related to regulation of chemical safety as well as the role of international conventions were also presented. The symposium was broadcast via webinar to an audience outside the ACS Meeting venue.
authors.affiliation: Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, Mississippi 39762, USA.
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Armbrust
authors.forename: Mitchell
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Burns
authors.forename: Angus N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Crossan
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Fischhoff
authors.forename: Larry E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Hammond
authors.forename: John J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kennedy
authors.forename: Michael T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.forename: James N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Seiber
authors.forename: Keith
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Solomon
mesh_terms: D016573:Agrochemicals / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis; D000818:Animals; D001315:Australia; D001709:Biotechnology; D004237:Diuron / Q000032:analysis; D004726:Endosulfan / Q000032:analysis; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis; D005651:Fumigation / Q000009:adverse effects; D033181:Information Dissemination / Q000379:methods*; D010575:Pesticides / Q000032:analysis; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis; D011200:Poultry; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012406:Roxarsone / Q000032:analysis; D017747:Seafood / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D016573:Agrochemicals; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D010575:Pesticides; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D004237:Diuron; D012406:Roxarsone; D004726:Endosulfan