ENVIRONMENTAL RISK ASSESMENT

EPA considers risk to be the chance of harmful effects to human health or to ecological systems
resulting from exposure to an environmental stressor.

A stressor is any physical, chemical, or biological entity that can induce an adverse effect in
humans or ecosystems. Stressors may adversely affect specific natural resources or entire
ecosystems, including plants and animals, as well as the environment with which they interact.

Risk assesment Basis:

At EPA, environmental risk assessments typically fall into one of two areas:

 Human Health
 Ecological

Following a planning and scoping stage, where the purpose and scope of a risk assessment is
decided, the risk assessment process usually begins by collecting measurements that
characterize the nature and extent of the hazard in the environment. For example, chemical
concentrations in soils could be measured around the source of a spill. Information needed to
predict how the contaminants may behave in the future also could be collected. Here are some
useful links to get started:

 Conducting a human health risk assessment

Based on the results of the planning and scoping phase, the risk assessor evaluates the
frequency and magnitude of human and ecological exposures that may occur. Multiple lines of
evidence are used to estimate potential consequences of contact with the contaminated
medium, both now and in the future. Both the nature and extent of exposure and the effects of
a stressor on humans or ecosystems are considered together. To characterize risks, the assessor
predicts the probability, nature, and magnitude of the adverse effects that might occur.
Risk assessments should be based on a very strong knowledge base. Reliable and complete data
on the nature and extent of contamination or occurrence of other stressor would be ideal.
Understanding the movement and fate of chemicals, microbes, or other agents in the
environment is needed. The risk assessor obtains available information that quantifies the
relationships between the magnitude and frequency of human and ecological exposure and
adverse outcomes.

In real life, however, information is usually limited for one or more of these key information
needs. This means that risk assessors often must estimate exposures and use judgment to
calculate risks. Consequently, all risk estimates include uncertainty. For this reason, a key part
of all good risk assessments is a fair and open presentation of the uncertainties, including data
gaps and limitations of models used to estimate exposure and effects.

The final phase of the assessment, risk characterization, includes both quantitative and
qualitative descriptions of risk. The assessor clearly characterizes how reliable (or how
unreliable) the resulting risk estimates really are. In general, where information is lacking,
assessors use health protective assumptions, particularly in the early stages of a risk
assessment.

Risk managers then use this information to help them decide how to protect humans and the
environment from contaminants or other stressors. Note that “risk managers” can be federal or
state officials whose job it is to protect the environment, business leaders who work at
companies that can impact the environment, or private citizens who are making decisions
regarding risk. The risk managers can conclude that more information is needed to reduce
uncertainty in key factors driving risks and can request further data collection and a refined
assessment.

Thus, a risk assessment often is an iterative process. The assessors screen initial information to
identify the factors that are likely to most influence risk. Researchers can identify and fill data
gaps as feasible to refine their assessment of risk. With better estimates, the risk assessors and
risk managers might further refine the scope of the risk assessment, which can guide further
data collection or more realistic assumptions.
ERA is a flexible tool that can be applied:

• at a variety of scales and levels of detail appropriate to those scales (e.g., provincial to sitespecific);

• for a variety of environmental issues (e.g., from wildlife to water);

• at various levels of funding (i.e., for quick overviews to in-depth comprehensive studies); and,

• for short, medium or long-term time scales.

ERA involves six basic steps:

PREPARATION

• STEP 1 - Establish the Context for ERA

• STEP 2 - Identify and Characterize Key Environmental Pressures

• STEP 3 - Specify Environmental Values and Indicators for the ERA

ASSESSMENT

• STEP 4 - Characterize Environmental Trends, Indicator Relationships and Establish Risk Classes

• STEP 5 - Evaluate Changes to Indicators and Risks

RESULTS

• STEP 6 - Report Results and Develop Risk Reduction Strategies

 Qualitative Assessment
 Quantitative Assessment
 Generic Assessment
 Site-Specific Assessment
 Dynamic Risk Assessment.

1. Qualitative Risk Assessment

The qualitative risk assessment is the most common form of risk assessment. You will often see
this type of risk assessment in workplaces.

This type of risk assessment is based on the personal judgement and expertise of the assessor,
who will often use their own experience to decide on the risk levels involved. The assessor will
also consult with others carrying out the activity and best practice guidance to reach their
decisions.

You will probably start any health and safety risk assessment with a simple qualitative
assessment. In a qualitative risk assessment, the assessor will categorise risk into levels, usually
high, medium or low.

2. Quantitative Risk Assessment

The quantitative risk assessment is used to measure risk by assigning a numerical value. So
instead of high, medium, and low, you could have 3, 2 and 1. Or the scale could be much larger
than 3.

This type of risk assessment is more likely to be used with major hazards, like aircraft design,
complex chemical or nuclear plants.

The quantities measured could be the presence of hazards from chemicals and machinery or
modelling techniques and estimates

Often qualitative risk assessments might also assign numbers to different levels of risk. Like
the 3 x 3 or 5 x 5 risk matrix. But this doesn't turn a qualitative risk assessment into a
quantitative one. If the risk assessment is still based on the judgement of the assessor assigning
the risk values, it is still primarily a qualitative assessment.
Sometimes, a qualitative risk assessment might become semi-quantitative, for example when
some hazards or aspects can be measured, and others are based on judgement.

3. Generic Risk Assessment

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (1999) require employers to assess
the risks arising from their work activities.

Generic risk assessments cover common hazards for a task or activity. The idea behind generic
risk assessment is to cut down on duplication of effort and paperwork. This type of risk
assessment will consider the hazards for an activity in a single assessment. And be used where
that activity may be carried out across different areas of the workplace or different sites.

4. Site-Specific Risk Assessment

A site-specific risk assessment is a risk assessment completed for a specific item of work. It
takes account of the site location, environment, and people doing the work.

Your site-specific risk assessment might be qualitative or quantitative. And you might start with
a generic risk assessment template. But you should finish with a site-specific risk assessment
that is suitable and sufficient for the hazards present.

For example, imagine a generic risk assessment for drilling. It would cover risks like
entanglement with rotating parts, projectiles, contact with hot parts of the tool during use,
vibration and noise.
But could there be unusual hazards on your site that might change the risk level? You could be
drilling within a confined space. A vessel or a tank, for example. Your access might be limited.
Flammable gases could be present. You could need additional controls like atmosphere testing,
a permit to work, a rescue plan.

A site-specific risk assessment will do more than look at common hazards. It will also address
the unusual. Hazards that might only apply to that specific situation, on that particular day.

5. Dynamic Risk Assessment

A dynamic risk assessment is a process of assessing risk in an on the spot situation. This type of
risk assessment is often used to cope with unknown risks and handle uncertainty. People who
need to deal with developing and changing situations will often use dynamic risk assessments.

Dynamic risk assessments might be used by the emergency services or care workers, for
example. Because the location, the situation and the people you are dealing with will change
from case to case. So you must keep risk assessing the changing circumstances.