What is Risk Analysis?

Decisions are made all the time which affect public health and prioritize the use, possible misuse and/or protection of resources and biota.

Risk Analysis is an approach and a set of tools for systematically comparing the social, economic, human health and other environmental costs and benefits of decision options. Risk Analysis includes problem definition, hazard and exposure assessment, risk characterization, risk communication and decisions affecting risk management.

Risk Analysis can add transparency and inclusiveness to the decision-making process. Risk Analysis is multi-disciplinary, drawing on a range of basic scientific skills to generate data, and a wide array of other skills to communicate, evaluate, interpret, and act on the assessment. Risk Analysis is integrative.

For further info on Environmental Risk Analysis of chemicals see Chapter 17 of SCOPE 53 : Methods to Assess The Effects of Chemicals On Ecosystems

(SCOPE=Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment)

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