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Legislation such as the Stockholm Convention and REACH aim to identify and regulate the production and use of chemicals that qualify as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and very persistent and very bioaccumulative (vPvB) chemicals, respectively. Recently, a series of studies on planetary boundary threats proposed seven chemical hazard profiles that are distinct from the POP and vPvB profiles. We previously defined two exposure-based hazard profiles; airborne persistent contaminants (APCs) and waterborne persistent contaminants (WPCs) that correspond to two profiles of chemicals that are planetary boundary threats. Here, we extend our method to screen a database of chemicals consisting of 8648 substances produced within the OECD countries. We propose a new scoring scheme to disentangle the POP, vPvB, APC and WPC profiles by focusing on the spatial range of exposure potential, discuss the relationship between high exposure hazard and elemental composition of chemicals, and identify chemicals with high exposure hazard potential. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s00128-017-2253-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Environmental modelling provides a logical and internally consistent framework for evaluating and comparing alternative management strategies. The papers presented in this session reflect distinctly different approaches to the development and use of models. The first paper, by Edgar Furuholt of Statoil, describes a method for risk analysis of marine discharges using the concept of dose. The subsequent three papers, respectively by Albert Bos of Servo Delden, Gro Ofjord et al. of Aquateam, and Henk Schobben et al of TNO, all deal with the CHARM (Chemical Hazard Assessment and Risk Management) model. CHARM was developed to provide a simple screening tool for the use and discharge of chemicals offshore, and relies solely on the comparison of potential environmental and no-effect concentrations, rather than actual exposure or dose. The final paper, by Reed et al. of IKU Petroleum Research represents an effort to provide realistic exposures and resulting internal body burdens for both passive and actively swimming marine organisms. Each of these modelling approaches has a clear place in the environmental manager’s toolbox, providing risk assessment capabilities over a range of complexity and specificity.

This chapter is designed to give you a clearer understanding of different types of hazards and their significance in foods. We will explore the mechanisms that can be used for their control and expand on the concept of Critical Control Points. This information is intended for reading before you get going and, although not a complete source of information on all hazards, it will give a valuable grounding to the HACCP Team members. You may not initially have people who will understand the implications of all the information given here, but it will help you to get started and will highlight areas where you may need to bring in specialist help to your HACCP Team.

Risk indexing is a useful and powerful tool that can provide valuable information on the risks associated with chemicals and chemical processes. As defined here, risk indexing is the process of modeling and scoring chemical hazard and exposure parameters to produce a rapid and simple estimate of relative risk. The principles of risk indexing can be applied to a variety of risk assessment projects to set priorities and help manage resources. Within the framework of basic risk assessment principles, however, different levels of risk index depth can be developed. A simple risk index can be considered to be at one end of a continuous risk analysis spectrum, where hazard and exposure are quickly estimated through the use of simple models. A full quantitative risk analysis would be at the other end of this risk analysis spectrum, where hazard and exposure are tested, measured, and assessed as rigorously as possible. Choosing the depth of the risk analysis is a critical decision that depends on such factors as the time and resource commitment to the project, the number of materials or processes to be analyzed, and the desired endpoint of the risk index analysis. This report demonstrates three levels of risk index analysis for a hypothetical ammonia storage system and analyzes the relative merits of each. The analysis and discussion offer guidance for appropriately selecting the depth of risk index analysis based on the desired risk analysis endpoint.