Science and Decisions

Science and Decisions PDF

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2009-03-24

Total Pages: 422

ISBN-13: 0309120462

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Risk assessment has become a dominant public policy tool for making choices, based on limited resources, to protect public health and the environment. It has been instrumental to the mission of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as well as other federal agencies in evaluating public health concerns, informing regulatory and technological decisions, prioritizing research needs and funding, and in developing approaches for cost-benefit analysis. However, risk assessment is at a crossroads. Despite advances in the field, risk assessment faces a number of significant challenges including lengthy delays in making complex decisions; lack of data leading to significant uncertainty in risk assessments; and many chemicals in the marketplace that have not been evaluated and emerging agents requiring assessment. Science and Decisions makes practical scientific and technical recommendations to address these challenges. This book is a complement to the widely used 1983 National Academies book, Risk Assessment in the Federal Government (also known as the Red Book). The earlier book established a framework for the concepts and conduct of risk assessment that has been adopted by numerous expert committees, regulatory agencies, and public health institutions. The new book embeds these concepts within a broader framework for risk-based decision-making. Together, these are essential references for those working in the regulatory and public health fields.

Management of Contaminated Site Problems, Second Edition

Management of Contaminated Site Problems, Second Edition PDF

Author: Kofi Asante-Duah

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2019-04-12

Total Pages: 598

ISBN-13: 0429584466

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This book outlines the strategies used in the investigation, characterization, management, and restoration and remediation for various contaminated sites. It draws on real-world examples from across the globe to illustrate remediation techniques and discusses their applicability. It provides guidance for the successful corrective action assessment and response programs for any type of contaminated land problem, and at any location. The systematic protocols presented will aid environmental professionals in managing contaminated land and associated problems more efficiently. This new edition adds twelve new chapters, and is fully updated and expanded throughout.

Hazard Hydrogeology

Hazard Hydrogeology PDF

Author: Peiyue Li

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2024-01-20

Total Pages: 276

ISBN-13: 3031484274

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This book addresses geohazards by establishing their unique hydrogeological conceptual site models. Geohazards occur in many forms and scales either naturally or induced by human's activities. Many geohazards such as earth fissure, ground collapse and subsidence, mine water inrush, and groundwater contamination are closely related to hydrogeological conditions and their dynamics. Water, either surface water or groundwater, acts as a resource and an enabling agent that elevates geohazard risks in areas that are inherently vulnerable. The book presents case studies to describe identification and investigation methods, monitoring and early-warning techniques, modeling approaches, and engineering measures to prevent, control, and mitigate these geohazards. It targets students, researchers, practitioners, and decision makers who are engaged in water resource management, project planning, and geohazard control and management.

Regulatory Politics in an Age of Polarization and Drift

Regulatory Politics in an Age of Polarization and Drift PDF

Author: Marc Allen Eisner

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2017-02-24

Total Pages: 516

ISBN-13: 1317293282

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Regulatory change is typically understood as a response to significant crises like the Great Depression, or salient events that focus public attention, like Earth Day 1970. Without discounting the importance of these kinds of events, change often assumes more gradual and less visible forms. But how do we ‘see’ change, and what institutions and processes are behind it? In this book, author Marc Eisner brings these questions to bear on the analysis of regulatory change, walking the reader through a clear-eyed and careful examination of: the dynamics of regulatory change since the 1970s social regulation and institutional design forms of gradual change – including conversion, layering, and drift gridlock, polarization, and the privatization of regulation financial collapse and the anatomy of regulatory failure Demonstrating that transparency and accountability – the hallmarks of public regulation – are increasingly absent, and that deregulation was but one factor in our most recent significant financial collapse, the Great Recession, this book urges readers to look beyond deregulation and consider the broader political implications for our current system of voluntary participation in regulatory programs and the proliferation of public-private partnerships. This book provides an accessible introduction to the complex topic of regulatory politics, ideal for upper-level and graduate courses on regulation, government and business, bureaucratic politics, and public policy.

Science at EPA

Science at EPA PDF

Author: Mark R. Powell

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-04-23

Total Pages: 469

ISBN-13: 1134271697

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was created to protect public health and the environment, and it has traditionally emphasized its regulatory mission over its scientific mission. Yet for environmental policy to be credible with the public and policymakers, EPA's actions must have a sound basis in science. In Science at EPA, Mark Powell offers detailed case studies that map the origins, flow, and impact of scientific information in eight EPA decisions involving the agency's major statutory programs. Drawing on extensive research and interviews, he provides the most comprehensive examination available on the acquisition and use of science in environmental regulation. Powell describes the key obstacles to the practical, efficient, and effective acquisition and use of knowledge in what is a crucial, but complex endeavor. His book is an essential contribution for practitioners, scholars and students, and citizens who are determined to protect our environment rationally and effectively.

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