Asbestos from soil - quantitative risk assessment
This event will examine risk assessment approaches for asbestos from soil, particularly quantitative methods based the estimation of the potential cumulative exposure.
Background
All forms of asbestos are now known to be carcinogens, which causes lung cancer and mesotheliomas, but asbestos was widely used by many industries and in a plethora of products (including construction materials) for decades. The use of different forms of asbestos was increasing restricted as the health impacts became evident but the use of all forms was not completely banned in the UK until 1999.
To date, the focus of most asbestos-related research and guidance has been on the management of asbestos within buildings. However results from thousands of investigations at brownfield sites across the UK have found that asbestos-containing materials and asbestos fibres are frequently identified in soils and made ground. There is currently considerable effort to clarify how existing legislation and guidance can, and should, be applied to such asbestos-containing soils and how the potential risks they may pose can be assessed under planning and Part 2A.
This event will explore risk assessment approaches to asbestos-containing soils, particularly the ‘lines of evidence’ approach to quantitative exposure and excess lifetime cancer risk estimation described in CIRIA guidance (C733). The event will be delivered by LQM and IOM.
Why attend
This event will explore:
- how to plan for detailed quantitative risk assessment
- site data needed for the assessment, including health and safety issues
- available approaches, their limitations and uncertainties
- how to estimate cancer risks relating to environmental exposures
- other latest developments on the subject
The day will highlight the lack of authoritative generic assessment criteria for asbestos in the UK and the limitations and pit falls involved in adopting those generated in other jurisdictions. Subsequently, a process to estimate potential future exposures from asbestos-containing soils and the Excess Lifetime Cancer Risk (ELCR) that may associated with such exposures will be discussed, including:
- The data requirements and process needed to estimate cumulative exposures
- The epidemiological basis for existing exposure-risk models, such as that by Hodgson and Darnton
- The limitations and uncertainties in using such models at low levels of exposure
- How such an assessment can be interpreted under different legal contexts
- The risk communication challenge this may pose
Who should attend
Clients/developers, consultants, contractors, laboratories, waste management organisations, regulators, local authorities.
Programme
9:30 Registration and Coffee
10:00 Welcome and Introduction
10:30 Generic quantitative risk assessment:
- No UK thresholds
- Dutch guidance and thresholds/processes
- US superfund guidance
- WA & NEPM guidance and thresholds/processes
- Uncertainty, applicability and common issues
11:30 Tea/Coffee
12:00 Estimating cumulative exposures:
- what is a cumulative exposure and how is it calculated from:
- air monitoring data and its limitations
- soil concentrations (summary, see Day 3)
- ‘fibre release potential' measurements
- including indoor and outdoor exposures
- The importance of 'lines of evidence'.
13:00 Lunch
14:00 Dose-response modelling
- Available epidemiology
- Hodgson and Darnton
- Other models
- Model availability and risk summary tables
- Childhood correction factors
- Applicability to low level exposure
- Uncertainties
15:00 Tea/Coffee
15:30 How to interpret the results
- approaches to uncertainty
- sensitivity analysis
- different legal contexts
- what is an "acceptable" ELCR according to UK policy or the pubic?
16:00 Q&A Session and Debrief
16:30 Close
Speakers
Paul Nathanial, Richard Odgen LQM and Alan Jones IOM
When
6 October 2016
10.00am - 4.30pm (registration from 9.30am)
Where
Sir Colin Campbell Building (Room B03)
University of Nottingham Innovation Park
Triumph Road, Nottingham, NG7 2TU
Fees
FREE for LACL and BRMF members
£250.00+ VAT for non members
Booking
If you are having problems registering for this event online please contact Patrick Williams on 020 7549 3300 or email [email protected]