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Health "Scorecard provides listings of the chemicals that can cause cancer, harm the immune system, contribute to birth defects, or lead to any of nine other types of health impacts. Chemicals whose health hazards are widely recognized by authoritative scientific organizations are separated from chemicals whose health hazards are suspected on the basis of more limited data." - Environmental Health Perspectives, Fertilizing or Contaminating? Vol 107 No 3, March 1999 http://www.ehponline.org/cgi-bin/findtoc2.pl?tocinfo=Environmental Health Perspectives@107@3@1999 - Center for Health, Environment and Justice, Be Safe Issue Brochure on waste-derived fertilizers. Produced in coordination with Oregon Toxic Alliance, approx. 2004. - Toxic Chemical Found in U.S. Food Samples, UPI Dec 1, 2004. "[P]erchlorate, which can cause thyroid problems and birth defects, was found in 217 of 232 samples of lettuce and milk in 15 states. ... FDA said perchlorate occurs naturally -- in nitrate fertilizer deposits in Chile -- and is man-made mainly for use in solid rocket propellants. It also is used for fireworks and other explosives, tanning leather, rubber manufacturing and paints." Note: wastes from these man-made uses are used in fertilizers. EPA regulations do not apply to contamination in natural rock. State fertilizer statute's adulteration provision would be very difficult to use against perclorate-contaminated fertlizers because a 'safety' standard has not been set for the level of perclorate. Risk Assessments This article addresses the differences between risk assessment and safety assessment, two commonly confused processes: Safety Assessment and Risk Assessment: Sometimes More Is Less, ORACBA News 5(2), Spring 2000 that compares risk assessment and safety assessment US EPA's National Center for Environmental Assessment " NCEA provides guidance and risk assessments aimed at protecting human health and the environment. This guidance presents critical analyses and summaries of scientific consensus, ..., on the risks of pollutants to human health and the natural environment." Start here when looking for any US EPA risk assessment related material. " Framework for Cumulative Risk Assessment, a report developed under the auspices of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Risk Assessment Forum, is the first step in a long-term effort to develop cumulative risk assessment guidance for the agency. Not intended as a guide for procedure nor a regulatory requirement, the report is an information document that "identifies the basic elements of the cumulative risk assessment process and provides a flexible structure for conducting and evaluating cumulative risk assessment, and for addressing scientific issues related to cumulative risk." Fact sheet about the report, and the Federal Register notice announcing the report's release."
- California Dept of Agriculture, - Minnesota Department of Health, Risk Assessment, Heavy Metals in Fertilizers, 1999 with follow-up 2007-2008. Using the (deeply flawed) California methodology, "MDH concluded that the hazardous constituents in inorganic fertilizers generally are not likely to pose risks to public health. Of the large number of products that have been evaluated, only a few appear to be of potential concern (e.g., exposures to arsenic and lead in micronutrient fertilizers; and dioxins in a few products)." Arsenic Environmental Health Perspectives, Arsenic and Endocrines: New Study Suggests Disruption, Vol 109, No 3, March 2001. Noting: "Arsenic thus appears to act as a new class of endocrine disruptor by altering certain aspects of receptor function, even in nontoxic doses." http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2001/109-3/ss.html#arsenic Dioxin/PCBs |
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