Decision making in environmental projects is typically a complex and confusing process characterized by trade-offs between socio-political, environmental, and economic impacts. Comparative Risk Assessment (CRA) is a methodology applied to facilitate decision making when various activities compete for limited resources. CRA has become an increasingly accepted research tool and has helped to characterize environmental profiles and priorities on the regional and national level. CRA may be considered as part of the more general but as yet quite academic field of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). Considerable research in the area of MCDA has made available methods for applying scientific decision theoretical approaches to multi-criteria problems, but its applications, especially in environmental areas, are still limited. The papers show that the use of comparative risk assessment can provide the scientific basis for environmentally sound and cost-efficient policies, strategies, and solutions to our environmental challenges.

History has shown how powerful societies decline when natural resources are unable to be replenished. This book explores the challenges facing coastal areas during in the near future. It emphasizes beliefs that the convergence of seemingly disparate viewpoints and uncertain and limited information is possible only by using available risk assessment methodologies and decision-making tools such as multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA).

What data is needed to complete a quantitative risk assessment for environmental and public health? How accurate does a quantitative risk assessment have to be? How confident does a risk assessor need to be when presenting risk estimates to a decision maker? Find out the answers to these questions and more with Comparative Environmental Risk Assessment, the first major commercial publication that describes the current state of the art in comparative environmental risk assessment. This book examines the problems involved in such analyses and offers ideas and thoughts for future development. The book examines major problems in this area and covers all aspects of the environment, including human and ecological health. Comparative Environmental Risk Assessment is an excellent guide for risk assessment experts, environmentalists, regulators, planners, legislators, scientists in industry, instructors, and students.

Providing a catalogue of suggested solutions for different categories of issues, this book offers a balanced overview and methodological examples for the practical implementation of the CRA. It considers CRA in the USA, Europe and Germany, using case studies to analyze and exemplify the decision-making processes and challenges involved. The authors then go on to look at the practical lessons learned from these case studies, together with an in-depth discussion of the underlying scientific hypotheses. Sound scientific knowledge for everyone who makes decisions, whether government ministers, regulators, or company directors.

This handbook describes the broad aspects of risk management involving scientific policy judgment, uncertainty analysis, perception considerations, statistical insights, and strategic thinking. This book presents all the important concepts to enable the reader to "see the big picture." This ability is extremely important - it allows the decision maker or strategic environmental planner to understand and cope with a wide variety of complex and interlinked pieces of information and data. The text presents environmental problems and, whenever applicable, the methodology required to reach a successful solution. Decisions and policies are examined. The book covers numerous objective and subjective components of environmental risk decision making. It details quantitative and comparative risk, and investigates the cost and feasibility of different decisions. Social pressures, safety, and political, religious, ethical, and psychological issues are addressed. How to evaluate the potential impact on the quality of life also is discussed. Any company doing risk assessment, risk management, or risk communication, as well as those doing environmental decision making will find this reference to be invaluable. It is also suitable as a text for courses in environmental management, environmental science, and risk assessment in the areas of risk management and strategic environmental planning.

Written for safety and loss-control, environmental, and quality managers, this is the first comprehensive, integrated guide to developing a complete environmental risk analysis for regulated substances and processes. Unlike other books, Introduction to Risk Analysis looks at risk from a regulatory perspective, allowing both professionals in regulatory agencies concerned with risk_including OSHA, EPA, USDA, DOT, FDA, and state environmental agencies_and professionals in any agency-regulated industry to understand and implement the methods required for proper risk assessment. The authors examine risk and the structure of analysis. Emphasizing the predictive nature of risk, they discuss the quantitative nature of risk and explore quantitative-analysis topics, including data graphing, logarithmic thinking, risk estimating, and curve fitting. Chapters include discussions on functions, models, and uncertainties; the regulatory process; risk assessment; exposure; dosimetry; epidemiology; toxicology; risk characterization; comparative risk assessment; ecological risk assessment; risk management; and risk communication. Six in-depth case studies, an annotated bibliography, and more than 50 figures are also included.

Revised version of a background paper presented by the author to the Workshop on Comparative Risk Assessment of Environmental Hazards in an International Context, held at Woods Hole, Mass., March 31-April 4, 1975. Includes index. Bibliography: p. 101-107.