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Risk assessment under FQPA: case study with chlorpyrifos.
C B Clevelan1, G R Oliver, B Chen
1Dow AgroSciences LLC, Indianapolis, IN 46268, USA. cbcleveland@dowagro.com
Neurotoxicology
|January 5, 2002
Summary
Conservative science policies, including the Food Quality and Protection Act (FQPA), have significantly reduced allowable chlorpyrifos exposure limits in the US, impacting regulatory credibility.
Area of Science:
- Environmental toxicology
- Risk assessment science
- Regulatory policy analysis
Background:
- The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) implemented key science policies affecting the Food Quality and Protection Act (FQPA) of 1996.
- These policies influence risk assessments for pesticides like chlorpyrifos.
Observation:
- Four specific policies examined: regulatory endpoint selection, use of animal data for reference dose, a 10 FQPA safety factor, and high-percentile consumer exposure modeling.
- These policy decisions cumulatively impacted the 2000 revised risk assessment for chlorpyrifos.
Findings:
- Conservative assumptions within these policies led to a significant multiplicative reduction in allowable chlorpyrifos exposure limits.
- These new US exposure limits differ substantially from international standards.
Implications:
- Third-party opposition highlights concerns that policy conservatism has clouded the understanding of chlorpyrifos's human and animal response data.
- This increased regulatory conservatism may weaken the credibility of the EPA's risk assessment process.