The Council for Health and Environmental Safety of Soils

The Council for Health and Environmental Safety of Soils (CHESS) was organized in 1987 to develop a consensus soil risk assessment methodology to be used as a framework for establishing standards for soil contamination to protect the environment and public health. The wide range of contaminating substances of possible health concern in soil is affecting land use and development, causing excessive economic expenditures, and the regulatory approaches for control are disperse. The International Society of Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology agreed to sponsor the Council and through a Governing Board composed of experienced scientists from the federal government, state departments of public health and environmental protection, academia, and the private sector including industry and environmental organizations. The Board was created to support the goals of CHESS, its mode of operation, and to establish funding policies and directions. A technical council agreed to develop a peer-reviewed consensus methodology to assess public health risks from contaminated soil by technical committees composed of recognized experts in the area of soil contamination and other relevant disciplines. This methodology would then be made available to federal and state agencies, the private sector, and the scientific community at large. After extensive study, a final decision was made to develop a decision-tree framework to be used at the state and local levels for application to all types of soil contamination. Following extensive studies it was agreed the ubiquitous nature of petroleum contamination in soil has direct and immediate public health implications and CHESS therefore directed its first efforts to this area.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)