The vision of CRC CARE’s Risk
Assessment Program is to provide a safer and more sustainable
environment through a contemporary risk assessment framework by
developing cutting edge monitoring and biological effect
measurement technologies.
This program will develop more reliable methods and technologies
for assessing the risk associated with environmental contamination.
This provides a sound basis for management decisions about whether
remediation or management is required, the nature of the
remediation and whether its outcomes are acceptable.
The Risk Assessment Program includes five
subprograms:
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Reliable and acceptable techniques and
technologies to quantify the risk associated with contamination in
soil, groundwater, surface water and air
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Methods for speciation, bioavailability
and toxicity assessment of contaminants
-
Exposure pathway and biological effect
assessment
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Risk characterisation and
communication
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Epidemiological and demographical studies
focusing on the effect of point source air emissions associated
with major industrial centres.
The program will develop:
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more easily applied, reliable and
acceptable techniques and monitoring tools for assessing the risk
(e.g. bioavailability and toxicity) from contamination in soil and
groundwater, and in affected surface water and air
-
better techniques for quantifying the
extent of exposure that can be expected to occur and the fate of
contaminants over the period that is relevant (e.g. a lifetime or a
shorter period, depending on the contaminant).
The research targets groups of contaminants
that pose major soil, air and groundwater problems in Australia, or
may pose a threat from terrorism activities.