Waste and Cleanup Risk Assessment

As used here, Acute Hazards are defined as: conditions that create the potential for injury or damage to occur to humans or environmental receptors as a result of an instantaneous or short duration exposure to the effects of an accidental release. These conditions may be either chemical or physical in nature and may include toxic, flammable, reactive, explosive, or radioactive hazards.

The EPA evaluates the severity of acutely toxic chemicals by measuring the concentration or dose level that could cause death or serious irreversible health effects after a short exposure. For physical hazards, EPA focuses on other types of effects, such as blast waves from vapor cloud explosions from a flammable substance, as the most serious hazard.

EPA Links | External Links

EPA Links

1. EPA's Office of Solid Waste's combustion risk Assessment guidance provides a methodology for calculating an acute inhalation hazard quotient (HQ) in Table C-4-1 of the attached guidance.
   
   

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External Links

1. National Library of Medicine (NLM) Hazardous Substances Data Bank
   Broad scope in human and animal toxicity, safety and handling, environmental fate, and more. Scientifically peer-reviewed.