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Key Policy Guidance Documents

Key policy and guidance documents for EPA waste and cleanup risk assessment programs:

Office of Emergency Management (OEM)

  1. General Risk Management Program Guidance
    A technical guidance document designed for owners and operators of sources covered by the Chemical Accident Prevention Program rule.

  2. Risk Management Program Guidance for Offsite Consequence Analysis
    Provides guidance to the owner or operator of processes covered by the Chemical Accident Prevention Program rule in the analysis of offsite consequences of accidental releases of substances regulated under section 112(r) of the Clean Air Act.

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Federal Facilities and Restoration Reuse (FFRRO)

  1. Ecological Risk Assessment and Risk Management Principles for Superfund Sites
    This guidance is intended to help Superfund risk managers make ecological risk management decisions that are based on sound science, consistent across Regions, and present a characterization of site risks that is transparent to the public.

  2. Ecological Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund: Process for Designing and Conducting Ecological Risk Assessments - Interim Final June 1997, EPA 540-R-97-006
    This document provides guidance on how to design and conduct consistent and technically defensible ecological risk assessments for the Superfund program.

  3. Lead Regulator Policy for Cleanup Activities at Federal Facilities
    This document clarifies roles and minimizes overlapping Federal and state regulatory oversight of cleanups at federal facilities on the National Priorities List (NPL).

  4. Policy on Decommissioning Department of Energy Facilities Under CERCLA
    This policy establishes the approach agreed upon by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) for decommissioning surplus DOE facilities consistent with the requirements of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA).

  5. Proposed Guidelines for Ecological Risk Assessment
    These Proposed Guidelines are EPA's first Agency- wide ecological risk assessment guidelines. They are broad in scope, describing general principles and providing numerous examples to show how ecological risk assessment can be applied to a wide range of systems, stressors, and biological/spatial/temporal scales.

  6. Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund, Volume I
    Part A (1989)
    Part B (1991)
    Part C (1991)
    Part D (2001)
    Part E (2000)
    Supplement to Part A: Community Involvement in Superfund Risk Assessments (1999)

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Office of Underground Storage Tanks (OUST)

  1. Use Of Risk-Based Decision-Making In UST Corrective Action Programs OSWER Directive 9610.17. March 1, 1995
    The primary purpose of this policy statement is to encourage the use of risk-based decision-making as an integral part of the corrective action process at sites where leaking underground storage tank (UST) systems have released petroleum products into the environment and thus created risks to human health and the environment. In addition, this policy statement provides guidelines to help UST implementing agencies develop and use risk-based decision-making in a manner consistent with the Federal law and regulations applicable to UST corrective action.

  2. Standard Guide for Risk-Based Corrective Action Applied at Petroleum Release Sites E1739-95e1, September 10, 1995
    This is an American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) guide to risk-based corrective action (RBCA), which is a consistent decision-making process for the assessment and response to a petroleum release, based on the protection of human health and the environment. The decision process described in this guide integrates risk and exposure assessment practices, as suggested by the U.S. EPA, with site assessment activities and remedial measure selection to ensure that the chosen action is protective of human health and the environment.

  3. Risk-Based Decision-Making Performance Assessment Study Bulletin #1 (PDF) ( 6 pp, 67 kb, About PDF) March 1999
    This bulletin describes the Risk-Based Decision-Making (RBDM) Performance Assessment Study, provides an overview of potential performance criteria that may be useful for states evaluating RBDM-based Leaking Underground Storage Tank corrective action programs, and details preliminary study findings.

  4. Risk-Based Decision-Making Performance Assessment Study Bulletin #2 March 2000 (PDF,11 pp, 249 kb, About PDF)
    This bulletin describes EPA's and ASTM's efforts to assist state and territorial environmental regulatory agencies with the evaluation their RBDM corrective action programs performance for Leaking Underground Storage Tanks. The effort reviewed five individual state programs which have augmented their existing programs with RBDM and evaluated the impact RBDM has made on overall program performance. Bulletin # 2 presents the results of the study, evaluates the findings and provides general recommendations for other state and territorial agencies interested in tracking the performance of their RBDM programs.
    Two-page flyer describing Bulletin #2 (PDF) ( 2 pp, 2.21 mb, About PDF)
    Memo from Sammy Ng about Bulletin #2 (PDF) ( 2 pp, 10 kb, About PDF)

  5. RBCA Fate and Transport Models: Compendium and Selection Guidance November 1998 (PDF, 104 pp, 1.13 mb, About PDF)
    This guidance document provides a compendium of readily available and commonly used models for RBCA applications and includes useful comparison tables, matrices and flowcharts that may aid the user in the selection of models by pathway. The document was funded wholly by US EPA-OUST under an assistance agreement to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) and received extensive review from States, U.S. EPA and the National Partnership in RBCA Implementation (PIRI).

  6. Expedited Site Assessment Tools for Underground Storage Tank Sites: A Guide for Regulators EPA 510-B-97-001, March 1997
    The expedited site assessment (ESA) process is a framework for rapidly characterizing UST site conditions for corrective action decisions. This concept has been described with other names including: accelerated site characterization, rapid site characterization, and expedited site investigation.

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Resource and Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA)

  1. Human Health Risk Assessment Protocol (HHRAP) for Hazardous Waste Combustion Facilities
    National guidance explaining recommendations for performing human health risk assessments of hazardous waste combustors. This document is intended as (1) guidance for personnel conducting risk assessments, and (2) an information resource for permit writers, risk managers, and community relations personnel. (EPA520-R-05-006, September 2005, which replaces EPA 530-D-98-001 Volumes A, B, and C, July 1998 and HHRAP Errata EPA Memo, July 1999)

  2. Guidelines for Ecological Risk Assessment
    Serves as national guidance to help improve the quality and consistency of EPA's ecological risk assessments. The primary audience for this document is risk assessors and risk managers at EPA. (EPA/630/R095/002F 1998)

  3. Screening Level Ecological Risk Assessment Protocol for Hazardous Waste Combustion Facilities
    National guidance explaining recommendations for performing ecological risk assessments of hazardous waste combustors. This document is intended as (1) guidance for personnel conducting risk assessments, and (2) an information resource for permit writers, risk managers, and community relations personnel.

  4. Ecological Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund:Process for Designing and Conducting Ecological Risk Assessments - Interim Final
    Provides guidance to site managers and remedial project managers on how to design and conduct technically defensible ecological risk assessments for the Superfund program. (1997)

  5. Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund, Volume I, Part A
    Provides guidance on the human health evaluation activities that are conducted during a baseline risk assessment - the first step of the RI/FS.

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Superfund (OSRTI)

  1. Clarification of the Role of ARARs in Establishing PRGs under CERCLA (PDF) ( 4 pp, 412 kb, About PDF)
    Clarifies the relationship between the two key Superfund remedy selection mandates.

  2. Ecological Risk Assessment and Risk Management Principles for Superfund Sites (PDF) ( 9 pp, 147 kb, About PDF)
    Intended to help Superfund risk managers make ecological risk management decisions that are based on sound science, consistent across Regions, and present a characterization of site risks that is transparent to the public.

  3. Ecological Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund
    Provides guidance to site managers and Remedial Project Managers who are legally responsible for the management of a site on how to design and conduct technically defensible ecological risk assessments for the Superfund program.

  4. Eco Update Bulletin Series
    Eco Update is a bulletin series on ecological risk assessment of Superfund sites. These bulletins serve as supplements to Ecological Rish Assessment Guidance: Process for Designing and Conducting Ecological Risk Assessments - Interim Final (EPA 540-R-97-006)

  5. Guidance for Comparing Background and Chemical Concentrations in Soil for CERCLA Sites (PDF) ( 89 pp, 1.2 mb, About PDF)
    Provides guidance to the Regions concerning how the Agency intends to exercise its discretion in implementing one aspect of the CERCLA remedy selection process.

  6. Guidance on Risk Characterization for Risk Managers and Risk Assessors
    Intended for managers and assessors on describing risk assessment results in EPA reports, presentations, and decision packages.

  7. Revised Policy of Performance of Risk Assessments during RI/FSs by PRPs (PDF) ( 3 pp, 44 kb, About PDF)
    Announces EPA's revised policy on allowing PRPs to conduct the risk assessment portion of the RI/FS.

  8. Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund, Volume I
    Part A (1989)
    Part B (1991)
    Part C (1991)
    Part D (1998)
    Part E (2000)
    Supplement to Part A: Community Involvement in Superfund Risk Assessments (1999)

  9. Role of the Baseline Risk Assessment in Superfund Remedy Selection
    Provides further guidance on how to use the baseline risk assessment to make risk management decisions such as determining whether remedial action under CERCLA Sections 104 or 106 is necessary.

  10. Role of Background in CERCLA Cleanup Program (PDF) ( 13 pp, 148 kb, About PDF)
    Clarifies the preferred Agency approach for the consideration of background constituent concentrations of hazardous substances, pollutants, and contaminants in certain steps of the remedy selection process, such as risk assessment and risk management, at Superfund sites.

  11. Role of Biological Technical Assistance Teams in Ecological Assessments (PDF) ( 4 pp, 365 kb, About PDF)
    Summarizes the Biological Technical Assistance Group (BTAG) structure and function in the Superfund process.

  12. Role of Natural Resource Trustees in the Superfund Process (PDF) ( 10 pp, 192 kb, About PDF)
    Intended to help Remedial Project Managers (RPMs) and On-Scene Coordinators (OSCs) work with natural resource trustees during site assessment and remediation.

  13. Role of Screening Level Risk Assessments and Refining COCs in Baseline Ecological Risk Assessments (PDF) ( 8 pp, 650 kb, About PDF)
    Supplemental guidance intended to provide further clarification and direction regarding Screening Level Ecological Risk Assessments (SLERAs).

  14. (Science Policy Council) Guidance for Risk Characterization
    Contains principles for developing and describing EPA risk assessments, with a particular emphasis on risk characterization.

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