National Academies Press: OpenBook
« Previous: Front Matter
Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×

Introduction

In the Bhopal disaster of 1984, approximately 2,000 residents living near a chemical plant were killed and 20,000 more suffered irreversible damage to their eyes and lungs following accidental release of methyl isocyanate. The toll was particularly high because the community had little idea what chemicals were being used at the plant, how dangerous they might be, and what steps to take in case of emergency. This tragedy served to focus international attention on the need for governments to identify hazardous substances and to assist local communities in planning how to deal with emergency exposures.

In the United States, the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986 required the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to identify extremely hazardous substances (EHSs) and, in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Transportation, to assist Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) by providing guidance for conducting health-hazard assessments for the development of emergency-response plans for sites where EHSs are produced, stored, transported, or used. SARA also required the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to determine whether chemical substances identified at hazardous waste sites or in the environment present a public-health concern.

As a first step in assisting the LEPCs, EPA identified approximately 400 EHSs largely on the basis of their “immediately dangerous to life and health” (IDLH) values developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in experimental animals. Although several public and private groups, such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the

Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×

American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists, have established exposure limits for some substances and some exposures (e.g., workplace or ambient air quality), these limits are not easily or directly translated into emergency exposure limits for exposures at high levels but of short duration, usually less than 1 hr, and only once in a lifetime for the general population, which includes infants, children, the elderly, and persons with diseases, such as asthma, heart disease, or lung disease.

The National Research Council (NRC) Committee on Toxicology (COT) has published many reports on emergency exposure guidance levels and spacecraft maximum allowable concentrations for chemicals used by the Department of Defense (DOD) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (NRC 1968; 1972; 1984a,b,c,d; 1985a,b; 1986a,b; 1987; 1988, 1994, 1996a,b; 2000a,b). COT has also published guidelines for developing emergency exposure guidance levels for military personnel and for astronauts (NRC 1986b, 1992). Because of the experience of COT in recommending emergency exposure levels for short-term exposures, EPA and ATSDR in 1991 requested that COT develop criteria and methods for developing emergency exposure levels for EHSs for the general population. In response to that request, the NRC assigned this project to the COT Subcommittee on Guidelines for Developing Community Emergency Exposure Levels for Hazardous Substances. The report of that subcommittee, Guidelines for Developing Community Emergency Exposure Levels for Hazardous Substances (NRC 1993), provides step-by-step guidance for setting emergency exposure levels for EHSs. Guidance is given on what data are needed, what data are available, how to evaluate them, and how to present the results.

In November 1995, the National Advisory Committee for Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Substances (NAC1) was established to identify, review, and interpret relevant toxicologic and other scientific data and to develop acute exposure guideline levels (AEGLs) for high-priority, acutely toxic chemicals. The NRC’s previous name for acute exposure levels—community emergency exposure levels (CEELs)—was replaced by the term AEGLs to reflect the broad application of these values to planning, response, and prevention in the community, the workplace, transportation, the military, and the remediation of Superfund sites.

AEGLs represent threshold exposure limits for the general public and are applicable to emergency exposures ranging from 10 min to 8 h. Three levels—AEGL-1, AEGL-2, and AEGL-3—are developed for each of five

1  

NAC is composed of members from EPA, DOD, many other federal and state agencies, industry, academia, and other organizations. The roster of NAC is shown on page 7.

Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×

exposure periods (10 min, 30 min, 1 h, 4 h, and 8 h) and are distinguished by varying degrees of severity of toxic effects.

The three AEGLs are defined as follows:

AEGL-1 is the airborne concentration (expressed as ppm (parts per million) or mg/m3 (milligrams per cubic meter)) of a substance above which it is predicted that the general population, including susceptible individuals, could experience notable discomfort, irritation, or certain asymptomatic nonsensory effects. However, the effects are not disabling and are transient and reversible upon cessation of exposure.

AEGL-2 is the airborne concentration (expressed as ppm or mg/m3) of a substance above which it is predicted that the general population, including susceptible individuals, could experience irreversible or other serious, long-lasting adverse health effects or an impaired ability to escape.

AEGL-3 is the airborne concentration (expressed as ppm or mg/m3) of a substance above which it is predicted that the general population, including susceptible individuals, could experience life-threatening health effects or death.

Airborne concentrations below AEGL-1 represent exposure levels that can produce mild and progressively increasing but transient and nondisabling odor, taste, and sensory irritation or certain asymptomatic, nonsensory effects. With increasing airborne concentrations above each AEGL, there is a progressive increase in the likelihood of occurrence and the severity of effects described for each corresponding AEGL. Although the AEGL values represent threshold levels for the general public, including susceptible subpopulations, such as infants, children, the elderly, persons with asthma, and those with other illnesses, it is recognized that individuals, subject to unique or idiosyncratic responses, could experience the effects described at concentrations below the corresponding AEGL.

REVIEW OF THE NAC DOCUMENT STANDING OPERATING PROCEDURES ON ACUTE EXPOSURE GUIDELINE LEVELS FOR HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES

Before developing AEGLs for individual chemicals, the NAC developed the guidelines document Standing Operating Procedures of the National

Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×

Advisory Committee on Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Substances (referred to as the SOP manual), which documents the procedures, methods, criteria, and other guidelines used by NAC in the development of the AEGL values. The information contained in the SOP document is based on the guidance provided by the NRC in its guidelines report (NRC 1993). The SOP document contains further details and clarification of specific procedures, methods, criteria, and guidelines interpreted from the NRC report.

In 1998, EPA and DOD asked the NRC to review the NAC’s SOP document and AEGL reports for their scientific validity, completeness, and conformance to the 1993 NRC guidelines report. The NRC assigned this project to the COT Subcommittee on Acute Exposure Guideline Levels. The subcommittee members were chosen for their expertise in toxicology, epidemiology, pharmacology, medicine, industrial hygiene, biostatistics, risk assessment, and risk communication. The subcommittee’s review of the SOP document prepared by the NAC involved oral and written presentations to the subcommittee by the authors of the report. The subcommittee provided advice and recommendations for revisions to ensure scientific validity and consistency with the NRC (1993) guidelines report. The authors of the SOP document presented their revised report at subsequent meetings until the subcommittee was satisfied with the revisions. The subcommittee concludes that the revised SOP document presented in the Appendix of this report is scientifically valid, complete, and consistent with the 1993 NRC guidelines report.

REFERENCES

NRC (National Research Council). 1968. Atmospheric Contaminants in Spacecraft. Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences.

NRC (National Research Council). 1972. Atmospheric Contaminants in Manned Spacecraft. Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences.

NRC (National Research Council). 1984a. Emergency and Continuous Exposure Limits for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 1. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1984b. Emergency and Continuous Exposure Limits for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 2. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1984c. Emergency and Continuous Exposure Limits for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 3. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1984d. Toxicity Testing: Strategies to Determine Needs and Priorities. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1985a. Emergency and Continuous Exposure

Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×

Guidance Levels for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 4. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1985b. Emergency and Continuous Exposure Guidance Levels for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 5. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1986a. Emergency and Continuous Exposure Guidance Levels for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 6. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1986b. Criteria and Methods for Preparing Emergency Exposure Guidance Level (EEGL), Short-Term Public Emergency Guidance Level (SPEGL), and Continuous Exposure Guidance level (CEGL) Documents. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1987. Emergency and Continuous Exposure Guidance Levels for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 7. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1988. Emergency and Continuous Exposure Guidance Levels for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 8. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1992. Guidelines for Developing Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Space Station Contaminants. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1993. Guidelines for Developing Community Emergency Exposure Levels for Hazardous Substances. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1994. Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 1. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1996a. Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 2. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 1996b. Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 3. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 2000a. Spacecraft Maximum Allowable Concentrations for Selected Airborne Contaminants, Vol. 4. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

NRC (National Research Council). 2000b. Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Selected Airborne Chemicals, Vol. 1. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×

This page intentionally left blank.

Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×
Page 1
Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×
Page 2
Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×
Page 3
Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×
Page 4
Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×
Page 5
Suggested Citation:"Introduction." National Research Council. 2001. Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10122.
×
Page 6
Next: Roster of the National Advisory Committee for Acute Exposure Guideline Levels (NAC/AEGL Committee) for Hazardous Substances »
Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals Get This Book
×
Buy Paperback | $55.00 Buy Ebook | $43.99
MyNAP members save 10% online.
Login or Register to save!
Download Free PDF

Standing Operating Procedures for Developing Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Chemicals contains a detailed and comprehensive methodology for developing acute exposure guideline levels (AEGLs) for toxic substances from inhalation exposures.

The book provides guidance on what documents and databases to use, toxicity endpoints that need to be evaluated, dosimetry corrections from animal to human exposures, selection of appropriate uncertainty factors to address the variability between animals and humans and within the human population, selection of modifying factors to address data deficiencies, time scaling, and quantitative cancer risk assessment.

It also contains an example of a summary of a technical support document and an example of AEGL derivation. This book will be useful to persons in the derivation of levels from other exposure routes—both oral and dermal—as well as risk assessors in the government, academe, and private industry.

  1. ×

    Welcome to OpenBook!

    You're looking at OpenBook, NAP.edu's online reading room since 1999. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.

    Do you want to take a quick tour of the OpenBook's features?

    No Thanks Take a Tour »
  2. ×

    Show this book's table of contents, where you can jump to any chapter by name.

    « Back Next »
  3. ×

    ...or use these buttons to go back to the previous chapter or skip to the next one.

    « Back Next »
  4. ×

    Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.

    « Back Next »
  5. ×

    Switch between the Original Pages, where you can read the report as it appeared in print, and Text Pages for the web version, where you can highlight and search the text.

    « Back Next »
  6. ×

    To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter.

    « Back Next »
  7. ×

    Share a link to this book page on your preferred social network or via email.

    « Back Next »
  8. ×

    View our suggested citation for this chapter.

    « Back Next »
  9. ×

    Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.

    « Back Next »
Stay Connected!