Environmental Risk Assessment

Environmental risk assessment (ERA) is the procedure in which the inherent hazards involved in natural events (flooding, extreme weather events, etc.), technology, practices, processes, products, agents (chemical, biological, radiological, etc.), and industrial activities and the risks posed by these are examined. ERA involves a critical review of available data for the purpose of identifying and possibly estimating the risks associated with a potential threat, either quantitatively or qualitatively. It includes human health risk assessments, ecological, or ecotoxicological risk assessments and industrial risk assessments that can identify end points in community, biota, and ecosystems. The risks examined in the assessment can be physical, biological, or chemical in nature.