Transport and dynamics of toxic pollutants in the natural environment and their effect on human health: research gaps and challenge

Abstract

The source-pathway-receptor (SPR) approach to human exposure and risk assessment contains considerable uncertainty when using the refined modelling approaches to pollutant transport and dispersal, not least in how compounds of concern might be prioritized, proxy or indicator substances identified and the basic environmental and toxicological data collected. The impact of external environmental variables, urban systems and lifestyle is still poorly understood. This determines exposure of individuals and there are a number of methods being developed to provide more reliable spatial assessments. Within the human body, the dynamics of pollutants and effects on target organs from diffuse, transient sources of exposure sets ambitious challenges for traditional risk assessment approaches. Considerable potential exists in the application of, e.g. physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models. The reduction in uncertainties associated with the effects of contaminants on humans, transport and dynamics influencing exposure, implications of adult versus child exposure and lifestyle and the development of realistic toxicological and exposure data are all highlighted as urgent research needs. The potential to integrate environmental with toxicological models provides the next phase of research opportunity and should be used to drive empirical and model assessments.

Towards the development of a multidisciplinary understanding of the effects of toxic chemical mixtures on health

“…It would be useful to develop this list further with reference to the priority chemicals listed in Hursthouse and Kowalczyk (2008).…”

Environment and Human Health: The Challenge of Uncertainty in Risk Assessment

“…There is an inherent variability in different environmental media-air > water > soil, depending on the sources over time and the residence time in the system [2]. The estimation of the true values of contaminant concentrations often plays a significant role in decision-making.…”

Inter-compartmental transport of organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides in South China: Implications for a regional risk assessment

“…inter-compartmental transport in an air-(soil)-water-sediment system, have seen increasing use for predicting the transport of environmental contaminants (Hursthouse and Kowalczyk, 2009). By identifying the most critical media for a contaminant, the output of fate models provides a means to integrate transport dynamics of the contaminants into regional risk assessments (Cowan et al, 1995;Lammel et al, 2007).…”