EPA hosted a public workshop to discuss recommendations from the National Academies' National Research Council's May 2014 report on ways to further improve the scientific quality of IRIS assessments. In their report, the NRC commended EPA for its substantive new approaches, continuing commitment to improving the process, and successes to date.

EPA noted that the program has moved forward steadily in planning for and implementing changes in each element of the assessment process. They also provided several recommendations which they said should be seen as building on the progress that EPA has already made.

This workshop allowed EPA to get specific input from the public and scientific community about topics related to the NRC's May 2014 recommendations report. These discussions will help to enhance the IRIS Program's work as it develops IRIS assessments and advances the science of risk assessment. The workshop was open to the public, broadcast by webinar/teleconference, and took place in Arlington, VA.

Download Workshop Materials

• Agenda for EPA IRIS Workshop on the NRC Recommendations (PDF)(4 pp, 197 K)
• Welcome Presentation - Vincent Cogliano (PDF)(5 pp, 352 K)
• Overview Presentation - Kenneth Olden (PDF)(2 pp, 157 K)
• Overview Presentation - Jonathan Samet (PDF)(15 pp, 1 MB)
• Session 1: Introduction - Vincent Cogliano (PDF)(2 pp, 71 K)
• Integrating Evidence - Richard Scheines (PDF)(10 pp, 54 K)
• Overview of Evidence-Integration Systems by Lorenz Rhomberg (PDF)(21 pp, 440 K)
• Comments on the Meaning of "...as appropriate.." - Bernard Goldstein (PDF)(26 pp, 203 K)
• Systematic Integration of Evidence Stream for IRIS by Elaine Faustman (PDF)(7 pp, 74 K)
• Evidence Integration in the IARC Monographs (PDF)(16 pp, 424 K)
• Integrating Evidence..It's not a novel challenge (PDF)(4 pp, 705 K)
• The Basic Laws of Systematic Review (PDF)(9 pp, 197 K)
• Pathways to Implementation of the NRC Recommendations (PDF)(11 pp, 1 MB)
• Woodruff Reference Resource 1 (PDF)(8 pp, 256 K)
• Woodruff Reference Resource 2 (PDF)(13 pp, 536 K)
• Woodruff Reference Resource 3 (PDF)(12 pp, 469 K)
• Woodruff Reference Resource 4 (PDF)(12 pp, 309 K)
• Session 2: Introduction - Cogliano (PDF)(2 pp, 70 K)
• Path Forward, as Envisioned by the NRC (PDF)(32 pp, 3 MB)
• Application of Systematic Review to Environmental Health: Comparison of Methods (PDF)(23 pp, 889 K)
• Regulatory (Eco)Toxicology- From the other side of the pond (PDF)(2 pp, 426 K)
• Pathways to Implementation of the NRC Recommedations (PDF)(11 pp, 1 MB)
• Presentation by the ACC (PDF)(7 pp, 2 MB)
• Systematic Reviews of Experimental Animal Studies (PDF)(25 pp, 1 MB)
• Session 3a: Introduction - Cogliano (PDF)(2 pp, 71 K)
• Combining Mulitple studies to derive toxicity values: Path forward as envisioned by the NRC - Yiliang Zhu (PDF)(8 pp, 432 K)
• Combining Multiple Studies When Information is Sparse - Lauren Zeise (PDF)(24 pp, 3 MB)
• Combining Data from Different Sources in Risk Assessment (PDF)(43 pp, 4 MB)
• Combining Multiple Studies Discussion (PDF)(4 pp, 23 K)
• An Updated Inhalation Unit Risk Factor for Arsenic and Inorganic Arsenic Compounds (PDF)(19 pp, 460 K)
• Session 3b: Introduction - Cogliano (PDF)(2 pp, 70 K)
• Towards Confidence Bounds for IRIS Values that do not Perpetuate the Underestimation of Risk and False Security about Safety (PDF)(30 pp, 2 MB)
• Characterizing Uncertainty for Better Decisions (PDF)(23 pp, 143 K)
• Talking Points for EPA IRIS Workshop Session on "Advancing Dose-Response Analysis—Uncertainty (and Variability)" (PDF)(6 pp, 162 K)
• General Observations (PDF)(3 pp, 67 K)
• Tables from the Acrylamide Oral RfD Assessment (PDF)(23 pp, 395 K)
• Comments on Uncertainty Analysis - Talking Points (PDF)(7 pp, 420 K)
• NAS 2014 on Industry Bias (PDF)(3 pp, 203 K)