Overview of DARMMikko Pohjola, THL

Contents

• Overview of DARM

• Examples of OA/ORM

• Example swine flu/narcolepsy DA model

• Group feedback/discussion

Overview of DARM

Some relevant questions

• Who needs (to use, make, understand) DA & RM?

• Links of this course contents to other issues taught in environmental risk assessment?

• Are these methods useful in actual decision situations/real world?

Topics considered in DARM• Decision theory• Probability theory• Modeling• Uncertainty and model analyses• Assessment performance• Purpose of RM• Role of assessment in RM• Common views to (systematic) RM

• vs. reality?• vs. needs?

• Participatory assessment and RM• OA & ORM• Information systems/tools to support (O)RM: Opasnet

Goals/courses in ToxEn

• http://uef.fi/toxen/courses

• “…the students will have comprehensive understanding of human exposure to and health effects of environmental agents such as air pollutants, ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, environmental chemicals and noise, as well as methods needed to produce meaningful risk assessments from such information”

Your (future) jobs/roles• Environmental/health consultants• Health care professionals• Public officials• Business/industry experts• Business/industry managers• Researchers• Educators• …• Local/regional committee member• NGO / leisure time activity club members• Parents• Citizens

Examples of OA/ORM

Examples of OA/ORM cases

• Past• Health impact of radon in Europe• Building policies effects on dampness adn ashma in Europe• Health impact of urban heat island mitigation in Europe• Cost-benefit assessment on composite traffic in Helsinki• Comparative risk assessment of dioxinand fine particles• Emission assessment of small-scale energy production in

Helsinki metropolitan area• Benefit-risk assessment on farmed salmon• Benefit-risk assessment of methyl mercury and omega-3 fattu

acids in fish• Risk assessment of nitrate in drinking water• Gasbus – health impacts of Helsinki bus traffic

Examples of OA/ORM cases

• On-going• BIOHER: health impacts and costs due to PM2.5 and GHG

emissions from small heating power plants and detached houses

• CLAIH: health impacts and costs of policies to reduce GHG emissions from household heating

• Assessment of the health impacts of H1N1 vaccination

• Upcoming• URGENCHE: analysis of impact of city-level climate change

policy options in 8 cities in Europe and China• Normative policy analysis on actions to undertake after the

Fukushima nuclear accident• Benefit-risk assessment of food supplements

Example DA study model

Example DA study model

• Problem and assessment question

• Model

• Analyses

• Results & conclusions

• Relation to the argumentation example

• Relations to the DA study plans

• Future development and use of the analysis

Group feedback/discussion

Feedback / discussion

• How did it go?

• Have you learned something?

• Was it effort well spent?

• Was something too difficult or useless?

• Did (will) the course have any impact?