Development of a risk-based environmental management process for the United States Department of Energy

Reduction of major risks to the public and workers at waste sites is a top priority of governmental agencies. Given current and future budget realities, agencies cannot attempt to address all risks simultaneously, nor to address certain relatively lower risk activities as rapidly as some would like. The assumptions and judgments inherent in using risk analysis in the absence of data, however, have to be clearly stated. What is needed is an integrated risk assessment and management process that meets the current and future needs of the government, as well as stakeholders. Yet there have been many questions raised regarding risk assessment: our ability to define the risks on a specific substance or site basis and in a systematic way; methodology questions about identifying and assessing diverse hazards and risks as well as uncertainties in the estimates, data gaps, and concern over the quality of information; and the fact that "who" performs the risk assessment matters. Knowing these controversies surrounding risk and the use of a risk-based approach, the U.S. Department of Energy requested the U.S. National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council to determine whether and how risk and risk-based decisions could be incorporated into a major federal program, DOE's Office of Environmental Management. The report identified the major obstacles, issues and barriers to implementing a risk-based management approach. The report concluded that the use of a risk-based approach could help compare outcomes, build consensus, and gain early public involvement to include cultural, socioeconomic, historical, and religious values, if its purposes and limitations are well-defined. A status of DOE's ability to implement the recommendations presented in the report on the use of risk assessment in a major federal program and the adoption of principles for using risk analysis are given.