Making Causal Claims about Environmentally Induced Adverse Effects

Causal inferences are a vital and intrinsic part of assessing the risk of adverse effects ib human populations and ecological resources from biological, chemical, physical, and psychosocial stressors. While it is well known that a statistical association does not necessarily imply a causal association, the central role of casual theory in health and ecological risk assessment is often overlooked. In this article, we present a succinct account of causal theory in the health sciences, emphasize the importance of differntiating between formal and informal approaches to causal inference, describe the weight-of-evidence process that is currently the predominant means of inferring causality in the context of science-based regualtory decisions, and discuss aim is to highlight the significance of decisions about causation and causal inference, and to suggest that explicit, well-considered choices will serve to strengthen the scientific underpinnings of regulatory decision-making.