CHMM Risk Assessment and Hazard Analysis Flashcards
6 cards from real CHMM practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 CHMM Risk Assessment and Hazard Analysis flashcards as text
In risk assessment, what is the 'hazard quotient' (HQ) used to evaluate?
Answer: Non-cancer risk from a single chemical by comparing exposure to a reference dose
The hazard quotient is the ratio of estimated exposure to the reference dose (RfD or RfC); an HQ greater than 1 suggests potential non-cancer health concern.
Which chemical property most directly determines whether a substance will volatilize from soil or water and become an inhalation hazard?
Answer: Henry's Law constant
Henry's Law constant describes the partitioning of a chemical between the dissolved and vapor phases, directly indicating its tendency to volatilize into the air.
During a risk assessment, 'sensitive receptors' are important to identify because they represent which group?
Answer: Populations or locations with heightened vulnerability to adverse effects
Sensitive receptors include groups such as children, the elderly, and individuals with pre-existing health conditions who face greater risk from the same level of chemical exposure.
In a Layer of Protection Analysis (LOPA), what does an 'independent protection layer' (IPL) provide?
Answer: A risk reduction mechanism that functions independently of other safeguards
An IPL in LOPA is a safeguard that independently and reliably reduces the frequency or severity of a hazardous scenario by at least one order of magnitude.
The EPA's Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) provides toxicological data used primarily for which purpose?
Answer: Deriving health-based risk values for use in human health risk assessments
IRIS provides EPA's consensus toxicological assessments, including cancer slope factors and reference doses, used as inputs for site-specific human health risk assessments.
Which concept in risk management refers to reducing risk to a level that is 'As Low As Reasonably Practicable' by balancing risk reduction benefits against cost and effort?
Answer: ALARP
ALARP (As Low As Reasonably Practicable) is the principle that risk must be reduced until further reduction would be grossly disproportionate to the benefit gained.