Full Description
All those who make risk-related decisions require sound knowledge on which to base their decisions, wherever possible including the best scientific knowledge available. Often, they are confronted by the need to make decisions in which they must allocate resources to one or more of several different problems, and are required to do so in the absence of any objective means of comparing the risks or the impact of their decisions. CRA offers a possible way of providing a scientific basis for such decisions. This valuable contribution to the debate about CRA and its place in the total risk governance process provides a catalog of suggested solutions for different categories of issues, offering a balanced overview backed by methodological examples. It considers CRA in the USA, Europe and Germany, using case studies to analyze and exemplify the decision-making processes and challenges involved. Following an introductory section, the authors go on to look at the concepts and definitions of risk, as well as the practical implementation of CRA. Along the way, they consider the empirical foundations of CRA and a conceptual framework for an integrated comparative risk evaluation.
They also study the practical lessons learned from the case studies, together with an in-depth discussion of the underlying scientific hypotheses. The whole is rounded off with appendices covering risk metrics, MCRA, a comparative evaluation of unclear risks and the risks of hazardous incidents. This book offers sound scientific knowledge for everyone who makes decisions, whether government ministers, regulators, or company directors.
Contents
Foreword. Acknowledgements. Summary. 1 Introduction. 2 Concepts and Definitions. 2.1 Risk. 2.2 Danger/Potential for Damage-Hazard. 2.3 Incertitude and Uncertainty. 2.4 Risk Assessment. 2.5 Risk Evaluation. 2.6 Risk Comparison. 2.7 Risk Management. 2.8 Risk Regulation. 2.9 Risk Communication. 3 CRA in Practice. 3.1 Political Environment of CRA. 3.1.1 CRA in the USA. 3.1.2 CRA in Europe. 3.1.3 CRA in Germany. 3.2 Project Case Studies. 3.2.1 US EPA Unfinished Business Project. 3.2.2 Comparative RiskFramework Methodology and Case Study(USEPA). 3.2.3 Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study. 3.2.4 ExternE Project. 3.2.5 Comprehensive Assessment of Energy Systems Project. 3.2.6 Classification of Carcinogenic Airborne Pollutants for the German TA Air Novella. 3.2.7 Summary. 4 The Empirical Foundations of CRA. 4.1 A Starting Point for Risk Comparisons. 4.2 Risk Comparisons as a Means of Risk Communication. 4.3 Procedural Challenges. 4.3.1 Framework: What is to be Kept in Mind when Determining the Systems Limit Options for CRA? 4.3.2 Risk Categories: What Inf luence Do They Have on Comparisons? 4.3.3 Attributes: What Inf luence Do They Have on Comparisons? 4.3.4 Assessment of the Attributes: What Inf luence Does the Measure of a Risk Have on Comparisons? 4.3.5 Comparisons: What Inf luence Does the Nature of the Comparison Have on the Comparison? 4.4 CRA Negotiations Under Conf lict. 4.4.1 Pitfalls in the Evaluation of One's Own Position and Interests. 4.4.2 Pitfalls in the Evaluation of Other Parties. 4.4.3 Pitfalls in the Evaluation of Suggestions. 4.4.4 Pitfalls in the Evaluation of Outcomes. 5 Conceptual Framework for an Integrated Comparative Risk Evaluation. 5.1 Methodological Problems of a CRA. 5.1.1 Problem: Uncertainty and Incertitude. 5.1.2 Problem: Evaluative Criteria. 5.1.3 Consequences for the Conduct of a CRA. 5.2 Methodology of Comparative Risk Evaluation. 5.2.1 Multiattribute Risk Evaluation: Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches. 5.2.2 Conduct of a Multiattribute Evaluation. 6 The Practical Implementation of CRA. 6.1 Limits of Comparability. 6.2 Goals of a Comparative Evaluation of Risks. 6.2.1 Preliminary Analysis. 6.2.2 Risk Assessment. 6.2.3 Risk Evaluation. 6.2.4 Risk Management. 6.3 Participation Models. 6.4 CRA Participants. 6.5 The Sequence of Events in a CRA. 6.6 The Organization of Communication. Appendix 1: Risk Metrics. Appendix 2: Multiattribute Comparative Risk Evaluation (MCRA). Appendix 3: Comparative Evaluation of Unclear Risks. Appendix 4: Comparative Evaluation of the Risks of Hazardous Incidents. References. Abbreviations of Organizations. Index.
