USGS: HBSLs
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Title
| Health Based Screening Levels (HBSLs) |
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Author
| Toccalino, P., Nowell, L., Wilber, W., Zogorski, J., Donohue, J., E., C., Krietzman, S., and Post, G. |
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Abstract/Summary Statement
| (ed) Historically, the USGS has assessed water-quality conditions by comparing water concentration data against established drinking-water standards and guidelines. However, because drinking-water standards and guidelines do not exist for many of the contaminants analyzed by the NAWQA Program and other USGS studies, this approach has proven to be insufficient for placing USGS data in a human-health context. To help meet this need, health-based screening level (HBSL) concentrations or ranges are being determined for unregulated compounds, using a consensus approach that was developed collaboratively by the USGS, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and Oregon Health & Science University. USEPA Office of Water methodologies for calculating Lifetime Health Advisory and Risk-Specific Dose values for drinking water are being used to develop HBSL concentrations (for unregulated noncarcinogens) and HBSL concentration ranges (for most unregulated carcinogens). This report describes the methodologies used to develop HBSL concentrations and ranges for unregulated compounds in State- and local-scale analyses, and discusses how HBSL values can be used as tools in water-quality assessments. Comparisons of measured water concentrations with Maximum Contaminant Level values and HBSL values require that water-quality data be placed in the proper context, with regard to both hydrology and human health. USGS can use HBSL values to assist the USEPA and State and local agencies by providing them with comparisons of measured water concentrations to scientifically defensible human health-based benchmarks, and by alerting them when measured concentrations approach or exceed these benchmarks. |
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Table of Contents
| Sections include: Abstract Introduction Acknowledgments History of Pilot Effort and Reaching Consensus USEPA Human Health-Based Benchmarks and Those Used by USGS Health-Based Screening Level (HBSL) Approach Use of HBSL Values as Tools in Water-Quality Assessments Summary References |
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Citation
| Toccalino, Patricia, Nowell, Lisa, Wilber, William, Zogorski, John, Donohue, Joyce, Eiden, Catherine, Krietzman, Sandra, Post, Gloria, 2003, Development of health-based screening levels for use in State- or local-scale water-quality assessments: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 03-4054, 22 p. |
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Method Source
| USGS |
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Source Organization Country
| USA |
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Publication Year
| 2003 |
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Special Notes
| Prepared in cooperation with the Oregon Health & Science University. See http://infotrek.er.usgs.gov/traverse/f?p=HBSL:GUIDANCE for guidance about using HBSLs to evaluate water-quality data in the context of human health. |
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Item Type
| Report / Guidance Document |
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Publication Source Type
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Government Agency (Federal, USA) |
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Purpose
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Data analysis Monitoring program design |
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Design or Data Analysis Objectives
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Revisit |
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Complexity
| High |
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Media Emphasized
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Groundwater Surface Water |
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Media Subcategory
| |
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Special Topics
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