HEEPS AND HEAS--WHAT ARE THEY?


                                  By Michelle Lee



                                     3 1 MAR 1987

We maintain an ongoing effort to identify and increase access to sources of hazardous waste
information. As part of that effort, I recently investigated two series of EPA reports:


    --  Health and Environmental Effects Profiles (HEEPs).

    -  Health Effects Assessment (HEA) documents.


Following is a description of these documents, including their purpose and access information.
EPA 950-F-87-002

                                 ATTACHMENT 6-1

-------
                               HEEP DOCUMENTS
WHAT ARE HEEPs:
Health and Environmental Effects Profiles (HEEPs)' are compiled to support
the listing  of  hazardous  constituents  identified  under Section  3001,
Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

- There are currently about 400 substances listed:

  -- About 164 Hazard Profiles from 1980-1983, they are about 10-20 pages
   brief summaries.

  -- Approximately 200 HEEPs since 1983.

  - Many Reportable Quantity chapters (includes aquatic toxicity aata)
   added to the HEEPs since 1985.
WHO ISSUES IT:
HEEPs  are prepared by the  Environmental Criteria Assessment  Office
(ECAO), Office of Research and Development (ORD), Cincinnati, OH.
PURPOSE:
HEEPs are prepared to aid the Office of Solid Waste in developing waste
characterization regulations.
FREQUENCY:
When a substance is added to the list of hazardous constituents, a  HEEP
document is developed.
ACCESS INFO:
RCRA Docket Information Center (8-382-4646) at EPA Headquarters maintains
copies of HEEPs for on-site reference use only.

The Technical Information Unit(TIU) of ECAO in Cincinnati maintains working
copies of HEEPs for their reference.  They do not distribute them.

We a re attempting to add the HEEPs to the Hazardous Waste Col lection, and will
keep you informed of our progress.
NOTE:
Many of the  profiles were  summarized from the Water  Quality Criteria
documents prepared in support of various programs under the Clean Water
Act.
                                   ATTACHMENT 6-2

-------
                               HEA DOCUMENTS
WHAT IS HEA:
Health Effects Assessment (HEA) documents are brief, quantitatively-oriented
scientific summaries of health effects data.

- There are currently nearly 60 published HEA documents.
WHO ISSUES IT:
HEAs are developed by the Environmental Criteria and Assessment Office,
Office of Health and Environmental Assessment (ORD), Cincinnati, OH.
PURPOSE:
HEAs  are prepared to  assist the Headquarters' Office of Emergency and
Remedial Response (OERR) in establishing chemical-specific health-related
goals for Superfund remedial actions.

The intent in these assessments is to suggest acceptable exposure levels
whenever sufficient data are available.
FREQUENCY:
When additional health  effects assessment information is needed, a HEA
document is developed by ORD staff. There are about 57 HEA documents
planned for  FY 1987 publication.
ACCESS INFO:
HEA documents are available from NTIS. Many are available through the EPA
library network Hazardous Waste Collection, and as new HEAs are issued, they
are added to the Collection.
                                   ATTACH ME NT 6-3

-------