x^ed sta^
*	- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency	13-P-0127

§	\ Office of Inspector General	January31 2013
s
—'—'J"
I w/ °
At a Glance
Why We Did This Review
We collected this information in
response to a congressional
request to "determine if EPA
[U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency] program offices and
regions incorporate in their
regulatory decision-making the
exposure dose concentrations
or values that are listed in the
IRIS [Integrated Risk
Information System] database."
IRIS is an EPA Web-based
program that evaluates risk
information on human health
effects that may result from
exposure to environmental
contaminants. IRIS consists of
chemical assessments and
quantitative toxicity values that
have been developed by EPA
and undergone peer review.
IRIS contains information for
more than 550 chemical
substances, including cancer
and non-cancer human health
effects.
This work product addresses
the following EPA Goal or
Cross-Cutting Strategy:
• Advancing science,
research, and technological
innovation
Congressionally Requested Information on EPA
Utilization of Integrated Risk Information System
What We Found
Based on the results of our survey, 85 percent of the EPA survey respondents
reported that they have used IRIS as their primary source for cancer values and
81 percent have used IRIS as their primary source for non-cancer values. More
than half (51 percent) of the survey respondents who reported using IRIS as the
primary source for cancer values indicated a reason they did so was because it
was required for the activity they were conducting. Similarly, more than half
(52 percent) of the survey respondents who reported using IRIS as the primary
source for non-cancer values indicated a reason they did so was because it was
required for the activity they were conducting. About one-third (34 percent) of the
survey respondents reported that they have used an alternate source for toxicity
values when an IRIS value was available. The primary reason selected for using
an alternate source was that the alternate source was more up-to-date with
current scientific practice or information.
We found no EPA policy mandating the use of any toxicity database including
IRIS. The Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response has issued a directive
that recommends using EPA's IRIS as the first tier source of human health
toxicity values. Sixty-seven percent of the respondents to this survey reported
that they have used IRIS for Superfund program activities. Sixty-five percent of
respondents also indicated that there are standard operating procedures
regarding how to choose a source of toxicity values. Sixteen percent of
respondents identified the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response
directive as this standard operating procedure.
All survey responses were self-reported by the EPA respondents and were not
verified by the Office of Inspector General.
We make no recommendations in this work product.
For further information, contact
our Office of Congressional and
Public Affairs at (202) 566-2391.
The full report is at:
www.epa.qov/oiq/reports/2013/
20130131-13-P-0127.pdf

-------