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Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry minimal risk levels (MRLs)
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September 2020
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Description:The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) [42 U.S.C. 9604 et seq.], as amended by the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) [Pub. L. 99 499], requires that the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) develop jointly with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in order of priority, a list of hazardous substances most commonly found at facilities on the CERCLA National Priorities List (NPL) (42 U.S.C. 9604(i)(2)); prepare toxicological profiles for each substance included on the priority list of hazardous substances, and to ascertain significant human exposure levels (SHELs) for hazardous substances in the environment, and the associated acute, subacute, and chronic health effects (42 U.S.C. 9604(i)(3)); and assure the initiation of a research program to fill identified data needs associated with the substances (42 U.S.C. 9604(i)(5)).
The ATSDR Minimal Risk Levels (MRLs) were developed as an initial response to the mandate. Following discussions with scientists within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the EPA, ATSDR chose to adopt a practice similar to that of the EPA’s Reference Dose (RfD) and Reference Concentration (RfC) for deriving substance specific health guidance levels for non-neoplastic endpoints. An MRL is an estimate of the daily human exposure to a hazardous substance that is likely to be without appreciable risk of adverse non-cancer health effects over a specified duration of exposure. These substance specific estimates, which are intended to serve as screening levels, are used by ATSDR health assessors and other responders to identify contaminants and potential health effects that may be of concern at hazardous waste sites. It is important to note that MRLs are not intended to define clean up or action levels for ATSDR or other Agencies.
The toxicological profiles include an examination, summary, and interpretation of available toxicological information and epidemiologic evaluations of a hazardous substance. During the development of toxicological profiles, MRLs are derived when ATSDR determines that reliable and sufficient data exist to identify the target organ(s) of effect or the most sensitive health effect(s) for a specific duration for a given route of exposure to the substance. MRLs are based on non-cancer health effects only and are not based on a consideration of cancer effects. Inhalation MRLs are exposure concentrations expressed in units of parts per million (ppm) for gases and volatiles, or milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3) for particles. Oral MRLs are expressed as daily human doses in units of milligrams per kilogram per day (mg/kg/day). Radiation MRLs are expressed as external exposures in units of millisieverts.MRLs in draft Toxicological Profiles are provisional.
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ATSDR%20MRLs%20-%20September%202020%20-%20H.pdf
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