Review of California’s Risk-Assessment Process for Pesticides

The California Department of Pesticide Regulation(DPR)conducts human health risk assessments as part of its mission to ensure the protection of workers and public health in the state. The risk assessments identify potential health hazards posed by pesticides, characterize dose-response relationships, and estimate exposure to characterize potential risks to humans. Over the last decade, advances in methods of scientific and technical analysis have led to improvements in the risk-assessment process that have made them more rigorous, transparent, and useful to risk managers. In light of the advances, the California legislature asked DPR to arrange an independent peer review of the agency’s risk-assessment practices to ensure that they are scientifically and technically credible.

Review of California’s Risk-Assessment Process for Pesticides examines DPR’s processes of hazard identification, exposure assessment, dose-response analysis, and risk characterization to determine whether they are consistent with best practices. This report also evaluates the methods used for setting priorities among pesticides for risk assessment and identifies possible options for improving efficiency and productivity. Recommendations of this report will help to make the process more transparent and defensible.