Qualitative and Quantitative Risk Assessment of Hazardous Substances in the Workplace

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Background

The workplace risk assessment is an effective method to control occupational hazardous substances and significant in occupational health protection. Hazardous substances that require risk assessment and management in the workplace include dust or particles (e.g. ultrafine particles or nanoparticles, fine particles), and harmful chemicals (e.g. organic solvents and heavy metals). Many countries have established standards for occupational health risk assessment in the workplace. Common quantitative and qualitative models include, models used by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), models from Singapore, Australia, and Romania, the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) model, the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) model in the UK, and the International Chemical Control Toolkit (ICCT). At the same time, many risk assessment models have been developed for nanoparticles or ultrafine particles in the workplace. Each of them has its own advantages and limitations due to its different technical principles. There are many studies on methodologies and practical applications of risk assessment for harmful substances. Some studies have been conducted to examine the strengths and weaknesses of different models and assisted in their further refinement and utility.

There are very few studies focusing on the selection of the most appropriate model for a particular application, and are heavily depending on the personal experience and judgment of consulted experts, resulting in very different risk assessments. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the theoretical framework of risk assessment methodology, which depends on the understanding of the similarities and differences of different risk assessment methods.

This research topic aims to shed light on the advance of research and policy making on occupational health risk assessment in the workplace, in the hope to develop new risk assessment methods or models for harmful substances, to investigate the application or validity of multiple qualitative and quantitative risk assessment methods in key industries, and to investigate the advantages and disadvantages of different models and assist in their further improvement.

The areas of interest in this topic are the development of workplace risk assessment methods, the application or comparison of multiple qualitative and quantitative risk assessment methods in key industries, and the development of preventive or management measures. We welcome submissions of the following subtopics but not limited to:

• Research advance and policy making on occupational health risk assessment in the workplace
• Development of new risk assessment methods or models for harmful substances
• Application of multiple qualitative and quantitative risk assessment methods in key industries
• Comparative studies between different qualitative and quantitative risk assessment methods
• Preventive measures and occupational risk management based on risk assessment results

Keywords: Risk assessment, Hazardous substances, Preventive measures, Occupational health and safety

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