Superfund Health Risk Technical Support Center (STSC)
The Superfund Health Risk Technical Support Center (STSC) provides technical support to EPA program and regional offices in the area of human health risk assessment.
The Superfund Health Risk Technical Support Center (STSC) is one of EPA’s technical support centers (TSCs) that provides specialized scientific support to decision-makers in EPA’s program offices and regions. The STSC provides site-specific technical support and expertise in the area of human health risk assessments in order to better understand the potential impacts of a contaminated site on an affected community. Other clients of the STSC include scientific staff supporting the Superfund program, authorized contractors, and state scientists.
What We Can Do For You
STSC provides site-specific guidance and expertise for preparing human health risk assessments on the types of hazardous waste sites addressed by EPA land cleanup programs.
In support of the Superfund program, the STSC:
- Interprets Agency guidance and assessments, and evaluates toxicity values from EPA or other Agencies.
- Provides clarification of the scientific conclusions and methodologies applied in human health risk assessments.
- Provides scientific/technical consultations in support of states, EPA regional scientists, and associates regarding human health issues related to contaminated sites.
- Serves as a point of contact for the Superfund Program when there is an urgent need for available toxicity values.
Site-Specific Assistance
Evaluation of Uncertainty in the Cobalt PPRTV — EPA Region 4 and the State of Georgia
In FY2017, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division requested clarification on the origin of reference values for cobalt in the 2008 PPRTV and re-evaluation of the rationales considering more recently published information. In 2008, the STSC published a PPRTV assessment for cobalt that derived a subchronic and chronic p-RfD based on decreased iodine uptake in humans (U.S. EPA, 2008).
The Georgia Environmental Protection Division requested support from the STSC in FY2017 to better understand the implications of a subsequent peer-reviewed publication by Finley et al. (2012) that proposes a cobalt health value based upon alternative interpretations of essentially the same hazard database. The STSC reviewed the requested publication and scientific assertions, and re-evaluated the choice of POD and application of uncertainty factors used to derive the PPRTVs for Cobalt in 2008. The STSC determined that the alternative interpretation of the database for Cobalt was inconsistent with EPA guidance and practice and would not change the conclusions from the 2008 PPRTV assessment. This re-evaluation and explanation was provided to the Georgia Environmental Protection Division. Support such as this leads to increased confidence in the science supporting the PPRTVs and assurance that these toxicity values represent the current state of the science.
Hurricane Harvey Support — EPA Region 6
The STSC serves as a point of contact for the Superfund Program when there is an urgent need for available toxicity values. Hurricane Harvey was a Category 4 hurricane (Figure 7) that made landfall in Texas on August 26, 2017, resulting in unprecedented flooding and damage to the area. Forty-three (43) Superfund National Priority List sites were in the hurricane affected area and required assessment.
The STSC aided in identifying available toxicity values for a list of 15 chemicals of interest to the Hurricane assessment effort. In addition, the STSC responded to follow-up clarification on the scope of the toxicity values provided for endosulfan. These requests supported the EPA responders in better understanding the human health impacts of Hurricane Harvey and its aftermath.
Publications
- 09/30/19 - EPA announced the release of the Superfund Health Risk Technical Support Center (STSC) FY18 Annual Report. This final report provides an overview of the functions of the STSC, including the preparation and distribution of PPRTV assessments, and a selection of technical responses provided in FY2018.
- 09/26/18 - EPA announced the release of the Superfund Health Risk Technical Support Center (STSC) FY17 Annual Report. This final report provides an overview of the functions of the STSC, including the preparation and distribution of PPRTV assessments, and a selection of technical responses provided in FY2017.
Resources
STSC connects EPA regional staff and their contractors with the specialized human health risk assessment expertise. Available resources include a core team of biologists, toxicologists, epidemiologists, and statisticians who provide scientific technical support on issues related to human health risk assessments, including interpretation of guidance and assessments and evaluation of toxicity values from EPA or other Agencies, that allow for more accurate quantitative estimates of risk to be developed.
Contact
Dahnish Shams
Director, Superfund Health Risk Technical Support Center (STSC)
513-569-7300