WU Volcanic Eruptions Discussion

Analysis of a Natural Environmental Risk

Overview

Nature itself presents hazards to human health, including disease, natural poisons, and radiation. Regulators use a process called environmental risk assessment to decide whether they need to take risk management steps in relation to a risk. In this activity you will carry out three steps of an environmental risk assessment called release analysis, exposure analysis, and health effects analysis. This activity will require outside research in addition to the textbook and will set the stage for a larger assignment in Week 4.

Instructions

Write a 1–2 page paper using the following instructions.

Select an environmental risk that occurs in nature, and research information about its release, exposure scenarios, and health effects. The specific data in each area of the analysis will depend on the environmental risk you choose. Write at least one paragraph for each analysis:

1. Release Analysis: Identify the contaminant, how it is released, measured, or detected. Include units of measurement, setting for the release, and scientific fields related to the contamination or measurement.
2. Exposure Analysis: Analyze the risk of exposure such as settings in which people encounter the risk or plausible scenarios in which exposure occurs.
3. Health Effects Analysis: Estimate the risks to human health, including short and long-term effects, demographic groups at risk, and health effects to individuals and populations.
4. Use 1–2 sources to support your writing. Choose sources that are credible, relevant, and appropriate. Cite each source listed on your source page at least one time within your assignment
   

   Living with Environmental Risks from Nature

   Overview

   Continue working on the naturally occurring risk you analyzed in Week 3. In this week, you will establish the significance of the risk, the stakeholders, and the scientific, technological, and societal issues pertaining to the risk. In addition, you will turn to the critical focus of environmental health management—mitigation of the negative effects on population health.

   Instructions

   Write a 4–5 page paper, based on the natural environmental health risk selected in Week 3.

   1. Explain why this naturally occurring risk is important enough for you to research it. This may include information from your risk analyses in Week 3 or other reasons, such as the number of stakeholders, recent incidents, or personal experience.
   2. Analyze three important scientific, technological, or societal issues pertaining to your chosen natural environmental risk. Justify the importance of these issues based on your research, and provide references to sources that support your analysis. To help guide your research and selection of these issues, note the following:
      • Scientific issues may include the fields of science involved in the study or mitigation of this risk or other issues.
      • Technological issues may include, for example, the types of technology that are available to determine and mitigate the risk.
      • Societal issues may include, for example, socioeconomic impacts and disparities, geographic occurrence, and others.
   3. Recommend a specific mitigation strategy for the natural environmental risk based on your comparison of at least two specific mitigation programs, policies, or strategies you discover through research.