Hubal E A, Sheldon L S, Zufall M J, Burke J M, Thomas K W
National Exposure Research Laboratory, U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711, USA.
J Expo Anal Environ Epidemiol. 2000 Nov-Dec;10(6 Pt 2):638-49. doi: 10.1038/sj.jea.7500128.
In implementing the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has adopted a policy that the exposure factors and models used to assess and predict exposure to pesticides should generally be conservative. Some elements of exposure assessments for FQPA are screening level--they are both uncertain and conservative. If more realistic assessments are to be conducted, then research is required to reduce uncertainty associated with the factors and models used in the exposure assessments. To develop the strategy for conducting this research, critical exposure pathways and factors were identified, and the quality and quantity of data associated with default assumptions for exposure factors were evaluated. Then, based on our current understanding of the pathways that are potentially most important and most uncertain, significant research requirements were identified and prioritized to improve the data available and assumptions used to assess children's aggregate exposure to pesticides. Based on the results of these efforts, four priority research areas were identified: (1) pesticide use patterns in microenvironments where children spend time, (2) temporal and spatial distribution of pesticides following application in a residential setting, (3) dermal and nondietary ingestion exposure assessment methods and exposure factors, (4) dietary exposure assessment methods and exposure factors for infants and young children. The National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) research strategy in support of FQPA is designed to address these priority research needs.
在实施《食品质量保护法》（FQPA）过程中，美国环境保护局（USEPA）采取了一项政策，即用于评估和预测农药暴露的暴露因素和模型通常应具有保守性。FQPA暴露评估的一些要素属于筛选层面——它们既不确定又保守。若要进行更现实的评估，则需要开展研究以减少与暴露评估中所使用的因素和模型相关的不确定性。为制定开展此项研究的策略，确定了关键暴露途径和因素，并评估了与暴露因素默认假设相关的数据质量和数量。然后，基于我们目前对潜在最重要和最不确定途径的理解，确定了重大研究需求并进行优先排序，以改善用于评估儿童农药总暴露量的现有数据和假设。基于这些工作的结果，确定了四个优先研究领域：（1）儿童活动微环境中的农药使用模式；（2）在住宅环境中施用农药后的时空分布；（3）皮肤和非饮食摄入暴露评估方法及暴露因素；（4）婴幼儿的饮食暴露评估方法及暴露因素。国家暴露研究实验室（NERL）支持FQPA的研究策略旨在满足这些优先研究需求。
