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In a nutshell, Risk Assessments, with their guiding strategies and taskmaster, keep projects safe, on track, and on budget. These decisions impact the timing and financial investment and sometimes drive the state of the science for industry. They are so important to the project process that we can safely say that anyone working anywhere in the vast network of our chemical industries, from pharmaceuticals to personal care products to agricultural projects and beyond, has, at some point, worked under the guidance of a Risk Assessment Strategy.
But what goes into a Risk Assessment Strategy? While exact details will vary by industry and project goals, there are fundamental steps that, together, create a seamless project path. For instance, regardless of the industry, the classic Risk Assessment process begins with a problem formulation. This step first questions whether there are risks associated with the project before specifying what risks are involved. Once identified, the strategy then tackles and defines the approach for answering said risks, including endpoints.
Next, any hazard identifications can take place. These identifications will focus on potential risks to humans and ecological compartments. Hazard and exposure assessments are then conducted to characterize the toxicity endpoints and estimate the expected exposure concentrations. A risk characterization combines the factors of both hazard and exposure in order to quantify risk...
>> Read the full article
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Water Testing During a Drought? | |
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Today’s ever-changing and often unpredictable weather has dominated our news feeds and impacted our daily lives. From full destruction to everyday inconvenience, extreme weather is undoubtedly a headline story. Yet while it makes for a bold story, weather extremes do not necessarily eliminate industry needs and regulatory requirements, which means that, for Waterborne’s scientists at least, the show must go on. Nowhere is this more evident than within our Field Studies work, where our teams have had to solve client challenges while working alongside Mother Nature’s awesome power. This has begged the question, “How does one conduct water testing when drought has reduced or eliminated waterways”?
To start, Waterborne’s scientists are extraordinarily resourceful, especially when faced with the knowledge that our clients depend on them. Through collaboration with our Innovations team and each other, our Field Studies scientists have tapped into their problem-solving bags of tricks and applied that collective experience and expertise toward the development of new technologies and custom equipment. The subsequent new tools, such as specialized low-stream gauges or on-demand receptors, have created viable water testing scenarios amidst drought conditions.
Deploying new technology is one of many solutions. Sometimes an answer can be found by adapting... >> Read the full article
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Assessing Wildfires' Impact on Water Quality | | |
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In the past few months, wildfire smoke has caused significant air quality concerns across Canada and the United States. However, the associated risk doesn't end with poor air quality; an increase in wildfires has led to environmental concerns in water supplies as well. The U.S. Geological Survey Water Resources Mission Area is currently collecting data as part of its study monitoring streamflow and water quality in burned watersheds across the western United States.
According to the study, "Wildfires pose a substantial risk to water supplies because they can lead to severe flooding, erosion, and delivery of sediment, nutrients, and metals to rivers, lakes, and reservoirs. The USGS works with federal and state land managers and local water providers to monitor and assess water quality after wildfires in order to help protect our Nation’s water resources." The Water-quality data collection is focused on parameters that are critical to human and/or ecosystem health, relevant to water-treatment processes and drinking-water quality, and/or inform the role of precipitation and discharge on flow paths... >> Learn more
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Join Waterborne's team at ACS Fall 2023 | |
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Join Waterborne at the ACS FALL 2023, Harnessing the Power of Data event in San Francisco, CA this August 13th - 17th. We're sending a coterie of experts who will present short courses and papers (abstracts below), and meet with colleagues within the industry. For information about scheduling a meeting during the event, please contact Andy Jacobson.
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Sunday, August 13th
8:55-9:20AM, Room 3022
Title: Machine learning to integrate environmental mechanistic modeling and water quality monitoring for pesticides.
2:05-2:30PM, Room 3016
Title: Novel remote sensing approach for estimating field-scale crop planting and pesticide application timing.
2:30-2:55PM, Room 3016
Title: PWC-PREP Tool: A user-friendly tool to facilitate preparation of label-compliant Pesticide in Water Calculator (PWC) batch input files.
Monday, August 14th
9:50 - 10:15AM, Room 3016
Title: What is the appropriate sampling frequency necessary for pesticide monitoring programs in flowing surface waters?
4:40-5:05PM, Room 3014
Title: Inventory and review of existing agricultural best management practices for pesticides in the USA.
4:05-5:30PM, Room 3022
Title: Climate change and agriculture: AGRO’s role in ensuring sustainable agriculture.
In addition, Waterborne will be co-chairing the following technical symposia:
Monday, August 14th
2:00 - 6:00PM, Room 3022
Title: Adapting Agricultural Chemistry and Practices to a Changing Climate
2:00 - 5:35PM, Room 3014
Title: Pesticide Runoff Mitigation: Characterization, Quantification, and Implementation
2:00 - 5:35PM, Room 3016
Title: Transitioning from the Laboratory to the Landscape Challenges and Opportunities
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Waterborne Environmental is a renowned consulting firm that has provided innovative solutions to the world’s most complex environmental problems since 1993. Our experienced, unbiased scientists and engineers work across industries to evaluate environmental, ecological, and human risks. Our work spans across industry and regulatory agencies to support the balance in the needs of a growing population with the environmental impact on our valuable natural resources.
Our The Current Newsletter is published monthly. Visit us online to find more articles, videos, and information about our work. Click here to contact us.
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Waterborne Environmental Inc.
CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS
897B Harrison Street SE
Leesburg, VA 20175
Phone: +1 (703) 777-0005
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