Regulatory bodies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, Food and Drug Administration, and Department of Health and Human Services, are often required to respond to unanticipated, emerging problems and issues. Responding to such developments can be difficult if an agency has not previously focused on an issue. It is also difficult to ascertain quickly what various groups outside of government may know about a new issue, or to predict how various affected parties may respond to it. Lack of communication among the parties can result in confusion among the public, distrust between affected parties, and a lack of focus on the science underlying the issues. For sound science to guide the decision making process, there is a need for agencies and stakeholders to anticipate emerging issues and communicate with each other.
The Committee on Emerging Issues and Data on Environmental Contaminants was established in 2001 to provide a public forum for government, industry, environmental groups, and the academic community to communicate about emerging issues in toxicogenomics, environmental toxicology, risk assessment, exposure assessment, and other related fields, in the hope that such communication will better prepare agencies for responding to these emerging issues. Operating under the procedures of the National Research Council, the committee brought together representatives from academia, industry, government, and public interest groups to discuss the scientific and social implications of emerging issues and data in environmental contaminants. Due to the rapid pace of advances in toxicogenomics, the committee focused most of its discussions on the scientific challenges, progress, and implications of toxicogenomic technologies, as well as the social, ethical, and legal issues involved.
The committee met 3-4 times a year and invited individuals from various sectors to discuss toxicogenomics and related issues of potential importance to the nation, usually in the format of a workshop. Most of the workshops were open to the public.
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences was the sponsoring agency for this activity.
Committee's Statement of Task:
Operating under the procedures of the National Research Council, a new standing committee on Emerging Issues and Data on Environmental Contaminants will provide a public forum for communication among government, industry, environmental groups, and the academic community about emerging evidence and issues in environmental toxicology, risk assessment, exposure assessment, toxicogenomics, and other related fields. The new standing committee will not itself prepare reports; however, it will be authorized to develop recommendations for future NRC workshops and studies that would require separate approval and funding.
