TARA AEGLs Team Receives U.S. EPA Plaques of Commendations

Several members of the Toxicology and Risk Analysis (TARA) Section recently received recognition from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for their outstanding contributions to the Acute Exposure Guideline Levels (AEGLs) Program. Plaques of commendation were presented to each staff member during a ceremony held at the auditorium of the National Academy of Sciences. The principal focus of the program is the development of AEGLs, which will be used by the federal government, states, communities, industry, and other parties involved with emergency evacuation planning in the event of accidental chemical releases under the Clean Air Act.

TARA has been a key contributor in this effort since its inception in 1996. The AEGLs developed by TARA staff undergo extensive review by two committees. The initial review is by the National Advisory Committee on AEGLs for Hazardous Substances, which has members from several federal agencies, state governments, the chemical industry, and other organizations. The second committee is the National Research Council (NRC) Subcommittee on AEGLs/Committee on Toxicology, which reviews the AEGLs following public comment via the "Federal Register." The first four AEGLs and their supporting documentation were recently published by the NRC. The TARA AEGLs team members are Cheryl Bast, Tim Borges, Kowetha Davidson, Carol Forsyth, Glenda Johnson, Po-Yung Lu, Sylvia Milanez, Dennis Opresko, Bob Ross, Sylvia Talmage, Lois Thurston, Annetta Watson, and Lee Ann Wilson. (Po-Yung Lu, 574-7587, lupy@ornl.gov) - February 2001