The Project aim. The project aims at environmental health risk assessment (EHRA) of inorganic contaminants resulting from mining activities in Armenia and Kazakhstan via methods in compliance with international approaches and guidelines. The goal is to determine long-term health risks and apply risk based decision making in health and environmental management, and in food safety.
Current status. In CIS countries as a rule the environmental and health data are not sufficient to carry out quantitative environmental health risk assessment and to exercise risk analysis based decision making systems. The methodology for integrated environmental health risk assessment of inorganic contaminants is not updated and harmonized with international requirements and reference methods. Till today only the traditional methods of monitoring and surveillance are being used in the majority of ex-Soviet countries including Armenia and Kazakhstan. Unfortunately by such traditional methods it is possible to assess only immediate health risks, which is not giving an opportunity to assess and predict long-term health effects for future generation also, making it impossible to set up sustainable development policies taking into consideration disease prevention and health protection at large by the promotion of a healthy environment.
Open mines and tailings are significant sources of environmental exposure to highly toxic trace elements. The minerals and rocks liberated through mining and processing are not part of the aerobic ecological systems and are unstable. In addition to a number of environmental issues (acid drainage, etc.), they have the potential to contaminate the ecosystem by releasing toxic trace elements. The latter can cause adverse effects on human health through different routes of exposure, from inhalation to ingestion (especially via contamination of the food chain). Dietary exposure is particularly insidious and usually represent the major source when toxic trace elements are dealt with. Chemical safety is one of the priority problems both in Armenia and Kazakhstan. The implementation of up-to-date environmental health risk assessment approaches will enable the following:
- to develop an efficient tool for estimating the level of dietary exposure to harmful chemical substances among the general population living in mining-impacted areas;
- to exercise a cost-effective approach for estimation of dietary exposure to chemical contaminants, in compliance with the methodologies recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international organizations, and to conduct risk/benefit assessments to give adequate diet and food-related recommendations to consumers;
- to monitor the effectiveness of regulatory controls in reducing exposure to harmful chemicals;
- to use the information gained from the points above in order to help setting priorities for future research and interventions, and inform policymakers on the need for remedial actions and public health strategies.
Specifically, the project will focus on population exposure to toxic trace elements in two mining-impacted areas in Armenia and in one mining-impacted area in Kazakhstan.
The project’ influence on progress in this area. Due to the application of scientific and methodological fundamentals of environmental health risk assessment, this project will have a significant influence on the modernization of environmental and health research infrastructures both in Armenia and Kazakhstan, increasing awareness of the link between environmental issues and food safety.
The participants’ expertise. The Armenian scientists are actively participating in projects related to environmental contamination and assessment of geochemical anomalies. The scientists from different departments of CENS have already undertaken complex investigations in the two national sites, covering contaminants’ transfer from air-water-soil to agricultural raw materials and dietary toxicity assessment. They also made some mapping for an in-depth characterization of the sites intended for further investigation. The scientists have experience not only in the field of geochemical assessment and environmental contamination, but also in the area of exposure assessment of dietary contaminants and long-term health risk assessment. The project team consists of weapon scientists and young researchers and students (PhDs, MSs). The results of the mentioned investigations are summarized in publications and were presented at international conferences. This information is available on the Internet web-site www.cens.am.
Laboratories of the Center of physico-chemical methods of research and analysis DSE have extensive experience in the development of analytical methods for different purposes using modern physico-chemical methods (gas chromatography combined with various types of detectors, high performance liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry and others) and sample preparation (headspace analysis, solid phase microextraction, purge and trap). Laboratory staff conduct researches in integrated interdisciplinary projects in various fields, such as rocket-space activity (ISTC projects K-451, K-451.2, K-1482, State Program of the Republic of Kazakhstan "Development of space activities in the Republic of Kazakhstan" and others), metallurgy and petrochemistry. Laboratory "Ecology of Biosphere" is certified for a wide range of xenobiotics in various matrices; about 10 techniques developed by staff were certified by State Standard methods for official use in Kazakhstan.
CPCMA DSE researchers were repeatedly involved in solving various problems in the field of environmental analysis using modern hybrid methods: determination of trace amounts of chemicals (toxins) in the soil, water and air; analysis of petroleum products; analysis of foods and others.
Expected results and their application. The implementation of this Project will provide a framework for the application of risk analysis based approaches in environmental health risk management in Armenia and Kazakhstan. In particular, the following results are foreseen:
1. Integration and adaptation of different approaches (WHO, FAO, EFSA, EPA) for the implementation of up-to-date environmental health risk assessment technologies as an efficient tool for decision making in health and environmental management, and food safety.
2. Development and construction of appropriate environmental databases to conduct integrated environmental health risk assessment.
3. Assessment of environmental health risk parameters and introduction of quantitative data of health risk based on dietary exposure to environmental contaminants for prediction and elaboration of appropriate prevention strategies.
4. Elaboration of competence-based curriculum (courses) to provide training and vocational education in the field of environmental health risk assessment
5. Organization of workshop involving all stakeholders and translation (e.g. proceeding books) for society.
