The following information appears in a box on page 26 of the printed report.

Ecological Risk Assessment and Risk Management

Human and ecological health are intimately connected. Ecosystems are crucial to human survival and well-being. We depend on them for many things—including material goods (such as food, building materials, and fiber) as well as recreation and spiritual sustenance. Many environmental problems, such as global climate change and hormonally active contaminants, pose an inseparable combination of health and ecological risks.

While many of our laws were intended to protect simultaneously human and ecological health, ecological risk assessment has long been eclipsed by human health risk assessment. In recent years, however, we have begun to recognize the importance of directly protecting ecosystems, rather than indirectly protecting them through measures taken to improve human health. As agencies gain experience in applying the ecological risk assessment process, risk managers will become better equipped to address important ecological problems—such as protecting biological diversity and habitats, maintaining ecosystem health, and guiding sustainable development.

Although the techniques for ecological risk assessment differ somewhat from those of traditional human health risk assessment, the Commission’s Framework is designed to be flexible enough to accommodate both.