Research Progress on Environmental, Health, and Safety Aspects of Engineered Nanomaterials (2013) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 3-16
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From page 3... ...
In response to EPA's request, the National Research Council convened the Committee to Develop a Research Strategy for Environmental, Health, and Safety Aspects of Engineered Nanomaterials, which produced its first report in 2012, A Research Strategy for Environmental, Health, and Safety Aspects of Engineered Nanomaterials. In this second report, the committee evaluates the trajectory of research progress on the basis of indicators or criteria established in its first report.
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From page 4... ...
Because of the many concomitant nanotechnology EHS reviews and planning efforts, the committee did not attempt to attribute progress to any particular effort. Rather, it classified progress on the basis of committee consensus whereby green implies substantial progress (there are new activities, and sustained progress is expected)
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From page 5... ...
The purple boxes capture the range of methods, tools, models, and instruments that support generation of research in the laboratory world, the real world, and the knowledge commons. Research Progress Adaptive Research and Knowledge Infrastructure for Accelerating Research Progress and Providing Rapid Feedback to Advance Research In the first report, the committee identified a need for an adaptive infrastructure for research and knowledge generation to accelerate and advance nanotechnology EHS research.
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From page 6... ...
BOX S-1 Status of Indicators of Progress in Research4 Adaptive Research and Knowledge Infrastructure for Accelerating Research Progress and Providing Rapid Feedback to Advance the Research Extent of development of libraries of well-characterized nanomaterials, including those prevalent in commerce and reference and standard materials Development of methods for detecting, characterizing, tracking, and monitoring nanomaterials and their transformations in simple, well characterized media Development of methods to quantify effects of nanomaterials in experimental systems. Extent of joining of existing databases, including development of common informatics ontologies Advancement of systems for sharing the results of research and fostering development of predictive models of nanomaterial behaviors Quantifying and Characterizing the Origins of Nanomaterial Releases Developing inventories of current and near-term production of nanomaterials Developing inventories of intended uses of nanomaterials and value-chain transfers Identifying critical release points along the value chain Identifying critical populations or systems exposed Characterizing released materials in complex environments Modeling nanomaterial releases along the value chain (Continued)
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From page 7... ...
Yellow was assigned for the extent of progress in developing inventories of ENMs, in identifying critical release points along the value chain, in identifying critical populations or systems exposed, and in characterizing released materials in complex environments. Because those are prerequisites for model development, the ability to model releases along the value chain was denoted as red.
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From page 8... ...
183) Enhancing Interagency Coordination Progress toward establishing a mechanism to ensure sufficient management and budgetary authority to develop and implement an EHS research strategy among NNI agencies Extent to which the NNCO is annually identifying funding needs for interagency collaboration on critical high-priority research Providing for Stakeholder Engagement in the Research Strategy Progress toward actively engaging diverse stakeholders in a continuing manner in all aspects of strategy development, implementation, and revision Conducting and Communicating the results of research funded through public-private partnerships Progress toward establishment of effective public-private partnerships, as measured by such steps as completion of partnership agreements, issuance of requests for proposal, and establishment of a sound governance structure Managing Potential Conflicts of Interest Progress toward achieving a clear separation in management and budgetary authority and accountability between the functions of developing and promoting applications of nanotechnology and understanding and assessing its potential health and environmental implications Continued separate tracking and reporting of EHS research activities and funding distinct from those for other, more basic or application oriented research Processes that Affect Both Exposure and Hazard In its first report, the committee highlighted the need to identify the critical nanomaterial interactions that affect ENM behaviors and recommended identifying cross-cutting processes common to assessing exposure and hazard.
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From page 9... ...
As such the figure provides a means of illustrating barriers to research progress. The discussion focuses on six major categories: nanomaterial sources and development of reference materials, processes that affect nanomaterial exposure and hazard, the knowledge commons, model development, methods and instrumentation, and nanomaterial interactions in complex systems.
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From page 10... ...
Continued progress in understanding mechanisms of ENM behavior will require advances in instrument development and an improved data-integration infrastructure. Informatics: The Knowledge Commons The knowledge commons, the focal point of Figure S-1, is the locus for collaborative development of methods, models, and materials, and its success requires increased integration with research in the laboratory world and the real world and with development of materials.
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From page 11... ...
Model Development An important outcome of the knowledge commons will be the development of a suite of models for predicting physical characteristics of ENMs, outcomes of toxicity testing, and exposures. There has been some progress in development of some types of models, but there is a lack of consistency in approaches and interoperability of data to support effective model development.
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From page 12... ...
Implementation Progress and Steps Needed to Get to Green In the committee's first report, it identified mechanisms to ensure implementation of the EHS research strategy: enhancing interagency coordination; providing for stakeholder engagement in the research strategy; conducting and communicating results of research funded through public–private partnerships; and managing conflicts of interest. Collectively, those mechanisms represent support needed for the nanotechnology EHS research enterprise (Figure S-1)
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From page 13... ...
To move this indicator toward green will require processes to estimate funding needs periodically and to track and report progress toward meeting the needs. Providing for Stakeholder Engagement in the Research Strategy The committee determined that some progress had been made toward actively engaging diverse stakeholders in a continuing manner in all aspects of strategy development, implementation, and revision (indicator yellow)
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From page 14... ...
The committee determined that little progress had been made in establishing a clear separation in management and budgetary authority and accountability between the functions of developing and promoting applications of nanotechnology and understanding and assessing its potential health and environmental implications, and this indicator was designated red. Some progress was made in continued separate tracking and reporting of EHS research activities and funding as evidenced in the research-project funding data in the NNI's EHS research 5 The signature initiatives, although not focused on EHS issues, are collaborations that are intended to spur the advancement of nanotechnology.
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From page 15... ...
An integrated and well-coordinated program on both national and global scales would help to ensure that research findings provide the evidence needed to inform EHS decisions so that risks can be effectively managed and, ideally, prevented. Such governance requires empowered leadership: if all agencies are responsible, to some degree, for nanotechnology EHS research, no single agency can be held clearly accountable for its management and progress.
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From page 16... ...
An essential element of effective governance and sustenance of the research is a means of ensuring that all stakeholders have access to the growing and evolving body of knowledge -- the knowledge commons. Such a resource will provide information relevant to nanotechnology EHS research at multiple levels of detail and thus can improve public understanding, inform policymakers, offer data for future researchers, and shape the focus of future research.
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