Introduction to Contaminated Site Management - Dealing with Contaminated Sites: From Theory Towards Practical Application - page 77

1.10.2 Scientists
Successful management of contaminated sites, whether on a local, regional or
national scale, relies on understanding and applying a large and multi-disciplinary
knowledge base that straddles the natural, physical, engineering and social sci-
ences within a practical, commercial and political context (Pollard et al. 2002b ).
Scientists play a principal role in Risk Assessment procedures. Human Health Risk
Assessment, Ecological Risk Assessment, Groundwater-related Risk Assessment
and Food Safety-related Risk Assessment are based on a number of scientific Risk
Assessment tools; these are an equation, a description, a database, a model, an
instrument, a protocol, or a table. Basically, the scientists are responsible for the
objective development and application of Risk Assessment and Risk Management
tools.
It is difficult to profile the ideal risk assessor, since in an overall Risk Assessment
several technical disciplines are needed. Moreover, specific social competencies
are required. For this reason, most Risk Assessment projects are performed by
a multi-disciplinary team, rather than by one single person. The basic kinds of
expertise that are essential for risk-based soil quality assessment are soil sci-
ence, (soil) chemistry/geochemistry, (geo)hydrology, toxicology and biology. Other
kinds of expertise that support the Risk Assessment and Risk Management process
are mathematics, information technology, statistics, geology, geography, and law.
Moreover, any Risk Assessment team benefits from people with a social science
background; these are people with communication knowledge or skills. Moreover,
people with creative qualifications can make significant contributions to original
site-specific Risk Management solutions, with a good balance between quality and
cost-efficiency. In rare cases, technical expertise and communicative and creative
qualities are combined in the same person.
1.10.3 Decision-Makers Versus Scientists
Procedures for risk-based soil quality assessment are based on scientific Risk
Assessment tools and policy decisions. Since these elements are interwoven, the
derivation of these procedures concerns a co-production between scientists and
policy makers. As early as 1983, a good partnership between science and decision-
makers was seen as an essential element of Risk Assessment (US National Research
Council 1983 ). In most countries, however, there is no clear boundary between
the tasks of policy makers and scientists. However, the relationship between
decision-makers and scientists is crucial for a successful and efficient procedure
for contaminated site management. Scientists need the policy makers for the defi-
nition of the problem formulation and the definition of the boundary conditions for
Risk Assessments. Decision-makers, for their part, need the scientists to explain
the possibilities for and exact meaning of protection levels, and the uncertain-
ties involved, and to elaborate on technical procedures, models, protocols and
related Soil Quality Standards. Although decision-makers and scientists usually