Over the last decade, alternatives assessment practice has evolved, and chemical hazard assessment methods are beginning to address hazards at the product-level. However, there is much to learn about these methods. Are they consistent and aligned? What are the current limitations? What data and tools are currently available or not to support product-level assessments and substitution decisions? These questions form the basis of a 3-part workshop series to advance methods for product-level alternative assessments.

This workshop series is a collaborative effort of Association for the Advancement of Alternatives Assessment (A4) and the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Division of Translational Toxicology and its Safe and Sustainable Alternatives Program.

Each workshop will begin with formative presentations on different methods to help launch a discussion with attending workshop participants regarding the merits and limitations of various approaches to support decision-making in an alternatives assessment context. The workshops are designed to be heavily discussion oriented to utilize expertise in the growing A4 community of practice to support identifying needs and opportunities to align product-level hazard assessment methods for use in alternatives assessments. This 3-part workshop series is intended for professionals in government agencies, companies, NGOs, and academia that work on chemical substitution topics, and those from similar sectors that have knowledge about methods and tools to support the evaluation of mixtures that could have applicability for supporting chemical substitution decisions.

To attend all workshops, attendees must register for each event below:

WORKSHOP 1 (VIRTUAL EVENT)
SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

Understanding the current state of hazard assessment approaches being used in product-level alternatives assessments. 

Moderator: Molly Jacobs, University of Massachusetts Lowell

• • Formative Topic Presentations:

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Safer Choice Criteria
– Lauren Duffy, U.S. EPA Safer Choice Program

GHS Mixtures Rule
– Gill Pagiluca, Denehurst Chemical Safety Ltd.

Toxicology Assessment of PFAS-free Fire Fighting Foam Products
– Andrew East, Defense Centers for Public Health

• • Facilitated Plenary Discussion

VIEW RECORDING

WORKSHOP 2 (VIRTUAL EVENT)
OCTOBER 6, 2023

Understanding how mixtures are being evaluated in other aligned fields that are transferable to the evaluation and substitution decision context of product-level alternatives assessments.

Moderator: Elaine Cohen Hubal, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

• • Brief highlights from Workshop 1: Molly Jacobs, University of Massachusetts Lowell
    
    
  • Formative Topic Presentations:

Methods for Assessing Formulated Personal Care Products and Considerations for Botanicals
– Amy Roe, Proctor and Gamble Co.

Hazard Contextualization with PFAS-Containing AFFF Mixtures and its in vivo Translation for Decision Frameworks
– Stephen Ferguson, National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences 

Utilizing a Range of Novel Methods to Characterize the Endocrine Disrupting Effects of Chemical Mixtures
– Chris Kaossotis, Wayne State University

• • Facilitated Plenary Discussion

VIEW RECORDING

WORKSHOP 3 (IN-PERSON EVENT AT THE INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON ALTERNATIVES ASSESSMENT)
OCTOBER 25, 2023

Identifying needs and opportunities to evolve the practice of product-level alternatives assessment. 

Session 3 – Mixtures and Safer Alternatives, A4 International Symposium on Alternatives Assessment at the University of Washington in Tacoma, Washington on October 24-26^th. 

Moderator: Stephen Ferguson, National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences

• • Brief highlights from Workshops 1 and 2
    
    
  • Facilitated Plenary Discussion: What are specific needs and opportunities to improve and align product-level hazards assessments to support informed substitution decisions?

The last installment of this 3-part workshop series was held at the A4 International Symposium on Alternatives Assessment in Tacoma WA on October 25.  This session was not recorded.