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Open Science in regulatory environmental risk assessment
Author(s) -
Brock Theo C. M.,
Elliott Kevin C.,
Gladbach Anja,
Moermond Caroline,
Romeis Jörg,
Seiler ThomasBenjamin,
Solomon Keith,
Peter Dohmen G.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
integrated environmental assessment and management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.665
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1551-3793
pISSN - 1551-3777
DOI - 10.1002/ieam.4433
Subject(s) - transparency (behavior) , relevance (law) , regulatory science , open science , value (mathematics) , skepticism , political science , open data , risk management , business , public relations , engineering ethics , engineering , medicine , computer science , philosophy , physics , epistemology , pathology , finance , astronomy , machine learning , law
A possible way to alleviate the public skepticism toward regulatory science is to increase transparency by making all data and value judgments used in regulatory decision making accessible for public interpretation, ideally early on in the process, and following the concepts of Open Science. This paper discusses the opportunities and challenges in strengthening Open Science initiatives in regulatory environmental risk assessment (ERA). In this discussion paper, we argue that the benefits associated with Open Science in regulatory ERA far outweigh its perceived risks. All stakeholders involved in regulatory ERA (e.g., governmental regulatory authorities, private sector, academia, and nongovernmental organizations), as well as professional organizations like the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, can play a key role in supporting the Open Science initiative, by promoting the use of recommended reporting criteria for reliability and relevance of data and tools used in ERA, and by developing a communication strategy for both professionals and nonprofessionals to transparently explain the socioeconomic value judgments and scientific principles underlying regulatory ERA. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2021;17:1229–1242. © 2021 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC)