Abstract
The substitution of hazardous substances with safer alternatives is being driven by policy pressures and business demands. As a result, scientific techniques for chemical alternatives assessment (CAA) have been established and communities of practice are emerging. Interest in safer chemical substitution is widely shared throughout a range of stakeholder groups across science, industry, public policy, and advocacy. Yet there is an unmet need for intentionally designed public information infrastructure to support the highly knowledge-intensive nature of CAA. We report here on the process of developing the Chemical Hazard Data Commons, an experimental project intended to support a diverse community of practitioners by providing publicly accessible chemical hazard data and tools for understanding it. In an arena where market forces and regulatory regimes have largely failed to generate the necessary knowledge, this project represents a novel application of a commons-based approach emphasizing building shared intellectual and technical capacity for CAA. The Data Commons—now a part of the related Pharos Project—includes an online portal providing simultaneous access to many different sources of information and enabling effective interactions with it. Foremost among these interactions are search and retrieval of hazard information about chemical substances, uniform display of the most relevant information, and the ability to automatically screen substances against consistent and transparent hazard-based criteria. We describe the motivation for the project and report on the principles and key considerations that guided its design as a participatory information infrastructure. We present our approach to organizing chemical information; the process of community engagement and planning; and how we constructed the system to provide functional tools. We discuss the outcomes of the project and highlight important challenges—such as fostering active participation and planning for long-term governance. With this article, we hope to inform future efforts for the collaborative development of knowledge resources for chemical alternatives assessment.
Highlights
The persistent problem of toxic substances in our industrially transformed environment cannot be solved using the same approach that produced it
In an arena where decades of adversarial policymaking and activism around toxic chemicals have produced intensely contested scientific knowledge, the Data Commons approach emphasizes the value of shared information resources and collective capacity-building
We developed the Chemical Hazard Data Commons to fill a need for public information infrastructure to support chemical alternative assessment practice
Summary
The persistent problem of toxic substances in our industrially transformed environment cannot be solved using the same approach that produced it. The knowledge users and producers that we refer to as practitioners include a range of people with research, design, and decision-making roles in policy, business, and advocacy contexts They have a variety of professional roles, such as: advocates analyzing chemical production and use; government scientists researching substances or products for regulatory or administrative decision-making; consultants and chemical “profilers” doing background work to support detailed chemical or product sustainability assessments; company staff who manage chemical use in manufacturing and supply chains; and designers researching the material hazards of products and materials. Knowledge challenges Historically, many kinds of knowledge that are recognized as crucial for CHA and CAA have been under-produced, contested, and carefully guarded by industry and governments This includes scientific data about chemical properties, hazards, human exposures, environmental emissions, and the specific ways that chemicals are used in industry and consumer products. Information about how chemicals are used—in what products and for what functions—is largely kept confidential or collected only in proprietary databases
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
