Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2013C00288:reg:2:p3
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2013C00288
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 2 (pt 3/6)
Character Range: 2099942–2102836

in the HIL derived.

    2.3.4         Plant Uptake
Limited data is available on the potential for the uptake of beryllium into plants, in particular,  edible fruit and vegetable crops. Review by ATSDR (2002) notes that in plants the uptake of beryllium appears to be restricted to the root system, with no significant translocation of beryllium to above-ground parts of the plant. Soluble forms of beryllium must be present for plant uptake to occur. In solution in the pH range of 68, beryllium is most commonly transformed to beryllium hydroxide, which has a very low solubility. Hence the potential for significant plant uptake is considered to be low.

Based on the above, the uptake of beryllium into root crops only has been considered in the derivation of the HIL. Limited plant uptake data is available, hence the value presented by RAIS (2010) of 0.0025 mg/kg fresh produce per mg/kg soil has been considered.

It is noted that the inclusion of home-grown produce in the calculations presented for HIL A results in some double counting of intakes from fruit and vegetable produce (also included in background intakes). To address this in the derivation of HIL A, half the intake estimated to be derived from home-grown produce is assumed to be already accounted for in the total background intake (noted below).

    2.3.5         Intakes from Other Sources – Background
Limited data is available from Australia with respect to levels of beryllium in drinking water or food. ATSDR (2002) report concentrations of beryllium in Australian rainwater tanks between 0.05 and 0.08 µg/L. Beryllium is not routinely tested in drinking water supplies in Australia. Beryllium was not detected in any air sample collected in New South Wales (DEC 2003). Hence intakes that may be derived from ambient air are considered negligible.

The ATSDR (2002) and WHO (2001) reviews have not provided an update of potential background exposures from that considered in derivation of the current HIL (Di Marco & Buckett 1996). There is no data available to suggest that the background intakes considered in the derivation of the current HIL are an underestimate and hence these intakes are recommended to be retained in the derivation of revised HILs. For pre-schoolers a background intake of 0.65 µg/kg/day has been adopted, which constitutes approximately 30% of the recommended TRV.

2.4              Identification of Toxicity Reference Values

    2.4.1         Classification
IARC (2012) has classified beryllium and beryllium compounds as a Group 1 agent, which implies that it is considered carcinogenic to humans, though it is noted that the evidence of carcinogenicity applies to the inhalation route only.

    2.4.2         Review of Available Values/Information
Available data with respect to carcinogenicity was reviewed by WHO (2001). The review provided is no different from that summarised