Risk Analysis and Decision Making
The decision as to whether or not to proceed with the proposed animal translocation or to make changes to the proposed procedures will be based on the formal health risk analysis and also on additional factors. Perceptions of the relative importance of the risks and benefits of the proposed translocation will be affected by social, economic and political factors as well as by the formal risk analysis itself. The health risk analysis should provide an accurate, transparent, scientifically valid estimate of the risks associated with the translocation so that these can be taken into consideration in decision-making and other regulatory processes.
Decision-making and implementation of the decisions made often are classified as components of "Risk Management" and "Risk Communication;" these topics are considered in Article 1.3.2.6 and Article 1.3.2.7 of the OIE International Health Code and in Article 2 of the OMAFRA Risk Assessment Frameworks.
A concise statement about the degree to which risk from individual health hazards and overall risk can be reduced by the recommended procedural changes should then be prepared.