Which AEGL level corresponds to life-threatening health effects or death?

• A. AEGL-3
• B. AEGL-1
• C. AEGL-2
• D. AEGL-0

Answer: (A)

AEGLs are thresholds that describe how different levels of airborne exposure can affect people, and they are organized into levels that rise with increasing severity of health effects. The level that corresponds to life-threatening health effects or death is the most severe category on the AEGL scale. This is the threshold used to indicate exposures that could cause death or irreversible, life-threatening injury, which is why it’s the best answer for identifying the worst-case health outcome. The other levels describe progressively milder effects: one level covers noticeable discomfort or irritation, another covers serious but non-life-threatening health effects, and they are all defined for specific exposure durations and chemicals. In short, life-threatening effects or death map to the highest AEGL tier.