WORLD TRADE CENTER - EPA Archives

[Pages:145]WORLD TRADE CENTER BACKGROUND STUDY REPORT

INTERIM FINAL

April 2003

Prepared for: United States Federal Emergency Management Agency IAG No.: EMW-2002-IA-0127

Prepared by: United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 2 New York City Response and Recovery Operations 290 Broadway New York, NY 10007-1866

Approved by: Kathleen C. Callahan Assistant Regional Administrator New York City Response and Recovery Operations

Table of Contents

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

1.0 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

2.0 BACKGROUND AND PROJECT DESCRIPTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 2.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 2.2 Purpose/Objective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 2.3 Project Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 2.4 Project Team/Responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 2.5 Data Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

3.0 SAMPLING APPROACH/RATIONALE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 3.1 Selection of Sampling Area Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 3.2 Selection of Building Types and Obtaining Access . . . . . . . . . . . 9 3.3 Selection Criteria for Number of Buildings, Residences and Common Space Sampled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 3.4 Selection of Contaminants of Potential Concern . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

4.0 SAMPLING METHODOLOGY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

4.1 Sampling Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

4.1.1 Indoor Air Sample Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

4.1.2 Microvacuum Sample Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

4.1.3 Wipe Sample Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

4.1.4 Bulk Dust Sample Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

4.1.5 Quality Control Samples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

4.2 Sampling Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.2.1 Air Sampling Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.2.2 Microvacuum Sampling Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.2.3 Wipe Sampling Equipment

. . . 17

4.2.4 Bulk Sampling Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

4.3 Sample Numbering/Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

4.4 Sample Shipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

4.5 Data Validation and Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

4.5.1 Validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

4.5.2 Verification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

5.0 SAMPLING PROTOCOL DEVIATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

6.0 ANALYTICAL RESULTS AND DEVELOPMENT OF BACKGROUND CONCENTRATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 6.1 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 6.2 Results and Development of Background Concentrations . . . . . 23

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6.2.1 Asbestos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

6.2.2 Man-Made Vitreous Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

6.2.3 Lead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

6.2.4 Dioxin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

6.2.5 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

6.3 Minerals and Total Dust Results - Development of Background

Concentrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

6.3.1 Crystalline Silica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

6.3.1.1 Alpha-quartz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

6.3.1.2 Cristobalite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

6.3.1.3 Tridymite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

6.3.2 Calcite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

6.3.3 Gypsum

. . . 31

6.3.4 Portlandite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

6.3.5 Total Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

7.0 HISTORICAL STUDIES ON BACKGROUND CHARACTERIZATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 7.1 Background Literature Search Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 7.1.1 Residential Indoor Airborne Asbestos Measurements . . . . 33 7.1.2 Settled Asbestos Dust Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 7.1.3 Airborne Man-Made Vitreous Fibers Measurements . . . . . 33 7.1.4 Man-Made Vitreous Fibers in Settled Dust or Soil . . . . . . 34 7.1.5 Lead Levels in the Ambient Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 7.1.6 Residential Settled Lead Dust Measurements . . . . . . . . . 34 7.1.7 Dioxins in Soil and Settled Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 7.1.8 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Sediment and Soil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 7.2 Comparison of WTC Background Study to Other Studies . . . . . 35 7.2.1 Comparison of Airborne Asbestos Concentrations . . . . . 35 7.2.2 Comparison of Asbestos Settled Dust Concentrations . . . . 36 7.2.3 Comparison of Airborne Man-Made Vitreous Fiber (MMVF) Concentrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 7.2.4 Comparison of Man-Made Vitreous Fibers in Settled Dust or Soil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 7.2.5 Comparison of Lead Concentrations in the Ambient Air . . 37 7.2.6 Comparison of Settled Lead Dust Measurements . . . . . . . 37 7.2.7 Comparison of Dioxin Concentration in Settled Dust . . . . 39 7.2.8 Comparison of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Concentration in Settled Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

8.0 DISCUSSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

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FIGURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Figure 1 World Trade Center Background Study and WTC Dust Cleanup Program Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

TABLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 4-1 WTC Background Study Sampling and Analytical Procedures Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 4-2 WTC Background Study Field Sample Collection Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 4-3 Quality Control Wipe Spike Sample Results For Lead . . . . . 48 Table 6-1 Organic and Inorganic Results Summary for Residential and Common Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 6-2 Organic and Inorganic Results Summary for Residential Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 6-3 Organic and Inorganic Results Summary for Common Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 6-4 Mineral Compounds and Total Dust Results Summary for Residential and Common Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 6-5 Mineral Compounds and Total Dust Results Summary for Residential Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 6-6 Mineral Compounds and Total Dust Resu lts Summary for Common Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 7-1 Summary of U.S. Residential Building Average Indoor Airborne Asbestos Concentrations for Asbestos Fibers ? 5 mm Long by Direct Transmission Electron Microscopy . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 7-2 Summary of Settled Asbestos Surface Dust Loadings Determined Through Microvacuum Sampling and Indirect Analysis by Transmission Electron Microscopy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 7-3 Household Dust Lead Measurements from Wipe Sampling in an Old, Urban Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 7-4 Estimated Distribution of Lead Loadings (ug/ft2) In U.S. Housing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 7-5 Background Soil Concentrations of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 8-1 Background Concentrations Derived From The Analytical Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Table 8-3 Comparison of Background Concentrations Derived From The Analytical Results Using Values of Zero, ? of the Detection Limit, or the Detection Limit ATTACHMENTS ATTACHMENT A - World Trade Center Indoor Air Assessment: Selecting Contaminants of Potential Concern and Setting HealthBased Benchmarks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 ATTACHMENT B - Data Validation Standard Operating Procedures List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

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ATTACHMENT C - EMSL Analysis Standard Operating Procedures List

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

ATTACHMENT D - Sampling and Analytical Methods List

. . . 49

ATTACHMENT E - Photographs of Sample Collection Activities . . . . 49

ATTACHMENT F - NIST Certificate of Analysis, Standard Reference

Material 2581 and Appendix 14.3: Procedure for the Preparation of

Field Spiked Wipe Samples of the Guidelines for the Evaluation

and Control of Lead-Based Paint Hazards in Housing. . . . . . . . . 49

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS EPA is grateful for the generous contribution of the residents of Manhattan who provided access to EPA to sample their dwelling units, and of the building owners who provided access to the common space areas used in this Study. This project was designed and implemented by EPA with the support of the Indoor Air Work Group of EPA's Indoor Air Task Force. The work group organizations directly involved in the development of the project included the New York City Department of Environmental Protection; New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; New York City Mayor's Office of Environmental Coordination; New York City Office of Emergency Management, New York State Department of Health; Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry; Occupation Safety and Health Administration, EPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response and EPA Region 2. EPA acknowledges the assistance of New York City's Housing and Preservation Department for its assistance in identifying Study locations.

Note: This interim final report is a working document that will be subject to further Agency and third- party review. EPA intends to excerpt, and possibly expand, portions of this report for inclusion in manuscripts that will be submitted to scientific journals for review and consideration for publishing.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) responded to the September 11, 2001 attack upon the World Trade Center in conjunction with the President's declaration of a national disaster. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), as the federal coordinating office in the disaster, issued mission assignments to EPA in the areas of cleaning dust/debris from the streets of lower Manhattan, sampling the ambient environment (air and dust samples), providing washing stations for personnel working at the WTC response and recovery site as well as equipment and dust/debris being removed from the site, and disposal of hazardous materials found at the WTC site.

Residents of lower Manhattan began to raise their concerns about the safety and reliability of cleaning methods to remove dust and debris from their residential units and building facades. Traditional FEMA support programs were available. Yet due to the unprecedented nature of the disaster and on-going concerns, residents continued to request additional assistance. After evaluating the concerns related to indoor impacts of dust and debris and fire related particle deposition, EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman formed an Interagency Indoor Air Task Force. This group included representatives from the following agencies: the regional and national office of the EPA, FEMA, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYCDOHMH), the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP), the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation(NYSDEC), the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) the Occupational Safety and Health Agency (OSHA), and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). The group recommended various issues that could be addressed. Thus, in May 2001, EPA, FEMA and NYC announced a voluntary cleanup program for residential units, that would run in parallel to several other efforts to address the concerns of lower Manhattan residents regarding the potential risks from exposure to residual WTC dust and debris. These efforts were funded by FEMA through interagency agreements with EPA and NYC and include:

? identification of the Contaminants of Potential Concern (COPCs)

? a background study of the COPCs in upper Manhattan (Background Study)

? inspection and cleaning of building exteriors in lower Manhattan

? Indoor Air Residential Assistance - WTC Dust Cleanup Program

? cleaning of unoccupied, uncleaned buildings, and

? a study of cleaning techniques in an unoccupied building adjacent to the WTC site that was directly impacted by the WTC collapse (WTC

WORLD TRADE CENTER BACKGROUND STUDY 1

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