HEALTH CONSULTATION
(Residential Indoor Air Monitoring)
FAYETTE TUBULAR PRODUCTS (FTP)
FAYETTE, FULTON COUNTY, OHIO
The Health Assessment Section (HAS) of the Ohio Department of Health was asked by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) to evaluate the environmental data associated with the sampling of indoor air at two residential properties located adjacent to the former Fayette Tubular Products (FTP) facility. Due to the presence of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the shallow groundwater aquifer beneath the former FTP facility and the evidence that the groundwater plume extends off-site in the direction of the residential homes, HAS and Ohio EPA became concerned about the possibility of groundwater contamination volatilizing into the residential homes adjacent to the facility. This health consultation documents the review of four separate indoor air sampling events conducted on two residential homes located adjacent to the former FTP facility.
The Fayette Tubular Products site is a defunct manufacturing facility located at the northern edge of the Village of Fayette that produced metal tubing for air conditioner units at the site from 1962 until 1997 (Figure 1). The facility is immediately north of the property line of the Fayette-Gorham School and is separated from the school grounds by a distance of roughly 100 feet (Figure 2). The property is fenced and secured. The property consists of a large manufacturing building, loading docks, and both paved and gravel parking lots.
Operational commercial metal fabricating facilities are located 100 feet to the east of the site and roughly 500 feet to the west of the FTP site. Areas north of the facility are primarily open agricultural fields. Urban-density, single-family residences occur in the immediate vicinity of the site, west and southwest of Gamber Road (Figure 2). Residences consist of newer brick ranch homes and older, multi-story houses, both typically with basements. The two homes in question for this health consultation are less than 300 feet west of the FTP property.
Ohio EPA's Northwest District Office began an investigation of the FTP site in 1994. The investigation was prompted by the detection of the known human carcinogen vinyl chloride in the village well field 600 feet southeast of the site. Preliminary investigations indicated that the probable source of this contamination was the Fayette Tubular Products site. Subsequent investigations (LTI, 1997) at the facility indicated that the chlorinated solvents trichloroethylene (TCE) and 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCA) were used extensively at the site to degrease metal parts.
Degreasing operations centered around a degreasing "pit" located at the northwest corner of the main manufacturing building. It is this degreasing area that is the subject of the excavation that recently took place at the facility and was the reason for this health consultation. Borings in the vicinity of the degreasing area detected TCE at levels up to 4,530,000 parts per billion (ppb) in shallow subsurface soils (LTI, 1997). Levels of TCA in the subsurface soils also were elevated, ranging up to 1,570,000 ppb. Subsurface soils (depths of 4-8 feet below ground surface) beneath the entire western half of the site were found to be contaminated with these solvents (LTI, 1997). Shallow groundwater on-site historically had TCE up to 550,000 ppb, 1,1,1-TCE up to 140,000 ppb, 1,2-DCE up to 18,000 ppb, 1,1-DCE up to 10,000 ppb, and vinyl chloride up to 29,000 ppb (LTI, 1997).
A groundwater extraction "sump" was installed in 1996 in the vicinity of the former degreasing area to capture contaminated groundwater and pump it to an on-site water-treatment system. The system consists of a series of activated carbon filters installed at the former FTP plant. A second "collection sump" was installed at the southeast corner of the FTP plant in order to intercept and treat contaminated groundwater collected by the agricultural drain tile that underlies the FTP facility. This collected water is also pumped back to the on-site treatment system for treatment prior to being released into the village sewer system (Ohio EPA, pers. Comm,. 2001).
Following completion of the Remedial Investigation report in 1997, Ohio EPA required a consulting firm hired by a former owner of the FTP facility to perform further soil sampling at the site, to investigate the suspected on-site source area (former vapor degreasing area) in more detail, and do more extensive off-site sampling to define the extent of VOC contamination in groundwater off-site. This investigation was completed during the fall of 1999, and the report was released in the summer of 2000 (LTI, 2000). The investigation confirmed the occurrence of contaminants of concern at elevated levels in off-site groundwater. A plume of contaminated groundwater with TCE concentrations up to 35,000 ppb occurs at the southwest corner of the facility's property line and extends offsite under the adjacent public school and nearby residences (Figure 3). Another arm of the contaminant plume extends southeast 600 feet to the village well field, evidently following a buried agricultural tile drain under the site. Indoor and ambient air sampling was carried out at the school by the potentially responsible party's consultant and by Ohio EPA in September 2000. HAS recently completed a public health consultation on this sampling event (HAS, February 26, 2001). An interceptor trench designed to capture the contaminated water before it moves off-site toward the school was installed between the school and the former FTP facility in November 2000.
The groundwater contamination in the immediate vicinity of the site is at a depth of 7 - 8 feet below the ground surface. Since the contaminants present at the site are volatile organic compounds, there was a concern that they may be able to volatilize into the homes of nearby residences and pose a health hazard by the breathing of contaminated air. Groundwater sampling associated with the Fayette Tubular Products site conducted on November 7, 2002 has shown TCE levels at 15,300 ppb in MWG-3 which is located in the easement on residential property at the southeast corner of Gamber Road and Rail Road Streets (Figure 2).
Due to the shallow nature of the contaminant plume and the fact that a plume with high levels of contamination extends off-site onto residential property, it was decided that indoor air samples should be conducted at two neighboring residences.
The residences in question are located within 300 feet of the southwest corner of the Fayette Tubular Products site (Figure 2). Indoor air samples were collected on four occasions during 2001. Samples were collected from the basement of the home nearest to the site and from a crawl space in the other home.
The initial samples were collected over a 24-hour period on February 27, 2001. No site-related contaminants were detected at levels of concern. However, trichloroethene (TCE) was detected in the home with a basement at very low levels. It is unknown whether this detection is related to the Fayette Tubular Products site or whether it is associated with use of a product within the home. To help determine the source of the TCE and to gain a better understanding of the levels of the chemical in the indoor air, it was decided that additional rounds of air sampling would be conducted at both residences.
The second and third rounds of indoor samples were collected on July 17 and 24, 2001, respectively. During the July 17th sampling event, TCE was again detected at low levels in one residence. In the July 24th sampling event, TCE, tetrachloroethene (PCE), and 1,1,1 trichloroethane were detected at very low levels in both residences. Again, the levels of contaminants detected were not at levels that would be expected to cause adverse health effects. During the July 24th sampling event, work was being conducted at the Fayette Tubular Products site in preparation for the August 2001 removal action. The site work involved removing a concrete slab that was situated over a former solvent "pit." This on-site work may help explain why TCE and PCE were detected in both homes.
The most recent sampling event was conducted on October 29, 2001. Sampling results indicated that no chemicals of concern were detected in the furthermost residence from the Fayette Tubular Products site. Low levels of TCE, PCE, and 1,1,1 Trichloroethane, however, were once again detected in the basement of a home directly across the street from the facility. Levels of contaminants remain below levels that would be expected to cause adverse health effects.
It should be noted that TCE was detected slightly above the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Region 9 Preliminary Remediation Goal (PRG) for ambient air in several samples; however, this number corresponds to the risk of 1 additional cancer case in a population of 1 million people being exposed to this concentration for a lifetime of 70 years. It has been widely established that the acceptable risk for environmental contaminants ranges from 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 1,000,000.
Residential Air Monitoring Results near Fayette Tubular Products
| Chemical | Sample Date | Residence 1 | Residence 2 |
Preliminary Remediation Goal for Ambient Air |
|
| Cancer | Chronic | ||||
| Trichloroethene (ppb) | 2/27/01 | ND | 0.11 | 0.2 | 4.09 |
| 7/17/01 | ND | 0.17 | |||
| 7/24/01 | 0.21 | 0.28 | |||
| 10/29/01 | ND | 0.22 | |||
| Tetrachloroethene (ppb) | 2/27/01 | ND | ND | 0.48 | 61.9 |
| 7/17/01 | ND | 0.11 | |||
| 7/24/01 | 0.11 | 0.15 | |||
| 10/29/01 | ND | ND | |||
| 1,1,1 Trichloroethane (ppb) | 2/27/01 | ND | ND | NA | 183 |
| 7/17/01 | ND | 0.12 | |||
| 7/24/01 | 0.25 | 0.14 | |||
| 10/29/01 | ND | 0.24 | |||
Residents living in the residences in question must come into physical contact with hazardous chemicals in the indoor air in order for possible adverse health effects to occur. For residents to come into contact with these chemical compounds, there must be a completed exposure pathway. A completed exposure pathway consists of five main parts that must be present for chemical exposure to occur. These include: 1) a source of the toxic chemicals of concern; 2) environmental transport, which is a way for the chemical to move from its source to the residence; 3) a point of exposure, which is a place where the residents come into physical contact with the chemical; 4) a route of exposure, which is how the residents come into contact with the chemical (drinking, eating, breathing, touching); and, 5) people who could be exposed.
A completed exposure pathway by itself does not necessarily result in adverse health effects. A chemical's ability to affect a resident's health is also controlled by a number of other factors, including:
Even though there is a completed exposure pathway present in the residences in question, the levels of chemical in the indoor air are not at levels that would be expected to cause adverse health effects to the residents living in those homes.
HAS and ATSDR recognize that children are often at greater risk for environmental exposure than adults. Children with rapidly changing bodies may also be more susceptible to adverse health effects resulting from exposures to toxic materials in their environment. For this reason, this document uses public health guidelines that are protective of children.
The indoor air in the residences adjacent to the Fayette Tubular Products facility poses "no apparent public health hazard" to the residents living in these homes at this time. The levels of contaminants in the indoor air have not reached levels that would be expected to cause adverse health effects. However, with the presence of a contaminant plume within a few yards of the homes' foundations, the possibility of vapor intrusion into the homes still exists unless the source of contamination is remediated and further migration of the plume is stopped.
1) The property owner/potentially responsible party at the Fayette Tubular Product site should completely define the groundwater plume both on and off-site and begin activities to stop the migration of groundwater contamination off-site toward the nearby residential properties and the Fayette-Gorham school building.
2) Ohio EPA or the property owner/potentially responsible party should consider continuing collection of additional indoor air samples at the two residential properties in question on either a quarterly or a biannual basis.
Recent environmental sampling on the Fayette Tubular Products site and adjoining properties have indicated that off-site groundwater contamination is more extensive than previously thought (pers. comm. w/ Ohio EPA DERR Staff, 2002). Groundwater contamination was previously thought to extend to the south under a new portion of Fayette High School and to the west on the property edges of the two residential properties being looked at in this document. Recent sampling shows that extensive groundwater contamination extends farther onto the residential properties than previously thought. The groundwater contamination also appears to have migrated further south toward the school. The groundwater contamination is now being detected near the older portion of the school, which has a basement that may be more susceptible to vapor intrusion from the contaminated groundwater. This portion of the plume will be discussed in a later health consultation. The property owner/potentially responsible party at the Fayette Tubular Product site should completely define the groundwater plume both on and off-site.
Ohio EPA or the property owner/potentially responsible party should continue to collect additional indoor air samples at the two residential properties. HAS will continue to evaluate any environmental data associated with this site as it becomes available.
Eric Yates - Environmental Specialist
Robert Frey Ph. D. - Principal Investigator/Geologist
LTI Environmental Engineering. Remedial Investigation Report, Fayette Tubular Products site. Fayette, Ohio. April 1997.
LTI Environmental Engineering. Remedial Investigation Report Addendum, Fayette Tubular Products site. Fayette, Ohio. July 2000.
Ohio Department of Health, Health Assessment Section. Health Consultation on Fayette Tubular Products. Fayette, Ohio. February 26, 2001.
This Fayette Tubular Products Residential Indoor Air Monitoring Health Consultation was prepared by the Ohio Department of Health under a cooperative agreement with the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). It is in accordance with approved methodology and procedures existing at the time the health consultation was begun.
Alan W. Yarbrough
Technical Project Officer, SPS, SSAB, DHAC, ATSDR
The Division of Health Assessment and Consultation, ATSDR, has reviewed this public health consultation and concurs with the findings.
Richard Gillig
Chief, State Program Section, SSAB, DHAC, ATSDR
Figure 3. Extent of Contamination Plume in Area Groundwater
