PUBLIC HEALTH ASSESSMENT
LIMESTONE ROAD SITE
CUMBERLAND, ALLEGANY COUNTY, MARYLAND
Figures
Figure 2. Soil Sampling Locations
Figure 3. Residential Well, Surface Water/Sediment, and Monitoring Well Locations
Tables
TABLE 1a. CONTAMINANT CONCENTRATIONS IN ON-SITE SOIL
| Max. Concentrations in Soil(mg/kg) | datea |
value (mg/kg) | |||||
depth |
|||||||
| Benzidine | |||||||
| Chlordane | |||||||
| Heptachlor epoxide | |||||||
| Benzo(a) pyrene |
|||||||
| Antimony | |||||||
| Arsenic | |||||||
| Beryllium | |||||||
| Cadmium | |||||||
| Chromium | |||||||
| Cobalt | |||||||
| Cyanide | |||||||
| Lead | |||||||
| Nickel | |||||||
a - sampling date is indicated for maximum concentration
b1 - based on USEPA Reference Dose and incidental ingestion exposure pathways for a 70 kg adult ingesting 100
mg soil per day.
b2 - based on USEPA cancer potency and a one-in-one million risk level for a 70 kg adult ingesting 100 mg of soil
per day.
c - comparison value derived by ATSDR for pica child ingesting 500 mg soil per day.
d - comparison value derived by ATSDR for child ingesting 200 mg soil per day.
e - comparison value derived by ATSDR for an adult ingesting 100 mg soil per day.
f - USEPA interim action level for lead.
g - Mean background concentration for Eastern U.S. (Shacklette, H.T., J.G. Boerngen, 1984). This is not a health- based comparison value.
Table 1b. Contaminant Concentrations in Off-site Surface Soil
| Chemical | Max. Conc. in City Dump soil/fly ash (mg/kg) |
Max. conc. in local background soil (mg/kg) |
Reference | Range in Eastern US soil (mg/kg) |
Comparison Value |
| Aluminum | 7,100 | 19,800 | RI 8/86 | 0.7% ->10% | NA |
| Arsenic | 219 | 15 | RI 8/86 | <0.1 - 73 | 0.40b2 |
| Barium | 469 | 249 | RI 8/86 | 10 - 1,500 | 0.40b2 |
| Beryllium | 0.87 | 0.5 | RI 8/86 | <1 - 7 | 0.083b2 |
| Cadmium | 11 | ND | RI 8/86 | 0.01% - 28% | 300e |
| Chromium | 54 | 16 | RI 8/86 | 1 - 1,000 | 3000.0e |
| Lead | 832 | 285 | RI 8/86 | <10 - 300 | 250f |
| Mercury | 3.6 | 0.3 | RI 8/86 | 0.01 - 3.4 | 560e |
| Nickel | 40 | 27 | RI 8/86 | <5 - 700 | 14,000e |
| Zinc | 428 | 76 | RI 8/86 | <5 - 2,900 | 140,000e |
| Tetrachloroethylene | 240 | ND | RI 8/86 | NA | 13.7b2 |
| Toluene | 350 | 23 | RI 8/86 | NA | 140,000 |
| Bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate | 39 | ND | RI 8/86 | NA | 50b2 |
| benzo(a)anthracene | 33 | ND | RI 8/86 | NA | 0.83b2 |
| chrysene | 108 | ND | RI 8/86 | NA | 27b2 |
| acenaphthylene | 44 | ND | RI 8/86 | NA | 42,000e |
| phenanthrene | 52 | ND | RI 8/86 | NA | 27* |
TABLE 2. CONTAMINANTS CONCENTRATIONS IN GROUNDWATER
| BEHP | RI/FS,1986 | ||||
| Chloroform | |||||
| Chrysene | |||||
| Methylene chloride | |||||
| Toluene | |||||
| Barium | |||||
| Beryllium | |||||
| Cadmium | |||||
| Copper | |||||
| Chromium | |||||
| Cyanide | |||||
| Lead | |||||
| Manganese | |||||
| Nickel | |||||
Table 3. Contaminant Concentrations in Surface Water and Sediments
| Contaminant | Max. Conc. in Sediment |
Max. Conc.in surface water |
Reference | Comparison Value for sediments (mg/kg)a |
Comparison Value for surface water (mg/l)b | ||
| mg/kg | Sample Site |
mg/l | Sample Site |
||||
| Arsenic | 52 | Dump | ND | RI/FS, 1986 | 18 | 0.0000022 | |
| Barium | 800 | Diggs/Dump | 0.41 | CCSC | RI/FS, 1986 | 232 | 0.114c |
| Beryllium | 3.8 | Dump | 0.0041 | Dump | RI/FS, 1986 | 1.6 | 0.0000039 |
| Cadmium | 81 | Diggs/Dump | 0.044 | Diggs/Dump | RI/FS, 1986 | 3.7 | 0.010 |
| Chromium | 90 | CCSC | 0.058 | CCSC | RI/FS, 1986 | 40 | 0.050 |
| Lead | 191 | Diggs/Dump | 0.080 | Diggs/Dump | RI/FS, 1986 | 41 | 0.050 |
| Magnesium | 4400 | Diggs/Dump | 177 | Diggs/Dump | RI/FS, 1986 | 2700 | 17c |
| Nickel | 737 | Diggs/Dump | 0.53 | Diggs/Dump | RI/FS, 1986 | 72 | 0.013 |
| Selenium | ND | ND | 0.038 | Diggs/Dump | RI/FS, 1986 | ND | 0.01 |
| BEHP | 0.19 | Backgd | 0.004 | Diggs/Dump | RI/FS, 1986 | 0.19 | 15 |
| Benzene | 0.005 | Diggs/Dump | ND | - | RI/FS, 1986 | ND | 0.00066 |
| Benzoic acid | 1.6 | Diggs/Dump | ND | - | RI/FS, 1986 | ND | NDc |
| Benzo(a)pyrene | 0.45 | Diggs/Dump | ND | - | RI/FS, 1986 | ND | 0.0000028 |
| Toluene | 0.005 | CCSC | ND | - | RI/FS, 1986 | ND | 14.3 |
| Trichloroethene | 0.005 | Diggs/Dump | ND | - | RI/FS, 1986 | ND | .0027 |
TABLE 4. EXPOSURE PATHWAYS
| MEDIA | TIME | SOURCE | TRANSPORT MEDIA | EXPOSURE POINT | EXPOSURE PATH | EXPOSED POPULATION |
| On-site Surface Soil | Past Present |
Dumping and landfilling operations |
Surface Soil | On-site; nearby residences |
Inhalation Ingestion Dermal contact |
Workers; neighboring residents |
| Surface water and Sediment |
Past Present |
Dumping and land-filling operations |
Surface soil; surface water runoff |
branches of Potomac River and tributaries |
Dermal contact Food chain |
bathers, fishing enthusiasts, boaters |
| Groundwater | Past Present |
Soil contamination | Infiltration through soil | Home drinking water wells | Ingestion Dermal contact and Inhalation while showering |
Users of affected wells |
Table 5. Cancer Mortality
Cancer Death Rates (per 100,000)
| Site | Maryland | Allegany County |
| Bronchus/Lung | 53 | 55 |
| Breast | 30 | 32 |
| Prostate | 27 | 25 |
| Cervix | 3 | 4 |
Reference: Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Division of Health Statistics,
1983 - 1987 Age-adjusted Mortality Rates (Adjusted by the direct method to the total US
population, 1970)
GLOSSARY
adsorption: the penetration of a substance into another.
accuracy: the nearness of a result or the mean of a set of results to the true or accepted value.
aliphatic compounds: open-chain carbon compounds that are normally methane derivatives or fatty compounds.
analytical method: defines the sample preparation and instrumentation procedures or steps that must be performed to estimate the quantity of a chemical in a sample.
aquifer: a permeable rock stratum below the earth's surface through which groundwater moves; generally capable of producing water for a well.
aromatic compounds: compounds that contain a benzene ring.
bedrock: the continuous solid rock of the continental crust.
bioaccumulation: the process by which organisms retain chemical pollutants in their tissues at levels greater than in the ambient environment. This term has the same meaning as bioconcentration.
biodegradation: the breaking down of a chemical compound into simpler chemical components under naturally occurring biological processes.
biomagnification: the process whereby chemicals concentrate to a higher level in organisms at one level in a food chain than in those at the lower level in the food chain.
chronic toxicity: a prolonged health effect that may not become evident until many years after exposure.
detection limit: the minimum concentrations that must be accurately and precisely measured by the laboratory and/or specified in the quality assurance plan.
dose: the amount of a contaminant that is absorbed or deposited in the body of an exposed organism for an increment of time. Total dose is the sum of doses received by a person from a contaminant in a given interval resulting from interaction with all environmental media that contain the contaminant. Units of dose and total dose (mass) are often converted to units of mass per volume of physiological fluid or mass of tissue.
duplicates: identical splits of individual samples that are analyzed by the laboratory to test for method reproducibility .
environmental media evaluation guidelines (EMEGs): the concentration of a chemical (given in milligrams of chemical per unit mass (kg) or volume (l) of medium) that corresponds to an exposure level that is not expected to cause adverse health affects, assuming a given exposure scenario such as drinking 2 liters of water per day. EMEGs are used in the public health assessment process to identify contaminants of concern.
erosion: (1) the wearing away of the land surface by running water, wind, ice, or other geological agents including gravity. (2) detachment and movement of soil or rock by water, wind, ice or gravity.
exposure (biology): an event that occurs when there is contact between a human being and the environment with a contaminant of a specific concentration for an interval of time; the units of exposure are concentration multiplied by time.
field blanks: blanks are collected and analyzed to determine the level of contamination introduced into the sample because of the sampling technique. They may consist of the source of water used in decontaminating and steam cleaning the equipment. At a minimum, one sample from each event and each source of water must be collected and analyzed.
food chain: the transfer of food energy from the source (in plants) through a series of organisms that successfully depend on each other for food.
fume: solid particles generated by condensation from the gaseous state, generally after volatilization from a molten state. Formation is often accompanied by oxidation or other chemical reactions.
gas: formless fluids that can be changed to the liquid or solid state by increased pressure and decreased temperature.
genetic toxicity: an adverse event resulting in damage to genetic material; damage may occur in exposed individuals or may be expressed in subsequent generations.
groundwater: water beneath the surface of the ground in a saturated zone.
hydrologic cycle: the complete cycle of phenomena through which water passes from the atmosphere to the earth and back into the atmosphere.
hydrology: the science encompassing the behavior of water as it occurs in the atmosphere, on the land surface, and underground.
instrument detection limit: the lowest concentration an analytical device is capable of measuring with a minimum degree of accuracy.
leaching: the continued removal, by water, of soluble matter from wastes, regolith or bedrock.
limestone: a sedimentary rock consisting mainly of the mineral calcite.
matrix: the predominant material comprising the sample to be analyzed. The most common matrices are water, soil/sediment, and sludge.
minimal risk level (MRL): an estimate of human daily exposure to a chemical (reported in milligrams of chemical per kilogram of body weight per day) that is likely to be without an appreciable risk of deleterious effects (noncarcinogenic) over a specified duration of exposure. MRL's are based on human and animal studies and are reported for acute (less than 14 days), intermediate (15-364 days), and chronic (more than 365 days) exposures. MRLs are published in ATSDR Toxicological Profiles for specific chemicals.
mutagenic: compounds with the ability to induce stable changes in genetic material.
oxidation: the process of removing one or more electrons from an ion, atom or molecule.
particulate: small, discrete, solid or liquid bodies, especially those suspended in a liquid or gaseous medium.
partitioning: the separation or division of a substance into two or more compartments. Environmental partitioning refers to the distribution of a chemical into environmental media (soil, air, water and biota).
parts per million (ppm): a common unit for reporting the concentration of a chemical in a specific medium. For example, in water, one part per million equals one pound of a chemical per million pounds of water.
percolation: movement of contaminants from soil to groundwater occurring primarily by dissolution and transport with percolating soil water. Percolation is the volumetric flux per unit area of soil.
permeability: (1) the ease with which gases, liquids, or plant roots penetrate or pass through a bulk mass of soil or a layer of soil; (2) the property of a porous medium relating to the ease with which gases, liquids, or other substances can pass through it; the capacity of rock or unconsolidated material to transmit a fluid.
pH: an expression of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution. It represents the minus base 10 logarithm of the concentration of free hydrogen ions. The range of possible pH values is 1 (most acidic) to 14 (most alkaline or basic). The value of 7 represents neutrality.
photodegradation: the chemical breakdown of molecules caused by radiant energy.
porosity: the proportion, usually stated as a percentage, of the total volume of rock material or regolith that consists of pore space or voids; the volume percentage of the total soil volume not occupied by solid particles (i.e., the volume of the voids). In general, the greater the porosity, the more readily fluids may flow through the soil. An exception is clay soils, in which fluids are held tightly by capillary forces.
potable: drinkable water.
precision: measure of the reproducibility of a set of replicate results among themselves or the agreement among repeat observations made under the same conditions.
quality assurance: a planned system of activities (program) whose purpose is to provide assurance of the reliability and defensibility of the data.
quality control: a routine application of procedures for controlling the monitoring process. Quality control is the responsibility of all those performing hands-on operations in the field and in the laboratory.
reagent water: water in which an analyte is not observed at or above the minimum quantitation limit of the parameters of interest.
reference dose (RfD): an estimate (uncertainty spanning perhaps an order of magnitude) of a daily human exposure expressed as milligrams of chemical per kilogram of human body weight per day, that is likely to be without an appreciable risk of deleterious effects during a lifetime exposure (chronic RfD) or exposure during a limited time interval (subchronic RfD).
regolith: the blanket, consisting of loose, non-cemented rock particles and mineral grains, that commonly overlies bedrock.
representativeness: expresses the degree to which sample data accurately and precisely represent a characteristic population, parameter variations at a sampling point, or an environmental condition. Representativeness is a qualitative parameter that is most concerned with the proper design of the sampling program.
saturated zone: that part of the water-bearing material in which all voids, large and small, are filled with water.
semivolatile compounds: compounds amenable to analysis by extraction of the ample with an organic solvent, Has the same meaning as the terms "base neutral" or "acid extractable".
sludge: any solid, semi-solid, or liquid waste generated from a municipal, commercial or industrial waste water treatment plant, water supply treatment plant, or air pollution control facility.
vapor: a substance in the gaseous state as distinguished from the liquid or solid state; the volatile form of substances normally in the liquid or solid state at normal temperature and pressure.
vapor pressure: the pressure exerted by a vapor, either by itself or in a mixture of gases; often taken to mean saturated vapor pressure, which is the pressure of a vapor in contact with its liquid form.
volatile: a chemical that rapidly evaporates.
volatilization: the conversion of a liquid or solid into vapor.
water table: the upper surface of the zone of saturation where the water pressure is equal to atmospheric pressure.
