HEALTH CONSULTATION
RURAL RANTOUL RESIDENTIAL WELLS
RANTOUL, CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, ILLINOIS
In September 1998, a resident south of the Chanute Air Force Base (CAFB) Landfill #3 requested that IDPH and the Champaign County Health Department sample the well water. Subsequently, in October 1998, a consultant for CAFB conducted the first round of residential groundwater sampling at four homes. To date, eight rounds of sampling have taken place. In this health consultation, IDPH will summarize its evaluation of the data from residential wells south of the CAFB property.
BACKGROUND AND STATEMENT OF ISSUES
CAFB is an inactive military facility within the incorporated limits of the Village of Rantoul, in Champaign County, Illinois. The base site is approximately 2,125 acres, with farmland abutting three sides of the property and residential and commercial land along the northern boundary (Attachment 1). The U.S. Air Force has deeded about 700 acres of the former CAFB to the private sector (Mark Hutchinson, U.S. Air Force Base Conversion Agency, personal communication, September 2001). The remaining acres are either being leased to the private sector or are undergoing an environmental cleanup.
The original base was constructed in 1917 and was designated as a World War I pilot training facility. From 1918 to 1921, the base was used as a storage depot for aircraft engines, paints, and other miscellaneous surplus items. After World War II, the primary mission of the base was military and technical training for aerospace weapons systems support personnel. The base was the primary installation for training in B-52 and B-58 long range bombers and various missiles. In 1971, military flight operations ended at the base. Closure began in 1990 and the base was officially closed in September 1993 [1].
Operations that could have released hazardous materials into the environment include
Hazardous wastes generated included
treatment and oil-water separator sludge ,During much of CAFB's operational life, waste generated by the base was placed in landfills on the base. At the time of the base closure, all of the hazardous waste generated on the base was collected from storage and designated accumulation points, and disposed off the base in a permitted facility [1].
To date, eight rounds of sampling have taken place. After reviewing the sample data, IDPH sent letters to residents giving health interpretations of the laboratory results. IDPH also made recommendations to reduce potential exposure to chemicals of interest detected in the residents' water supply. As a precautionary measure, since 1999 the Air Force has provided residents with bottled water.
Site Visit
On June 26 and 27, 2001, IDPH staff visited the site with staff from ATSDR, the U.S. Air Force (USAF), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and Illinois EPA. The nearest home was less than ¼ mile south of CAFB Landfill #3. A fence with a warning sign stating an "Environmental Area of Concern" separates Landfill #3 from the nearest home. The other three landfills were fenced and had signs posted. Landfills #1 and #2 were in the process of being consolidated and capped. The consolidation process will reduce the area to be capped by digging up the outer edges of the landfill material and placing it in the center of the landfills.
Chemicals of Interest
The following chemicals were detected in at least one of the eight rounds of residential water sampling south of CAFB:
The maximum levels detected and the frequency of detection are shown in Table 1. Other than sodium and arsenic, none of the chemicals were detected in every round of sampling, so no pattern for their occurrence has been determined.
IDPH compared the results of each groundwater sample collected with the appropriate comparison values to select chemicals for further evaluation for exposure and possible carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health effects. Chemicals found at levels greater than comparison values or those for which no comparison values exist were selected for further evaluation. A discussion of each comparison value used is found in Attachment 2. IDPH assumed that the samples were collected and handled properly and that appropriate analytical techniques were used.
The dioxins and furans were not detected at levels greater than comparison values. The rest of the chemicals listed above exceeded comparison values in at least one round of sampling and are chemicals of interest. It should be noted, however, that exposure to a chemical at a level exceeding a comparison value does not necessarily mean that adverse health effects will result.
PAHs and bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate were detected at levels only slightly greater than their comparison values. Thallium, cyanide, arsenic, and lead were detected only once in the eight rounds of sampling at levels greater than comparison values. The inorganic chemicals manganese and sodium were also detected at levels greater than comparison values.
Exposure Assessment
The potential for exposed persons to experience health effects depend on
Residents near the landfills with private wells as their source of water can be exposed to chemicals in the water, primarily through ingestion.
IDPH assumed that residents were exposed to the highest levels detected in the well water samples for 12 months every year for 15 years. Based on this exposure scenario, of the chemicals of interest, only sodium was detected at levels that could cause adverse health effects.
Sodium
The highest level of sodium detected in residential wells was 32,000 parts per billion (ppb). The primary health effect associated with ingestion of elevated levels of sodium in drinking water is hypertension (high blood pressure) [3]. Sodium has long been a major dietary factor in high blood pressure. Many studies have shown that reducing sodium intake can reduce high blood pressure. In letters to residents with wells containing elevated sodium levels, IDPH recommended that persons who have high blood pressure, a heart condition, or who are on a sodium-restricted diet consult their physician if they are drinking this water. As a precautionary measure, since 1999 the Air Force has provided residents with bottled water.
Children are a sensitive subpopulation, thus in toxicological evaluations special consideration is given to potential exposures to children. With the exposure scenarios stated previously and the levels of sodium detected in the well water, IDPH does not anticipate that children will be at risk for hypertension.
Based on the well water sampling data from years 1998 to 2001, IDPH concludes that under current conditions, exposures are not at levels expected to cause adverse health effects. IDPH has categorized the groundwater in the residential wells south of CAFB as "no apparent public health hazard." Although elevated levels of sodium were found in some wells, the Air Force has provided residents with bottled water since 1999 as a precautionary measure. The IDPH advised residents with wells containing elevated sodium levels to consult their physician if they have high blood pressure, a heart condition or a restricted dietary intake of sodium, and they are using their wells for drinking water.
IDPH recommends that:
Residents with elevated sodium levels in their well water who also have either (1) a history of high blood pressure or (2) who are on a low-sodium diet should consult their physician. IDPH has informed these residents by letter about this recommendation.
Cary Ware
Environmental Health Specialist
Illinois Department of Public Health
. Accessed April, 2002.Table 1. Chemicals of Interest in Off-Site Residential Groundwater at Chanute Air Force Base (October 1998 to September 2001)
| Chemical | Maximum Level Detected (ppb) | Frequency of Detection | Comments |
| Dioxins | 0.05 | 12/28 | |
| Furans | 0.01 | 9/28 | |
| Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons | 0.21 | 6/28 | |
| Bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate | 182 | 5/28 | |
| Thallium | 5.03 | 1/28 | |
| Cyanide | 397 | 1/28 | |
| Arsenic | 50.4 | 12/28 | Detected in one well in all eight sampling rounds |
| Lead | 25.7 | 3/28 | |
| Manganese | 364 | 28/28 | |
| Sodium | 32,000 | 28/28 |
This Rural Rantoul Residential Wells Health Consultation on residential wells was prepared by the Illinois Department of Public 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.
W. Allen Robison
Technical Project Officer
Superfund Site Assessment Branch (SSAB)
Division of Health Assessment and Consultation (DHAC)
ATSDR
The Division of Health Assessment and Consultation, ATSDR, has reviewed this health consultation and concurs with its findings.
Roberta Erlwein
Chief, State Programs Section
SSAB, DHAC, ATSDR
ATTACHMENT 1: MAP OF SURVEY AREAS
ATTACHMENT 2: COMPARISON VALUES USED IN SCREENING CONTAMINANTS FOR FURTHER EVALUATION
Environmental Media Evaluation Guides (EMEGs) are developed for chemicals based on their toxicity, frequency of occurrence at National Priorities List (NPL) sites, and potential for human exposure. They are not action levels but are comparison values. They are developed without consideration for carcinogenic effects, chemical interactions, multiple route exposure, or exposure through other environmental media. They are very conservative concentration values designed to protect sensitive members of the population.
Reference Dose Media Evaluation Guides (RMEGs) are another type of comparison value. They are developed without consideration for carcinogenic effects, chemical interactions, multiple route exposure, or exposure through other environmental media. They are very conservative concentration values designed to protect sensitive members of the population.
Cancer Risk Evaluation Guides (CREGs) are estimated contaminant concentrations based on a probability of one excess cancer in a million persons exposed to a chemical over a lifetime.
Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) have been established by USEPA for public water supplies to reduce the chances of occurrence of adverse health effects from use of contaminated drinking water. These standards are well below levels for which health effects have been observed and take into account the financial feasibility of achieving specific contaminant levels. These are enforceable limits that public water supplies must meet.
Lifetime Health Advisories (LTHAs) for drinking water have been established by USEPA. They represent the concentrations of chemicals in drinking water that are not expected to cause any adverse, non-carcinogenic effects over a lifetime of exposure. These are conservative values that incorporate a margin of safety.
