PUBLIC HEALTH ASSESSMENT

BAYOU BONFOUCA
SLIDELL, ST. TAMMANY PARISH, LOUISIANA

APPENDIX A: ENVIRONMENTAL DATA

FIGURE A1. Bayou Bonfouca Site.

FIGURE A2. Monitoring Well Location Map.

FIGURE A3. Interpreted Extent of Creosote Plume in Groundwater.

FIGURE A4. Soil Sample and Waste Pile Locations.

FIGURE A5. Bayou Boring Locations and Section Boundaries.

TABLE A1. * Groundwater Analytical Summary: Surficial Aquifer Organic Parameters.

TABLE A2. * Groundwater Analytical Summary: Surficial Aquifer Inorganic Parameters.

TABLE A3. * Groundwater Analytical Summary: Shallow Artesian Aquifer Organic Parameters.

TABLE A4. * Groundwater Analytical Summary: Shallow Artesian Aquifer Inorganic Parameters.

TABLE A5. Groundwater Analytical Summary: Design Investigation Organic Results.

TABLE A6. Groundwater Analytical Summary: Design Investigation Inorganic Results.

TABLE A7. Summary of Waste Pile Results: Design Investigation.

TABLE A8. Surface Soil Organic Analytical Results: Design Investigation.

TABLE A9. Surface Soils Organic Analytical Summary: Design Investigation.

* Results based on the original and supplemental remedial investigations (1,2).

Figure A1. Bayou Bonfouca Site

Figure A2. Monitoring Well Location Map.

Figure A3. Interpreted Extent of Creosote Plume in Groundwater.

Figure A4. Soil Sample and Waste Pile Locations.

Figure A5. Bayou Boring Locations and Section Boundaries.

CREG Cancer Risk Evaluation Guideline
RMEG Reference Dose Media Evaluation Guide

APPENDIX B: HEALTH OUTCOME DATA

Health Outcome Data Sources

FIGURE B1. Census Tract Map

TABLE B1. Census Tract Population

TABLE B2. Lung Cancer Data

TABLE B3. Malignant Melanoma Data

TABLE B4. Urinary System Data

TABLE B5. All-Sites Cancer Data

TABLE B6. La. & St. Tammany Parish Moving Average Cancer Rates

Figure B1. Census Tract Map

A comparison population is required to evaluate if an excess of disease has occurred in the site population. South Louisiana, which includes the site population, is the most valid comparison available because it reflects the socioeconomic status and geographic region of the site. Furthermore, the data for South Louisiana is collected in a similar manner, in terms of quality and completeness, to that of Slidell. Data for South Louisiana is also available for the corresponding time period, 1983-1986. It should be noted that some cancer rates for South Louisiana are higher than the national rates.

Tables B2 - B5 present descriptive data for the Greater Slidell area. Age-specific incidence ratios, annual incidence rates per 100,000 population and standardized morbidity ratios were calculated for each cancer site. To compute a standardized morbidity ratio, incidence rates for South Louisiana were weighted to the site population of Greater Slidell, generating an expected number of cases. The ratio of total observed number of cases to the total expected number of cases yields a standardized morbidity ratio which is equivalent to the relative risk. For standardized morbidity ratios greater than 1, Chi-Squares and P values were calculated to determine if the difference between the observed and expected number of cases is due to random variation or if the difference reflects an actual elevated rate for the Slidell population when it is compared with South Louisiana. If the P value is less than .05, then the difference in standardized morbidity ratios is statistically significant and is not due to a chance variation.

An evaluation of the standardized morbidity ratios for lung, malignant melanoma, urinary system, and all-sites cancers indicates that residents of the Greater Slidell Area experienced morbidity rates greater than South Louisiana for lung and all-sites cancers (Tables B2-B5). The standardized morbidity ratio for lung is 1.48 and 1.50 for all-sites. These ratios are statistically significant; the difference between the expected and observed number of cases is not due to chance. Age-specific incidence ratios were calculated for each cancer site; the ratios and P-values are included in the tables.

The Office of Vital Statistics collects cancer mortality data coded by anatomic site and parish of residence. Using records from 1962 to 1980, mortality rates for St. Tammany Parish were compared with the State's (Table B8). For all cancer, the trend in rates from 1962 to 1980 was lower for St. Tammany Parish than Louisiana. The opposite trend was observed for lung cancer: St. Tammany rates were consistently higher than the State's. For the period 1968 to 1978, St. Tammany's rates were 23 % higher than the State's. For lung cancer the mortality rate for 100,000 population from 1968 to 1978 was 52.7 for St. Tammany compared with 42.9 for the state. The high rates of lung cancer for St. Tammany Parish cannot be associated with the Bayou Bonfouca site.

LOUISIANA TUMOR REGISTRY:

The Louisiana Tumor Registry (LTR) is a population-based registry which covers all hospitals, radiation centers and pathology laboratories in the state. The LTR was first established in 1974 by Charity Hospital of Louisiana at New Orleans as a cancer registry for the New Orleans area and as a participant in the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) program of the National Cancer Institute (NCI). In 1979, it was transferred to the state's Office of Public Health as a pilot for a statewide registry. Since 1983, LTR has gradually expanded by region and coverage of the entire state was achieved in 1988.

The LTR is composed of 5 regional registries; each region is responsible for the complete ascertainment of all cancer cases diagnosed and/or treated in its residents. A monograph was produced in 1990 that includes all cases of cancer diagnosed during the period January 1, 1983 through December 31, 1986. The monograph lists frequency of incident cases by age, adjusted incidence rates by race and sex and region, cumulative rate (age 0 - 74) and average annual age-adjusted rates. Incidence rates are computed with population estimates by age, sex, and race for each geographic region. The population estimates used are from the U.S. Bureau of the Census and Louisiana Tech University (Figure B1). In addition to the monograph, number of cases by cancer site, zip code, age, and sex are maintained on computerized database. This information is available from 1983 to 1987 for all of Louisiana.

OFFICE OF VITAL STATISTICS:

The Office of Vital Statistics has officially collected vital statistics in Louisiana since 1877 when the Louisiana Legislature transferred the Orleans Parish Vital Records Registry to the Louisiana Board of Health. The office is a participator in the national birth and death registration system and provides stillbirth and marriage data to the National Center for Health Statistics and Induced Abortion data to Centers for Disease Control. Certificates of vital events and reports of communicable diseases are available by address from 1960 to the present upon request. In addition, a monograph displaying trends in disease by Parish is produced annually.

Census Tracts New Orleans, LA SMSA, 1980.

Age-Specific Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population,
Standardized Morbidity Ratios (SMR),
Age-Specific Incidence Ratios,
and Annual Incidence Rates by Primary Cancer Site in the Greater Slidell Area, 1983-1987.

(1) Observed cases in Slidell from 1983-87.
(2) Expected cases in Slidell if South LA rates apply.

LOPH received five letters from citizens living near Bayou Bonfouca during the public comment period which extended from December 6, 1993 through February 6, 1994. One resident expressed concern about seminal vesicle cancer in the community. The other four letters expressed concerns about noise from the incinerator, emissions from the remedial activity, and radioactive material that were once stored onsite.

1. One letter addressed a citizen's concern that contaminants from the site cause seminal vesicle cancer. The resident mentioned he never used the bayou for fishing or water sports.

   SEE Response:

   PAHs are probable human carcinogens. Cancers associated with exposure to PAH's are lung, skin, and urinary tract. Long-term exposure with the contaminant detected at Bayou Bonfouca may increase a person's risk of developing these cancers. However, the contribution of risk from the contaminant is difficult to determine in the absences of knowledge about other known risk factors like lifestyle, behavior, diet, and medical history.

2. Concern about noise from the incinerator.

   SEE Response:

   Several complaints made by area residents about noise from the incinerator prompted EPA to muffle the noise and reduce the decibel level of the incinerator. On two site visits conducted after the incinerator was muffled in February 1994, SEE staff did not hear any loud noise from the incinerator. Complaints from residents about the noise from the incinerator have stopped.

3. Concern about emissions from the incinerator.

   SEE Response:

   The incinerator burns sediments, soils, and wood fragments at high temperatures and effectively destroys any toxic materials in the burning process. Material that is incinerated is 99.99% destroyed by the design removal efficiency set up by EPA. The major products of combustion are carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and particulate matter which are emitted through the incinerator's smoke stack. The fluids generated from remedial activity are processed by the water treatment facility onsite. LDEQ is conducting air monitoring during site remediation.

4. Concern about lead in crabs in the bayou.

   SEE Response:

   Elevated levels of lead and mercury were detected in three blue crabs collected from the bayou during 1980. The research was performed by the Center for Bio-Organic Studies at the University of New Orleans. Lead and mercury have never been associated with the site. Metals typically persist in the environment whether their presence is the result of human activity or naturally occurring. In 1987, the LDEQ and the Department of Health and Hospitals issued an advisory against the consumption of fish and shellfish from the bayou. This health advisory should be followed to prevent any exposure to the lead and mercury found in the blue crabs. No additional sampling has been done for biota in the bayou but this Public Health Assessment recommends more sampling and analyses of edible biota from the bayou.

5. Concern about large cylinders marked with the radioactive symbol on the site roughly five years ago (1988).

   SEE Response:

   LDEQ and LDHH have no knowledge or record of any radioactive material on the Bayou Bonfouca site. If residents have any other information to offer, LDEQ, LOPH and EPA will investigate all environmental contamination information given.

   
   

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