State Expands Environmental Testing in Apex

The state Department of Environment and Natural Resources announced Friday that it's conducting additional testing for contamination near Environmental Quality's hazmat storage facility in Apex, N.C.

A fire that broke out there Oct. 5 burned for three days, releasing a greenish-yellow plume of smoke and gases that drifted over nearby neighborhoods. Jimmy Sauls, who lives less than two blocks from the facility with his wife and dogs, says the pollution smelled "like Clorox, but sweet" and left him with a "burning, itchy feeling" on his face. It also irritated his and his wife's throats and made their normally active dogs -- two Pekingnese and a Shih Tzu -- unusually lethargic.

According to DENR, air and water quality tests done in the immediate aftermath of the fire found no cause for concern in the short-term, though it does not share the test data on its Web page devoted to the disaster. "This new round of testing will look for any environmental contaminants that could potentially cause long-term effects," according to an Oct. 20 press statement from DENR Secretary Bill Ross. The statement continues:

DENR will be in charge of environmental sampling around residents' homes. DENR will be responsible for environmental sampling around the homes. The Division of Air Quality [on Thursday] began enlisting volunteers in a plan to take exterior wipe samples from about 30 locations (homes and buildings). Some of the buildings will be in the area close to EQ most likely to have been affected by the fire. Others will be in areas well away from EQ and will be used to determine background levels of contaminants that could be in the area but unrelated to the fire. Although none of the air quality samples collected so far have detected harmful levels of contaminants, the wipe samples will be used as a screening tool to determine whether deposition is a concern. Contaminants that will be tested for include metals, total cyanides and semivolatiles.

The Division of Waste Management will be collecting surface soil samples from the locations identified by DAQ. Samples will be analyzed for volatile organic compounds, semi-volatile organic compounds, PCBs and several inorganic compounds, including beryllium, manganese and cyanide.

The Division of Public Health will sample inside the same homes. Indoor sampling will consist of wiping horizontal surfaces and testing those wipes for contaminants that could indicate exposure to the fire. Only surfaces that have not been cleaned since the fire will be tested. Public health experts will also do air testing for mercury vapors. As part of the indoor testing, other potential sources of indoor air pollution like tobacco smoke, fireplaces, space heaters, gas logs and candles will be identified.

This round of testing is to screen for any potential problems resulting from the fire. It is not uncommon to find background contaminants in areas that have never been involved in a fire. If potential problems are identified, then more in-depth testing will be done. State officials hope to complete the testing and analysis within two weeks.

DENR has posted a number of other Apex-related documents to its Web page: results of the Division of Water Quality's surface water tests; news releases on this week's fire at the facility, caused by the explosion of a 55-gallon drum of sodium; and a timeline of the state's response to the initial blaze. The timeline reveals that, though the fire broke out around 10 p.m. and DAQ arrived on the scene at 1:50 a.m., it couldn't begin air monitoring until 6 a.m., when hazmat teams allowed them to enter the area. The DAQ team:

...tested for a range of air pollutants, including typical combustion products such as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide and various air toxics. Some of those air toxics included chlorine, ammonia, phosphine and hydrogen sulfide. ...

... The air toxics team also collected grab samples at seven locations near the site for more in-depth laboratory analysis. The laboratory analysis tested for a range of air toxics, including 40-60 types of volatile organic compounds, using standard EPA-approved methods. In-depth analysis detected several chemicals in very small concentrations; all of the chemicals tested below levels considered to be a health concern. The chemicals detected included several Freon compounds, carbon disulfide, acetone and benzene; most of the chemicals are commonly found in urban air and can come from a number of different sources.

DAQ did not monitor the air or test for metals (such as mercury) because it did not have the mobile particulate monitoring equipment required for those tests. The Division is in the process of acquiring a mobile particulate monitor that could be used to monitor for metals in the future.

No hazards were detected in the air from the mobile continuous air monitors or grab samples collected during the test period. However, most of the air pollution occurred during the initial explosions and fire when DAQ staff were unable to monitor the air or collect samples. The intense heat from the fire probably carried most of that pollution high into the air, where it could dissipate more broadly at lower concentrations and rain Friday morning helped wash or scrub those pollutants from the air. By late Saturday morning, analysis of samples was complete with no significant contaminants found during testing. Air testing was suspended at that time.

While EQ is responsible for monitoring the site's air during cleanup, the Division of Air Quality is setting up two air monitors nearby -- one upwind, one downwind -- to check for contaminants.

DENR has also posted to its Web site EQ's final cleanup plan for the facility. The contractor EQ hired to oversee the effort is the Center for Toxicology and Environmental Health, a private firm headquartered in Little Rock, Ark. CTEH made the news last year after Murphy Oil Co. hired it to help with the controversial cleanup of a massive crude-oil spill at a refinery in suburban New Orleans that occurred during the Hurricane Katrina disaster -- but allegedly failed to be clear with affected citizens that CTEH was a paid consultant and not a government agency. According to a Nov. 15 report by Associated Press reporter Cain Burdeau:

...U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon agreed in part with lawyers who argued that the company was taking advantage of the displaced and hard-hit oil spill victims by providing them with misleading and false information.

The judge said the company needs to tell victims to consult a lawyer before settling and that they would waive their legal rights in the case by accepting money. Fallon also said Murphy cannot seek out residents who had not previously contacted the company on their own or those who have lawyers.

Fallon also questioned Murphy's use of an environmental testing firm that has said the spill has not created short-term or long-term risks. Plaintiffs lawyers argued that Murphy tried to make it appear that the firm - the Center for Toxicology and Environmental Health - was a government agency. Fallon said Murphy needs to disclose that the firm is a paid consultant.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has said that it is not safe to live in the contaminated neighborhoods and that people should wear protective clothing while working there.

EQ's cleanup plan for its Apex facility doesn't include any plans for testing of off-site homes or businesses. A DENR official told me earlier this week that the company would address that in another plan to be submitted to the Wake County Health Department.

However, the cleanup plan's health and safety section does includes a job hazard analysis for onsite workers that sheds light on the contaminants the company is most concerned about. It lists a number of chemicals as potential exposure hazards, along with associated exposure symptoms and health risks. They are:

* Arsenic (metal and inorganic compounds). Exposure symptoms: ulceration of the nasal septum, dermatitis, gastrointestinal disturbances, peripheral neuropathy, respiratory irritation, hyper-pigmentation of the skin.

* Benzene. Exposure symptoms: eye, nose and respiratory irritation; giddiness; headaches; nausea; staggered gait; fatigue; anorexia; bone marrow suppression. Health effects: a suspected leukemogen that causes cumulative bone marrow damage.

* Lead (inorganic dusts and fumes). Exposure symptoms: weakness, lassitude, insomnia, facial pallor, eye irritation, anorexia, constipation, abdominal pain, hypertension, tremors. Health effects: damages the blood, nervous and reproductive systems.

* Cadmium (metal and compounds). Exposure symptoms: pulmonary edema, breathing difficulty, cough, chest tightness, pain beneath the sternum, headaches, chills, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of sense of smell, anemia. Health effects: cumulative kidney and lung damage.

* Methylene chloride. Exposure symptoms: fatigue, weakness, sleepiness, lightheadedness, numbness in the limbs, tingling, nausea, skin and eye irritation. Health effects: cumulative liver damage, central nervous effects, narcosis.

* Vinyl chloride. Exposure symptoms: weakness, abdominal pain, gastrointestinal bleeding, enlarged liver. Health effects: liver cancer.

Arsenic, benzene, cadmium, methylene chloride and vinyl chloride are also carcinogens, according to chemical fact sheets included in EQ's plan.

Interestingly, some of the symptoms associated with exposure to these chemicals -- "fatigue," "lassitude," "sleepiness" -- could explain why Sauls' dogs are so out of sorts.