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RAPID ASSESSMENT OF EXPOSURE TO PARTICULATE EMISSIONS FROM SURFACE CONTAMINATION SITES
Citation:
Cowherd, C., G. Muleski, P. Englehart, AND D. Gillette. RAPID ASSESSMENT OF EXPOSURE TO PARTICULATE EMISSIONS FROM SURFACE CONTAMINATION SITES. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/8-85/002.
Description:
Emergency response actions at chemical spills and abandoned hazardous waste sites often require rapid assessment of (a) the potential for atmospheric contamination by the chemical or waste compound and (b) the inhalation exposure of people living in the vicinity of a surface contamination site. This manual provides a methodology for rapid assessment of inhalation exposure to respirable particulate emissions from surface contamination sites. Respirable particulate matter is defined as airborne particles equal to or smaller than 10 micrometers aerodynamic diameter. The methodology consists of a site survey procedure, particulate emission factor equations for wind and mechanical entrainment processes, procedures for mapping atmospheric contaminant concentration distributions by scaling the output of pre-solved computer models of regional atmospheric dispersion, and an equation for calculation of inhalation exposure. In addition to the components of the methodology, this manual discusses critical contaminant and site characteristics, describes assumptions and limitations of the procedures, and presents example applications.