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ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AT GROUND ZERO AND LOWER MANHATTAN FOLLOWING THE COLLAPSE OF THE WTC
Citation:
Vette, A F. AND D A. Vallero. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AT GROUND ZERO AND LOWER MANHATTAN FOLLOWING THE COLLAPSE OF THE WTC. Presented at NCCU Seminar Class, Durham, NC, March 18, 2002.
Impact/Purpose:
The primary study objectives are:
1.To quantify personal exposures and indoor air concentrations for PM/gases for potentially sensitive individuals (cross sectional, inter- and intrapersonal).
2.To describe (magnitude and variability) the relationships between personal exposure, and indoor, outdoor and ambient air concentrations for PM/gases for different sensitive cohorts. These cohorts represent subjects of opportunity and relationships established will not be used to extrapolate to the general population.
3.To examine the inter- and intrapersonal variability in the relationship between personal exposures, and indoor, outdoor, and ambient air concentrations for PM/gases for sensitive individuals.
4.To identify and model the factors that contribute to the inter- and intrapersonal variability in the relationships between personal exposures and indoor, outdoor, and ambient air concentrations for PM/gases.
5.To determine the contribution of ambient concentrations to indoor air/personal exposures for PM/gases.
6.To examine the effects of air shed (location, season), population demographics, and residential setting (apartment vs stand-alone homes) on the relationship between personal exposure and indoor, outdoor, and ambient air concentrations for PM/gases.
Description:
The U.S. EPA National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL), in conjunction with our Regional offices, established a network of air monitoring sites to characterize ambient air concentrations of gases and particles in lower Manhattan following the collapse of the World Trade Center (WTC). Sites were monitored on a daily basis from September 21, 2001 through February, 2002. Integrated 24-h PM2.5 and continuous PM concentrations were measured at three ground-level sites within 100-200 m of the WTC (Ground Zero). The Ground Zero sites triangulated the WTC to characterize both upwind and downwind concentrations. A fourth monitoring site was located about 500 m from Ground Zero on the 16th floor of a building at 290 Broadway. Measurements at this site included integrated 24-hour PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations as well as continuous PM and black carbon. The integrated PM2.5 and PM10 aerosols collected at these sites were analyzed for mass concentrations as well as elemental composition using X-ray fluorescence (XRF). In early October, 2001 two additional sites were located about 500-1000 m from Ground Zero and equipped to measure airborne concentrations of 17 dioxin and furan congeners. Volatile organic compounds were collected in evacuated summa (registered) canisters at 24-h and, later, at 72-h intervals for determination by capillary gas chromatography with flame ionization detection.
Preliminary data and lessons learned in siting and operating monitoring sites following the attacks will be discussed.
This work has been funded wholly or in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under contract #68-D-00-206 to ManTech International. It has been subjected to Agency review and approved for publication.