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Environmental sampling is a critical component of the post decontamination verification process following a bioterrorism event. This journal article describes work performed to produce a less labor-intensive method for processing cellulose sponge-wipes used for sampling areas pot...

Report

The report is intended to be applicable to consequence management activities that EPA will be involved with and will require waste characterization. This best practices document is intended to be general and all-hazards in nature, applicable to a multitude of settings, and to pro...

This report discusses results from a bench scale study that investigated the impact of dirt and grime on pH amended bleach and diluted bleach decontamination efficacy as commonly encountered on relevant subway rolling stock and subway infrastructure surface materials, including t...

This journal article studied the partitioning of Cs between airborne particulate and residual ash from burning Cs-contaminated vegetation as a function of particle size distribution (PSD), and to correlate Cs emissions with carbon-containing compounds and combustion efficiency.

Presentation

This technical brief reviews the bench-, pilot-, and field-scale decontamination research conducted by EPA under the Underground Transport Restoration (UTR) project. This summarizes the findings most applicable for operational use in decontamination methods for railcar and relate...

Report on the decontamination efficacy of low levels of hydrogen peroxide vapor (HPV) was evaluated on common building materials (glass, bare pine wood, carpet, painted wallboard paper, unpainted concrete, and ceiling tile) contaminated with Ba spores.

Sensitivity analyses on the system parameters revealed simple relationships between the bed design and the expected breakthrough of cesium, allowing us to generate a concise set of look-up tables to aid the early responders.

A large-scale outdoor biological disaster requires a better understanding of how rainfall and water-based decontamination measures would transport contaminants. Over the last few years, the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Homeland Security Research Program...

This study aims to understand the effect of the rapid decontamination methods of high pressure washing and washing with salt additives on the penetration of radionuclides into concrete. To this end, we first identified how penetration profiles of Cs-137, Sr-85, and Eu-152 evolve ...

This report chronicles the study undertaken to evaluate the decontamination efficacy of diperadipic acid, under application conditions that were found to be effective for pH-adjusted bleach (a common sporicidal liquid). The results showed that diperadipic acid demonstrated >6 Lo...

Personnel decontamination is an integral part of any emergency response. This report discusses a decontamination project that evaluated the decontamination efficacy and physical migration (transport) of Bacillus spores and operational efficiency of two types of sprayer technologi...

This report focus for fixed site surface decontamination and cleanup, two distinct options among liquid disinfectants include pH-adjusted bleach (pAB) and Spor-Klenz® (S-K; per-acetic/peroxide formulations). Efficacy of these two sterilants in lab-scale studies has been well-docu...

Historically, street sweeping primarily has been conducted to remove the regular buildup of litter and trash along urban streets. Recent developments in sweeper technology, such as regenerative sweepers and “dustless sweepers”, enable municipalities and transportation departments...

Model/Guide

Ricin is a highly-toxic compound derived from castor plant beans. Several incidents involving contamination of structures due to ricin production or dissemination have occurred in recent years. The goal of this study was to determine whether ricin bioactivity could be attenuated ...

Poster -To elucidate the prevalence of naturally occurring B.anthracis, USEPA NHSRC scientists teamed with scientists from the USGS Mineral Resources Program scientist to analyze soil samples from 4,770 sites as part of the North American Soil Geochemical Landscapes Project. USEP...

This journal article examines EPANET, which is widely employed to simulate water quality in water distribution systems. However, the time-driven simulation approach used to determine concentrations of water-quality constituents provides accurate results, in general, only for smal...

Poster - EPA’s Homeland Security Research Program is collaborating both across the agency (with several regions and offices) and outside the agency to develop an online tool, the MicroSAP, which aims to assist users with development of Sampling and Analysis Plans (SAPs). The tool...

During the immediate, emergency phase of a response, it will be impossible to initiate activities other than establishing life-saving operations and securing a site for the safety of the public and first responders. This report contains a comprehensive list of proposed equipment ...

Report

Report

The QR Code Reading System is a Python based script developed to recognize and record data and time associated with QR codes using web cameras. This code was originally developed to support timekeeping efforts during the Underground Transportation Restoration (UTR) Operational Te...

In the event of a release of a biological agent in an urban area, a wide range of surfaces may be contaminated, including indoor surfaces in homes and businesses. This research was conducted to identify and evaluate low-technology (low-tech) remediation methods that could be used...