TitleThree Different Demonstration Applications of an Innovative Air sampling Technology to Adress Community-based Environmental Exposures: Oil Spills, Legacy and Emerging Contaminants at Community-Industry land Boundaries and Food Preparation
Publication TypePoster
Year of Publication2012
AuthorsTidwell LG, Hobbie KA, O'Connell SG, Wilson GR, Donatuto J, Harris S, Anderson KA
Conference/Meeting/VenueConnecting Research and Practice: A Dialogue between ATSDR and the NIEHS Superfund Research Program, Atlanta, Georgia
Date Published08/2012
Abstract

Although communities often want and need chemical monitoring data to characterize chemicals in their environmental or from their activities, air monitoring equipment is often cost prohibitive or technically impractical.   We are further developing air monitoring bio-analytical tools that employ our passive sampling device (PSD).  PSDs require no external power, require minimal training for quality controlled sampling, and can be quickly and inexpensively deployed.  PSD are capable of providing qualitative and quantitative characterization of exposure to the bioavailable vapor phase fraction of legacy and emerging contaminants in the atmosphere. We demonstrate our PSD’s utility in three vastly different scenarios; before, during and after the Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon oil spill in spring of 2010, at the interface of community tribal lands and high intensity industrial activities, and finally in Native American fish smoking activities.  Legacy and emerging PAHs were characterized for all three scenarios; analysis of PSD extracts using a 1,200 analyte screening method was also undertaken.  Acute chemical spills generally require a quick response, and often there is a significant, or unknown, exposure prior to elaborate air monitoring equipment setup.  We deployed air PSDs prior to, during and after shoreline oiling from the Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010 in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.  Emerging and legacy polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were quantified in the air PSD. PSDs were also screened for an additional 1,200 contaminants of concern.  We demonstrate the utility of the air PSD to respond to acute chemical spills, and to gather chemical data sets on a wide range of contaminants. Communities adjacent to highly industrialized lands often want to understand the contribution of contaminants of concern from industrial activities to their ambient activities.  The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community (SITC) offered their lands to further test our developing air PSD technology and to address these kinds of questions.  PSD were deployed at SITC, which borders a petroleum facility, continuously for a yearlong study, from these PSD samples legacy and emerging PAHs were identified and quantified.  The results indicate spatial and temporal trends that were related to the activities of the tribal community and the petroleum facility.  While PSDs have been demonstrated as a surrogate of fish for aquatic environment assessment, atmospheric PSDs have not been previously used as a surrogate of food for preparation technique assessment.  Community-based requests often include understanding the effects of special food preparations that are culturally important.  The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) requested an assessment of their fish smoking methods.  As part of a larger study, we deployed air PSDs during the CTUIR smoking events to further evaluate the utility of using our PSD as a surrogate of smoke-processed fish.  In a side-by-side study the PSDs were paired with salmon during smoking.  PAHs were quantified from the air PSD and compared with the smoked salmon.  The results show excellent promise for an alternative method for assessing food smoking preparation techniques. Throughout these three studies the OSU SRP Research Translation and Community Engagement Cores partnered to develop culturally appropriate messages and data interpretation including workshops, print materials, brochures, and web-based information.