HEALTH CONSULTATION
Use of Material from the Elvins/Rivermines Tailings as Agricultural Lime
ELVINS MINE TAILINGS
ELVINS, ST. FRANCOIS COUNTY, MISSOURI
STATEMENT OF ISSUES AND BACKGROUND
Statement of Issues
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), in cooperation with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), has completed this health consultation at the request of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine potential health risks related to the removal of fine tailings materials from the Elvins area for use as agricultural lime.
Background
The Elvin/Rivermines Mine Tailings site (referred to hereafter as the site) is one of the six major mine tailings sites in the Park Hills-Desloge-Bonne Terre area of St. Francois County, Missouri. This area is commonly referred to as the "Old Lead Belt." The site is located between the former towns of Elvins and Rivermines, now part of the City of Park Hills (Figure 1). Mining activities commenced in the Old Lead Belt about 1890, with early operations including mining, milling, roasting, and smelting (1,2). In the early years, milling operations were conducted at numerous locations in the area. Milling operations were consolidated at Elvins around 1909. The Elvins Mill also processed ore from other area mines until it was permanently closed around 1940 (1,2).
The site consists of a chat pile that covers approximately 20 acres and is approximately 170 feet high, and a tailings area covering approximately 130 acres. The tailings area is relatively flat and approximately 50 feet lower than the chat pile. "Chat" is a gravel-like waste product from mining and milling of lead ore, generally larger than 0.25 inches in diameter. "Tailings" are smaller, resulting from a different type of milling process. Tailings are generally less than 0.033 inches in diameter. The tailings area contains a surface water pond located in the northern portion of the area with woods bordering on the north and west of the tailings. A quarry and bituminous mix operation (asphalt plant), operated by Lead Belt Materials Company (LBM Co.), is located on site and uses chat/tailings as part of their asphalt mix. Until recently, LBM Co. sold fine tailings to local farmers for use as agricultural lime (2).
Environmental investigations have been conducted at the Elvins site. Chat and tailings were sampled during these investigations to determine the levels of contamination present. Sampling results are presented in Table 1. Tier 1 Soil Target Concentrations (STARC) values from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources' (DNR) Cleanup Action Levels for Missouri (CALM) are also presented in Table 1 for comparison as screening values. Tier 1 STARC values are health-based concentrations representing the maximum concentration of a chemical that is acceptable in the soil, regardless of future land use. In general, the concentration of lead detected exceeded the STARC concentrations, indicating potentially unacceptably high levels of lead in chat and tailings from the site. An Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis (EE/CA) for the site was prepared to determine the best available options for site remediation (3). The preferred alternative selected during the EE/CA process included lowering, regrading and capping of the chat pile, regrading and capping the tailings areas (with potential future use as an athletic complex), and removing chat and tailings from the spillway, creek channel and railroad grade (Figure 2). These actions are being taken to prevent uncontrolled movement of chat and tailings material off-site.
Under the preferred alternative selected during the EE/CA, LBM Co. will be allowed to continue their asphalt operations. However, according to an agreement between the Doe Run Company, LBM Co. and the EPA, the sale of tailings materials for use as agricultural lime ceased on August 1, 2003 (3).
Table 1. Contaminants detected in the chat/tailings at the Elvins Mine Tailings Site in Parts per Million (ppm) (2,3,4)
| Contaminants |
Range |
Mean |
Screening Value & Source |
| Lead 1 (>90 samples) | 851 - 11,600 | 4,392 |
260 Tier 1 STARC 3 |
| Lead 2 (3 samples) | 1,500 - 8,600 | 5,067 |
260 Tier 1 STARC 3 |
| Cadmium1 (>90 samples) | 19.8 - 202 | 103 |
110 Tier 1 STARC 3 |
| Cadmium2 (3 samples) | 53 - 130 | 101 |
110 Tier 1 STARC 3 |
| Zinc1 (>90 samples) | 108 - 11,900 | 5,482 |
38,000 Tier 1 STARC 3 |
| Zinc2 (3 samples) | 2,90 - 8,400 | 6,400 |
38,000 Tier 1 STARC 3 |
1 Wixson B., Gale N., Davies B. A study on the possible use of chat and tailings from the old lead belt of Missouri for agricultural limestone. 1983 December.
2 CDM Federal Programs Corp. Site screening inspection report for site assessment activity at Elvins Mine Tailings site, Park Hills, Missouri. 1994 August 24.
3 Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Clean-Up Levels for Missouri (CALM), September 2001.
> = greater than
Blood Lead Data
Missouri Department of Health (DOH), now the DHSS, in conjunction with ATSDR, conducted an exposure study in the Old Lead Belt. Children's blood lead levels were examined in relation to concentrations of lead in yard soil, interior dust, paint and water and various measures of exposure. Similar analyses were conducted as a control in an area that did not have lead mining history. The study concluded that, on average, children living in the Old Lead Belt had higher blood lead levels than children in the control area, and that exposure to mining waste (chat and tailings) was the most reasonable explanation for the difference in blood lead levels (5).
When the exposure study was completed, 17% of the children less than 72 months of age in the Old Lead Belt had blood lead levels greater than or equal to 10 micrograms per deciliter (ug/dL), the level considered to be acceptable by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Several actions have been taken to reduce exposure to lead in the Old Lead Belt. Soil has been replaced in lead-contaminated yards, health education and blood lead testing have been provided and steps have been taken to stabilize the chat and tailings at some of the other large mine tailings sites in the area. Blood lead levels appear to be decreasing in the St. Francois County area according to blood lead surveillance data from DHSS's Systematic Tracking of Elevated Lead Levels and Remediation (STELLAR) database. In 2001, 10 percent of children less than 72 months who were tested in the county had elevated blood lead levels (greater than or equal to 10 ug/dL), and only 9 percent of those tested in 2002 had elevated blood lead levels. While most of the children who are in the STELLAR database are from the cities and towns in St. Francois county, a percentage are from rural areas, and a percentage of those children do have elevated blood lead levels (6).
The chat and tailings at the site are contaminated with lead and, to a lesser extent, with cadmium. Tailings from the site have been used as agricultural lime for many years. The particle size and calcium content of the tailings make them ideal for use as agricultural lime. While the tailings material will break down over time, the metals will accumulate in the surface soil. No scientific studies have been done to assess the rate at which metals accumulate under these conditions, or the potential health risk posed by this accumulation.
Although blood lead levels in children in St. Francois County have gradually decreased over the last several years, there is still an unacceptably high percentage of the children tested who have an elevated blood lead level.
At this point, there is no scientific data that shows that use of fine tailings material as an agricultural lime does not pose a risk to public health or the environment. Additionally, there are no controls in place to track the movement of the tailings and assure that the tailings are handled and used properly once they leave the site. Finally, there are no controls for property which has had tailings applied to it as agricultural lime to alert potential future users/purchasers of the property that lead concentrations could be elevated. These reasons combined along with the fact that lead mine/mill tailing materials at the site are hazardous substances as defined by the Comprehensive Environmental Remediation, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, or Superfund), create several potential exposure pathways that have not been adequately characterized. For example, exposure to the general public during transport, to farmers during reapplication, and future populations with changing land use, are all plausible.
Children are most affected by lead-contaminated materials because their activities involve introducing non-food items into their mouths. They are also more susceptible to the contaminants in the tailings/chat because of their immature and growing systems. Compared to adults, a greater proportion of the amount of lead swallowed will enter the blood of children. While about 99% of the amount of lead taken into the body of an adult will leave as waste within a couple of weeks, only 32% of lead taken into the body of a child will leave as waste (7). This allows for the accumulation of lead in the child's system where a variety of adverse health effects can occur depending on the level of lead to which they are exposed and the duration of exposure.
Regular blood-lead testing before a child is six years old is key to determining if the child has been exposed. Controlling contamination sources, eliminating exposure pathways, practicing good personal hygiene, and eating proper diet can prevent lead poisoning in children. To determine if a child has been exposed, blood-lead testing is available at the St. Francois County Health Department or from private physicians. The emphasis on blood-lead testing should be on children younger than six years old because they are the most susceptible to blood-lead poisoning. The St. Francois County Health Department also provides lead education materials to parents and their children to help them eliminate exposure pathways, promote good personal hygiene, and maintain a healthy diet. If these recommendations are followed, a parent can greatly reduce their child's risk of becoming lead poisoned.
Use of tailings material as agricultural lime has been classified as an Indeterminate Public Health Hazard. A site or situation is classified as an Indeterminate Public Health Hazard when there is insufficient data to draw conclusions about the public health hazard. The Indeterminate classification based on the following information.
The Public Health Action Plan (PHAP) for use of tailings materials from the Elvins/Rivermines site as agricultural lime contains a description of actions to be taken by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), and other involved parties. The purpose of the PHAP is to ensure that this health consultation not only identifies public health hazards, but provides an action plan to mitigate and prevent adverse human health effects resulting from past, present, and future exposures to contamination from the site. Included is a commitment from DOH and/or ATSDR to follow up on this plan to ensure that it is implemented.
Cherri Baysinger, Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
Arthur Busch, , Missouri Department of Health and Senior Service
Gale Carlson, Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
Scott Clardy, Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
This Use of Tailings Material from the Elvins/Rivermines Tailings as Agricultural Lime Health Consultation was prepared by the Missouri Department of Health under a cooperative agreement with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). It is in accordance with the approved methodology and procedures at the time the health consultation was initiated.
Alan G. Parham
Technical Project Officer, SPS, SSAB, DHAC
The Division of Health Assessment and Consultation (DHAC), ATSDR, has reviewed this health consultation and concurs with its findings.
Roberta Erlwein
Section Chief, SPS, DHAC, ATSDR
Figure 1. Elvins/Rivermines Mine Tailings Site Location Map
Figure 2. Elvins/Rivermines Mine Tailings Site Material Areas
