State Fact Sheets

• State Fact Sheets

ATSDR in Partnership with New Jersey

The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is the lead public health agency responsible for implementing the health-related provisions of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). An Atlanta-based federal agency with more than 400 employees, ATSDR assesses the presence and nature of health hazards at specific Superfund sites, helps to prevent or reduce further exposure and illnesses resulting from those hazards, and expands the knowledge base about the health effects of exposure to hazardous substances.

ATSDR works closely with state agencies to carry out its mission of preventing exposure to contaminants at hazardous waste sites and preventing adverse health effects. Through cooperative agreements and grants, ATSDR provides funding for states to identify and evaluate environmental health threats to communities. These resources help state and local health departments to investigate environmental health concerns and to educate communities. Currently, ATSDR has cooperative agreements with and funds grants to 31 states, 1 American Indian nation (Gila River Indian Community), and 1 commonwealth (Puerto Rico Department of Health). From 1985 through 2004, ATSDR has awarded $26,324,119—more than $1.6 million in the last two years—in direct funds and services to the state of New Jersey. In addition to direct funds and services, ATSDR staff provides technical and administrative guidance for state-conducted site activities.

ATSDR Site-Specific Activities

Public Health Assessment-Related Activities

One of the agency's important mandates is to conduct public health assessments of all National Priorities List (NPL) sites and of other sites where there might be a significant threat to the public health. There have been 135 NPL sites in New Jersey.

A public health assessment is a comprehensive evaluation of available data and information about the release of hazardous substances into the environment in a specific area. Such releases are assessed for past, current, or future impact on public health. ATSDR and the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (NJDHSS) staff, in conjunction with environmental officials from New Jersey, have conducted 175 health assessments in the state. Below summarizes one public health assessment recently conducted in the state.

Naval Engineering Center, Lakehurst—This public health assessment, completed in July 2003, evaluated whether environmental contaminants could affect the health of residents of the Lakehurst Naval Engineering Center (NAEC) or surrounding communities. Some past waste disposal practices, accidental spills, and other base activities released contamination directly into the environment. ATSDR scientists concluded that groundwater contamination at NAEC poses no apparent public health hazard. Monitoring wells are in place to detect contamination before it can enter drinking water supplies. ATSDR also evaluated whether anybody is at risk from coming into contact with unexploded ordnance or chemical warfare materiel on the base. The agency found that the Navy has implemented several measures to reduce greatly the possibility of such contact. In addition, ATSDR evaluated whether anyone is at risk from radioactive materials in deer meat harvested from the base, concluding that deer retain only a small fraction of radioactive materials and that the amount retained reside in body parts that are not commonly eaten. Finally, ATSDR used computer modeling to evaluate air quality data. The results suggest that emissions do not cause on-base or off-base air pollution at unhealthy levels. However, regional sources of ozone unrelated to the base are present. The draft public health assessment was released for public comment in April 2003, and ATSDR responded to all comments received before publishing the public health assessment in final form.

A health consultation is a written or oral response from ATSDR to a specific request for information about health risks related to a specific site, chemical release, or hazardous material. A health consultation is a more limited response than a public health assessment. To date, 237 health consultations have been conducted at 132 sites in New Jersey. A summary of one such health consultation conducted in the state follows.

Crown Vantage Landfill—Completed in March 2004, this health consultation focused on an inactive landfill near the banks of the Delaware River in Alexandria Township, Hunterdon County. Wastes accepted at the site, which operated from the late 1930s and for approximately 40 years thereafter, included coal ash (fly ash), household trash, appliances, construction debris, drummed wastes, chemical solvents and dyes, metal foil, and plastics. Some of the wastes deposited came from the operation of one or more paper mills. In July 2003, specialists collected surface soil radiological activity data during a radiation survey of the site. With the assistance of staff from the Radiologic Assessment Section, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, ATSDR conducted a risk assessment for workers and trespassers with regard to radioactive fly ash at the site. The risks associated with radiologic exposures were determined to be lower than levels permitted by the state.

An exposure investigation is the collection and analysis of site-specific data to determine if populations have been exposed to hazardous substances. Biologic sampling, personal monitoring, related environmental assessment, and exposure-dose reconstruction are used to collect this information. ATSDR and state staff from New Jersey have conducted several exposure investigations in the state, including those supporting the Dover Township Childhood Cancer Investigation and the Mile Run Brook (downstream of the Rhodia Inc. site, New Brunswick, Middlesex County) exposure investigation. Although it was determined that exposures to surface water and soil of the Rhodia Inc. site did not pose a public health hazard, portions of the site remain highly contaminated, and state environmental oversight continues. Changes in existing site conditions or future remedial measures may result in the release of contaminants off-site.

A public health advisory is a statement of findings by ATSDR that a substance released into the environment poses a significant risk to human health. It also includes recommended measures to reduce human exposure and eliminate, or substantially mitigate, the significant risk. The advisory is issued to the EPA to inform it, state and local officials, and the public about recommended actions.

ATSDR has issued four public health advisories in New Jersey. Following is an example of a public health advisory issued in the state.

Grand Street Mercury—In December 1995, a health officer for the city of Hoboken contacted NJDHSS regarding mercury in a condominium complex. NJDHSS and ATSDR's investigation revealed that mercury vapors were detectable throughout the 16 condominiums in the building. More significantly, an exposure investigation indicated that 20 of the 29 residents (including five children) and two workers were experiencing significant mercury exposures. ATSDR issued a public health advisory within two weeks of the initial call by the local health officer, who was then able to condemn the building. EPA removed all residents from the building, which was later listed on the NPL and eventually torn down.

Health Education and Community Activities

Another aspect of the cooperative agreement program includes the support of educational activities for physicians, other health professionals, and communities concerning human exposure to hazardous substances in the environment. Under the cooperative agreement, NJDHSS has developed approximately 70 different educational tools related to human environmental health issues and has distributed more than 14,000 copies. An example of these materials is NJDHSS's "Health Care Provider Update," a series of newsletters for Ocean County physicians and Toms River School District school nurses on the progress of cancer cluster investigations in Toms River. In addition, more than 725 New Jersey residents have attended approximately 40 public meetings or training sessions.

ATSDR also supported the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute (EOHSI) in implementing the Toxicology, Risk Assessment and Pollution (ToxRAP) environmental health curriculum in the Toms River School District. EOHSI helped train more than 135 elementary school teachers on use of these modules. More than 3,000 elementary school students were taught how to investigate health problems in their community. This program will be extended to include 11th grade teachers and students.

Through a national cooperative agreement with the Association of Occupational and Environmental Clinics, ATSDR also supports the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. The Institute's Clinical Center is the only academically based occupational and environmental health facility in New Jersey.

Integrated Site-Specific Activities

Childhood Cancer Investigation, Dover Township —ATSDR and NJDHSS often incorporate multiple activities at a single site or in a community. The Dover Township Childhood Cancer Investigation is an example of a wide range of activities, including early community involvement, public health assessments of two sites on the National Priorities List (the Ciba-Geigy and the Reich Farm sites), a public health assessment on a site of community concern (the Dover Township Municipal Landfill), a health consultation on community water supply quality, exposure investigations of private wells, health consultations on the post office, and two health consultations on childhood cancer rates in the community. These all led to a case-control study, which examined the relationship of certain childhood cancers to environmental exposures within the community.

As all of these activities were underway, ATSDR and NJDHSS met regularly and frequently with the community to inform residents of the progress of all components of the investigations and respond to additional concerns. Health care providers, including physicians and school nurses, attended grand rounds and other seminars and were provided with a series of newsletters describing the investigation.

Public Health Conferences

Grants are awarded to state and local agencies by ATSDR to support public health conferences. These conferences encourage information sharing, technical discussion, and training activities related to acute illness and chronic disease associated with human exposures to hazardous substances. Three public health conferences have been conducted in New Jersey.

Health Studies

A health study is conducted to determine the relationships between exposure to hazardous substances and adverse health effects. Health studies also define health problems that require further investigation through additional mechanisms-for example, a health surveillance or epidemiologic study. Following are examples of site-specific health studies and investigations that ATSDR has conducted or supported in New Jersey.

Multistate Case-Control Study of Childhood Brain Cancers—Published in July 2004, this study evaluated the association between residential proximity to NPL sites and the diagnosis of brain cancer in four states: New Jersey, New York, Florida, and Pennsylvania. While its findings were not conclusive, the study found that children whose mothers had ever lived within one mile of an NPL site with completed exposure pathways had more than a twofold risk for astrocytomas, a childhood brain cancer that arises in astrocyte brain cells. They also had an elevated risk for all brain cancer types combined. The study also found that children who had ever lived within one mile of more than one NPL site had a moderately increased risk for all brain cancer types combined.

The Case-Control Study of Childhood Cancers in Dover Township (Ocean County), New Jersey—This study sought to identify possible disease risk factors for leukemia and brain and nervous system cancers, which were elevated among children in Dover Township and the Toms River section of the township. The case-control study examined several specific hypotheses about the relationship between these childhood cancers and certain environmental pathways identified in the community, including exposures to specific community and private drinking water sources and major air pollution sources. Several associations between exposure and cancers were found, including prenatal exposures to a certain public water supply well field, exposures to a major air pollutant source, and leukemia. The final report was released in 2003.

Hazardous Substances Emergency Events Surveillance (HSEES) System—ATSDR established HSEES in 1990 to collect and analyze data about releases of hazardous substances that need to be cleaned up or neutralized according to federal, state, or local law and to develop information about threatened releases that result in a public health action, such as evacuation. The goal of HSEES is to reduce the morbidity and mortality of first responders, employees, and the general public from hazardous substances emergencies. Fifteen state health departments, including New Jersey, participate in HSEES.

Environmental Health Research

Between 1992 and 1995, ATSDR awarded funding to New Jersey to conduct environmental health research. Following is an example of the research activities conducted in the state.

Research Program for Exposure Characterization (1992-1995)—In 1992, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and ATSDR initiated a 3-year cooperative agreement to develop an exposure characterization research program. This collaboration was in response to the national need for detailed information on human exposure and dose for contaminants commonly found at Department of Energy hazardous waste facilities and NPL sites.

Resource Materials

ATSDR develops resource materials for public health professionals and medical care providers to use in assessing the impacts of chemical exposures on public health. These resources are available from ATSDR in print, on CD-ROM, and on the ATSDR Web site. For example, ATSDR offers medical management guidelines for acute chemical exposures to more than 50 chemicals. Emergency department physicians and other emergency health care professionals use these aids to manage acute exposures that result from chemical incidents.

Similarly, health professionals use ATSDR's comprehensive toxicological profiles, which present the current science on the health effects, pathways of human exposure, and behavior of more than 250 hazardous substances in air, soil, and water. In the past five years, ATSDR has sent profiles to more than 8,392 New Jersey recipients, including representatives of federal, state, and local health and environmental departments, academic institutions, private industries, and nonprofit organizations. Many more have accessed these resources online. ATSDR also has developed extensive public health education materials for use by communities.

February 2003