ATSDR - Public Health Consultation in Shreveport, La.

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

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ATSDR MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT

ATSDR Recommends More Air Sampling for VOC Exposure
at Calumet Lubricants/Pennzoil-Quaker State Refinery Site

For Immediate Release: Sept. 3, 2003

ATLANTA - The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), a public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, today is issuing a public health consultation (PHC) for comment on the Calumet Lubricants Inc. site, formerly known as the Pennzoil-Quaker State Refinery, in Shreveport, La. ATSDR recommends continued air sampling because the agency's analysis of available data finds the community's exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is an indeterminate public health hazard.

The document will be available at local repositories for public review and comment from Sept. 3 through Oct. 6.

ATSDR representatives will hold a public meeting to present the public comment health consultation to the community at 5:00 p.m. on Sept. 18 at the Ramada Inn (Shreve Room West), 5116 Monkhouse Drive, Shreveport.

Analyzing the available data led ATSDR to conclude:

Exposure to VOCs is an indeterminate public health hazard because the levels of VOCs and other gasoline compounds detected by air sampling do not sufficiently represent the community's exposure to these chemicals.
Hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide levels detected by an air monitor from November 2002 to March 2003 are not of health concern.
Air modeling of accidental releases of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide shows the levels could exceed health-based screening values.
There is not enough information to determine if the community's exposure to soil and surface water is of health concern.

ATSDR recommends the following actions:

Conduct long-term air sampling for VOCs that measures low-level exposures, such as daily or weekly averages, as well as peak exposures.
Continue to monitor for hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide.
Compare the current level of emissions at Calumet, particularly any nonroutine chemical releases, with the modeled concentrations to determine potential health effects on the community.
Consider taking a representative number of soil samples in the community to identify potential soil contamination by chemicals from air deposits or stormwater runoff.
Collect more information to determine if there is a completed exposure pathway for surface water (Brushy Bayou).

The public health consultation was produced in response to a petition letter from a community member concerned about air quality in the petitioner's neighborhood. Also concerned about air quality and its potential to cause adverse health effects are members of Residents for Air Neutralization (RAN).

ATSDR welcomes comments from community members. The document will be available for review and comment from Sept. 3 through Oct. 6 at the following Shreveport repositories:

City of Shreveport
Government Plaza
505 Travis St., Suite 580

Shreve Memorial Library
Atkins Branch
2709 Hassett Ave.

Shreve Memorial Library
Extension Center
5802 Union Ave.

Comments on the public health consultation must be made in writing. Mail comments to

Chief, Program Evaluation, Records and Information Services Branch
ATSDR
1600 Clifton Road, NE (MS E-60)
Atlanta, GA 30333

Comments received during the public comment period will be logged in to ATSDR's administrative record for this PHC. Comments received, without the names of individuals who submitted them, and ATSDR's responses to the comments will appear in an appendix to the final PHC. Names of those who submit comments, however, will be subject to release for requests made under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act.

Community members seeking information on the procedures or the content of the PHC may contact Environmental Health Scientist Jennifer Freed or Community Involvement Specialist Dawn O'Connor, toll free, at 1-888-422-8737. Regional Representative Jennifer Lyke also may be contacted at 214-665-8362. Callers should refer to the Calumet Lubricants/Pennzoil-Quaker State Refinery site in Shreveport, La.

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Members of the news media may request an interview with ATSDR staff by calling Elaine McEachern in the ATSDR Office of Policy and External Affairs at 770-488-0700.

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Updated by R. Searfoss September 23, 2003
For more information, contact ATSDR at:
770-488-0700 or e-mail (news media)