ATSDR - PHA - F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Cheyenne, Laramie County, Wyoming

Skip directly to: content | left navigation | search

ATSDR > Public Health Assessments & Consultations

PUBLIC HEALTH ASSESSMENT

F.E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE
CHEYENNE, LARAMIE COUNTY, WYOMING

On the basis of its evaluation of available environmental information, ATSDR concludes that potential exposures at F.E. Warren do not pose any apparent public health hazards. Conclusions regarding media- and site-specific exposures are as follows:

No apparent public health hazards are associated with exposures to dust from the active borrow area and potential future borrow areas. Exposures to off-base residents potentially inhaling or ingesting contaminants in windblown dust were evaluated using site-specific exposure assumptions. In each instance, no adverse health effects to adults or children were identified from possible past, current, and future exposures. F.E. Warren implemented a dust control program to limit exposures to dust during future excavations.
No apparent public health hazards are associated with use of private wells in the Nob Hill or Fair Acres neighborhoods. Although VOCs and metals were detected in some of these wells, ATSDR's exposure evaluation indicates that adverse health effects are unlikely to result from drinking water from these wells. To prevent current and potential future exposures, the USAF connected homes in Nob Hill to the Cheyenne municipal water supply. Residents in the Fair Acres neighborhood continue to use their private wells. Some residents, however, purchase bottled water for their drinking water. In addition, wells were resampled in 1997 and TCE concentrations were found to be decreasing. WDEQ and local health officials continue to work with Fair Acres residents to identify potential TCE sources and ensure that residents are not exposed to harmful levels of TCE.
No apparent public health hazards are associated with possible exposures to surface soil, surface water, and sediment during recreational activities within Landfills 2 and 3. Although TCE, arsenic, lead, and manganese were detected in surface soil, surface water, and/or sediment, ATSDR's exposure evaluation indicates that adverse health effects are unlikely to result from past, current, and potential future contact with site contaminants. In addition, the USAF completed a removal action at Landfill 2c, one of the three subunits of Landfill 2. Removal actions, which include partial or total excavation of wastes, are scheduled to be conducted at Landfills 2a and 2b in April 2000. At Landfill 3, the USAF is scheduled to conduct additional investigations in 1999 and begin construction of a landfill cap in April 2001.

PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION PLAN

The Public Health Action Plan (PHAP) for F.E. Warren contains a description of actions taken and those to be taken by ATSDR, the USAF, EPA, and WDEQ subsequent to the completion of this PHA. The purpose of the PHAP is to ensure that this PHA not only identifies potential and ongoing public health hazards, but provides a plan of action designed to mitigate and prevent adverse human health effects resulting from exposure to hazardous substances in the environment. The public health actions that are completed, ongoing or planned actions, and recommended actions are listed below.

Completed Actions

The USAF has completed initial investigations of F.E. Warren to identify potential areas of contamination. This information was used to rank areas by potential to adversely effect human health and the environment. Based on this ranking, the USAF has conducted additional investigations and completed remedial actions at several locations.

Investigations in the Nob Hill neighborhood identified contaminants above CVs in private wells. Landfill 3, located northwest of Nob Hill, was identified as a potential source. The USAF supplied Nob Hill residents with bottled water beginning in 1994 and connected homes to the Cheyenne municipal water supply in 1997.

Private well sampling in the Fair Acres neighborhood detected TCE in wells above its CV. Landfill 5, located to the north, was initially thought to be a potential source of TCE contamination. However, additional investigations at Landfill 5, along the southwestern property boundary, and within the Fair Acres neighborhood determined that this TCE originates from an unknown source within Fair Acres. WDEQ and local health officials are continuing to work with neighborhood residents to identify potential sources and to ensure protection of public health.

Based on results of site investigations, the USAF conducted a removal action at Landfill 2c, a subunit of Landfill 2.

Ongoing and Planned Actions

The USAF is conducting ongoing investigations throughout F.E. Warren to further characterize areas of contamination and evaluate potential remedial actions. These activities are being conducted with oversight by EPA and WDEQ.

Within the active borrow area, the USAF is implementing a dust control program to limit the amount of dust generated during excavation. The USAF has also begun investigations of other locations within F.E. Warren that may serve as future borrow areas.

The USAF is conducting additional investigations and remedial actions at Landfills 2a and 2b, subunits of Landfill 2. Removals actions, which include partial or total excavation of wastes, are scheduled to be completed at Landfills 2a and 2b in April 2000. At Landfill 3, the USAF is scheduled to conduct additional investigations in 1999 and begin construction of a landfill cap in April 2001.

Recommended Actions

ATSDR recommends that the USAF continue to investigate potential areas of contamination at F.E. Warren. ATSDR will review data from these sites if investigations indicate that people are being exposed to contamination.

The USAF should continue to implement the dust control program at the active borrow area and develop similar programs for excavations in future borrow areas.

Because groundwater contamination has been detected in Nob Hill and Fair Acres, residents and/or developers should sample existing wells before reopening them or conduct investigations before installing new wells. Fair Acres residents should follow WDEQ's recommendation to conduct annual well monitoring. In addition, ATSDR recommends that WDEQ and local health officials continue to work with Fair Acres residents to identify potential TCE sources and to prevent exposures to harmful levels of TCE.

Although ATSDR concluded that past exposures to contaminants in private wells in the Nob Hill neighborhood present no apparent public health hazard, data from only one sampling round in 1994 was used to draw this conclusion. Additional sampling of private wells for VOCs, pesticides, and metals may further support this conclusion.

PREPARERS OF REPORT

This report was prepared under the direction and supervision of the following individuals:

W. Mark Weber, Ph.D.
Environmental Health Scientist
Federal Facilities Assessment Branch
Division of Health Assessment and Consultation

Gary Campbell, Ph.D.
Environmental Health Scientist
Federal Facilities Assessment Branch
Division of Health Assessment and Consultation

Assistance in the preparation of this report was provided by:

Sarah N. Dun, M.S.
Public Health Scientist
Eastern Research Group

REFERENCES

Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry (ATSDR). 1992. Toxicological Profile for thallium. ATSDR, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. July 1992.

ATSDR. 1993. Toxicological Profile for heptachlor epoxide. ATSDR, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. April 1993.

ATSDR. 1994. Toxicological Profile for 1,1-dichloroethene. ATSDR, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. May 1994.

ATSDR. 1997a. Toxicological Profile for cadmium. ATSDR, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. September 1997.

ATSDR. 1997b. Toxicological Profile for tetrachloroethylene. ATSDR, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. September 1997.

ATSDR. 1997c. Toxicological Profile for trichloroethylene. ATSDR, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. September 1997.

ATSDR. 1998. Toxicological Profile for arsenic. ATSDR, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. August 1998.

EBASCO Services, Inc. (EBASCO). 1991a. Draft Exposure Assessment, Operable Unit 7, Firing Range. August 15, 1991.

EBASCO. 1991b. Draft Exposure Assessment, Operable Unit 2 - Groundwater. October 4, 1991.

EBASCO. 1993. Proof Work Plan, Preliminary Assessment/Site Investigation, Operable Unit 7. August 1993.

Ensearch Environmental Corporation. 1994. Preliminary RI/FS Scoping Data Report, Operable Unit 6. January 1994.

F.E. Warren Air Force Base (F.E. Warren). 1992. Declaration for the Record of Decision, Acid Dry Well, Operable Unit 4. December 1992.

F.E. Warren. 1994. Declaration for the Record of Decision, Fire Protection Training Area 2, Operable Unit 5. November 1994.

F.E. Warren. 1995. Declaration for the Record of Decision, Spill Sites 1-7, Operable Unit 1. August 1995.

F.E. Warren. 1997a. United States Air Force Position Paper, Dioxin/Furan Sampling Recommendations, F.E. Warren Air Force Base. October 29, 1997.

F.E. Warren. 1997b. Record of Decision Amendment Declaration, Interim Remedial Action, Operable Unit 3, Landfill 6. November 1997.

F.E. Warren. 1998a. Explanation of Significant Differences F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Cheyenne. Wyoming, Operable Unit 8, Landfill 5a. January 1998.

F.E. Warren. 1998b. Action Memorandum - Removal Action at Operable Unit 9, Landfill 2c. January 1998.

F.E. Warren. 1998c. Community Relations Plan 1998 Update. April 1998.

F.E. Warren. 1998d. Management Action Plan. November 1998.

F.E. Warren. 1998e. Site Visit conducted by ATSDR. December 7 to 10, 1998.

F.E. Warren. 1998f. Site Map, F.E. Warren AFB, Cheyenne, Wyoming. December 8, 1998.

F.E. Warren. 1999a. Site Visit conducted by ATSDR. January 11 to 14, 1999.

F.E. Warren. 1999b. Borrow Materials Investigation, Final. March 1, 1999.

OHM Remediation Services Corp. (OHM). 1997a. Borrow Area 1 - North of Stables. May 1997.

OHM. 1997b. Air Monitoring Results. August 1997.

OHM. 1998. Real Time Air Monitoring Log. November and December 1998.

Urban, J. 1999. Personnel communication with John Urban, F.E. Warren Base Housing Office. April 22, 1999.

Shacklette, H. T. and J. G. Boerngen. 1984. Element Concentrations in Soils and Other Surficial Materials of the Conterminous United States. U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1270. 1984.

URS Operating Services, Inc. (URS). 1997. Analytical Results Report for Focused Site Inspection, Fair Acres Subdivision. October 1997.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 1999. Integrated Risk Information System - heptachlor epoxide. http://www.epa.gov/iris/subst/0160.htm#I.A. April 1999.

United States Geological Survey (USGS). 1991a. Remedial Investigation for F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming.

USGS. 1991b. Draft Exposure Assessment, Operable Unit 6, Open Burning/Open Detonation Area. August 15, 1991.

USGS. 1992a. Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 4. July 29, 1992.

USGS. 1992b. Preliminary Analysis of Soil and Water Data for Operable Unit 5, Fire Protection Training Area 1. December 14, 1992.

USGS. 1993a. Preliminary Analysis of Soil and Water Data for Operable Unit 1, Spill Site 7. January 14, 1993.

USGS. 1993b. Preliminary Analysis of Soil and Water Data for Operable Unit 1, Spill Site 1 through 6. February 12, 1993.

USGS. 1993c. Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 5. December 14, 1993.

USGS. 1994. Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 1. September 30, 1994.

USGS. 1995a. Focused Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 3, Landfill 6. February 20, 1995.

USGS. 1995b. Focused Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 8. August 1, 1995.

USGS. 1995c. Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 9, Phase I. August 1, 1995.

USGS. 1995d. Focused Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 3, Landfill 3 and Nob Hill. August 21, 1995.

USGS. 1996a. Focused Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 2: Spill Site 7. February 28, 1996.

USGS. 1996b. Geochemical Background Concentrations of Selected Inorganic Constituents in Soil and Groundwater at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming. March 12, 1996.

USGS. 1996c. Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 10, Phase I. June 7, 1996.

USGS. 1996d. Remedial Investigation for Operable Unit 6, proof draft report. September 1996.

USGS. 1997. Evaluation of Groundwater Flow and Volatile Organic Compound Contamination at the Southwest Edge of F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming, proof draft report. March 11, 1997.

Wright, J. 1998. Electronic mail correspondence from John Wright, F.E. Warren Remedial Project Manager to Mark Thiesse, Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality. December 31, 1998.

Wright & Woods. 1999. Personal communication with John Wright and Leilani Woods, F.E. Warren. April 22, 1999.

Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ). 1999. Wyoming Air Quality Standards and Regulations (WAQS&R). Last Updated June 2, 1999.

Wyoming State Home Page. 1999. Wyoming School Directory, http://www.k12.wy.us/warehouse/plsql/slbl.schdirectroy. Last updated April 28, 1999.

Next Section Table of Contents

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, 1825 Century Blvd, Atlanta, GA 30345
Contact CDC: 800-232-4636 / TTY: 888-232-6348

Department of Health and Human Services