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PUBLIC HEALTH ASSESSMENT

JENNISON-WRIGHT CORPORATION
GRANITE CITY, MADISON COUNTY, ILLINOIS


CONCLUSIONS

Based on the information reviewed, the J-W site poses a public health hazard because of the risk to human health resulting from past, present, and future chronic exposure to contaminated soil on and off the site. Chronic exposures to these compounds exceed health guidelines and may pose an increased cancer risk to people exposed on a long-term basis. This does not include the effects of some mixtures or the contribution of airborne exposures.

  1. Large quantities of hazardous wastes are present on the surface of both on-site and off-site soils. These contaminants could potentially migrate to residential areas near the site via volatilization and fugitive dust generation.

  2. Direct dermal contact and ingestion of wastes and soils may occur in contaminated off-site areas, especially those areas where runoff has taken place.

  3. Remediation of the site may expose residents and workers to on-site contaminants if precautions are not taken to minimize exposure. Volatilization and fugitive dust generation during remediation may expose residents to on-site contaminants.

  4. No data were available for fruits and vegetables grown in the area.

  5. Groundwater underneath the site is contaminated but does not represent a completed exposure pathway.

  6. The potential exposure of residents to airborne contaminants from the site has not been quantified.

  7. The concentration of dioxins in on-site areas has not been fully quantified.

RECOMMENDATIONS

A. Site Characterization Recommendations

  1. Conduct air monitoring for airborne contaminants during remediation.

  2. Monitor groundwater contaminants regularly to determine movement both on and off the site. Remediation should remove or at least prevent further migration of contaminants off the site.

  3. Identify dioxin and furan concentrations in the PCP treatment area before remediation.

B. Cease/Reduce Exposure Recommendations

  1. Remove or contain contaminants that have been left exposed on the soil surface so that they are not released to the air or allowed to move by surface runoff.

  2. Identify all contaminated off-site areas and restrict access to those areas to prevent direct contact.

  3. Take precautions during site remediation to protect both the workers and residents from exposure to site contaminants.

  4. Educate area residents on ways to reduce soil exposures. Some residents have already received this information.

PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION PLAN

IDPH will work with USEPA and IEPA to ensure that recommendations made in this public health assessment are implemented. Education efforts have been initiated, and IDPH will assist in further educational efforts if needed.


ATSDR CHILD HEALTH INITIATIVE

ATSDR's Child Health Initiative recognizes that the unique vulnerabilities of infants and children demand special emphasis in communities faced with contamination of their environment. Children are at greater risk than adults from certain kinds of exposures to hazardous substances emitted from waste sites. They are more likely exposed because they play outdoors and they often bring food into contaminated areas. They are shorter than adults, which means they breathe dust, soil, and heavy vapors closer to the ground. Children are also smaller, resulting in higher doses of chemical exposure per body weight. The developing body systems of children can sustain permanent damage if toxic exposures occur during critical growth stages. Most importantly, children depend completely on adults for risk identification and management decisions, housing decisions, and access to medical care.

IDPH evaluated the likelihood for children living near the site to be exposed to contaminants at levels of health concern. Children were likely exposed to chemical contaminants in the past at higher levels than they are presently. Contaminants in fenced areas may become airborne during remediation.


PREPARERS OF REPORT

Preparer: David R. Webb
Environmental Toxicologist
Illinois Department of Public Health
Reviewers: Bruce C. Barrow
Ken Runkle
Environmental Toxicologists
Illinois Department of Public Health

ATSDR REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVE

Louise Fabinski
Office of Regional Operations, Region V
Office of Assistant Administrator


ATSDR TECHNICAL PROJECT OFFICERS
Bill Greim
Gail Godfrey
Division of Health Assessment and Consultation

Steve Inserra
Division of Health Studies

Grant Baldwin
Division of Health Education and Promotion


REFERENCES

  1. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Asbestos. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1989.

  2. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Benzene. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1991.

  3. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Benz(a)anthracene. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1987.

  4. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Benzo(b)fluoranthene. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1987.

  5. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Benzo(a)pyrene. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1987.

  6. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Chrysene. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1987.

  7. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Creosote. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1989.

  8. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Dibenz(a,h)anthracene. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1987.

  9. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Naphthalene/1-methylnaphthalene, and 2-methylnaphthalene. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1995.

  10. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons(Update). Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1995.

  11. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for Pentachlorophenol. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1992.

  12. ATSDR Draft Toxicological Profile for 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1987.

  13. ATSDR Public Health Assessment Guidance Manual. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Atlanta, GA, 1992.

  14. Bergstrom, R.E. and T. Walker. Groundwater Geology of the East St. Louis Area, Illinois, Illinois State Geological Survey, Report of Investigation 191, Urbana, Illinois, 1956.

  15. Ecology and Environment, December 1985, Preliminary Assessment of Jennison-Wright.

  16. IEPA, CERCLA - Screening Site Inspection Report, 1989.

  17. IEPA, 1993, Superfund Accelerated Cleanup Model: Jennison-Wright Corporation.

  1. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Local Climatological Data Annual Summary with Comparative Data, St. Louis, Missouri, 1988.

  2. Sweet, CW and Vermette, SJ, 1990, Toxic Volatile Organic Chemicals in Urban Air in Illinois, Illinois Hazardous Waste Research and Information Center.

  3. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Interim Procedures for Estimating Risks Associated with Exposures to Mixtures of Chlorinated Dibenzo-p-Dioxins and -Dibenzofurans (CDDs and CDFs). Risk Assessment Forum, Washington, D.C., 1986.

  4. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Integrated Risk Information System, Office of Toxic Substances, Washington, D.C., 1990.

  5. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Provisional Guidance for Quantitative Risk Assessment of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Office of Research and Development, Washington, D.C., 1993.

  6. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Risk Assessment Guidelines for Superfund, Human Health Evaluation Manual, Part A (Interim Final), Solid Waste and Emergency Response, Washington, D.C., 1989.

  7. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Superfund Exposure Assessment Manual, Office of Remedial Response, Washington, D.C., 1988.

  8. Woodward-Clyde Consultants, 1988, Site Assessment at Jennison-Wright.

CERTIFICATION

This Jennison-Wright Corporation Public Health Assessment was prepared by the Illinois Department of Public Health under a cooperative agreement with the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). It is in accordance with approved methodology and procedures existing at the time the public health assessment was begun.

Gail D. Godfrey
Technical Project Officer
Division of Health Assessment and Consultation
ATSDR

The Division of Health Assessment and Consultation, ATSDR, has reviewed this public health assessment and concurs with its findings.

Richard E. Gillig
Chief, State Programs Section
Division of Health Assessment and Consultation
ATSDR

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