HEALTH CONSULTATION

Air Pathway Evaluation

SIERRA ARMY DEPOT
HERLONG, LASSEN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
EPA FACILITY ID: CA5210020843

November 7, 2003

Prepared by:

Federal Facilities Assessment Branch
Division of Health Assessment and Consultation
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES

LIST OF FIGURES

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

I. SUMMARY

II. INTRODUCTION

III. BACKGROUND

A. Site Description
B. Land Use
C. Demographics
D. Climate and Prevailing Winds
E. Operations at SIAD
F. Other Sources of Air Contaminants
G. ATSDR Involvement at SIAD
H. Quality Assurance and Quality Control

IV. EXPOSURE PATHWAY ANALYSIS

A. Who Is Potentially Exposed to SIAD's Air Emissions?
B. Assessment Methodology

V. EVALUATION OF AIR EXPOSURES

A. What Contaminants Did SIAD Release to the Air?
B. How Did the Contaminants Move through the Air?
C. What Are the Public Health Implications of the Air Pollution Levels?

VI. EVALUATION OF CANCER CASES

A. Introduction
B. Evaluation of Cancer Cases in California
C. Evaluation of Cancer Cases in Nevada
D. Data Limitations
E. Community Concerns About Data Quality

VII. COMMUNITY HEALTH CONCERNS

VIII. CHILD HEALTH CONSIDERATIONS

IX. CONCLUSIONS

X. RECOMMENDATIONS

XI. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION PLAN

XII. PREPARERS OF REPORT

XIII. REFERENCES

APPENDIX A: ATSDR COMPARISON VALUES

APPENDIX B: GLOSSARY OF TERMS

APPENDIX C: REVIEW OF AIR SAMPLING STUDIES

APPENDIX D: REVIEW OF AIR MODELING STUDIES

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Contaminants with More Than 10 Pounds of Air Emissions Per Year from SIAD's OB/OD Operations

Table 2. Emissions Data SIAD Reported to EPA's Toxic Release Inventory

Table 3. Estimated Ambient Air Concentrations of Metals and Inorganic Compounds

Table 4. Estimated Ambient Air Concentrations of Explosives, Propellants, and Fillers

Table 5. Estimated Ambient Air Concentrations of OB/OD Chemical By-Products

Table C-1. Detection Limits for the 2000 Air Sampling Study at SIAD

Table C-2. Frequencies with which Elements Were Detected during the 2000 Air Sampling Study at SIAD

Table C-3. PM10 Concentrations Measured in Susanville, California

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Location of Sierra Army Depot

Figure 2. Immediate Vicinity of Sierra Army Depot

Figure 3. Wind Rose for Meteorological Data Collected at the Incinerator in 1996

Figure 4. Wind Rose for Meteorological Data Collected at the OB/OD Break Shack

Figure 5. Annual Amount of Waste Material Treated at SIAD, by Fiscal Year

Figure 6. Pollutants Released to the Environment after Open Detonation of Explosive Materials

Figure 7. Influence of Forest Fires on Average PM10 Concentrations in Residential Areas

Figure C-1. Average PM10 Concentrations Measured during the 2000 Sampling Program

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

AIRS	Aerometric Information Retrieval System
ATSDR	Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
BLM	Bureau of Land Management
CARB	California Air Resources Board
CCR	California Cancer Registry
CDC	Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
CREG	Cancer Risk Evaluation Guide (see Appendix A)
CRNC	Cancer Registry of Northern California
DTSC	California Department of Toxic Substances and Control
EMEG	Environmental Media Evaluation Guide (see Appendix A)
EPA	U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
HMX	cyclotetramethylenetetranitramine
NAAQS	National Ambient Air Quality Standard (see Appendix A)
NCCR	Nevada Central Cancer Registry
NEW	net explosive weight
NSHD	Nevada State Health Division
OB	open burning
OD	open detonation
PETN	pentaerythritol tetranitrate
PM	particulate matter
PM10	particulate matter smaller than 10 microns
PRG	preliminary remediation goal (see Appendix A)
RBC	Risk-based Concentration (see Appendix A)
RDX	cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine
REL	Recommended Exposure Level (see Appendix A)
RfC	Reference Concentration (see Appendix A)
RPD	relative percent difference
SIAD	Sierra Army Depot
TRI	Toxic Release Inventory
TSP	total suspended particulates
UCL	upper confidence limit
WSA	Wilderness Study Area
XRF	X-Ray Fluorescence

Next Section