Risk Assessment for a Residential Complex ¼ Mile from a Lead Spill

Alexandria Horan, Kevin Briede, Colin Salotti, & Sean Yeats

ENVL 4446

Dr. Tait Chirenje

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Table of Contents

Summary…………………………………………………………………………………….…….2

Hazard Identification……………………………………………………………………………...2

Exposure Assessment…………………………………………………………………...………3-5

Dose-response Assessment……………………………………………………………………...5-6

Risk Characterization…………………………………………………………….……………..6-7

Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………...8

References………………………………………………………………………………………....9
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Summary

Recently a lead spill occurred at an industrial site located ¾ of a mile away from a
residential development. Lead is a toxic metal to humans and situations with lead should be
assessed accordingly. The health risks of lead can lead to death especially in young children and
pregnant women. Although lead has been phased out of many products in the last 30 years it is
still prevalent in today’s age.

Hazard Identification
Lead is a naturally occurring heavy metal that has been known to be harmful to children
and some adults. The blueish-gray metal has been found to be predominantly harmful in small
children and pregnant women and is classified as a 2B carcinogenic according to the World
Health Organization. A 2B carcinogenic means that it is possibly carcinogenic to humans and
less sufficient to animals (​IARC Monographs on the Evaluation, 2017​). But other
organizations such as Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (Toxicological
Profile for Lead, 2007) classify lead as a 2A carcinogenic, probably carcinogenic to humans.
This means that there is limited evidence that lead is carcinogenic to humans and sufficient
evidence that lead is carcinogenic to animals (Toxicological Profile for Lead, 2007). These
two different classifications by these organizations can be confusing to the public but should
assume the worst and hope for the best. Lead is a chemical hazard that can reach food supplies
and drinking water could potentially cause adverse health effects.
Lead enters the body by consumption or inhalation through particulates in the ambient air
as seen in figure 1 below. Sources of lead are usually caused by human activity which is found
in our atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels, paint, batteries, and other commonly used
materials. Other sources include road dust with lead resuspension from cars along with
leaching in soils reaching residential water supply.
In 2010, Nigeria experienced a sudden outbreak of children having symptoms of
vomiting, headaches, seizures, etc. and later learned that it was caused by lead dust clinging to
the clothes of miners in the area (​Lead Poisoning Investigation in Northern Nigeria, 2016​).
Another problem where lead had health effects that was merely diverted was that of children
under the Flint, Michigan water supply. In June 2016, the water supply for Flint, Michigan
was changed to the Detroit water supply after finding that children had higher levels of lead in
their blood systems (​CDC investigation: Blood lead levels higher after switch to Flint River
water, 2016​).
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Figure 1:​ Flow Chart for Lead (Pb) Risk Assessment

Source: (EPA, 2018)

Exposure Assessment

There are several different sources and pathways that lead can use to make its way into a
person's body. These sources include the following (USEPA, 2007):
● Paint
● Soil
● Air
● Food
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● Drinking Water
● Dust
Lead was used as an additive in paint in the United States, until the year 1978 ​("Real
Estate Disclosure", 2017)​. Many homes that were made prior to this year contain paint that
was made with lead. This paint was used for exterior jobs as well as inside buildings. Another
common place that you can still find lead is in traffic paint ​(Department of Ecology State of
Washington, 2015)​. Lead can make its way into the soil through several different
point-sources. Some sources can include:
● Lead solder used for plumbing,
● Lead-Acid Battery
● Paint removal (18 inches from area of activity)

Lead makes its way into the air most frequently as dust ​(USEPA, 2007)​. Dust is usually
uplifted during several different construction based tasks:
● Component Removal
● Demolition
● Door Removal
● Drilling
● Paint Removal
● Sawing

The lead is at its highest concentrations during the times where activity is taking place.
Whether that activity is removing lead paint from a building, uncovering lead contaminated
soils, or even cleaning your home, dust can make its way into the air. After these activities are
completed the concentration of lead in the air will go back to an undisturbed, pre-activity level
(USEPA, 2007)​.

Tin-lead solder used to be used for canned foods until 1995, and this lead to lead
poisoning ​(Association of Food and Drug Officials)​. When it comes to food, water containing
lead is usually used to make the food. Take baby formula for example, the lead contaminated
water is mixed with the baby formula and then the baby is exposed. The same can be said for
foods similar to pasta. This same water that is being used for food is also being consumed as
normal drinking water.

Most of us are exposed to lead everyday, but in very small amounts. The EPA states that
drinking water should contain lead concentrations less than 15 parts per billion (USEPA,
2007). Since many people do not frequently check their water for lead, they do not know how
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long they have been exposed for and what level at which they are being exposed. This is a
problem because lead bioaccumulates, even at small amounts and is known to be very
persistent. This is why young children and pregnant women are more susceptible to lead
poisoning. When lead does accumulate in the body is it most likely to be stored in the blood
and in bones, where the calcium is. When women are pregnant, lead can be released from
bones as maternal calcium that would have been used to help form bones of the fetus. Lead
can also be transmitted through breast milk.

Dose-response Assessment
The dose-response relationship of a substance describes the changes in a substance’s
effect on an organism caused by differing levels of exposure. Many studies have examined the
relationship between the level of lead exposure and the toxic effects seen in humans. The most
common metric of absorbed dose for lead is the concentration of lead in the blood. The
concentration of lead in the blood typically reflects the exposure history of a subject over the
previous few months, while long-term burdens are typically shown in the levels of lead present
in bone, as the elimination speed of lead from bone is much slower (“Toxicological Profile for
Lead”, 2007). As a general rule higher blood lead levels are associated with a greater risk of
negative health effects occurring. One study that reached this conclusion was a 2002 study by
Lustberg and Silbergeld, which used data from the Second National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey (NHANES II). This data contained information from 4, 292 blood lead
measurements from participants aged 30-74 years. It found that individuals with blood lead
levels--or PbB--between 20-29 µg/dL had 46% increased all-cause mortality, 39% increased
circulatory mortality, and 68% increased cancer mortality compared with individuals whose PbB
were lower than 20 µg/dL.

While greater toxic effects are typically seen in individuals with higher blood lead levels, a
MRL--or minimum risk level--can not be set for lead, as a clear threshold has not been
established for individuals who are more sensitive to the toxic effects of lead, such as children.
Data on the toxic effects of lead on children has shown that neurobehavioral effects can be seen
in children at very low PbBs relative to the levels typically seen in adults. Toxic effects can be
seen in children exposed to lead during pre- and postnatal development at levels as low as 10
µg/dL or less. Numerous epidemiological and clinical studies have observed that a progression
of toxic effects occurs in adults with blood lead levels ranging from less than 10 µg/dL to greater
than 60 µg/dL. At lower blood lead concentrations adverse effects observed include delays
and/or impaired development of the nervous system, delayed sexual maturation, neurobehavioral
effects, increased blood pressure, depressed renal glomerular filtration rates, and inhibition of
pathways in heme synthesis. Studies examining health effects in relation to the level of lead
present in bone have shown adverse effects associated with bone lead levels greater than 10
µg/g. These adverse effects include cardiovascular, renal, and neurobehavioral effects. The
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following chart from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry shows the
relationship between blood and bone lead levels and the toxic effects seen in both children and
adults.

Table 1:​ Blood and Bone Lead Concentrations Corresponding to Adverse Health Effects

Source:
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). 2007. Toxicological profile for
Lead. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service.

Risk Characterization
If there is a lead spill a quarter mile away from a residential complex, exposure to lead
would result from ingestion from contaminated water or soil and inhalation from the air. The
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) uses a reference range value to confirm if children have
elevated levels of lead in their blood. Since 2012, the CDC has classified a reference range value
of 5 micrograms per deciliter. Any child with a blood lead level (BBL) ("Lead in Drinking Water
and Human Blood Lead Levels in the United States", 2012) over 5 micrograms per deciliter is
considered to have been “exposed to more lead than most children” ("Standard Surveillance
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Definitions and Classifications", 2016). The concentration of lead, total amount of lead
consumed, and duration of lead exposure influence the severity of health effects (Brown &
Margolis, 2012).
The Kd value of a compound predicts the chemical partitioning of that compound in soil.
Lead has a high Kd value which means that lead does not move efficiently through soil as it
moves poorly through water and sticks to soil particles (Class Notes, 2018). Figure 2 below
shows how lead tends to travel through environmental mediums.
Based on this property it it most likely that lead exposure would result from air inhalation
or ingestion of polluted soil, not ingestion from polluted water. End points of concern result from
the consumption and accumulation of lead in children and pregnant women. Low levels of lead
in children’s blood has been associated with behavioral and learning problems, lower IQ and
hyperactivity, slowed growth, hearing problems, and anemia. When lead accumulates in
pregnant women it can affect the calcium stores and deposit to the fetus, disrupting growth
("Learn about Lead", 2017).
An uncertainty in the analysis lies in the concentration of lead in the air of the residential
community. The concentration of lead in the air would not be uniform throughout the residential
complex, which means some population of the complex may be more exposed than others (EPA,
2018). If there is a greater concentration of lead in the air in one area of the complex, there may
be a greater concentration of lead in the soil of that same area (EPA, 2018).

Figure 2:​ ​The most common paths that lead takes through the environment that leads to human
ecological exposure.

Source: (EPA, 2018)

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Conclusion

While the health effects of lead may cause concern in the nearby residents, the actual
threat to human health in the development appears to be quite low. Although the exact nature of
the spill is unknown, the highest probability is that the spill occurred on land. This would make
the nearby residents relatively safe from the lead, as lead is recognized as being highly immobile
in the environment due to the negative charges on soil colloids bonding to lead. This leads to the
lead bonding tightly to the soil, causing it to stay in roughly the same area it was initially spilled
in, rendering the nearby residents safe. The main cause for concern would be whether or not any
of the lead entered the air, as airborne lead can travel distances of up to ¾ of a mile. Overall, as
long as the lead didn’t enter the air it poses very little risk to the surrounding community.
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References

Brown, M. J., & Margolis, S. (2012, August 10). Lead in Drinking Water and Human Blood
Lead Levels in the United States. Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/su6104a1.htm

CDC investigation: Blood lead levels higher after switch to Flint River water. (2016, June 24).
Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2016/p0624-water-lead.html

Department of Ecology State of Washington. (2015, May). Lead and Other Metals in Traffic
Paint in Washington State. Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/publications/documents/1504018.pdf

Exposure Assessment for Lead Dust Generated During Renovation, Repair, and Painting in
Residences and Child-Occupied Facilities . (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/documents/exposure.pdf

IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. (2017). Retrieved

January 26, 2018, from http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Classification/

Lead Contaminated Foods and Packaging Containers. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
http://importedfoods.afdo.org/lead-contaminated-foods-and-packaging-containers.html

Lead in Drinking Water and Human Blood Lead Levels in the United States. (2012, August 09).
Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/su6104a1.htm

Lead Poisoning Investigation in Northern Nigeria. (2016, October 25). Retrieved January 26,
2018, from https://www.cdc.gov/onehealth/in-action/lead-poisoning.html

Learn about Lead. (2017, May 26). Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
https://www.epa.gov/lead/learn-about-lead

Real Estate Disclosure. (2017, May 31). Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
https://www.epa.gov/lead/real-estate-disclosure
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Standard Surveillance Definitions and Classifications. (2016, November 18). Retrieved January
26, 2018, from https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/data/definitions.htm

Toxicological Profile for Lead: Health Effects. (2007, August). Retrieved January 26, 2018, from
https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp13-c3.pdf