WTC CLEANUP REVISITED

[Guest guest]

information for those living in lower Manhattan:

April 5,2004

Volume 82, Number 14

INDOOR AIR

WTC CLEANUP REVISITED

Panel advises EPA how to determine if apartments were recontaminated

More than 30 months have passed since terrorists destroyed the World Trade

Center (WTC). The debris is gone and nearby apartments have been cleaned of the

dust from the collapse of the towers. But some residents of Lower Manhattan

continue to suffer health effects related to the dust.

STIRRED UP Hazardous dust from the World Trade Center again may be polluting

nearby apartment buildings through their ventilation systems.

PHOTO BY SETH HOROWITZ

Last week, a panel of experts convened by EPA began to probe thorny technical

issues related to determining whether apartments have been recontaminated

with WTC dust through heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems. The

committee is reviewing a proposed study to ascertain whether apartments that EPA

cleaned following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks remain clean.

One issue concerns EPA's testing of dust and air samples for the presence of

asbestos. Asbestos exposure is linked to long-term health problems. Yet the

immediate health concerns of those people who live in the cleaned apartments are

their recurring bouts of coughs and bronchitis.

The panel must determine if it is appropriate for EPA to use asbestos as a

surrogate to test for glass fibers, which are part of the WTC debris but are

difficult to detect. EPA assumes that by cleaning up asbestos, glass fibers will

be removed, too. Many physicians believe that nearby residents' health

complaints are linked to glass fiber debris. Panel experts explained that the

glass

fibers are covered with cement and gypsum dust, which are high-pH materials

that can irritate the upper respiratory tract.

The panel plans to meet again on April 12.

Chemical & Engineering News

ISSN 0009-2347

Copyright © 2004