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Human Health Risk Assessment of 16 Priority Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Soils of Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA

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Abstract

South Chattanooga has been home to foundries, coke furnaces, chemical, wood preserving, tanning, and textile plants for over 100 years. Most of the industries were in place before any significant development of residential property in the area. During the 1950s and 1960s, however, the government purchased inexpensive property and constructed public housing projects in South Chattanooga. Many neighborhoods that surround the Chattanooga Creek were previous dumping grounds for industry. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) comprised the largest component of the dumping and airborne industrial emissions. To address human exposure to these PAHs, a broad study of South Chattanooga soil contaminant concentrations was conducted on 20 sites across the city. Sixteen priority pollutant PAHs were quantified at two depths (0–10 and 10–20 cm) and compared against reference site soils, as well as to soils from industrially impacted areas in Germany, China, and the USA. From these data, the probability that people would encounter levels exceeding the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) residential preliminary remediation goals (PRG) was calculated. Results indicate that South Chattanooga soils have relatively high concentrations of total PAHs, specifically benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P). These high concentrations of B[a]P were somewhat ubiquitous in South Chattanooga. Indeed, there is a high probability (88 %) of encountering soil in South Chattanooga that exceeds the USEPA PRG for B[a]P. However, there is a low probability (15 %) of encountering a site with ∑PAHs exceeding USEPA PRG guidelines.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Clair Morris, Ben Paulson, and Nellie Shaul from SIUE for their technical assistance with sample collection and analysis. We would also like to thank Andy Carroll from the UTC Office of Academic and Research Computing Services for his help with GIS mapping. We would finally like to thank Troy Keith from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation for all of his logistical support. The study was financially supported primarily by a grant from the National Institutes of Health (1 R15 ESO13129-01). Partial funds were from a Research Grant for Graduate Students awarded by SIUE.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Sciences Program, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Campus Box 1099, Edwardsville, IL, 62026-1099, USA

    Erika Hussar

  2. Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN, USA

    Sean Richards

  3. Department of Biological Sciences and Environmental Sciences Program, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Campus Box 1651, Edwardsville, IL, 62026-1651, USA

    Zhi-Qing Lin

  4. Department of Chemistry, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Campus Box 1652, Edwardsville, IL, 62026-1652, USA

    Robert P. Dixon

  5. Department of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences Program, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Campus Box 1652, Edwardsville, IL, 62026-1652, USA

    Kevin A. Johnson

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  1. Erika Hussar
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  2. Sean Richards
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  3. Zhi-Qing Lin
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  4. Robert P. Dixon
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Correspondence to Kevin A. Johnson.

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Hussar, E., Richards, S., Lin, ZQ. et al. Human Health Risk Assessment of 16 Priority Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Soils of Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA. Water Air Soil Pollut 223, 5535–5548 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-012-1265-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-012-1265-7

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