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NORTHERN VIRGINIA DAILY
By Ben Orcutt
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been overseeing remediation efforts at the 440-acre site on Kendrick Lane in Front Royal, where carbonized rayon fibers were manufactured for nearly 50 years before the plant closed in 1989. A news release from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry indicates that hydrogen sulfide, carbon disulfide and other sulfur compounds at the site are of particular concern. "When they're exposed to air, it makes a strong odor,"agency public health adviser Thomas Stukas said Thursday from his office in Philadelphis. "These odors are normally not a health problem, but some people may have a sensitivity to them. We had recommended some air monitoring of the site to the EPA and they did some." The agency is now recommending additional monitoring to determine health risks based on air sampling results from October through January. Stukas said he will bring a team of agency representatives with him for the Wednesday meeting which is scheduled from 4 to 8 p.m. at Samuels Public Library at 538 Villa Ave. "I don't want people waiting, so we're going to be taking as much staff as we can," he said. Stukas said there will be no formal meeting, but rather agency employees will be conducting "one on one" interviews to gather information about residents concerns. "The emphasis here is to better understand the concerns and see if we can develop an education program," he said. "It really depends on what the community tells us." Stukas said his team will gather information to see if there is a correlation between resident's complaints and the Avtex cleanup. "If it's true, we're going to see what we can do to help," he said. Dr. Dianyi Yu, an environmental health scientist with the agency's Atlanta office, also will be on hand Wednesday to collect information from local residents. He said about 1,500 letters have been sent inviting them to the session. Yu said he will give residents postcards on which they can write physician information and agency staff will in turn contact those doctors to determine if they would like more information about the Avtex cleanup and potential health risks. "The odor from hydrogen sulfide is the major concern here," he said. "Right now, the sampling that has been collected does not indicate any health effects." However, Yu added that current information is "not sufficient"
and his agency is recommending the EPA do more sampling " and then
we will make the conclusion." While the sampling that has been taken does not indicate that cleanup efforts pose a health risk, Yu said that is true only for most of the population. "It can cause some effects to more sensitive people," he said. "Maybe to some individuals who have a pre-existing health condition, like asthma, respiratory disease." Asked if the chemical levels at the Avtex site could pose serious health risks for those with respiratory ailments, Yu replied, "I guess it's hard to tell right now." |