ATLANTA - On Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016, the E.P.A. (EPA) together with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) will host a public meeting to provide an update on an ongoing environmental study in the Eastern Heights neighborhood of Grenada, Miss. The agencies are investigating whether contamination, primarily the solvent trichloroethylene (TCE), associated with the Grenada Manufacturing, LLC, facility may be entering nearby homes in the form of a vapor from contamination below ground or from another source.
E.P.A. and MDEQ representatives will provide an overview of the location contamination, review the ongoing sampling effort and answer residents' questions. Representatives from ATSDR and the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) will be present to answer health-related questions.
Who:
E.P.A.
MDEQ
ATSDR
MSDH
What:
Update on the Environmental Study in Eastern Heights, Grenada, Miss.
When:
Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016 from 6-8 p.m.***
A Meet and Greet session with representatives from the Agencies will be held from 2-4 p.m. for individuals not able to attend the public meeting.
*** Press availability will be held from 5:30-5:45 p.m.; RSVP to [email protected]
Where:
Grenada City Auditorium
17 N. Main Street
Grenada, Miss.
Between September and October 2015, E.P.A. oversaw sampling by ARCADIS (contracted by a former operator at Grenada Manufacturing, LLC) of indoor air at 6 residences, outdoor air, and groundwater in the Eastern Heights neighborhood. E.P.A. has determined that there is no immediate concern for public health, but that additional investigations are needed.
TCE was detected in residential indoor air at levels above regional screening levels, but below levels that require a response action. Specifically, the concentrations of TCE detected in indoor air ranged from 0.65 to 1.1 micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m3), all below the corresponding E.P.A. action level of 6.3 ug/m3 for the general population or two ug/m3 for sensitive sub-populations (i.e., women in their First trimester of pregnancy). TCE was also detected at similar levels in the outdoor (ambient) air near the 6 residences.
The indoor and outdoor sampling results suggest that contaminants are not entering homes from a below-ground source, such as groundwater, but possibly from an outdoor source. Further sampling is needed to confirm this observation. E.P.A. projects to conduct follow-up sampling in and around the same 6 homes, together with additional homes, to confirm the results.
E.P.A. conducted additional ambient air sampling in mid-January 2016 and projects to conduct additional ambient air sampling in the near future to determine whether any outdoor sources of TCE exist and whether any response actions are necessary. Other efforts are underway to develop groundwater remediation plans, both on the Grenada Manufacturing, LLC property and in the neighborhood.
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