PR0535342 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

PANOCHE BURN SITE REMEDIATION 4. Determining appropriate sampling methods for a tire fire. 5. Further analysis of the air emissions from a tire fire. 6. Associated health hazards from the known concentrations of PAHs, dioxins, furans, volatile and semi-volatile organics, and metals from a tire fire. Since tire piles are generally composed of tires, these studies should fully characterize the risks from a tire fire. With this information, more training could be provided to fire departments and corresponding environmental agencies to better understand the health and environmental risks, suppression techniques, and remediation methods. 3.5 Known Hazards During the fire, the U.S. EPA and state agencies investigated the smoke and burn ash. Their assessment indicated the ash contained heavy metals, specifically zinc and petroleum hydrocarbons, while the smoke contained volatile organic compounds and polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Mobile air monitoring by California Air Resources Board (CARE) indicated the smoke contained low concentrations of the target compounds (e.g., toluene, benzene, ethyl-benzene, xylenes, styrene, naphthalene, PAHs, total chlorinated hydrocarbons, and ketones) and elevated levels of benzene. The reported air contaminants were all below the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Permiss- ible Exposure Limits (PELs). An earlier U.S. EPA report indicated benzene was 1.5 times the PEL; however, the U.S. EPA referenced a report from CARB, which indicated the PEL was 10 times below the actual level (i.e., OSHA PELs is 3.25 mg/m3) as reported in the CARB laboratory summary table. Appendix N contains further information on the known hazards of tire fires. 3.5.1 Health and Safety To abate the known hazards, the CIWMB required Sukut to assemble a site-specific health and safety plan that addressed the known hazards. Sukut subcontracted the health and safety personnel monitoring to SP Environmental Services (SPES). SPEC performed respirator fit tests, issued personal protective gear, set up and monitored decontamination areas, and conducted personnel monitoring. In accordance with the health and safety plan, three zones were established: exclusion zones, contamination reduction zones, and support zones. The subcontractor conducted air sampling and analysis to determine the extent of hazardous airborne contaminants introduced during remediation work and to ensure that workers were properly equipped to keep exposure within acceptable levels. All workers entering the exclusion zone were required to be in Level C attire. Table 7 summarizes the air monitoring results for total dust and zinc, and Table 8 provides the results from PAH air sampling. Appendix E contains the site-specific health and safety plan. The complete air monitoring report is located in Appendix L. CIWMB 33