Scientific report on particulate levels at Ground Zero, Oct 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

f “Even on the worst air days in Beijing, downwind from coal-fired power plants, or in the Kuwaiti oil fires, we did not see these levels of very fine particulates,” Cahill said. The amounts of very fine particles, particularly very fine silicon, decreased sharply during the month of October. Coarse particles Similar to the high concentrations of very fine particles, virtually all the air samples from the trade center site carried high concentrations of coarse particles—those about 12 micrometers to 5 micrometers in diameter. “These particles simply should not be there,” Cahill said. “It had rained, sometimes heavily, on six days in the prior three weeks. That rain should have settled these coarse particles.” The finding suggests that coarse particles were being continually generated from the hot debris pile. This observation is at least qualitatively supported, for while they are still being analyzed, the coarse particles appear to be coated with combustion products, including soot, Cahill said. Metals Many different metals were found in the samples of very fine particles, and some were found at the highest levels ever recorded in air in the United States. However, there are few established safety guidelines for airborne metals. One metal for which there is a guideline, lead, was present at low levels in fine and very fine particles. Some of the metals for which there are no guidelines that were present in very fine particles in relatively high concentrations were iron, titanium (some associated with powdered concrete), vanadium and nickel (often associated with fuel-oil combustion), copper and zinc. Mercury was seen occasionally in fine particles but at low concentrations. Many of those metals are widely used in building construction, wiring and plumbing. Some are common in computers. i

The metal content of the coarse particles is still being analyzed. Asbestos and glass Although some asbestos was used in the buildings for fireproofing and in floor tiles, and the DELTA group checked for it carefully using the electron microscope, they found very few asbestos fibers, even in the very fine particles. Some particles that appeared to be glass were seen, but they were not in the form of long shards, which can mimic asbestos fibers. Clean-up recommendations All evidence indicates that ambient air in New York City now is little influenced by the World Trade Center collapse, especially since the fires are out and the debris pile has cooled. However, the presence of large amounts of very fine particles as late as October means that indoor clean up should be done carefully, Cahill said. Very fine particles will have penetrated crevices and fabrics in a way normal dust doesn’t. And they are easily re-suspended, wh.ch re­ exposes the room’s occupants to them. Cahill strongly supports the recommendations made by the New York Department of Health regarding washing with water, and said: • Don’t use vacuum cleaners or brooms because they re-suspend particles. Do use wt t rags, mops and wet-vacuum-type cleaners. • Wipe all surfaces, including window blinds, picture tops and door frames, with wet rags. • Drapes and curtains should be washed or dry-cleaned. Furniture fabrics should be steam- cleaned. Carpets should be wet-cleaned. • Use high efficiency electrostatic or HEPA air filters in furnaces and air conditioners. • Keep humidity reasonably high indoors, to keep very fine particles from floating around.

UC Davis DELTA Group

1

I J NYC-WTC_000151963