Study of Environmental Contamination of a Mining and Smelting Town in Peru Presentation to:

Transcription

1 Study of Environmental Contamination of a Mining and Smelting Town in Peru Presentation to: * St. Louis St. Louis Section AIHA February 17, 2006 By: David A. Sterling, Ph.D., CIH Fernando Serrano, MS La Oroya * Angela Hobsen, MPH Saint Louis University School of Public Health

2 International collaboration of an environmental exposure study in La Oroya,, Peru & the surrounding Mantaro River Valley to assess biological & environmental contamination levels from a local metal mine & smelters 2

3 Acknowledgements Saint Louis University School of Public Health Chris King R Greg Evans Volunteers Chris Reid Mayan Gale Carlson Ryan Sterling (4) CDC (Inorganic Toxicology Lab) NIOSH Peru Archdiocese of Huancayo ARZOBISPADO DE HUANCAYO Joining Hands Network (Consortium of NGO s) Other International Peace Observers (Columbus, OH) Niton (now part of Thermo Electron Corp) Environmetrics (now part of PDC Laboratories) 3

4 History Doe Run, La Oroya Peru La Oroya metallurgic complex was built in the 1920's by a U.S. company and was known as Cerro de Pasco Copper Nationalized by the Peruvian government. Became part of the Centromin mining organization Sold to Doe Run as part of Peru's privatization of industry policy 4

5 Initial Studies Blood Lead Study in a Selected Population from La Oroya, released 1999 by the Director General of Environmental Health (DIGESA) of the Peruvian Ministry of Health. Only.9% of children BlPb<10 Study of Blood Lead Levels of the People of La Oroya by DRP and in 2003 by CooperAccion: Only.9% of children BlPb< Report by Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense & the Peruvian Society of Environmental Law >10ugPb/dl in 99% of children tested Interior Dust Lead Levels in La Oroya, Peru, 2004 Asociacion Civil Labor and Cooperaccion, Peru and Occupational Knowledge International, CA USA. 88% exceeded 40ug/ft 2, 100% in Antigua 5

6 Main Research Questions 1. What are the environmental levels of heavy metals in La Oroya and Concepcion (the control community)? 2. What are the biological (blood and urine) levels of heavy metals? 3. Is there a difference between the two communities? 4. What are the associations and factors between exposure, behaviors and biological measures? 6

7 Oroya Antigua Smelter Oroya Nueva Cuipata 7

8 Study Design and Preparation Minimum Statistical sample size AND reality of time frame (For power of.8 to see a difference at α=.05 for in blood lead of 8ug/dL: N= 250 subjects distributed by age group and city. Using prior information from both La Oroya and Hurculaneum, MO) Approvals SLU Institutional Review Board (IRB) Peru Ministry of Health Provincial Minister of Health USDA Permit to import soil CDC letter to import blood/urine Getting to know the lay of the land, culture and life style (i.e. how and what to measure?) 8

9 Methodology Team Work and International Cooperation International team of 80 8 Field Teams 2 Recruiters 1 Health Interviewer 1 Doctor 1 Medical Technician 1-2 Environmental Scientists (SLU) 1 International Peace Observer Others: Logistics, Planning, Transportation, Security and Administrative 9

10 Methods Population/Location Sample Selection Stratified Random Sampling Random selection of city area/blocks Random selection of starting house Up to one subject per age group per house 0-6, 7-12, 13-18, >18 Inclusion Criteria Spanish speaking Live in city for 3 years Live in home for 3 months 10

11 Methods Sampling Instruments and Media Biological Sampling (For Metals) Blood & urine samples Questionnaire Health behaviors and beliefs, demographics, occupation, other exposures,. Environmental Sampling (For Metals) Dust Wipes (Floor/entry/bedroom, Food prep table, Child hands) Modified HUD protocol Soil First 2-4cm core Residential Water - Rinse 2x, 50ml collection Mantaro River (metals and biological indicators) Paint 11

12 Analysis Of Samples Blood (4) and Urine (13) ICP/DRC/MS (CDC) Water (26) ICP EPA Method (Environmetrix) Dust and Soil (26) (XRF) (SLU and NIOSH) Soil - dried, ground and seived to 125um Wipes Niton protocol Paint XRF for lead 12

13 Results 184 Homes Visited 367 Participants (Barely expected 250) La Oroya at office Concepcion 145 Blood 364 samples Urine 344 samples Dust Wipes 715 Soil 92 Water 143 community, 13*3 Mantaro River 13

14 Results Reported Here Aggregated results of blood and urine only reported on initial 250 samples (IRB) Initial results of dustwipe samples 14

15 Pre and Post Blood Lead Blood Lead ug/dl Ref Range* Pre Post Environmental Team Members *50th to 95th %ile From the Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals

16 Pre and Post Blood Mercury Blood Mercury (ug/l) Ref Range Pre Post Environmental Team Members 50th to 95th %ile From the Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals 16

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24 Initial Dust Wipe Mean Loading For La Oroya (LO) and Concepcion (C) Mean ug/sqft Inside Floor Inside Food Prep Outside Handwipes 6M-6Y Handwipes 7112Y LO C LO C LO C Lead Arsenic Cadmium 24

25 Conclusions Exposures to heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cu, As, Hg and others) are occurring in the Mantaro River Valley (La Oroya and Concepcion) Exposures in La Oroya are generally higher than Concepcion ~100 Km distant Exposures in La Oroya Antigua are higher than other areas of La Oroya 25

26 What s s Next? Dealing with Ethical and Communication Issues in Community Based Participatory Research Translation and Dissemination 4 Public Meetings in December on first results Final report to be presented in July Additional Health Risk Communication Participants informed about their individual results February Education/counseling at community, family and individual levels Radio campaigns, public meetings, fact sheets, Control methods recommended individual, community, regional Additional control methods being assessed Further Evaluation of River Valley Impact From Mining and Processing Activities? 26

27 Questions??? 27