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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 03111986 - X.3 X10 THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA Adopted this Order on March 1 1 , 1986 , , by the following vote: AYES: Supervisors Fanden , McPeak , Torlakson , Powers NOES: None ABSENT: Supervisor Schroder ABSTAIN: None SUBJECT: Report of Public Health Director on Toxicity in Wells Fargo Office Building , Concord . In a report (dated March 7 , 1986) to the Board , Wendel Brunner, M . D. , Director of Public Health, advised of the studies conducted at the Wells Fargo office building located at 1220 and 1200 Concord Avenue respectively, Concord . He noted that the Wells Fargo building was evac- uated on January 17 and 20, 1986 by order of the Fire Department because of concern that it was contaminated by toxic fumes . Dr. Brunner described the procedures and techniques used in evaluating the data obtained from air sampling within the Wells Fargo building . Based upon the results obtained from his studies , Dr. Brunner concluded that there continues to be no public health concern from air- borne chemical exposure with the occupancy of the buildings at 1200 and 1220 Concord Avenue. IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that receipt of Dr. Brunner ' s report is ACKNOWLEDGED. hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. ATTESTED: PHIL BATCHELOR, Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and County Administrator By "" �' �J� . Depully Orig. Dept. cc: Health Services Director County Administration Health Services Department • A OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR PUBLIC HEALTH DIVISION - EXTRAITEM ,••---� - 2500 Alhambra Avenue - "`YYY Martinez. California 94553 415-372-4416 March 7, 1986 CHEMICAL EVALUATION AND HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT RELATED TO CONCORD AIRPORT PLAZA OFFICE BUILDINGS LOCATED AT 1200 AND 1220 CONCORD AVENUE CONCORD, CALIFORNIA Wendel Brunner, M.D. Director of Public Health On January 17, 1986, the Wells Fargo office building at 1220 Concord Avenue was evacuated by order of the Fire Department because of concerns that it was con- taminated by toxic fumes. On January 29, 1986, the building was again evacuated because of similar concerns. The following day the 5th floor of the neighboring building at 1200 Concord Avenue was evacuated when a number of employees reported feeling ill ; that floor was reoccupied several hours later. Immediately following each of these evacuations, the Health Services Department conducted investigations to determine if the buildings were safe to reoccupy. We report here the summary and conclusions of those investigations. On January 21, 1986, Dr. Brunner, Public Health Director, Francie Wise, Director of Communicable Disease, and Barbara Benda, Nurse Epidemiologist, visited the Wells Fargo Building at 1220 Concord Avenue in order to ascertain what medical problems or symptoms may have provoked the evacuation of the building the pre- vious Friday. The Health Services Department distributed incident questionnaires to all employees in the building. Three hundred thirty-eight completed questionnaires were received confidentially by the Health Department. The questionnaires requested information about work site location, location on the morning of January 17, symptoms experienced, time of onset of symptoms, history of illness and medications, temperature and air conditions in the building, any unusual odors, smoking history, place of evacuation on the 17th, and whether any foods were eaten from an office pot-luck luncheon. Of the questionnaires returned, 117 persons (35%) reported experiencing symptoms while 221 persons (65%) did not. See Attachment #1. The time of onset of symp- toms was evaluated for all responders, and for each floor. Fifteen people reported symptoms by 11:30 a.m. ; 12 of these reports were from the 5th floor of 1220 Concord Avenue where the evacuation originated. Symptoms reported were most commonly headache, dizziness, or fatigue, followed by nausea and irritation A-357 C Im costa cw* -2- of the throat and eyes. Those persons who had received evaluations at hospital emergency rooms the previous Friday and were available were also interviewed. Those reports indicated that no significant medical diagnoses were made in the emergency rooms, and all the employees were released without ongoing treatment. We have not actively followed up all the individuals who were brought to emergency rooms from the Concord building during the month of January, however, passive surveillance and reports from physicians have not indicated any ongoing medical problems which were attributed to that building. We next reviewed the measurements made by Contra Costa County Health Services Department Occupational Health Specialists of potential toxic chemicals in the building. On January 19, air measurements made with an infrared spectrophoto- meter indicated no contaminants to the level of sensitivity of the instrument. Hydrogen sulfide was not detected at sensitivities of .5ppm. A photoionization detector revealed no organic solvents or any of a variety of other compounds to a level of detection of .6ppm. Sulfur dioxide, combustible gases, and carbon monoxide were also not detected. Air samples were sent to Brown and Caldwell , Inc. in Emeryville, CA for gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GCMS) to assess priority pollutants. None were detected at 1ppm. On January 29, subsequent to a repeat evacuation of 1220 Concord Avenue, the Environmental Health staff made additional air-borne chemical measurements using the photoionization detector, the infrared spectrophotometer, Draeger tubes, hydrogen sulfide detector, and carbon monoxide monitor. Again, no compounds were detected down to the reliable detection limits of the instruments. In order for the Health Department to make a more extensive evaluation of the possible organic chemicals present in the building, we arranged with staff from Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL) to make more sophisticated GCMS measurements of the chemicals present in the building air on February 8, 1986. These tech- niques are able to identify specific organic air contaminants at levels of sen- sitivity of less than 1ppb. The LBL group identified a variety of organic solvents in the ambient (outside) air; these chemicals were also present inside the building at concentrations of from 2 to 10 times higher than outside. See Attachment #2. The maximum levels of organic solvents detected within the building were from thousands to tens of thousands of times below the Cal OSHA permissible exposure limits for occupational exposure. See Attachment #3. On the basis of these studies and the chemical measurements made during January and February, we concluded that there were no chemicals detected within the buildings at concentrations which could cause significant health problems. The measurement techniques used, infrared spectroscopy, photoionization, and gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy, are sufficiently broad to detect any chemical likely to be present in the buildings in sufficient quantities to cause health problems. During January and February, we also consulted with Jim Cone, M.D., Director of the Occupational Health Clinic at San Francisco General Hospital and Professor of Occupational Medicine at U.C.S.F., with regards to the health potential of the chemicals detected.. Dr. Cone agreed with our conclusions that there was no evidence of chemicals in sufficient quantities to cause significant -3- or long term health problems. We further consulted on this issue with Jon Rosenberg, M.D., Public Health Medical Officer with the State Department of Health Services and the Department of Industrial Relations. See Attachment #4. After reviewing the data obtained from air sampling within the Wells Fargo Building, Dr. Rosenberg concluded that these particular substances as reported, whether taken individually or additively, would have no health effects, acute or chronic, on humans breathing this air. The Health Services Department concluded on January 19 that the Wells Fargo Building was safe for occupancy. A similar determination was made on January 29 and 30. On the basis of the above reported investigations, air samplings, and medical consultations, we have concluded that there continues to be no public health concern from airborne chemical exposure with the occupancy of the buildings at 1200 and"1220 Concord Avenue. WB:rm Attachments ATTACHMENT #1 /2 TI v CIO 4 r 0 fi y0 c� 3 a o 0 � NEWV N N4 � v � o - n y� L n 3 MOP m z g{- °Ncoc,��,,oc�'..o� �� ick = erS4 ns ° 'l pO r w c� o s X1;30 e , too ~ � h 00 c� o C� ca 2:oa r�- s Q F c�tt SW ersv.ns Q l(,70 w 11,130 /2" llkss s. l p o 1' is CS 1 4 Z.Oa �` 4 or 2. 34 x,30 Q�s��r er y �t 03 'h i �. 11-30 C � o S 11�3a ra O � A ,y 1. t5 O 0 Cv Ch 2 X15 � e-1 2,30 2rsv ns 11. 30 t1:3o Z � a � A y o 1 2:� �l z X30 �Z z f� W �. o-7' o v /2:SCS ,./S /."Ys' 21: oo �, ■ 2 : 30 N 2;30 Z 2 4 � to ers� ns 0 11:34 � Zt �y .l . p 3� Z; 3© a � o '7Cs ti M Li a - It's, �. a•.3a' CJ _5 yAA,"o %7 - = G h es f f'.� hA7 ms s Nd fe s `'I 0 7 t- o A-7 4�4 OR- / '14 V:a . 23 IZ ti4 S'2, Z� �3 ''5 LO, ' � S 50 t L,L, Jr ' ATTACHMENT �2 '- . ~ � _ Ti'u,l_: 4. lndosr and outdoor concentrations of ndatile organic coapmmds on February B` 1786 --____----__--___------------- _----_-_-----_. ' 8ODF 5 s 5 Sa 5 Sb 5 S J W Peak Reten. Coopouod 12:44 7:27 0�02 10;02 14:58 16:35 No. Time Nomn ppb . ppb ppb ppb ppb ppb ----------------------__--_---------------- --_------- 4 22,11 o-Ppntane 0.29 2.46 _1.17 1.13 0.59 0,73 ' 5 22.18 Acetone 2.08 - 0.19 7.21 6.67 12.56 8.69 Y 27.06 n-Hexane 1,14 0.57 0.55 10 27.16 KeshylpOyl ketone 1.63 7.65 6.71 6.63 21-.04 33.04 12 28.65 1,1,1-TriEblurmethaoe 0.18 1.20 0.99 0.97 2.25 1.74 13 27.12 Benzene 1.99 3.85 2.16 2.06 0.87 1.63 15 29.52 3-Methyl hexane 0.10 0.67 0.712 0.33 D 30.19 Trichloroethylene 1.30 0 30.76 Methyl cyclohexane 4.14 - 0.63 - -- YY 11,86 Toluene '- ---- 1.08 4T' -- '2.90 -'-ID1---- "3JO --'--f 10- 20 V%O 33.79 Ethyl benzene 0.20 1.39 0.95 . 0.98 2.28 3.87 21 33.94 u-`y-Xylene 0.70 5.J8 3.80 3,O9 9.67 15.51 22 34.37 u-Xylene 0,54 1.94 1.32 1,37 3.43 5.82 25 35,53 Benzaldehyde 1.99 1.80 3.10 3.02 0.82 1.55 %8 35.95 n'Docaoe 0.39 0.47 0.39 0.40 0.60 0.49 34 37.24 o-Uodecane? 0.80 0.76 0.76 0.85 0.86 ` --------------___________________________________________________________________ TUTAL 9.2 44.8 32.4 31.8 59,4 75.7 ____________-___________________-__-_______________- . - - - ' = ` ' ' ` � - ' 5 :3, oo O a m -1 m -i w co f-+ 3 D n f I I rD I I (+ O (D Z I (D (D I n I 3' 3 (D N -0 C< C 3' n (D N V 3- (D c+ fD a 0- n 0A I -+ (D C< S c+ fD F-� << X O O J. 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O J. a W CD 'S I--Cn 41 Ln (O 3 Co (nO NLA Z N C+ O (n < O+ N z a C-) (D (D m A+ CD cn w �(n � � a a J•Suo 3 W � CD 00 W Ul�• z r xCL n m �• z O a (D n -1 N n z O 3 a < < N c+ r- n \ (D (D (D a --A O n CD -s 3 x Z to J 0) N rDZ mn (D n. m + N C n ►+ p ' n N m -� (n n Cn---i Z v n SS '-+ rno O -1 O -0 c S (D (n n z C+ Na S O O d O 3 UD a r fD 3 CD rn X �• N a a O C+ CL C C a Z W CD C c+ r (D IL -••N 3 M- -'• 11 iL C Z --q d 11 r N C N m r C+ v O l< (D UZ 3 's (D w CD D+ r+ (D N 400 O -40011 �O Z 00-il J. r- C) (A -h < x (D CD n z _J (D N r � CD 0 < CD (D J • ATTACHMENT n4 STATE OF'CALIFORNIA—HEALTH AND WELFARE AGENCY/AGRICULTURE AND SERVICES AGENCY GEORGE DEUKMEJIAN, Gowmor DEPARTIAENT OF HEALTH SERVICES/DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS HAZARD EVALUATION SYSTEM AND INFORMATION SERVICE (HESIS) 2151 BERKELEY WAY -i BERKELEY, CA 9470.4 (d 15) 5442115 ` February 27 6 /r ,P A Wendell Brunner, M.D. Director, Environmental and Occupational Health .� Department of Health Services oy 2500 Alhambra Avenue Martinez, CA 94553 Dear Dr. Brunner: At your request I received the results of air sampling analysis performed by Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory at the Wells Fargo Building in Concord on February 8, 1986. 1 examined the levels as recorded of the substances reported for their potential for acute and chronic health effects. I did not review the sampling strategy, sampling methodology or analytical methodology. The results for 16 volatile organic compounds were displayed in Tables 3 and 4. The levels ranged from 0.10 ppb (3-methyl hexane). to 2.08 ppb (acetone) in outside air, and 0.32 ppb (3-methyl hexane) to 21 .04 ppb (methyl ethyl ketone) inside the building. The comparison between various samples indicated that the levels were generally higher inside than outside, and higher at various sampling lines that you indicated to me were when the ventilation system was in the "economy" mode. Although these differences appear to be statistically different, at these levels the differences have no estimable health significance. For comparison, the following are the reported maximal levels and Cal/OSHA Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs) for some of the substances: Substance Maximal Level (ppb PEL(ppb) 8-hour TWA Ceiling Methyl Ethyl Ketone '33.04 200,000 Acetone 12.56 750,000 3,000,000 Benzene 3.65 10,000 50,000 Toluene 5.41 100,000 500,000 Ethyl Benzene 3.87 100,000 m-,p- Xylene 15.51 100,000 300,000 o- Xylene 5.82 100,000 300,000 It is quite apparent that the levels of these particular substances as Wendell Brunner, M.D. 2 February 27, 1986 reported, whether taken individually or additively, would have no health effects, acute or chronic, on humans breathing this air. Please let me know if I can be of any further assistance. 'ncerely, bP6brn Rosenberg, M.D.lic Health Medical Officer JR:mk