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New Orleans Area Environmental Quality Test Results
Sampling Results: Uptown/Carrollton
Results for: Mold | Endotoxin | Sediment | Particulates
Though Gert Town, where the abandoned Thompson-Hayward industrial facility is located, is part of the larger Mid-City area, sediment sampling results for Gert Town are summarized here with those from Uptown/Carrollton neighborhoods near the facility. For results of particulate pollution testing in Gert Town, see the Mid-City page.
| SAMPLING LOCATIONS |
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Maps on these pages show NRDC sample locations for mold, sediment and endotoxin. NRDC particulate samples were taken at multiple locations. Results of sendiment sampling by the EPA and others are summarized on these pages but locations are not marked on the maps. SEE AREA MAP |
MOLD
We collected two outdoor samples and two indoor samples for mold in Uptown/Carrollton.
10/16/05
Dublin near South Claiborne, Leonidas (outdoor)
81,000 spores/m3 (daily estimated average based on 6 hours of continuous volumetric sampling)
18% Cladosporium
61% Aspergillus/Penicillium
Valence near St. Charles, Uptown (outdoor, not flooded)
68,000 spores/m3 (daily estimated average based on 6 hours of continuous volumetric sampling)
46% Cladosporium
25% Aspergillus/Penicillium
Octavia and Fontainebleau, Broadmoor (indoor, unremediated)
645,000 spores/m3 (daily estimated average based on 6 hours of continuous volumetric sampling)
7% Cladosporium
82% Aspergillus/Penicillium
2% Stachybotrys
11/14/05
Dublin near South Claiborne, Leonidas (indoor, minimally flooded)
11,000 spores/m3 (daily estimated average based on 24 hours)
59% Cladosporium
31% Aspergillus/Penicillium
Note: According to the National Allergy Bureau, outdoor air mold counts over 50,000 spores per cubic meter (spores/m3) are "Very High." Indoor air mold counts over 1,300 spores/m3 indicate that a building is "moldy." Cladosporium and Aspergillus/Penicillium are known to cause health effects in humans, including respiratory disease. Stachybotrys, also known as "toxic mold" or "black mold," has been reported to be associated with a wide range of health complaints, including immune and neurologic problems and infant pulmonary hemorrhage, but these results remain controversial. Indoor mold spore concentrations are typically far higher when dust is disturbed in a house. These samples were taken when there was no disturbance going on and may therefore underestimate the true spore concentrations.
ENDOTOXIN
We collected two outdoor samples and one indoor sample for endotoxin in Uptown/Carrollton.
Dublin near South Claiborne, Leonidas (outdoor)
5.7 EU/m3
Valence near St. Charles, Uptown (outdoor)
6.1 EU/m3
Octavia and Fontainebleau, Broadmoor (indoor)
7.3 EU/m3
Note: Normal background levels of endotoxin reported in many areas of the country are below 1 EU/m3. Levels above 10-28 EU/m3 may be associated with long-term declines in lung function after chronic exposure. Levels of 45 EU/m3 have been associated with decreases in lung function after exposures as short as one day.
SEDIMENT CONTAMINATION
For written and mapped analyses of extensive EPA sediment sampling, click here (pdf).
Pesticides
NRDC collected three sediment samples specifically for analysis of pesticides in the Marlyville/Fountainebleau neighborhood of Uptown/Carrollton near the abandoned Thompson-Hayward industrial facility. (The facility itself is on the border of adjacent Gert Town.)
The Thompson-Hayward facility was previously a pesticide blending company and community residents were concerned that contaminants may have been carried from the site by flood waters. The samples indicate that contaminants have indeed traveled from the site to the west toward nearby homes.
The level of DDT and one of its breakdown products in the sediment exceeded the Region 6 EPA soil cleanup levels by approximately twofold. Two other organochlorine pesticides, dieldrin and heptachlor epoxide (a breakdown product of heptachlor) were also significantly in excess of the cleanup levels. In fact, the dieldrin level was nearly sevenfold higher than the regulatory cleanup level.
All of these pesticides have been banned for use in the United States for more than 25 years, and they are now banned worldwide by international treaty because they are so toxic and environmentally persistent.
| Uptown/Carrollton Pesticide Results, NRDC Sampling | ||
| CONTAMINANTS | NUMBER OF DETECTIONS(3 sites tested) | LOCATIONS EXCEEDING EPA REGION 6 OR LDEQ SOIL CLEANUP STANDARD |
| Pesticides | ||
| Benzene hexachloride (beta and delta) | 2 | None |
| Chlordane (cis-alpha and trans-gamma) | 3 | None |
| DDE | 2 | Burdette St. and Colapissa St. |
| DDD | 2 | Burdette St. and Colapissa St. |
| DDT | 2 | Burdette St. and Colapissa St. |
| Dieldrin | 1 | Burdette St. and Colapissa St. |
| Beta Endosulfan | 1 | None |
| Endrin ketone | 2 | None |
| Heptachlor epoxide | 1 | Burdette St. and Colapissa St. |
The pesticide levels in one sample taken outside the fence at the Thompson-Hayward facility, on Burdette Street near Colapissa, had numerous banned pesticides in excess of EPA soil cleanup levels.
| Uptown/Carrollton Banned Pesticide Results, NRDC Sampling | ||
| BANNED PESTICIDE | LEVEL DETECTED (micrograms/kilogram) |
EPA SOIL CLEANUP LEVEL |
| DDT | 3960 | 1720 |
| DDD (DDT metabolite) | 2180 | 2437 |
| DDE (DDT metabolite) | 2430 | 1720 |
| Dieldrin | 203 | 30 |
| Heptachlor epoxide | 137 | 54 |
Industrial Chemicals and Heavy Metals
NRDC collected three sediment samples for general analysis at Xavier University in Gert Town and in adjacent Marlyville/Fountainebleau. The levels of arsenic in all of the samples NRDC collected would trigger soil remediation according to the Region 6 EPA guidelines. The average level of arsenic that NRDC found in this neighborhood was 17.2 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) of soil. This is 44 times higher than the Region 6 EPA soil cleanup level for residential areas, which is set at 0.39 mg/kg to protect against cancer. The highest arsenic level in any our samples -- nearly 20 mg/kg -- was found in this area at Colapissa and Pine streets.
| Uptown/Carrollton Industrial Chemical and Heavy Metal Results, NRDC Sampling | ||
| CONTAMINANTS | NUMBER OF DETECTIONS (3 sites tested) |
SITES EXCEEDING EPA REGION 6 OR LDEQ CLEANUP STANDARD |
| Metals | ||
| Arsenic | 3 | Colapissa St. and Pine St. Pine St. and Fig St. Palmetto St. near S. Carrollton Ave. |
| Lead | 3 | None |
| Chromium | 3 | None |
| Cadmium | 3 | None |
| Mercury | 1 | None |
| Industrial Chemicals | ||
| DEHP | 2 | None |
NRDC also analyzed some EPA sediment testing results for Uptown/Carrollton. We selected eight EPA sediment samples randomly in four quadrants of the neighborhood.
- For arsenic, the EPA found an average level of 3.1 mg/kg in these samples. The levels in the agency's testing ranged from nondetectable to 8.3 mg/kg. All but one of these samples exceeded the EPA Region 6 cleanup standard for arsenic of 0.39 mg/kg, which is based on cancer risk. One of the samples exceeded the LDEQ soil "background" level of arsenic of 7 mg/kg. The EPA did not test for arsenic near Colapissa and Pine streets, where NRDC's sampling identified very high arsenic levels.
PARTICULATE POLLUTION
NRDC sampled for particulate matter for about one hour on October 19 and again for about two hours on November 14, 2005, in Uptown. The weather was clear with no wind, and there was no visible haze. Many streets were visibly dusty, with a mixture of sediment and building material debris, and there was a lot of dust when vehicles traveled down these streets. Overall the air quality was good but during significant periods of time the levels of particulate matter rose to significant levels near or over 100 micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m3), especially during the October sampling period. People returning to the dusty parts of the neighborhood -- on side streets or where building work is occurring -- and anyone engaged in cleanup or demolition should wear respiratory protection.
Monitoring Results
| Average | 10/19/05 | 11/14/05 |
| Average | 54 ug/m3 | 41 ug/m3 |
| Minimum | 0 | 24 ug/m3 |
| Maxinmum | 515 ug/m3 | 79 ug/m3 |
Uptown PM 10, October 19, 2005
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Uptown PM 10, November 14, 2005
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