United Slates
Environmental Protection
Agency
v>EPA
Environmental Monitoring
Systems Laboratory
P.O. Box 93478
Las Vegas NV 89193-3478
EPA600/M-91/011
April 1991
The Environmental
Monitoring Systems
Laboratory - Las Vegas
The Environmental Monitoring
Systems Laboratory - Las
Vegas (EMSL-LV) is one of
EPA's twelve national re-
search laboratories in its
Office of Research and
Development. Over 200 EPA
employees and 300 on-site
contractor personnel work at
the EMSL-LV, which has an
annual operating budget of
about $40 million. Its mission
is to develop, evaluate, and
apply methods and systems
for monitoring the environ-
ment.
The Laboratory was estab-
lished in 1955 as a U.S.
Public Health Service labora-
tory with responsibility for
monitoring radioactivity in
public areas around the
Nevada Test Site and other
nuclear explosive test sites.
Environmental radiation
monitoring and research
activities associated with the
U.S. Atomic Energy
Commission's nuclear testing
program were the sole pro-
grams conducted by the labo-
ratory through the 1960's.
This activity included a
radiation biology research
program. When the Environ-
mental Protection Agency was
created in December 1970,
the Laboratory became a part
of the new Agency with an
expanded mission to develop
monitoring techniques for a
variety of environmental pol-
lutants and conduct environ-
mental studies nationwide. In
1972, the Environmental Pho-
tographic Interpretation
Center (EPIC) in Warrenton,
Virginia, became a part of the
Laboratory as an eastern
facility for remote sensing
support to EPA Regional and
Program Offices.
The EMSL-L V Executive Center at night; part of a complex of buildings located on the campus of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.
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Laboratory Programs
Advanced Analytical
Chemistry
A continuing theme for the
Laboratory has been re-
search on integrated expo-
sure of man to chemical and
radiological pollutants
through multiple environ-
mental pathways. Major in-
vestigative and technology-
developmental areas include:
Major Program Areas
1) Advanced Analytical Chemistry
2) Field Monitoring
3) Monitoring Network Design
4) Field and Laboratory Quality Assurance
5) Human Exposure Assessment
6) Environmental Status and Trends
Unique Areas of Expertise
7) Remote Sensing (Active and Passive)
8) Subsurface Monitoring
9) Geographic Information Systems
10) Environmental Radiation Assessment
11) Geostatistics
Special Projects
Measurement of an ever-in-
creasing number of organic
and inorganic contaminants
in complex environmental
matrices, at ever-increasing
levels of sensitivity, has re-
quired the development and
evaluation of innovative
techniques for sample
extraction and analysis.
Advanced techniques such
as liquid chromatography,
mass spectrometry, Fourier
transform infrared spectros-
copy, gas chromatography
and inductively-coupled
plasma spectroscopy are
developed and evaluated.
Advanced Analytical Methods Research
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Field Monitoring
Monitoring Network
Design and
Geostatistics
Laboratory evaluation and
field validation of existing and
emerging technologies for off-
site measurement of toxicants
at or around hazardous waste
sites is the central activity of
the advanced field monitoring
methods program. This
program addresses the need
for rapid, low-cost field
methods to support hazard-
ous waste site monitoring and
characterization activities.
The costs of site characteri-
zation are a direct result of
sampling, analyses and
associated quality assurance
activities required to deter-
mine the suitability of data for
environmental decision
making. Portable x-ray fluo-
rescence spectrometer and
gas chromatograph methods,
and highly specific chemical
sensors and immunochemical
test kits are capable of
yielding immediate or quick
turnaround data that can
result in major cost savings
and expedite the cleanup
process. These instruments
and methods will enhance
EPA's ability to manage risks
posed by hazardous waste
sites.
Field Portable Test Kit for Immunochemical Environmental Monitoring
Monitoring systems design
and monitoring statistics are
rapidly advancing fields be-
cause of readily available
personal computers and their
inexpensive computing
power. At the same time, the
high cost of collection and
analysis of environmental
samples places a premium
on efficient and effective
study design and data
interpretation. The monitoring
statistics program is develop-
ing data-analysis techniques
for more defensible decision
making, computerized spatial
simulation for sampling plan
design and evaluation,
kriging software for personal
computers, and multivariate
methods for spatial pattern
recognition. Each of these
activities is aimed at provid-
ing practical help for environ-
mental investigators. For
example, spatial data analy-
sis can provide maps of sites
showing isopleths of probabil-
ity exceeding a selected
contaminant
concentration.
60 82
Surface Estimated by Kriging, with Corresponding Contour Map
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Field and Laboratory
Quality Assurance
Human Exposure
Assessment
The Laboratory serves as the
Agency's center for analytical
laboratory quality assurance.
Properly validated test
methods are developed, and
guidelines are prepared to
enhance the Agency's ability
to obtain reliable sample
analyses through commercial
laboratories. Studies are
conducted to evaluate the
performance of these labora-
tories and to determine the
precision and accuracy of
analytical protocols. In the
1980's the Laboratory
assumed national leadership
for monitoring and quality
assurance aspects of the
Agency's hazardous waste
and pesticides programs.
Field and Laboratory Quality Assurance.
Human exposure assess-
ment provides critical infor-
mation required to make risk
estimates for environmental
pollutants. Exposure assess-
ments are conducted by
using predictive methods
(modeling), direct measure-
ments (monitoring), or by the
use of reconstructive tech-
niques (biomarkers). Labora-
tory projects utilizing the
predictive methods include
the evaluation and validation
of indoor air models and the
development of a model to
estimate the exposure of
humans to benzene. Projects
utilizing the direct measure-
ment approach include the
measurement of benzene
concentrations in various
microenvironments and the
use of personal exposure
monitors (PEMs) to measure
the exposure of nitrogen
oxides to humans. Recon-
structive approaches for ex-
posure assessments are
being evaluated for possible
inclusion into future monitor-
ing programs. These include
the use of DMA adducts,
protein adducts (hemoglobin
and serum albumen) carrier
proteins (e.g., metal-
lothionein), receptors, conju-
gation systems (e.g., glu-
tathione), porphyrin ratio
changes, and lesion-specific
endonculeases. In addition,
biotechnology monitoring
guidelines are being devel-
oped for the release of ge-
netically engineered microor-
ganisms (GEMs) in agricul-
tural experiments. Emphasis
is being placed on sample
collection procedures,
comparison of sample types,
determination of aerosolized
bacterial half-life rates and
field study designs to monitor
GEMs.
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Developing Human Exposure Models for Use in Exposure
Assessment
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Ecological Monitoring
Remote Sensing
(Active and Passive)
The Laboratory is participat-
ing in the Agency's Environ-
mental Monitoring and As-
sessment Program (EMAP),
a national research program
to prevent unwanted or
irreversible damage to the
nation's ecosystems. EPA
must know the current status
of the ecosystem, be able to
determine trends in health or
deterioration, and be in
position to regulate environ-
mental pollutants in order to
protect these systems. The
national research will clas-
sify, characterize, and moni-
tor status and trends of
important ecosystems and
their subclasses. The moni-
toring efforts specifically
focus on conditions over
periods of years to decades.
The EMSL-LV, using ad-
vanced monitoring methods,
is determining status and
trends in terrestrial ecosys-
tems, specifically forests,
agroecosystems, grasslands,
and deserts, Also, the
Laboratory has general
EMAP responsibility for
conducting initial ecosystem
characterization, providing
remote sensing support,
providing guidance and
support for field logistics and
quality assurance, and for
developing and implementing
a distributed data base man-
agement system.
Monitoring the Status of an Ecosystem
In the1970's, the application
of aerial photography and
scanner imagery technologies
for environmental assess-
ments became an important
Laboratory program. The
Laboratory's aerial photogra-
phy interpretation facilities in
Las Vegas and its branch in
Warrenton, Virginia, became
EPA's center for environ-
mental monitoring using
overhead imagery from
aircraft and satellites. Appli-
cations of this technology
have included the detection
of waste discharges into wa-
terways and harbors, the
location of waste disposal
sites on land, lake-water
quality management, wetland
delineation, erosion identifi-
cation and other types of
surface degradation, and
quantifying locations of envi-
ronmental impacts associ-
ated with land-use practices.
As the EPA's center for this
type of monitoring technol-
ogy, much of the Laboratory
work in this area involves col-
lecting and analyzing aerial
imagery to support environ-
mental regulation compliance
investigations by EPA's
Regional Offices.
High Resolution
Satellite Imagery
Applications:
Left, High Spatial
Resolution - Urban
Mapping.
Right, High Spectral
Resolution -
Vegetation Analysis
Spot Quad Map -10 Meter Resolution Landstat TM - 30 Meter Resolution
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Remote Sensing
(continued)
Subsurface Monitoring
Aircraft-borne laser-based
remote sensing devices are
being developed and applied
for the monitoring of urban
and regional scale environ-
mental problems. The
primary laser-based tool for
urban or regional air quality
assessment is an airborne
aerosol lidar, which is used to
study pollutant layer struc-
tures and atmospheric mo-
tions influenced by complex
terrain and coastal environs.
Another lidar device under
development will allow for the
detailed, concurrent meas-
urement of ozone, sulphur
dioxide, and perhaps nitrogen
dioxide in the atmosphere. In
anticipation of increased
monitoring requirements, a
feasibility study has been
initiated to identify and
evaluate remote sensing
techniques for safely monitor-
ing toxic and hazardous
pollutants from a distance.
The related technology of
airborne laser fluorosensing
is used to measure a number
of water quality indicators in
lake, river, and estuarine
waters. These include
chlorophyll a. concentration,
which is an indicator of phyto-
plankton density; dissolved
organic carbon (DOC), which
is an indicator of the overall
level of dissolved organic
matter; and the optical
attenuation coefficient, which
is closely related to water
clarity. Research is being
directed to detecting and
mapping algae blooms which
can create toxic water
conditions in lakes.
Computerized Interpretation of Airborne Laser-Based Data
Gathering
EMSL-LV is conducting
ground-water monitoring
methods research to test and
improve methods or proce-
dures for detecting contami-
nation of ground water. Sub-
surface monitoring methods
are also under development
for detecting pollutants in the
unsaturated zone above the
ground-water table, and for
collecting soil gases to detect
volatile subsurface pollut-
ants. Geophysical methods
such as ground-penetrating
radar and geochemical
detection methods are tested
and developed for mapping
near-surface contaminant
plumes. Both surface-based
and downhole methods are
examined for the more
difficult problem of mapping
deeply buried contaminant
plumes associated with
injection wells. Advanced
technologies such as
downhole pollutant detection
with light-activated optrodes
at the end of an optical fiber
eliminate the need for exten-
sive well-drilling to collect
water samples. Other re-
search is conducted to
develop leak detection
devices for monitoring
underground storage tanks
used for gasoline and other
chemicals.
Geophysical Sensing to Detect Substance Conic
n/nants
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Geographic Information
Systems
Environmental Radiation
Assessment
This computer-based tech-
nology combines data and
automated cartography to
map data gathered from field
surveys, remote sensing
instruments, and other
information such as census
data on population distribu-
tion. Using a GIS, the envi-
ronmental analyst can display
and overlay "maps" of these
data layers on a video
monitor screen and conduct
extensive calculations and
operate mathematical models
of environmental conditions.
These types of analyses are
important to the EPA be-
cause they represent a com-
puter-based "tool box"
available to identify and
model pollutant threats
to human populations
and ecosystems.
EMSL-LV is the lead Labora-
tory for GIS research and
development to ascertain how
GIS technology will fit into the
assessment and enforcement
activities of the Agency.
The GIS research
mission is being ad-
vanced through a
series of pilot
projects to
demon-
strate the technology for ex-
amining hazardous waste dis-
posal sites, wetland areas, air
pollution and ground-water
contamination situations.
WASTES
ROADS
HYDROLOGY
SAMPLE SITES
SOIL/WATER
CHEMISTRY SAMPLES
BUILDINGS
TOPOGRAPHY
DRAINAGE BASINS
Hazardous Waste Site
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Data Layers
The Laboratory's radiation
monitoring program provides
the framework for document-
ing radiation exposures of
populations living near the
Nevada Test Site (NTS) and
other nuclear test sites.
Mobile monitoring teams are
deployed around the NTS
during nuclear test periods. If
radioactivity is released, these
teams are prepared to work
with local officials in directing
protective actions, including
evacuation of residents, if
necessary. Air and ground-
water sampling networks
measure off-site radiation
levels on a continuing basis.
Programs for sampling milk,
cattle, and wildlife detect inad-
vertent contamination. Ther-
moluminescent dosimeters, in
place at about 130 fixed loca-
tions in addition to those worn
every day by approximately
50 off-site residents, measure
accumulated radiation expo-
sure levels. The Laboratory
also operates a whole-body
counter that measures levels
of natural and man-made
radionuclides in bone, tissue,
and internal organs of resi-
dents living around the NTS.
In cooperation with the U.S.
Department of Energy, the
Laboratory has established 18
Community Monitoring Stations
around the NTS and placed
them under the supervision of
local residents. The radiation
data, collected every five
minutes from solar-powered
gamma radiation detection in-
struments, is transmitted to
the Laboratory via satellite
relay. A visual readout at the
station allows local residents
to observe exposure level
measurements at any time.
Community Radiation Monitoring Station
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Special Projects
The Laboratory has, over the
years, undertaken a number
of special projects utilizing its
broad monitoring capability.
Examples include the emer-
gency radiation monitoring
program for the Three Mile
Island nuclear power reactor
incident, the National Lake
Eutrophication Survey, Love
Canal contamination studies,
Missouri dioxin studies, and
the National Surface Water
Survey and Direct Delayed
Response Project as a part of
the EPA responsibility under
the Acid Precipitation Act of
1980.
Technical support, either in
the form of technology
transfer (training personnel in
other EPA offices or states on
how to use EMSL-LV technol-
ogy) or technical assistance
(helping others conduct
environmental studies), is
provided in all of the program
areas described earlier. For
example, the Laboratory was
assigned the responsibility for
designing the quality assur-
ance program for EPA's
research project to evaluate
bioremediation enhancement
for the (Valdez) Alaska oil
spill.
EMSL-LV, 944 East Harmon Avenue, Las Vegas NV 89119
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