United States
                Environmental Protection
               k Agency
   EPA Community Involvement
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
GE/Housatonic  River  Site
Community Update
                                                          August 2009
  This community update provides you with information on the GE/Housatonic River Site "Rest of River RiskAssessments"
Introduction

EPA is  issuing this fact sheet to provide
a review of the risks from the PCB con-
tamination in the Housatonic River and its
flood plain.

ERA conducted a  Human  Health  Risk As-
sessment (HHRA) to quantify risks to adults
and children  exposed to PCBs originating
from the GE Facility in Pittsfield, Massachu-
setts. Exposure could occur while living or
working near the Housatonic River and its
floodplain, or using the river and floodplain
for recreation or agriculture. In  addition,
an Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) was
conducted to quantify risks from  PCBs to
the animals living and/or feeding in  the river
and floodplain.

The HHRA and the ERA identified and
quantified serious  risks to humans and the
environment from the PCBs  in the river
and its floodplain and biota. Currently, fish
consumption advisories are in place in both
Massachusetts and Connecticut due to the
PCBs, and in Massachusetts there  are advi-
sories on consuming waterfowl, frogs and
turtles as well.
 Background

 The risk assessments were conducted by
 teams of experts working with EPA us-
 ing state-of-the-art techniques. The risk
 assessments were based on an extensive
 site-specific database derived from thou-
 sands of samples collected over several
 years, as well as site-specific laboratory
 and field studies.

 Both risk assessments were subjected to
 a public external Peer Review process and
 formal public comment period.The Peer
 Review Panels were comprised of teams
 of internationally recognized experts in
 risk assessment. Comments from the
 Panels were incorporated into the  final
 risk assessments, which were issued in
 November 2004 (ERA) and February
 2005 (HHRA). Both documents are avail-
 able at: www.epa.gov/regionl/ge/thesite/
 restofriver-reports.html .
 Human Health Risk
 Assessment
 The HHRA began with a screening of all
 environmental media to determine the
 most serious routes of exposure to PCBs
 in the Housatonic River and floodplain.
These routes of exposure are:

    •  direct contact with contami-
      nated soil and sediment;
    •  consumption of contaminated
      fish and waterfowl; and
    •  consumption of contaminated
      agricultural products produced
      in the floodplain.

The HHRA evaluated each of these path-
ways separately and provided some insight
into how these risks could be combined for
individuals exposed to multiple pathways.
Risks from exposure to PCBs in river water
and air were found to be below levels EPA
considers unacceptable.
 What are PCBs?
 A class of chemicals consisting of 209 in-
 dividual compounds known as congeners.
 PCBs  are classified by EPA as probable
 human carcinogens. EPA recognizes that
 PCBs  also cause neurological  and de-
 velopmental effects and considers all PCB
 mixtures to be toxic.
        Direct Contact Exposure
     Fish and Waterfowl Consumption
  Agricultural Product Consumption
                                                                                                      continued >

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Risk from Direct Contact with
Floodplain Soil
More than  240 individual exposure areas
along the Housatonic River, most of them
between the confluence and Rising Pond,
were evaluated for  risk due to exposure
to PCBs in  floodplain soil and sediment.
The  amount of exposure depended upon
the accessibility of a particular area. Direct
contact with soil and sediment was assumed
to occur randomly across an exposure
area. If people spend more time in a more
contaminated part of an exposure area, the
risks will be higher.  The risks from direct
contact are summarized below:

   •Cancer risks from exposure to
     PCBs in soil are within the EPA risk
     range, except for one recreational
     exposure (adult angler) in one ex-
     posure area.

   •Non-cancer Hazard  Indices (His)
    from exposure to PCBs in soil ex-
     ceeded the EPA benchmark of 1.0
     in  some exposure areas for almost
    all exposure scenarios.

   •Cancer risks from exposure to
     PCBs in sediment were within the
     EPA risk range in all of the exposure
    areas.

   •Non-cancer His exceeded 1.0 at
    two of the  sediment exposure
    areas.
                                Riskfrom Consumption of Fish and
                                Waterfowl
                                The Housatonic River in  Massachusetts
                                and Connecticut is currently under various
                                restrictions regarding the consumption of
                                fish and other animals from the  river due
                                to the  PCB  contamination. Although  cur-
                                rent advisories are assumed to reduce the
                                amount offish and other biota that people
                                eat, the fish and waterfowl consumption
                                portion of the HHRA evaluated cancer and
                                non-cancer risks to  individuals consuming
                                quantities of these  foods  that would be
                                anticipated  in the absence  of restrictions,
                                as required by EPA guidance.The risks are
                                summarized below:

                                   •Cancer  risks from consuming fish
                                    and waterfowl greatly exceed EPA's
                                    risk range in Massachusetts and in
                                    Connecticut. The risks in  Massa-
                                    chusetts are greater than those in
                                    Connecticut.

                                   •Non-cancer risks from consuming
                                    fish and waterfowl greatly exceed
                                    EPA's benchmark of a HI of I .O.The
                                    His in  Massachusetts  are greater
                                    than those in Connecticut.

                                   •Although the amount of frogs and
                                    turtles consumed was  assumed to
                                    be much less than fish and water-
                                    fowl, concentrations  of PCBs in
                                    these species would also result in
                                    risk if consumed in large quantities.
             Riskfrom Consumption of
             Agricultural Products
             The  agricultural  portion  of the  HHRA
             evaluated  risks  from  consuming com-
             mercial and backyard (home grown) meat,
             dairy, and produce as well as risks associ-
             ated  with home gardens. It also provided
             an estimate of the risk associated  with
             consuming other food sources such as deer
             and wild  edible plants. Because of limited
             data  on PCBs in  site-specific agricultural
             products, the assessment used an  innova-
             tive modeling approach to evaluate risks.
             The results were  presented in a way that
             allowed the risks to be  scaled to different
             average PCB concentrations in floodplain
             soil for different acres used.The risks are
             summarized below:

             Commercial Farms
               For commercial farm families who con-
               sume their products or crops (assuming
               that all feed and crops are grown in soil
               with average PCB soil concentrations
               of 2 mg/kg or less), cancer risks from
               PCBs are within EPA's  Risk Range,
               and non-cancer His are  below  EPA's
               benchmark. However, if average soil
               concentrations in the areas used by the
               animals or upon which feed or crops
               are grown are higher, both cancer and
               non-cancer risks are likely.
   IE+00


   IE-OI-
    IE-02-
SUMMARY OF THE
RANGE OF CANCER RISKS
FROM TOTAL PCBs
    IE-OS
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   Note: The range of cancer rista ftwiists of lite fowttt central tetuimuy t'
   In the hight'M maswabtt nutximum < \jnt.\itn- > r.vi.
                                         Risks I nun
                                      Fish und WulcrfoH
                                        i'onsiimplmn
                                                               IN Hi I
SUMMARY OF THE
RANGE OF NON-CANCER RISKS
FROM TOTAL PCBs
                                                                              D
DO
                                                                                                          D
                                                                        H:i/;u il Indicts from him t Cmilucl K\posurc
                                                    Nute: Hit range t'f hayirtl indice* cwisfots vfthe lowest central tendency e
                                                    Iti the hif>lti-\t rfti.\tmtil>lt' mtuttnuni iM/im
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   Summary of the Range of Hazard Quotients from Total PCBs for Selected Species
        1000
    •§   100
    s
    (0
    I
    o
    1
    0>
    I
    o
10
                                                                                LEGEND

                                                                                  Median HQ '
                                                                                Notes:
                                                                                 ' HOs for other reaches are intermediate
                                                                                  to the ones shown in the figure.
                                                                                 t Other reaches had similar bul
                                                                                   slightly lower HQs.
                                                        • H0= 1 (toxic effect threshold level)
         0.1
        0.01
                                            I
                                                                                    I
                                                                                    1
                                                                                                                Source: EPA
Backyard Farms
   •For families consuming backyard-
    raised dairy, beef, and poultry prod-
    ucts, cancer risks from PCBs are
    within, but at the high end of EPA's
    Risk Range for PCB  soil concentra-
    tions of 2 mg/kg or less. However,
    where the average soil concentrations
    exceed 2 mg/kg, there may be unac-
    ceptable risks.
   •Non-cancer risks  exceed  EPA's
    benchmark.

Home Gardens and Wild Plants
 •Consumption of home garden produce
   (at a soil concentration of 2 mg/kg
   or less) is not a health risk, even  in
   combination with soil exposure during
   gardening activities.
 •Risk from consumption of wild plants
   is unlikely because consumption rates
   are assumed to be lower than for home
   garden produce.

Ecological Risk Assessment
In  the ERA, risk to eight different groups
of animals, consisting of species that are
related or share other characteristics such
as dietary preferences, were evaluated.The
eight groups are:

   •Benthic invertebrates
   •Amphibians
   •Fish
   •Insectivorous (insect-eating) Birds
   •Piscivorous (fish-eating) Birds
                                 •Piscivorous Mammals
                                 •Omnivorous/Carnivorous (plant and
                                  animal/animal-eating) Mammals
                                 •Threatened & Endangered Species

                               These groups of animals are all important
                               components of the  Housatonic River
                               ecosystem. For each of these groups, con-
                               centrations of PCBs in  the environment
                               that each group comes into contact with
                               (generally water, sediment, soil, and food)
                               were compared to data on the toxicity of
                               PCBs for the species in question. In addition,
                               site-specific field surveys and toxicity studies
                               using soil,sediment, waterand animals from
                               the site were conducted for many species by
                               scientists from across the country.

                               The figure above provides one way of visual-
                               izing the extent of risks to these ecological
                               receptors from PCBs in the river and flood-
                               plain. In this presentation, hazard quotients
                               (HQs) were calculated for the various rep-
                               resentative species by dividing their range
                               of individual PCB exposure concentrations
                               by a concentration corresponding to low or
                               no effects. An HQ exceeding 1.0  indicates
                               that the species is at risk, with the magnitude
                               of the  risk generally proportional to the
                               magnitude of the HQ.

                               As shown in the figure, many of the species
                               have HQs exceeding 1.0, and in some cases
                               the HQs exceed 10 or even  100, indicating
                               that the PCB concentrations  in the river
                               and/or floodplain are  10 or as much as 100
                               times greater than a concentration consid-
                               ered to not pose risk to that species.
In addition,the site-specific field and toxicity
studies evaluated adverse effects to benthic
invertebrates, frogs, fish, tree swallows,
robins, belted kingfisher, mink,  and  short-
tail shrews. In these studies, the effects
from exposure to PCBs through water, soil,
sediment or diet from the Housatonic River
were  evaluated  in the river or floodplain
directly, and/or in the laboratory.  In these
site-specific studies, with the exception of
the bird species, survival or reproductive or
developmental impairments attributable to
the PCBs were measured and are described
in detail in each  of the scientists' reports
as well as summarized  in the ERA. The
vast majority of the effects have also been
documented in  other studies of PCBs or
related chemicals. Some of the effects that
were observed included:

  •Benthic invertebrate mortality (death)
   and impaired  development;

  •Reduced survival of  larval  fish, and
   various deformities including swim
   bladders that were  malformed or
   formed outside  of the body  cavity;

  •Frogs with abnormal egg masses, mal-
   formations, impacts to metamorphosis
   (development from tadpoles  to frogs),
   and sex changes;

  •Mortality in 50% of minkyoung within
   six weeks of birth from mothers that
   were fed a diet containing very low
   concentrations  of PCBs in  fish  har-
   vested from the Housatonic River.Jaw
   lesions were observed in the develop-
   ing young that did survive,which results

                           continued >

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(continued from page 3)
   in eventual loss of teeth, leading to
   anorexia and finally death.
  •While not measured directly,there
   is expected impairment of repro-
   duction in ospry and bald eagles.

The  findings of the Risk Characteriza-
tion  demonstrated conclusively that the
many species of aquatic life and wildlife
in the Housatonic River ecosystem are
experiencing intermediate to high risk
as a  result of exposure to PCBs in both
the river and floodplain. In addition, these
results also  demonstrated  that similar
risks extend to species beyond those
specifically evaluated.
                    RISKS ARE PRESENTED AS NUMBERS

                    Cancer Risk is the increased probability, or chance, of getting
                    cancer as a result of exposure to chemicals at a site. In the
                    reports for this site, a 1 in 1,000.000 chance is written as 1E-06.
                    Noncancer Risk is a comparison of an allowable exposure to the
                    amount of exposure estimated at a site. The comparison is called
                    the Hazard Index (HI).
                                    site exposure
                              HI	
                                  allowable exposure
                    An HI greater than 1 indicates that the site exposure exceeds the
                    allowable exposure.
                    Acceptable Risks for cancer are considered by EPA to be less
                    than 1 in 1,000,000. Between a 1 in 1,000,000 and a 1 in 10,000
                    chance, EPA looks at the site-specific factors affecting risk and
                    the uncertainties with the estimate. For noncancer health effects,
                    an HI less than 1 means people are unlikely to be harmed.
  PCBs in the Housatonic River and  Floodplain

  •The Housatonic River and its floodplain are heavily contaminated with PCBs originat-
  ing from the GE Facility in Pittsfield, MA

  •Most of the PCB contamination is found between the confluence of the East and West
  branches in Pittsfield and Woods Pond Dam in Lenox and further into Rising Pond in
  Great Barrington, MA; however,the contamination has also spread downstream from
  Pittsfield into Connecticut, a distance of approximately 140 miles.

  •The PCBs found at this site are persistent in the environment and resistant to bio-
  degradation; as a result, the concentrations of PCBs in river sediment,floodplain soil,
  and fish show little decrease over time.

  •Fish, other aquatic animals, and wildlife in the river and floodplain contain concentrations of
  PCBs that are among the highest ever measured.

  •Natural recovery from this contamination in the absence of cleanup in the river
  and floodplain is a very slow process that will take decades if not hundreds of years
  before  PCB concentrations in fish  decrease to  a level that will permit unlimited
  consumption.

  •Clean up of contaminated sediment, bank and floodplain soil in the first two miles
  of the  East Branch of the Housatonic River downstream from  the GE facility was
  performed by GE and EPA from 1999 to 2007.
For more information :

EPA contacts:
Jim Murphy
ERA Community Involvement
Coordinator
(617)918-1028
murphy.jim@epa.gov

ERA Records Center
Boston, MA 021 14
(617)918-1440
  www.epa.gov/ne/ge
                                                                 More Information:
                                                                 Berkshire Athenaeum Public Library
                                                                 Reference Department
                                                                 Pittsfield, MA 01201
                                                                 (413)499-9480

                                                                 Cornwall Public Library
                                                                 Cornwall, CT 06796
                                                                 (860) 672-6874

                                                                 Kent Memorial Library
                                                                 (Kent Library Association)
                                                                 Kent, CT 06757
                                                                 (860) 927-3761

                                                                 Housatonic Valley Association
                                                                 Cornwall Bridge, CT 06754
                                                                 (860) 672-6678

                                                                 Massachusetts Department
                                                                 of Environmental Protection
                                                                 Springfield, MA 01 103
                                                                 (413)784-1100

                                                                 Connecticut Department
                                                                 of Environmental Protection
                                                                 Hartford, CT 06106
                                                                 (860) 424-3854
&EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
 1 Congress Street
 Suite 1100
 Boston, MA 02114-2023
                   PRSRT STD
              US  POSTAGE PAID
                  BOSTON, MA
               PERMfTNQ  G-35

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