AMERICAN HEALTHY HOMES SURVEY:
[•jfe A National Sti. nY 01 Residential Related Hazards

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Preliminary Findings

Iff f ¦ lhe US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA), National Exposure Research Laboratory (NER.L) and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD), Office of Healthy Homes
I and Lead Hazard Control conducted a national survey of housing related hazards in US residences. The collaborative study, the American Healthy Homes Survey (AHHS), was designed to assess
environmental concentrations of lead, allergens, mold, pesticides, and arsenic in and around US residences. The questionnaire and environmental data were collected from a stratified, nationally
representative sample of approximately 1,100 US residences. The data collected in this study are being used to develop new distributions of residential concentrations and estimate potential risk, and to

produce a high quality di

)r examining changes i
sdby EPA to asses;

immediately outside tl:
The pesticides residue data are being used to provide EPA with nationally representative i
and to reported use of household products. The data will be the foundation of a dataset fc
surface wipe samples for residential use insecticides showed that the concentration of 25 :

magnitude of these environmental
n of specific molds and ¦

and risks 01



Thear

re being used by

;a characterizing cu
future pesticide res

and pyrethroid insecticides were measured. Compounds long removed fron

:al-world data collected from AHHS will be used as input variables to evaluate and improve EPA's exposure and <
m other organizations to identify areas for future research, develop improved mitigation/risk reduction strategies.

int-use pesticide residue concentrations related to applicator and/or homeowner applied pesticides
re trend analyses. Preliminary findings based on the chemical analysis of 15% of the total hard
:o 102 ng/cm2. Concentrations of organophosphate, organochlorine

market (e.g. DDT, chlordane) and other recently deregistered compounds (e.g. chlorpyrifos, diazinon) w

modeling tools. Results from this study will be used by HUD, EPA, and risk as
reduce future health risks from environmental hazards.

0\ei vii'W

nvironmental Protection Agency's (EPA) National Exposure Research
|H Laboratory (NERL) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
/Development's (HUD) Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control
conducted a national survey of housing related hazards in US residences from May
2005 to March 2006. Collaboration between EPA and HUD was designed to:
* Produce a nationally representative database that will provide
concentrations of lead, allergens, mold, pesticides, and arsenic
US residences

Assess selected residential concentrations and housing ct
general p opulation

Produce first e\er national estimates of levels of additional housing related
hazards besides lead and allergens

Develop new distributions of residential concentrations Produce a high quality
database for examining changes in the occurrence and magnitude of these
environmental cc

AHHS Objectives

•	Results will be used to address a number of EPA and HUD research objectives,

. including improving our understanding of current environmental concentrations
,in US residences and the key factors influencing these concentrations

•	The data produced will be used to monitor the change in level of health hazards
in homes over time, where baseline data are available, and in refining the under-
standing of certain patterns identified in the HUD's National Survey of Lead and
Allergens in Housing (NSLAH) of 1999-2001

•	Produce (remove - first ever) national estimates of the levels of additional housing
related hazards including:

¦	Specific molds in house dusts

¦	Residential use pesticides
in indoor house dusts and soils

\

Study Design

\

*	Data collected from participants in private & public residences

*	.Nationally representative data reflective of real-world environmental
commonly found in and around the nation's residences

*	EPA sample collection included surface wipe samples from a common living
homeowner vacuum bags, and soil samples from outside of the home

*	Samples and survey information were collected during a single day

Nation

Sample of PSUs

Sample of Segments

zz

Sample of Housing
Units

If

Housing Units

Sample of Rooms

Q

Samples Collected
Inside and Outside
of Homes

EPA Sample Collection and Analysis

Standard EPA protocols used for samyU collection and analysis
Hard surface floor wipes (pesticides):

•	Surface wipe procedure was used to
collect pesticide deposits and residues
from hard floor surfaces

•	Pesticide residue data will provide
EPA with nationally representative
data characterizing current-use
pesticides and.household products

•	Residential use pesticides will be
related to resident questionnaires.

applicator and/or homeowner applied
pesticides and household products

•	The data will be the foundation of a
dataset for future pesticide residue
trend analyses

Vacuum dustbags (mold);

•	Homeowner vacuum cleaner bags or dust

sedto identity and quantify

* Homeowner vacuum cleaner mold results were compared with results from a
.. — highly standardize d HUD MiTest (see NSLAH for additional

information) sampling dust protocol from the same home
• Mold will be related to observed
sr damage

ze spatial and temporal
.n indoor mold c<

Vacuum dustbags (arsenic);

•. Homeowner
from bagless
• Homeowner



\

Hard surface floor wipes
(pesticides):

~	Chemical analysis of the hard surface
floor wipes indicate detectable concen-
trations of almost all targeted insectides
from the different classes (organophos-
phates, pyrethroids, organochlorines,
and fripronil)

~	Compounds long removed from the
consumer market (e.g. DDT, chlordane)
and other recently deiegistered
compounds (e.g. chlorpyrifos and
diazinon) were detected in residences

~	Current residential use pesticides such
as permethrin, pyrethrins fipronil,
allethrin, sumithrin, and deltamethrin
were among the highest concentrations
of insecticides measured

Vacuum dust bags (mold):

~	Vacuum dust samples from 157
residences have been analyzed using
mold-specific quantitative polymerase
chain reaction (MSQPCR) to identify
and quantify molds

~	Homeowner vacuum cleaner bag mold
results are consistent with the highly
standardized HUD MiTest dust
sampling protocol mold results to the
extent that homes can accurately be
divided into either above or below 50%
relative moldiness (see Vesper 2006 for
additional information on the EPA
Relative Moldiness Index)

~	EPA Relative Moldiness Index values
range from -10 to 30 (low to high
relative moldiness), with approximately
50% of homes below 0 and 50% above

Planned Products
and Uses

~	Abundance of data and information

will result, including but not limited to

manuscripts/reports on:

¦	Overall study design and sampling
methodology

¦	Lead results and methodology

¦	Allergen results and methodology

¦	Mold results and methodology

¦	Pesticide results and methodology

~	Study results used by HUD, EPA, and

others to:

¦	Examine changes in the occurrence
and magnitude of these environ-
mental concentrations over time

¦	Identify potential problems, need
for follow-up

¦	Develop and implement improved
mitigation/risk reduction strategies

¦	Reduce futuie health risks from

environmental hazards

Disclaimer

Although this work was reviewed by EPA and HUD
id approved for publication, it may not necessarily
reflect official Agencies' policy.

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