CDC/NIOSH Involvement in the Anthrax Response – a Look at Remediation

Details

• Personal Author:
  Burr, Gregory A. ; Gillen, Matthew
• Description:
  Field investigators from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have been extensively involved since October 200I in anthrax responses in Florida, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Missouri, and Washington, D.C. The main objectives of these investigations were to provide the initial assessment of environmental contamination, develop and evaluate environmental sampling techniques, and provide recommendations to minimize exposures. NIOSH investigators then provide input to remediation plans, especially in the review of verification sampling used to evaluate the results of remediation to eventually "clear" the facility. Our goal is to insure that the most current and valid methods are used, and that sampling plans are rigorous. This presentation will discuss technical issues involved in creating effective clearance sampling plans for facilities contaminated with B. anthracis, including the types of environmental samples to collect, the rationale for their collection, coverage goals, and comparison with previous remediation efforts. The framework of a remediation plan utilized in two large buildings in Washington, D.C. that were contaminated with B. anthracis will be examined, including the usefulness of information from focused, biased, and random environmental sampling to assess if a building is safe for re-occupancy. This presentation will also examine the knowledge gaps which continue to exist for B. anthracis, such as the lack of validated environmental sampling methods and uncertainties regarding dose-response relationships for inhalational and cutaneous anthrax, and how these uncertainties influence the determination of when a workplace contaminated with B. anthracis is "safe" to reoccupy. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biological Products Biological Warfare Agents Chemical Warfare Agents Environmental Exposure Environmental Pollution Hazardous Substances Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Biohazards Biological-agents Biological-warfare-agents Biological-weapons Chemical-warfare-agents Environmental-contamination Environmental-exposure Occupational-exposure Occupational-hazards Occupational-health Sampling Sampling-methods

  More +
• Publisher:
  American Industrial Hygiene Association
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  District of Columbia ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies ; OD - Office of the Director
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  56
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20022833
• Citation:
  American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition, May 10-15, 2003, Dallas, Texas. Fairfax, VA: American Industrial Hygiene Association, 2003 May; :56
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2003
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition, May 10-15, 2003, Dallas, Texas
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:50b51671866b45522522ef16fa7511ab9d8247817e9edd482dc45126a723ddc387f9630d9c9511245b636126c71e2b93f83876ec0a443eabe207d0cb37d36c8d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/199470/cdc_199470_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 600.48 KB ]