Increase in Airborne Lead Levels Detected During LA Fires
For a few days in January, airborne lead levels near Los Angeles more than doubled, according to the latest issue of CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). The data were captured by the Atmospheric Science and Chemistry Measurement Network (ASCENT), an initiative that provides continuous measurement of the components of PM2.5 at 12 sites in the United States.
The plume from the Eaton Canyon fire, which began Jan. 7, was carried by winds to the ASCENT site in Pico Rivera, California, approximately 14 miles to the south. From Jan. 8 to Jan. 11, the average PM2.5 lead concentration detected by ASCENT was 0.077 µg/m3, an approximate 110-fold increase over the average concentration during Jan. 2–6. The peak lead concentration recorded was 0.5 µg/m3 on Jan. 9.
EPA’s National Ambient Air Quality Standard for lead in total suspended particles is 0.15 µg/m3 over a three-month rolling average.
The Eaton Canyon fire burned more than 14,000 acres and destroyed or damaged nearly 10,500 structures, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The MMWR report notes that many of the structures burned in the Eaton Canyon and Palisades fires were built before the U.S. ban on lead paint went into effect in 1978.
“[U]nlike chronic lead exposure, which has been widely studied, the health effects of brief, elevated lead exposures [. . .] are not well understood,” the MMWR report states. “Additional health research is needed, because airborne lead levels alone do not necessarily indicate exposure.” The report notes that data from ASCENT can help meet the need for studies that characterize the contributions of PM2.5 particle sources, chemical compounds, and sizes to health effects.
Read the report in the Feb. 20 issue of MMWR. More information about ASCENT is available online.
Related: Three recent posts to SynergistNOW address health and safety issues related to the Los Angeles fires: “An Interview with Michelle Rosales on the Los Angeles Wildfires,” “The LA Fires: Considerations for the Public,” and “The LA Fires: Considerations for OEHS Professionals.”
