WV TAP Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

WV TAP Recommends More Research, Precautions After Research

An independent research team hired by Gov. Tomblin to further study the chemical that contaminated the water supply of 300,00 West Virginians in January released their final report Thursday.

The West Virginia Testing Assessment Project, or WVTAP, began studying MCHM in February and has released results along the way. Thursday’s report includes their previously released findings and recommendations for moving forward.

The group recommends the state create a chemical storage inventory program, something they accomplished during the previous legislative session. They also say state officials should consider bringing independent experts, like them, on board as early as possible during a time of crisis.

WVTAP says a study on the health effects from long term exposure to the chemical is necessary, but is something they did not have the resources to take on.

They also recommend water utilities inventory the chemicals in close proximity to their source water and utilize early warning systems.

Timeline: A Look Back at the WV TAP Project

Click here to view the timeline full screen.

When the contract was initially announced in February, Tomblin said he would set aside about $650,000 for the project. Less than two weeks later, members of the team asked for an additional $112,000 to pay for unanticipated costs.

According to records from the state Auditor’s Office, the state was billed a total of $814,995 to Corona Environmental Consulting, LLC, the lead partner in the WVTAP project. As recently as June 24, the state made a payment of $57,563.

A screenshot from the West Virginia Auditor’s website. The list depicts every payment the state has on file with the vendor Corona Environmental Consulting, LLC.

A spokeswoman for the DHHR said Friday the list of payments above shows a discrepancy in reporting versus the actual amount spent. An invoice for $50,000 was incorrectly entered into the system in March and later canceled. According to the Auditor’s Office, the total state pay out for the program was $757,431.87.

Rosen said there are no plans yet to present their findings to the West Virginia Legislature, but water utilities around the country have already contacted his group for information about their findings.

Researchers Recommend Testing of 720 Homes Affected by Elk River Spill

An independent research group suggests sampling water in 720 West Virginia homes for a chemical that spilled into the water supply in January.

Researchers from the West Virginia Testing Assessment Project, or WV TAP, say that number of homes would be “statistically defensible” in determining whether affected households are chemical-free.

The group sampled 10 homes in February for crude MCHM using state taxpayer dollars. Each contained chemical traces, but the concentrations were about 675 times weaker than what federal officials call safe to drink. The report says levels of the chemical have continued to decline since the spill.

However, researchers say at the time of the writing of the 24-page report, some residents in the area continue to report odors in their tap water not detected before the spill.

It’s unclear how much additional testing would cost. The group used $765,000 from the state to test 10 homes, along with conducting other related studies.

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin spokesman Chris Stadelman says the administration is awaiting WV TAP’s final report before determining next steps.

The spill contaminated water for 300,000 people for days.

Panel Deems CDC Screening Level for MCHM 'Safe', Establishes Own 8 Times As Strict

Independent researchers working together on the taxpayer-funded WV TAP project have already released an expert odor analysis for Crude MCHM, and have delivered the findings of their 10 home testing pilot project. However, the public has repeatedly called for an understanding of potential health effects from the January spill of Crude MCHM by Freedom Industries.

On Thursday, an expert panel reviewed available health effects data on the chemicals involved in the spill, evaluated the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s short term drinking water screening level and also offered their own.

WV TAP’s health effects panel was chaired by Dr. Michael Dourson of Cincinnati-based nonprofit consulting firm Toxicology Excellence for Risk Assessment, or TERA. Experts reviewed the CDC’s short term drinking water screening level and also established their own for the chemicals in question. All this while not just considering those who ingested the contaminated water, but also those whose skin may have been exposed or inhaled the chemical.

The panel also expanded upon the CDC’s safety factor of exposure on a one-year old child and extended it to what they deem the most highly exposed population: a formula-fed infant.

“So, we have safe levels of exposure that are protective of all populations and these are average levels for up to 28 days because that’s the length of the study,” said Dourson referring to prior research on MCHM conducted on rats.

“Now, some people would argue that, you know, a rat 28 days is not a human 28 days. And that’s correct. That’s probably a little bit more in humans.”

Dourson said the CDC used “traditional methods” in determining their 1 part per million short term drinking water screening level. He said the federal agency’s number is “reasonable” and should be considered “safe.”

Still yet, Dourson and WV TAP determined their own screening levels for the chemicals involved in the Freedom Industries spill. WV TAP’s review of available data on crude MCHM yielded their own screening level eight times as stringent as the CDC’s.

“For 28 days and the average level [of daily exposure], these levels are 120 parts per billion for MCHM, which is different than the CDC number. 250 parts per billion for DiPPH, which the CDC did not give a number. We were able to see the data and feel comfortable enough to do this,” Dourson explained.

“And then 850 parts per billion for PPH. The CDC gave a number of 1,200, I believe.”

The WV TAP panel made use of a literature review compiled by Dr. Craig Adams of Utah State University, email correspondence with the CDC, as well as syndromic surveillance data provided by Dr. Rahul Gupta of the Kanawha Charleston Health Department.

Health data compiled by the Bureau for Public Health from doctors practicing in the Kanawha Valley in the wake of the spill, which is currently being reviewed by the CDC, was not available to panel.

Dourson said WV TAP researchers would like to see additional studies on MCHM and skin irritation, the effect of the chemical on pregnant animals, as well as proper organization of all available data on exposures and health effects from immediately following the spill.

“Again, I wanted to emphasize these are preliminary findings. The levels that were coming up were safe,” said Dourson. “The chemicals themselves—you know, from a look at all of the toxicity—they’re not very toxic. But, there still is a concern.”

WV TAP project manager Jeff Rosen contextualized the panel’s findings by referring to a recent expert odor analysis study by Dr. Michael McGuire, as well as the 10 home testing project overseen by Dr. Andrew Whelton.

The highest levels of MCHM from home testing came in at 6.1 parts per billion, although expert odor analysis indicated Crude MCHM can be detected as low as 0.15 parts per billion.

“Those levels that can be smelled are way below the level that Dr. Dourson just reported to you that are safe. Way below,” said Rosen.

“So, you can smell the Crude MCHM at levels that are dramatically, at least two orders of magnitude—two, maybe three, orders of magnitude—lower than the levels that are safe for your consumption, he added.”

Yet, despite WV TAP’s evaluation thus far, members of the public remain suspicious. Maya Nye of People Concerned About Chemical Safety, pressed for answers.

“I read in some of the reports that PPH was noted as being harmful to aquatic life, slightly toxic. Focal necrosis was something that was listed as a potential health risk,” Nye began in asking a question about a recent report from the Wall Street Journal, which cited a 1998 Material Safety Data Sheet on MCHM.

The document indicated potential blood disorders as a result of exposure to the chemical.

“In the 28 day study, one of the effects—that was this idea of first adverse effect, critical—was anemia and one of them was damage to the kidney,” explained Dourson in response to Nye’s question.

He said the WV TAP panel took this into consideration, as did the CDC.

WV TAP’s $760,000-plus contract ends May 15, at which time the group plans to submit a proposal for an expanded home testing program currently being designed by Rosen. No funding has yet been approved by Governor Tomblin to continue the research.

Tomblin said during a Tuesday press conference that , in order to continue the project or provide any more funding to WV TAP, the state would have to write a new contract and put it out for bidding. The process would work the same as any other contract would be required under state purchasing procedures.

The team’s initial funding was granted under executive powers that allow the governor to approve funding during a state of emergency, but that state of emergency is no longer in place.

WV TAP Says MCHM Lingers in 10 Homes Tested in Pilot Project

Taxpayer-funded researchers say the 10 West Virginia homes they tested each contained traces of a chemical that spilled into their water supply in January.

In samples taken Feb. 11-18, chemical remnants were generally about 675 times less concentrated than the federal safe drinking level for the chemical in water. The independent WV TAP group discussed results Friday at West Virginia State University.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SL7J0dCqxVA
The Jan. 9 spill contaminated 300,000 people’s water for days.

Based on WV TAP’s suggestion, West Virginia American Water conducted tests last week that found the spilled chemical was still coming out of its plant in treated water. Concentrations were about 2,000 times lower than the safe drinking level.

Researchers also plan to expand the in-home testing to 20-30 homes in each of 21 pressure zones affected by the initial do not use ban.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBeFMd-wzq4

The group has also finished an odor study and literature review. The total project cost $762,000 from the state.

WV TAP, Virginia Tech Studies Differ on Spilled Chemical Odor Analysis

A Virginia Tech study says a chemical that spilled into 300,000 West Virginians’ water supply in January stops smelling at a level 47 times stronger than other researchers found.

The group that discovered the lower chemical odor level questioned the Virginia Tech team’s methods.

The Virginia Tech group said in a news release that it detected the chemical in the air with specialized instruments. It used a gas law to calculate the corresponding odor threshold in water.

Michael McGuire of WV TAP, a state taxpayer-funded independent group, said in a news release that Virginia Tech focused on pure MCHM, instead of the “crude” version that spilled.

Both groups found the chemical’s licorice scent was present well below concentrations that federal officials deemed safe to consume in tap water.

Experts Say Lingering Odor Means Crude MCHM Remains in Water System

Researchers involved in a taxpayer-funded, independent water testing project in response to the January 9 spill by Freedom Industries began releasing findings earlier this week. The project, known as WV TAP, is currently attempting to determine the odor threshold for the chemical in question—crude MCHM. They are also investigating the safety factors applied by the CDC in determining how much chemical can be in water and still be called safe to drink.

Dr. Michael McGuire is conducting odor analysis panels to determine at what levels Crude MCHM can be smelled in the water. Results released Monday from an expert panel conducted by McGuire put that number at 0.15 parts per billion (ppb).

Researchers took time Tuesday to answer questions about the first round of studies that have been released.

To put that number in a bit of perspective, consider that testing conducted by the National Guard could detect levels down to 2 ppb, which indicates that the human nose has the ability to smell the chemical far better than analytical testing methods currently allow.

“It’s pretty clear, from some of the sampling and some of the anecdotal information, that all of the water that got into the distribution system doesn’t appear to have been flushed out of the system or out of peoples’ houses,” McGuire said.

“People are still smelling water that was associated with the original chemical spill and the aftermath.”

Dr. McGuire noted that while Crude MCHM isn’t any longer being introduced into West Virginia American Water’s intake, there’s little doubt the chemical lingers throughout the distribution system.

“People, as I’ve noted, can smell this compound at very, very low levels. So, if they have not flushed out their houses or their housing premise—plumbing systems—if there are any dead zones in the distribution containing this old water, people will still be able to smell it,” McGuire said.

“So that’s why, obviously, it’s essential that a flushing program be conducted and be conducted thoroughly,” he added.

While McGuire is handling odor analysis for Crude MCHM, WV TAP project manager Jeff Rosen of Corona Environmental Consulting has tapped Dr. Craig Adams of Utah State University’s Water Research Laboratory to conduct a literature review of toxicological studies on the chemical.

Asked whether current data would—or, should—allow for EPA regulation in regards to drinking water quality, Adams said the data available on the chemical is “much, much less” than what would be available for a compound for which the federal agency would make a regulatory determination.

“The reason for that, I believe, is because these compounds would not be expected to be commonly found in drinking water,”Adams said.

Based on Adams’ literature review, another expert panel will investigate whether the data available on the chemical was sufficient in the CDC’s determination that the water was “safe for use” at levels of Crude MCHM below 1 part per million (ppm).

He said exposure to the chemical in other ways, either by contact with skin or breathing, also needs to be considered.

“Dermal exposure and inhalation exposure are two potentially important routes for any contaminate—as well as ingestion through drinking water and, frankly, food and so on. So they are important routes to consider.”

As for the relationship between the black licorice odor of Crude MCHM and potential health effects for those exposed to the chemical, Dr. McGuire is careful not to link the two quite yet.

“There’s not a direct relationship between, of course, odor and toxicity. For some compounds you can smell it before it’s bad for you and for others it’s reversed,” McGuire said.

“In this case, we have an early warning system of the human nose to be able to detect when MCHM—the Crude MCHM—is present in the water.”

Researchers involved in the WV TAP project plan to convene in Charleston to release in-home testing results from 10 homes sampled across the region by Dr. Andrew Whelton of the University of South Alabama, a lead researcher on the project.