Volatile organic compounds at two oil and natural gas production well pads in Colorado and Texas using passive samplers

Eisele, Adam P.; Mukerjee, Shaibal; Smith, Luther; Thoma, Eben D.; Whitaker, D. R.; Oliver, Karen D.; Wu, Tai Te; Colón, Maribel; Alston, Lillian; Cousett, Tamira A.; Miller, Michael C.; Smith, D. M.; Stallings, Casson

doi:10.1080/10962247.2016.1141808

Cited by 32 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 21 publications

(27 reference statements)

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“…et al, 2014 [ 71 ] Mobile measurement of methane and hydrogen sulfide at natural gas production site fence lines in the Texas Barnett Shale Barnett Eisele, AP. et al, 2016 [ 72 ] Volatile organic compounds at two oil and natural gas production well pads in Colorado and Texas using passive samplers Barnett; Denver-Julesburg Esswein, EJ. et al, 2014 [ 73 ] Evaluation of some potential chemical exposure risks during flowback operations in unconventional oil and gas extraction: Preliminary results Denver-Julesburg; Green River; Piceance Field, RA.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the endocrine activity of air pollutants associated with unconventional oil and gas extraction

et al. 2018

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BackgroundIn the last decade unconventional oil and gas (UOG) extraction has rapidly proliferated throughout the United States (US) and the world. This occurred largely because of the development of directional drilling and hydraulic fracturing which allows access to fossil fuels from geologic formations that were previously not cost effective to pursue. This process is known to use greater than 1,000 chemicals such as solvents, surfactants, detergents, and biocides. In addition, a complex mixture of chemicals, including heavy metals, naturally-occurring radioactive chemicals, and organic compounds are released from the formations and can enter air and water. Compounds associated with UOG activity have been linked to adverse reproductive and developmental outcomes in humans and laboratory animal models, which is possibly due to the presence of endocrine active chemicals.MethodsUsing systematic methods, electronic searches of PubMed and Web of Science were conducted to identify studies that measured chemicals in air near sites of UOG activity. Records were screened by title and abstract, relevant articles then underwent full text review, and data were extracted from the studies. A list of chemicals detected near UOG sites was generated. Then, the potential endocrine activity of the most frequently detected chemicals was explored via searches of literature from PubMed.ResultsEvaluation of 48 studies that sampled air near sites of UOG activity identified 106 chemicals detected in two or more studies. Ethane, benzene and n-pentane were the top three most frequently detected. Twenty-one chemicals have been shown to have endocrine activity including estrogenic and androgenic activity and the ability to alter steroidogenesis. Literature also suggested that some of the air pollutants may affect reproduction, development, and neurophysiological function, all endpoints which can be modulated by hormones. These chemicals included aromatics (i.e., benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene), several polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and mercury.ConclusionThese results provide a basis for prioritizing future primary studies regarding the endocrine disrupting properties of UOG air pollutants, including exposure research in wildlife and humans. Further, we recommend systematic reviews of the health impacts of exposure to specific chemicals, and comprehensive environmental sampling of a broader array of chemicals.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12940-018-0368-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the endocrine activity of air pollutants associated with unconventional oil and gas extraction

et al. 2018

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“…General information on EPA's use of passive samplers, including deployment methods, validation comparisons, and laboratory analysis and analytical components, is described elsewhere (Eisele et al, 2016;McClenny et al, 2005McClenny et al, , 2006Mukerjee et al, 2009;Thoma et al, 2011Thoma et al, , 2015, with specific details of the Philadelphia passive sampler and sensor study in Thoma et al (2015). With the exception of deployment locations, sampling methods applied were similar to EPA Methods 325A and 325B (EPA, 2015a;2015b).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Continuing these near-source monitoring efforts, the EPA recently conducted VOC monitoring studies using Carbopack X passive sampling tubes at sites near and away from fenceline locations at a petroleum refinery and other operations in South Philadelphia (Thoma et al, 2015) and at oil and natural gas operations (Eisele et al, 2016). This paper details the results of the South Philadelphia study in terms of spatial gradients.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial analysis of volatile organic compounds in South Philadelphia using passive samplers

Mukerjee

Smith

Thoma

et al. 2016

Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association

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Select volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were measured in the vicinity of a petroleum refinery and related operations in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, using passive air sampling and laboratory analysis methods. Two-week, time-integrated samplers were deployed at 17 sites, which were aggregated into five site groups of varying distances from the refinery. Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene isomers (BTEX) and styrene concentrations were higher near the refinery's fenceline than for groups at the refinery's south edge, mid-distance, and farther removed locations. The near fenceline group was significantly higher than the refinery's north edge group for benzene and toluene but not for ethylbenzene or xylene isomers; styrene was lower at the near fenceline group versus the north edge group. For BTEX and styrene, the magnitude of estimated differences generally increased when proceeding through groups ever farther away from the petroleum refining. Perchloroethylene results were not suggestive of an influence from refining. These results suggest that emissions from the refinery complex contribute to higher concentrations of BTEX species and styrene in the vicinity of the plant, with this influence declining as distance from the petroleum refining increases.Implications: Passive sampling methodology for VOCs as discussed here is employed in recently enacted U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Methods 325A/B for determination of benzene concentrations at refinery fenceline locations. Spatial gradients of VOC concentration near the refinery fenceline were discerned in an area containing traffic and other VOC-related sources. Though limited, these findings can be useful in application of the method at such facilities to ascertain source influence.PAPER HISTORY

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“…Of the chemical hazards, the process of OG extraction releases volatile organic compounds (VOCs) directly into the air. Multiple studies have identified several VOCs in the air near OG operations in Colorado [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 ]. Some of these VOCs are categorized as hazardous air pollutants by the U.S. EPA and Colorado Regulation 3 (5 CCR 1001-5) due to their potential to cause adverse health effects, such as cancer, neurological, developmental and reproductive effects and some have the capacity to alter endocrine activity at some exposure level [ 24 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposures and Health Risks from Volatile Organic Compounds in Communities Located near Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Activities in Colorado (U.S.A.)

McMullin

Bamber

Bon

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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The study objective was to use a preliminary risk based framework to evaluate the sufficiency of existing air data to answer an important public health question in Colorado: Do volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted into the air from oil and gas (OG) operations result in exposures to Coloradoans living at or greater than current state setback distances (500 feet) from OG operations at levels that may be harmful to their health? We identified 56 VOCs emitted from OG operations in Colorado and compiled 47 existing air monitoring datasets that measured these VOCs in 34 locations across OG regions. From these data, we estimated acute and chronic exposures and compared these exposures to health guideline levels using maximum and mean air concentrations. Acute and chronic non-cancer hazard quotients were below one for all individual VOCs. Hazard indices combining exposures for all VOCs were slightly above one. Lifetime excess cancer risk estimates for benzene were between 1.0 × 10−5–3.6 × 10−5 and ethylbenzene was 7.3 × 10−6. This evaluation identified a small sub-set of VOCs, including benzene and n-nonane, which should be prioritized for additional exposure characterization in site-specific studies that collect comprehensive time-series measurements of community scale exposures to better assess community exposures.

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Volatile organic compounds at two oil and natural gas production well pads in Colorado and Texas using passive samplers

Cited by 32 publications

References 21 publications

Exploring the endocrine activity of air pollutants associated with unconventional oil and gas extraction

Exploring the endocrine activity of air pollutants associated with unconventional oil and gas extraction

Spatial analysis of volatile organic compounds in South Philadelphia using passive samplers

Exposures and Health Risks from Volatile Organic Compounds in Communities Located near Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Activities in Colorado (U.S.A.)

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