Fforestfach tyre fire BKK full version

Background – tyre fires • EU Landfill Directive bans disposal of tyres, whole or shredded to landfill – have to be recycled • 10 large tyre dumps across the UK contain 13m tyres • Total UK annual estimates vary – approximately 500,000t 2011 – Swansea 2010 – Wem (Shropshire) Mexborough (Yorkshire) 2009 – Baglan, Port Talbot • SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC HEALTH RISK • ILLEGAL STOCKPILING INCREASING PROBLEM Fforestfach tyre fire • Tyre fire at warehouse on industrial estate (16611) • Source material est. 5,000 tonnes of tyre flock • Dark, dense smoke plume • Burned for over 3 weeks • Air quality monitoring established at outset (AQC) • Met conditions varied over time • Plausible that all within a 2km radius were exposed • Novel fire fighting techniques required • Major incident declared

Public Health Wales

Fforestfach tyre fire: the public health

response

Professor David Russell, The WHO Collaborating Centre for Chemical Incidents

Public Health Wales

Background – tyre fires

Health Protection Agency

• EU Landfill Directive bans disposal of tyres, whole or

shredded to landfill – have to be recycled

• 10 large tyre dumps across the UK contain 13m tyres

• Total UK annual estimates vary – approximately 500,000t

- 2011 – Swansea

- 2010 – Wem (Shropshire) & Mexborough (Yorkshire)

- 2009 – Baglan, Port Talbot

• SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC HEALTH RISK

• ILLEGAL STOCKPILING INCREASING PROBLEM

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Public Health Wales

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Public Health Wales

Fforestfach tyre fire

Health Protection Agency

• Tyre fire at warehouse on industrial estate (16/6/11)

• Source material est 5,000 tonnes of tyre flock

• Dark, dense smoke plume

• Burned for over 3 weeks

• Air quality monitoring established at outset (AQC)

• Met conditions varied over time

• Plausible that all within a 2km radius were exposed

• Novel fire fighting techniques required

• Major incident declared

Questions; Hazard Identification

• What chemicals could have been

released?

• What are the hazardous properties?

Public Health Wales

Questions: Hazard Characterisation

• What properties of the chemical(s) have the potential to cause adverse health

effects?

• Do guidelines from international

organisations exist for the chemical(s)?

• What assumptions are made about

exposure and dose?

• Do these assumptions reflect the local population?

Public Health Wales

Sensitive Receptors

Areas and specific buildings under

plume that may have residents more

sensitive to pollutants including

• Schools / nurseries (children)

• Care Homes (elderly / infirm)

• Hospitals / health centres (ill/pregnant)

Other Receptors

• General Residential Communities

• Commercial Properties

Schools Sheltered Complexes Nursing Homes

Receptors

X

Use Met and chemical data to predict direction and distance travelled by

plume incorporating

• Wind direction / Speed

• Ambient Temperature / Pressure

Health Protection Agency

Public Health Wales

Air quality monitoring

General principles:

• Environmental monitoring (sampling) during acute chemical incidents informs public health risk assessment

• Monitoring provides a measure of the environmental

concentrations of selected chemicals over time

• Monitoring is most useful when carried out at receptor

locations (i.e places where people are - exposed)

• Environmental concentrations can be compared to based exposure standards

health-• Monitoring can provide reassurance

Health Protection Agency

Particulates

• PM10 near source over 6000 μg/m 3

• Peaks above Trigger 1 and Trigger 2

• 24 hour means exceeding Trigger 1

• No 24 hour means above Trigger 2

•Plume shifting with changing wind direction reducing exposure time for each area affected

Gases

• Odours detected over very wide areas

• No values above AEGL 2

Asbestos

• Controls for safe removal and disposal of wastes

Results and observations

Monitoring Data – Particulates (Running 24 Hour Means)

PM 10 monitoring results

Air Quality Index

activities

reduce strenuous outdoor activity outdoors

reduce activity + those experiencing

discomfort

avoid physical exertion plus reduction in others who experience

Chemical Hazards & Poisons Division (Cardiff)

www.hpa.org.

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Threshold Levels

•Action levels developed in 2009.

•Guidelines based on scientific theory

•24-hour average values of

160-180ug/m3 identified as levels to

consider evacuation vs sheltering.

•24-hour values of 320-360 ug/m3

identified as threshold for which

immediate public health intervention

may be needed.

• Based on prolonged duration i.e

d Chemical Hazards & Poisons Division (Cardiff)k

www.hpa.org.

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Health Based Standards / Triggers

Particulates – 24 hour running means

(ug/m 3 15 min mean)

Carbon Monoxide

(mg/m 3 8 hour mean)

130 or more

1064 or more

23.2 or more

Department of Health

*AEGL-2 is the airborne concentration above which it is predicted that the general population, including susceptible individuals,

could experience irreversible or other serious, long-lasting, adverse health effects or an impaired ability to escape.

Data interpretation

Questions: Risk Characterisation

• How do the concentrations compare with the guideline values?

Public Health Wales

Potential emissions

• Potential impacts on health and environment

• Gaseous pollutants, smoke and particulates

• Plume constituents vary – uncertainties about nature of burning material, fire characteristics, combustion

temperature, oxygen availability, ventilation

• Generally: PM; SO2; heavy metals; CO; PAHs; organics e.g benzene, phenols, styrene; inorganic irritants e.g Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans

Health Protection Agency

Public Health Wales

Public health context

health and development, birth outcomes?

to biological interactions and cancers

exposure linked to lung and skin cancer

Health Protection Agency

Questions: Risk mitigation

• What could be done to reduce the risk to the public?

Public Health Wales

Public Health Wales

Epidemiological evidence

Studies indicate 10 µg/m3 increase in PM10 (24-hour average) is associated with a 0.75%

increase in all-cause mortality (COMEAP)

Health Protection Agency

Public Health Wales

Public health messages

• Widespread advice to shelter

• When outdoor concentrations of PM10 are predicted to be greater than an

average of 160µg/m 3 over a 24 hour period in an area then schools, nurseries, day care facilities for the elderly and similar facilities should be closed

• When outdoor concentrations of PM10 in an area have been greater than an average of 320µg/m 3 over a 24 hour period, AND it is predicted that

concentrations of greater than an average of 320µg/m 3 over a 24 hour period will continue for at least another 24 hours then adverse health effects are likely

to be significant and evacuation of that area should be considered

• Decision to return should NOT be based on a simple reversal of criteria.

Public Health Wales

Public health follow-up

Cross sectional survey

• To measure the mental health impacts associated with the Fforestfach fire

• To assess what information and advice about the incident was received by

people in affected areas, and what sources of information were

• To identify a cohort of individuals that can be followed up in the future to assess psychological morbidity associated with the Fforestfach fire in the medium (12 months) and longer term (2 years)

Prospective cohort study

• To determine impact of the Fforestfach fire on acute and chronic health

outcomes within the local population, using routinely collected information held

in health and other datasets

Health Protection Agency

Public Health Wales

Fforestfach tyre fire: the public health

response

Huw Brunt, Public Health Wales