Carnegie Mellon air quality data shows levels of ‘potential concern’ from Ohio derailment site

Carnegie Mellon University scientists monitoring the air near the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment site found levels of pollution from most chemicals measured to be of low or minimal risk, but at least one pollutant was detected at levels of “potential concern.”

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon and Texas A&M University teamed up to monitor air quality in and around East Palestine on Feb. 20 and 21. The community of 4,700 people is about 50 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.

A Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous materials derailed on Feb. 3, starting a fire that burned for days. The rail company conducted a controlled burn of five tankers that had been hauling vinyl chloride to avoid a potential explosion. It sent a dark plume of smoke over the East Palestine area.

Air testing data collected by the universities showed all values of benzene, toluene, xylenes and vinyl chloride were below the minimal risk levels for the intermediate range of exposure, which looks at air quality for 15 days to 1 year.

CMU said there were no “hot spots” detected by mobile sampling and its data corroborates reports taken by the Environmental Protection Agency on Feb. 8 and Feb. 22, according to a news release.

The universities also tested for acrolein, a hazardous gas formed from the breakdown of certain pollutants found in outdoor air such as the burning of organic matter including tobacco or from the burning of fuels such as gasoline or oil, according to the EPA.

Albert Presto — a Carnegie Mellon professor and a member of the university’s Center for Atmospheric Particle Studies — said data showed acrolein levels were out of typical ranges for the pollutant.

“Our mobile sampling results show that for many of these pollutants, the concentrations are within typical ranges. Acrolein remains a chemical of potential concern,” Presto said.

Carnegie Mellon has been performing air quality testing from its mobile lab for years and said its lab has several high-time-resolution and chemically specific pieces of equipment to identify air pollutants and emission sources in real time.

The universities’ analysis confirms potential long-term health concerns previously noted by the EPA’s acrolein air data. CMU compared East Palestine’s acrolein levels to those in Downtown Pittsburgh on the same day and found that East Palestine’s levels ranged from five times lower in some parts of the local area to three times higher in other parts, according to a release.

(3/3) Mobile sampling/data analysis by @CAPS_CMU & @tamusuperfund shows Acrolein in East Palestine on 2/20/2023 ranged from 5x lower to 3x higher than in downtown Pittsburgh (PA) with map showing strong geographic variation within the community. Note this was only 1 sampling trip pic.twitter.com/YPM1gWwHeh

— Texas A&M Superfund Research Center (@tamusuperfund) March 3, 2023

On Thursday, the EPA ordered Norfolk Southern to begin testing for dioxins. The World Health Organization said the group of toxic chemical compounds can persist in the environment for long periods.

The EPA said testing so far has suggested there’s a low chance that dioxins were released from the derailment.

The EPA has said that readings have shown no adverse impact to air quality so far. Ivan Rusyn of Texas A&M told CNN that doesn’t mean the new findings contradict the others.

“I think it’s important for the public to understand that all sides are right. No one’s lying to them,” Rusyn said to CNN on Wednesday. “It’s just that every time you’re sharing information, whether it’s Administrator of EPA Michael Regan or Gov. (Mike) DeWine or someone from Ohio EPA, when they say certain things are ‘safe,’ they really need to explain what they mean.”

It’s unclear how large the range is where dioxins or acrolein might be affecting regional air quality. Meteorologists at the National Weather Service told the Tribune-Review last month that during the time of the controlled burn, the wind carried anything from the East Palestine area to the south-southeast — including sparsely populated areas in western Washington and Greene counties and eventually on to an area west of Morgantown in West Virginia.

Air pollution also tends to dissipate the farther it travels.

A Carnegie Mellon map shows that acrolein levels on Feb. 20 were highest in the center of East Palestine, but there also were elevated levels across the state line in Beaver County’s Darlington Township.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.