Public Health Assessment

Prepared by:

Massachusetts Department of Public Health

Center for Environmental Health

Community Assessment Program

Boston, Massachusetts

Public Health Service

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

United States Department of Health and Human Services

Atlanta, Georgia

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. SUMMARY

The investigation provides a review of available environmental data for the OCRR site, considers potential ways people may come in contact with chemicals from this facility, and evaluates the pattern of cancer in East Bridgewater with a particular focus on neighborhoods near areas of community environmental concern. Information about Alloy Castings Company was obtained from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the East Bridgewater Board of Health; however, there was no available environmental data related to the company. Therefore, evaluation of community concerns in relation to Alloy Castings Company was limited to a qualitative evaluation of the geographic pattern of cancer diagnoses in neighborhood areas surrounding the company.

Using data from the Massachusetts Cancer Registry (MCR), incidence rates for eight cancer types were calculated for the town of East Bridgewater as a whole as well as for each of the three census tracts (CTs) that divide the town. Available information about risk factors, including environmental factors, related to the development of cancer was considered. In general, the eight cancer types evaluated occurred near expected rates from 1982 to 2000, the period for which the most recent and complete cancer incidence data were available from the MCR at the time of this analysis, for the town of East Bridgewater as a whole and for the census tracts (CTs) that comprise the town. In addition, none of the cancer types thought to be associated with exposures to contaminants of concern identified at the OCRR site were statistically significantly elevated in CT 5231, the census tract that contains both the site and Alloy Castings Company. Leukemia was statistically significantly elevated among females in East Bridgewater as a whole from 1988 to 1993. However, no apparent geographic concentrations of cases were noted. In addition, a variety of different subtypes of leukemia were represented. This indicates the occurrence of different diseases because the four major subtypes and rarer subtypes each have different risk factors related to their development.

Review of the geographic distribution of each of the cancer types in East Bridgewater revealed no apparent spatial patterns at the neighborhood level. Further, no unusual concentrations of individuals diagnosed with cancer were observed in the vicinity of the OCRR site, Alloy Castings Company, in the Ashley Drive area, or in any other area of East Bridgewater.



There are some potential exposure pathways that may have occurred in the past related to the OCRR site. Past intermittent exposures to onsite surface soil, surface water, and sediment and offsite surface soil may have been possible for trespassers, former workers, or nearby residents. However, based on the contaminant levels detected and the frequency and duration of contact expected, it is unlikely that potential exposures related to the OCRR site would have resulted in adverse health effects for trespassers, former workers, or nearby residents. While soil, surface water, and sediment in some areas of the OCRR site were contaminated in the past, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) performed contaminant removal activities at the site in 2001. Therefore, exposure to contamination in soil, surface water, or sediment in the present and future for individuals visiting or residing in neighborhoods adjacent to the site is unlikely. Potential exposure to vinyl chloride volatilized to indoor air may be possible for downgradient Spring Street residents if this contaminant is present in shallow groundwater beneath homes at concentrations similar to those detected in onsite monitoring wells in 1988. Because offsite groundwater conditions are unknown, it would be beneficial to address this data gap with additional investigation, for example, hydrogeological modeling or groundwater sampling at downgradient locations. Based on criteria established by ATSDR, the OCRR site would be classified as posing an Indeterminate Health Hazard in the past, present, and future.