On November 14, 2003, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the EPA Superfund Technical Assessment and Response Team (START) contractor responded to a residence in Olathe, Kansas, to conduct air monitoring where a release of approximately 1-2 milliliters (ml) of elemental mercury had occurred. The release reportedly occurred on November 9, 2003, when a thermometer was broken in the carpeted family room of the residence. The homeowner subsequently notified the EPA of the release via EPA’s 24-hour Spill Line. Tetra Tech START member (STM) Ryan Schuler responded to the incident, along with EPA Region 7 on-scene coordinator (OSC) Paul Doherty.
The EPA and START arrived at the residence, located at 11342 S. Millview Road in Olathe, Kansas, at approximately 1300 hours on November 14, 2003. The residence is a two-story, wood-framed structure about 25 miles southwest of downtown Kansas City, Missouri. Land use in the immediate vicinity of the site is primarily residential. Olathe, which is located in Johnson County, has a population of approximately 106,000.
The EPA/START personnel were informed by the property owner that after the release occurred, a teenage son used a pipette to recover visible beads of mercury from the spill area. A section of carpeting was then cut from the area where the spill had occurred. The recovered mercury and carpeting had been placed into a garbage bag and disposed by the property owner as household waste.
The EPA/START utilized a Jerome Mercury Vapor Analyzer (Jerome) and a LumexTM RA-915+ Mercury Analyzer (LumexTM) to screen for mercury vapors at locations in the residence that may have been impacted by the release. All real-time readings recorded with the Jerome were below the instrument’s detection limit of 3,000 nanograms per cubic meter (ng/m3). The LumexTM , which has a detection limit of 50 ng/m3, was used to perform followup monitoring at the residence; readings recorded with the LumexTM are included in the attached report.
The EPA/START applied mercury absorbent powder to the spill area to recover any residual mercury from the floor where the carpeting had been removed. After the powder was swept from the floor, LumexTM readings in the spill area were around 1,130 ng/m3, approximately 4 inches above the floor, and 400 to 500 ng/m3 in the breathing zone. Because no readings were detected above 1,000 ng/m3 in the breathing zone of the home (an action level established by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry [ATSDR]), there did not appear to be any remaining health threats that would warrant further Superfund response. Prior to the EPA/START’s departure, the homeowner was advised to heat and ventilate the residence to further reduce residual mercury vapors in the home. On-scene coordinator (OSC) Doherty offered to return to the residence to conduct follow-up monitoring after the heating and venting had been conducted; however, no request for follow-up monitoring was received by the EPA.
No further action is planned. Based on a visual assessment of the residence and on air monitoring results obtained with a LumexTM RA-915+, it appears that remaining mercury levels at the site do not warrant any additional removal activities.
No further action is planned. Based on a visual assessment of the residence and on air monitoring results obtained with a LumexTM RA-915+, it appears that remaining mercury levels at the site do not warrant any additional removal activities.
No further action is planned. Pre-remedial issues are addressed in an attached Pre-CERCLIS screening form (see Appendix C). Because no adverse effects appear to be present to human health or the environment as a result of the spill, no pre-remedial activities are warranted at this time.
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