Hazardous Waste Site Project
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The New Jersey Department of Health has had a long term relationship with the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) through a series of cooperative agreements. This project is concerned with assessing and preventing human exposure to contamination at New Jersey sites listed on the National Priorities List ("Superfund sites"), and at other sites at the request of concerned individuals and organizations.
The Project conducts the following activities:
Public Health Assessments:
A Health Assessment is an evaluation and statement of the public health issues related to a contaminated site. Environmental data, health outcome data, and community health concerns are all considered in the process of developing a Health Assessment in order to:
- identify human exposures and hazardous conditions associated with a site
- identify past, current or future impact on public health
- develop health advisories or other health recommendations
- identify populations living or working near the sites for further studies or actions
Every New Jersey site on the National Priorities List has had a Health Assessment completed.
Public Health Consultation:
A Health Consultation is similar to a Public Health Assessment, but is designed to answer a focused question about the site and its health impact. Many sites have had at least one Health Consultation.
Public Health Advisories:
A Public Health Advisory is issued in rare instances where contamination poses an immediate and significant danger to public health.
Exposure Investigations:
As part of a Health Assessment, Consultation or Advisory, it may be necessary to perform limited human exposure measurements. This may include biological sampling (e.g., blood, urine, or hair) of nearby residents, or additional environmental sampling of potential areas of exposure. Large scale biological sampling may be continued by the Health Studies Project. Large scale environmental sampling is performed by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection or the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Community Services:
The project helps community members and area health care providers to receive
relevant public health information about a site. In addition to developing written
materials listed under Educational Materials, Community
Services provides one-hour CME-approved seminars for physicians and other health
care professionals on specific sites and environmental health issues. Please contact
the Project at (609) 584-5367 for additional information and scheduling.
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Updated: October 14, 1997
Hazardous
Waste Site Project