Oil sludge barns as objects of accumulated environmental damage and sources of public health risks

Abstract

Introduction. The research is vital given the task to quantify public health risks caused by objects of accumulated environmental damage. A health risk is a criterion to establish what objects of accumulated environmental damage should be considered priority ones for elimination. Our research goal was to assess and characterize public health risks caused by oil sludge barns located in Argun municipal district in Chechnya, Russian Federation to determine whether this object of accumulated environmental damage should be considered a priority for elimination. The object is typical for this type of waste storage. Materials and methods. Our research concentrated on examining oil sludge barns with the total volume of wastes exceeding one hundred thirty thousand cubic meters. They were located within a settlement less than 50 meters away from the closest residential area. Approximately 40.2 thousand people permanently reside in a zone exposed to the analyzed object. We collected and analyzed background data on the object and performed wide-scale instrumental measurements of soils, drinking water, ambient air and food in the zone influenced by the object. Overall, we accomplished more than 400 tests to estimate safety and quality of soils, drinking water from non-centralized water supply sources and ambient air. Results. We established soils, drinking water from non-centralized water supply sources, and ambient air to be polluted with chemicals typical for oil sludge barns in the zone located next to the object, the closest residential area included. Major risk factors were oil products and their specific components, heavy metals (copper, arsenic, cadmium, and lead), and benz(a)pyrene. The total health risk for people living in the closest settlements was rated as “high”. Limitations. All the obtained estimates, health risk rates included, describe oil sludge barns located in a zone with specific geological and climatic-geographic conditions and in close proximity to residential areas. Conclusion. Assigning the analyzed object into a “high risk category” allows considering it a priority for elimination and it is mandatory to include it in the list of objects that should be eliminated immediately. After the object is eliminated, this territory is aimed for housing development. With bearing this in mind, it seems advisable to perform comparative control examinations of the environment after all the works on eliminating the accumulated environmental damage have been completed.