Laserfiche WebLink
PRE-CONSTRUCTION MONITORING RESULTS <br />WOODBRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD POROUS PAVEMENT PROJECT, SHOREVIEW <br />® pH <br />® temperature <br />® conductivity <br />® dissolved oxygen <br />The June sampling event took place when pavement installation was just beginning and MW-1 was not <br />accessible. The laboratory analytical data from both events is attached to this letter. <br />VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUND (VOC) DATA <br />Pre-construction groundwater monitoring has detected the presence of chloroform in one monitoring well. <br />VOC data from both sampling events show chloroform detections in the off-site, upgradient well, MW-4. <br />These detections, in micrograms per liter (ug/L) are compared to the Minnesota Department of Health's <br />Health Risk Limit (HRL) below: <br />Monitoring well Date Compound Result <br />u /L Reporting <br />Level u /L IIRL <br />u /L <br />MW-4 June 25, 2009 Chloroform 0.5 0.1 30 <br />MW-4 July 9, 2009 Chloroform 0.3 0.1 30 <br />The MDH developed health-based rules and guidance to evaluate potential human health risks from <br />exposures to chemicals in groundwater. Both of these chloroform detections are far below the HRL set to <br />protect public health. <br />The MDH's website states the following: <br />"HRLs, HBVs and RAA are only one set of criteria that state groundwater and environmental protection <br />programs use to evaluate contamination. MDH's Health Risk Assessment Unit does not enforce or <br />regulate the use of HRLs, HBVs or RAA but provides recommended values for use by risk assessors and <br />risk managers in making decisions and evaluating health risks. Because these groundwater values are <br />based on the ingestion of contaminated water, the chemical evaluation process does not explicitly <br />consider other forms of exposure, such as the inhalation of chemical vapors that come from contaminated <br />water. The evaluation process does not consider the impact of contamination on non-human species or <br />the environment. Therefore, using HRLs, HBVs or RAA to set upper limits for contaminants in <br />groundwater is not appropriate." <br />The chloroform detections were unexpected but our inquiries to the Minnesota Pollution Control <br />Agency's (MPCA) Voluntary Investigation and Cleanup (VIC) program regarding the potential source <br />indicates that the road salt (sodium chloride) pile at the former Ramsey County Public Works facility, <br />north of the subject property, is known to have leached salt down to groundwater. In response to our <br />inquiry, James Kelly, Research Scientist, Environmental Health Division, MDH, stated the following in a <br />related email dated August 3, 2009: <br />"If it was a public works facility, I would assume they had a road salt pile. That may explain the high <br />chloride in the groundwater (?). Free chloride combined with natural organic matter in the well could in <br />turn explain the chloroform.... it would be somewhat analogous to chloroform generation in public water <br />supplies due to chlorine used for disinfection. In any event, the results are far below the HRL of 30 ug/L. " <br />This explains the presence of chloroform to our satisfaction. <br />2 <br />