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WEBS Participant Brochure for Areas with High Arsenic Levels in
Groundwater (351KB PDF)
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(not yet available)
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The Washington Environmental
Biomonitoring Survey (WEBS) Project
The Washington State Department of Health received a grant from the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to collect
biomonitoring data in Washington State. This funding created the
Washington Environmental Biomonitoring Survey (WEBS) project. The grant
is for five years with funding provided on a year-by-year basis.
Washington's funding for the first year is $1.35 million and began
September 1, 2009.
The main goals of the grant are to:
1) Increase the ability of our state public health
laboratory to conduct biomonitoring testing.
2) Measure the amounts of chemicals in the urine, blood
and other tissues of Washington residents. This includes people at
average risk and those at high risk for exposure.
3) Compare levels in Washington to those in the United
States as a whole.
4) Use this information to reduce exposures.
Use the following links to read more information about WEBS
activities and about
biomonitoring:
WEBS Years 1 and 2
Statewide General Population Biomonitoring
o Recruiting participants
▪
WEBS
Years 1 and 2 Map of selected block groups
o Testing urine samples
o Testing water samples
o Reporting back to participants
Biomonitoring on South Whidbey Island - Summer 2011
Planning for activities in Years 3-5
WEBS Advisory Committee
What is biomonitoring?
More information about biomonitoring
WEBS Contact Information
WEBS Years 1 and 2
Statewide
General Population Biomonitoring
During the first two years of the grant (September 2009 - August 2011), we
focused on testing for arsenic and pyrethroid and
organophosphate (OP) pesticide metabolites in urine samples collected
from a random sample of people living in Washington State. We focused on
these substances because Washington residents may have higher exposures
compared to the rest of the country. We included testing for
several other metals in the urine tests. The goal was to
obtain urine samples for a full year and to recruit 1,340 participants. We
will compare our levels with national levels found by CDC in the
National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals.
Also during this time, the Department of Health's Public Health
Laboratories (PHL) has upgraded lab instruments and sent personnel for
training at CDC to learn how to test samples according to CDC's
requirements. PHL staff have completed testing Year 1 and 2 urine
samples for total arsenic and other metals. They have recently
begun testing urine samples for speciated arsenic. We expect urine
samples will be tested for pyrethroid and organophosphate pesticide
metabolites in 2012. Urine samples are stored frozen until
they can be analyzed.
.
Recruitment of participants
The Washington State Department of Health began recruiting
participants for statewide general population biomonitoring in April 2010.
To do this project, the
Department of Health randomly selected a total of 70 census block groups
(see map of selected block groups).
Twenty-seven households within each block group were then selected at
random to participate. All adults and children ages six and older living
in the household were invited to participate. The statewide general
population biomonitoring project was completed in June 2011. A
total of 1,422 people participated and provided urine samples for
biomonitoring.
Testing urine samples
Urine samples collected as part of the statewide general population
project are being tested for the following substances:
Metals:
Arsenic (total arsenic and six arsenic compounds),
antimony, barium, beryllium, cadmium, cesium, cobalt, lead, molybdenum,
platinum, thallium, tungsten, and uranium
Pesticides:
Organophosphate pesticide metabolites: Dialkyl
Phosphate metabolites [dimethylphosphate (DMP), dimethylthiophosphate (DMTP),
dimethyldithiophosphate (DMDTP),
diethylphosphate (DEP), diethylthiophosphate (DETP), and
diethyldithiophosphate (DEDTP)] and 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol
(TCPY)
Pyrethroid pesticide metabolites:
cis-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane carboxylic acid (cis-DCCA),
trans-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane carboxylic acid (trans-DCCA),
3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-BPA), 4-fluoro-3-phenoxybenzoic acid (4F-3BPA),
and cis-3-(2,2-dibromovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane carboxylic acid (DBCA)
There were some delays in testing urine samples for speciated arsenic
and pesticide metabolites. Testing for speciated arsenic began in
the fall of 2011. We expect testing for pesticide metabolites to
be done in 2012.
Testing water samples
We also collected drinking water samples from participating
households to test for metals beginning in July, 2010. Water samples
were tested for six metals: arsenic (total), cadmium, lead, thallium,
uranium (total) and manganese. Water testing was paid for by the
Washington Tracking Network.
A total of 502 water samples were collected from households
participating in the statewide general population project.
Reporting back to participants
Test results for metals in urine and drinking water are reported to
participants in a letter about 8 weeks after sample collection.
Participants can call the WEBS toll free number (1-877-494-3137, in
Washington) with questions about
their results. Pesticide testing of urine samples has been delayed while
we resolve technical issues for the lab analysis. We expect that the
urine testing results for pesticides will be available to send to
participants sometime in 2012.
Biomonitoring on South Whidbey Island - Summer 2011
South
Whidbey Island is one of several areas in the state known to have higher
levels of naturally occurring arsenic in groundwater. WEBS field staff
recruited participants from South Whidbey Island whose household
drinking water source was a private well or small water system (with
less than 15 connections). The objective of this biomonitoring
project was to measure the levels of total and speciated arsenic in the
urine of people living in an area with high levels of naturally
occurring arsenic in groundwater. We also measured twelve other
metals in urine samples. Arsenic and metal levels in urine will be
compared with general population statewide levels collected in 2010 and
2011 (see Years 1 and 2 above). In addition to the urine testing, we
measured total arsenic in drinking water collected from
participating households. Testing results were reported to participants
in a letter about 8 weeks after sample collection. We recruited a
total of 172 participants for this project in July - September, 2011. See
project brochure for more information.
Planning for activities in Years 3-5
We plan to expand our activities to include testing for additional environmental
chemicals and collecting additional types of samples (e.g. blood, hair) in Years 3-5 of
the grant (September 2011 August 2014). We also plan to work with
populations who may have higher exposures. The Department of Health
submitted a proposal for Year 3 biomonitoring activities to CDC in April
2011 and this plan was approved. The Department of Health has been
working with an Advisory Committee to help guide biomonitoring
activities in future years of the grant.
WEBS Advisory Committee
Department of Health convened an Advisory Committee in April 2010 to help identify and
prioritize biomonitoring activities for WEBS. The Advisory Committee
members include:
Catherine Karr, MD, PhD, MS, FAAP; University of
Washington.
Richard Fenske PhD, MPH; University of Washington
(Alternates: Mike Yost PhD, MPH and Chris Simpson PhD, University of
Washington)
Tom Burbacher, PhD; University of Washington
(Alternate: Elaine Faustman, Ph.D., University of Washington)
Allan Felsot, PhD; Washington State University
Rob Duff, MS; Washington State Department of Ecology
Glen Patrick, MS; Washington State Dept. of Health
Todd M. Schoonover, PhD, CIH, CSP; Washington State
Dept. of Labor & Industries
Ngozi Oleru, PhD; Public Health Seattle/King County
(Alternate: David Solet, Ph.D., Public Health Seattle/King County)
Harvey Crowder, DVM, MS, DACVPM; Walla Walla County
Health Department
Erika Schreder, MS; Washington Toxics Coalition
Lon Kissinger, MS; U.S. EPA Region 10
The Advisory Committee met in April and October 2010 and in February
2011.
What is biomonitoring?
Biomonitoring measures the amount of environmental chemicals or their
breakdown products (metabolites) in human blood, urine, hair, or other
body tissues. It is a way to find out the amount of chemicals people are
exposed to from their environment.
Biomonitoring data can be used to:
See if environmental exposures are increasing or
decreasing over time.
Find out who has high exposures.
Learn if public health actions, such as education or
policies, help reduce exposure to certain chemicals.
Discover new exposures.
Find out how people are exposed (if collected with
other types of information such as surveys or environmental testing).
Learn what levels of chemicals in the body make
people sick (if collected as part of a study that includes health
information).
For some chemicals, learn if people have levels of
chemicals in their bodies that can make them sick.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has collected
national biomonitoring data for many chemicals in the environment (http://www.cdc.gov/biomonitoring/).
These data do not provide results for individual states.
More information about
biomonitoring:
1. CDCs National Biomonitoring Program:
http://www.cdc.gov/biomonitoring/
2. Californias Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring
Program:
http://www.oehha.ca.gov/multimedia/biomon/about.html
3. Environmental Health Perspectives, Mini-monograph on
Biomonitoring, volume 114, number 11, November 2006 issue beginning on
page 1755, Available at:
http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/browseIssue.action?issue=info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fissue.ehp.v114.i11.
WEBS Contact Information:
WEBS Toll Free Number: 1-877-494-3137 (in Washington)
Blaine Rhodes, Principal
Investigator
Denise Laflamme, Field
Study Coordinator
Join our
DOH-WEBS listserv to receive updates about WEBS
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