East Palestine Residents Could See Long-Term Health Concerns From Toxic Chemicals: Researchers

EPA responds, says its data shows levels of '79 monitored chemicals are below levels of concern'

ONG 52nd Civil Support Team members prepare to enter an incident area to assess remaining hazards with a lightweight inflatable decontamination system (LIDS) in East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 7, 2023. (Ohio National Guard via AP)

Weeks after the train derailment carrying hazardous chemicals in Ohio, an analysis shows that residents could be subject to a range of long-term health complications after finding nine air pollutants at higher-than-normal levels.

Researchers at Texas A&M and Carnegie Mellon wrote on Friday that nine out of about 50 chemicals that the Environmental Protection Agency said were present on the train that derailed in East Palestine on Feb. 3 are higher concentrations than “normal.” Texas A&M’s account wrote that “if these levels continue, they may be of health concern” and then flagged acrolein—used as a chemical warfare weapon during World War I—as one of particular concern.

Other chemicals that were seen at higher-than-normal levels include vinyl chloride, benzene, and naphthalene, according to their analysis. Air samples were most recently taken in East Palestine on Feb. 23.

The two universities then asked two questions: “Are there other chemicals in the air that EPA isn’t monitoring?” and “what about locations [where] EPA doesn’t have a monitor?” Researchers said they used a mobile air quality laboratory to evaluate concentrations of about 80 chemicals in East Palestine’s air and will produce the results at a later date.

Both federal EPA and state officials previously said that testing of East Palestine’s municipal wells showed no water quality issues, while some have said that the village’s water is fine to drink. In an update on the EPA website on Feb. 20, the environmental agency wrote that it is still operating “real-time community air monitoring network 24 hours a day” and that the “air quality in the community remains normal.”

A fish lays dead following a train derailment prompting health concerns in East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 20, 2023. (Michael Swensen/Getty Images)

EPA Response

A spokesperson for the EPA told The Epoch Times on Friday that its “24/7 air monitoring data continues to show that exposure levels of the 79 monitored chemicals are below levels of concern,” referring to chemicals that would present short-term adverse health impacts.

The analyses Friday “assume a lifetime of exposure, which is constant exposure over approximately 70 years,” said the agency spokesperson, adding that the EPA doesn’t anticipate such chemicals to remain elevated “for anywhere that long.”

“We are committed to staying in East Palestine and will continue to monitor the air inside and outside of homes to ensure that these levels remain safe over time,” it said.

Meanwhile, Weihsueh Chiu, one of the Texas A&M researchers, told The Washington Post Friday that it would take months or years for the air pollutants to cause health effects. He said that those chemicals, however, can trigger eye and lung irritation as well as other health issues.

Some locals in East Palestine have complained of various adverse health symptoms, including rashes, nausea, vomiting, and headaches. Animals have been impacted, too, as the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said Thursday that thousands of small fish were found dead in East Palestine after the derailment and release of the chemicals on board.

“We can’t say whether these levels are causing the current symptoms,” Chiu said. The EPA “would want to definitely make sure that these higher levels that are detected would be reduced before they left and declared everything cleaned up,” he told the paper.

Following the Feb. 3 derailment, officials intentionally released and burned toxic vinyl chloride from the rail cars, sending a massive cloud of black smoke into the sky that could be seen for miles around and was likened to a mushroom cloud caused by a nuclear weapon. The burn triggered questions about the health effects that could potentially befall the residents of East Palestine.

At the time, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said the release and burning of chemicals was needed to avoid a potentially catastrophic explosion that may have sent shrapnel in every direction. Days after an evacuation was ordered, officials allowed residents to return to the village.

On Thursday, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released its preliminary report after an investigation into the cause of the derailment, saying an overheated wheel bearing may have been the culprit. The NTSB report stopped short, however, of identifying a conclusive cause for the crash.

“We have no evidence that the crew did anything wrong,” said NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy after the report was issued.

The EPA has ordered Norfolk Southern, the operator of the train, to conduct a cleanup of the chemicals from the water and soil around the derailment site.

The Epoch Times has contacted the EPA for comment on the analysis.