Oswer Technical Guide for Assessing and Mitigating the Vapor Intrusion Pathway from Subsurface Vapor Sources to Indoor Air
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OSWER Publication 9200.2-154 OSWER TECHNICAL GUIDE FOR ASSESSING AND MITIGATING THE VAPOR INTRUSION PATHWAY FROM SUBSURFACE VAPOR SOURCES TO INDOOR AIR U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response June 2015 June 2015 Assessing and Mitigating the Vapor Intrusion Pathway from Subsurface Vapor Sources to Indoor Air DISCLAIMER This document presents current technical recommendations of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) based on our current understanding of vapor intrusion into indoor air from subsurface vapor sources. This guidance document does not impose any requirements or obligations on the EPA, the states or tribal governments, or the regulated community. Rather, the sources of authority and requirements for addressing subsurface vapor intrusion are the relevant statutes and regulations. Decisions regarding a particular situation should be made based upon statutory and regulatory authority. EPA decision-makers retain the discretion to adopt or approve approaches on a case-by-case basis that differ from this guidance document, where appropriate, as long as the administrative record supporting its decision provides an adequate basis and reasoned explanation for doing so. i June 2015 Assessing and Mitigating the Vapor Intrusion Pathway from Subsurface Vapor Sources to Indoor Air TABLE OF CONTENTS DISCLAIMER........................................................................................................................... i TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................... ii LIST OF FIGURES................................................................................................................. vi LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................................. vi LIST OF APPENDICES......................................................................................................... vii ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................. viii 1.0 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Definition of Vapor Intrusion.................................................................................... 1 1.2 Statutory Authorities ............................................................................................... 3 1.2.1 Taking Action with Limited Data under CERCLA and the NCP .................... 4 1.2.2 Taking Action with Limited Data under RCRA Corrective Action .................. 6 1.3 Scope and Recommended Uses of this Technical Guide......................................... 6 1.3.1 Petroleum Hydrocarbons ............................................................................ 9 1.3.2 Nonresidential Buildings ........................................................................... 10 1.4 Companion Documents and Technical Resources ................................................ 10 1.4.1 Vapor Intrusion Screening Level Calculator............................................... 11 1.4.2 Technical Support Documents .................................................................. 11 1.5 Historical Context ................................................................................................. 12 1.6 Public Involvement in Developing Vapor Intrusion Technical Guide ....................... 16 1.7 Organization......................................................................................................... 16 2.0 CONCEPTUAL MODEL OF VAPOR INTRUSION......................................................... 19 2.1 Subsurface Vapor Sources ................................................................................... 22 2.2 Subsurface Vapor Migration.................................................................................. 24 2.3 Openings and Driving Forces for Soil Gas Entry into Buildings .............................. 26 2.4 Air Exchange and Mixing ...................................................................................... 30 2.5 Conceptual Model Scenarios ................................................................................ 31 2.6 Variability in Exposure Levels ............................................................................... 34 2.7 Consideration of Indoor and Outdoor Sources of VOCs ......................................... 34 3.0 OVERVIEW OF VAPOR INTRUSION TECHNICAL GUIDE........................................... 36 3.1 Contaminants of Potential Concern ....................................................................... 36 ii June 2015 Assessing and Mitigating the Vapor Intrusion Pathway from Subsurface Vapor Sources to Indoor Air 3.2 Vapor Intrusion Assessment ................................................................................. 37 3.3 Building Mitigation and Subsurface Remediation ................................................... 41 3.4 Community Outreach and Involvement ................................................................. 44 4.0 CONSIDERATIONS FOR NONRESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS .......................................... 46 5.0 PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS OF VAPOR INTRUSION .................................................... 49 5.1 Assemble, Evaluate, and Review Available Information ......................................... 49 5.2 Identify and Respond to Conditions that Warrant Prompt Action ............................ 51 5.3 Determine Presence of Structures and Vapor-forming Chemicals .......................... 52 5.4 Develop Initial Conceptual Site Model ................................................................... 55 5.5 Evaluating Pre-Existing and Readily Ascertainable Sampling Data ........................ 58 5.5.1 Evaluate Sampling Data Reliability and Quality ......................................... 58 5.5.2 Evaluate Applicability of the VISLs and Adequacy of the Initial CSM.......... 59 5.5.3 Preliminary Risk-based Screening ............................................................ 59 6.0 DETAILED INVESTIGATION OF VAPOR INTRUSION ................................................. 61 6.1 Common Vapor Intrusion Scenarios...................................................................... 61 6.2 Planning and Scoping........................................................................................... 63 6.2.1 Vapor Intrusion Inclusion Zones................................................................ 67 6.2.2 Prioritizing Investigations with Multiple Buildings ....................................... 69 6.2.3 Planning for Community Involvement........................................................ 71 6.3 Characterize the Vapor Intrusion Pathway ............................................................ 71 6.3.1 Characterize Nature and Extent of Subsurface Vapor Sources .................. 72 6.3.2 Characterize Vapor Migration in the Vadose Zone .................................... 75 6.3.3 Assess Building Susceptibility to Soil Gas Entry ........................................ 78 6.3.4 Evaluate Presence and Concentration of Subsurface Contaminants in Indoor Air ................................................................................................. 80 6.3.5 Identify and Evaluate Contributions from Indoor and Ambient Air Sources . 81 6.3.6 Select, Prioritize, and Sequence Investigation Objectives.......................... 86 6.4 General Principles and Recommendations for Sampling ....................................... 87 6.4.1 Indoor Air Sampling.................................................................................. 88 6.4.2 Outdoor Air Sampling ............................................................................... 98 6.4.3 Sub-slab Soil Gas Sampling ..................................................................... 99 6.4.4 Soil Gas Sampling.................................................................................. 103 6.4.5 Groundwater Sampling........................................................................... 104 iii June 2015 Assessing and Mitigating the Vapor Intrusion Pathway from Subsurface Vapor Sources to Indoor Air 6.4.6 Planning for Building and Property Access.............................................. 105 6.5 Overview of Risk-Based Screening .................................................................... 105 6.5.1 Objectives of Screening.......................................................................... 105 6.5.2 Scope and Basis for Health-based, Vapor Intrusion Screening Levels ..... 106 6.5.3 Recommended Attenuation Factors for Health-based Screening ............. 108 6.5.4 Comparing Sample Concentrations to Health-based Screening Levels .... 111 6.5.5 Planning for Communication of Sampling Results ................................... 112 6.6 General Principles and Recommendations for Mathematical Modeling ................ 113 7.0 RISK ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK ....................................... 117 7.1 Collect Site-specific Lines of Evidence ................................................................ 117 7.2 Weigh and Assess Concordance Among the Lines of Evidence........................... 120 7.3 Evaluate Whether the Vapor Intrusion Pathway is Complete or Incomplete .......... 122 7.4 Conduct and Interpret Human Health Risk Assessment....................................... 124 7.4.1 Risk Management Benchmarks .............................................................