Exposure Pathways to High-Consequence Pathogens in the Wastewater Collection and Treatment Systems
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See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/326786071 Exposure Pathways to High-Consequence Pathogens in the Wastewater Collection and Treatment Systems Technical Report · July 2018 DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.14738.15043 CITATIONS READS 0 608 2 authors: Sandip Chattopadhyay Sarah Taft United States Environmental Protection Agency United States Environmental Protection Agency 74 PUBLICATIONS 435 CITATIONS 17 PUBLICATIONS 170 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Exposure Assessment of Livestock Carcass Management Options During Emergencies View project Waste Management - Encapsulation of Contaminated Wastes View project All content following this page was uploaded by Sandip Chattopadhyay on 02 August 2018. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. EPA/600/R-18/221 | July 2018 www.epa.gov/homeland-security-research Exposure Pathways to High-Consequence Pathogens in the Wastewater Collection and Treatment Systems Office of Research and Development Homeland Security Research Program EPA/600/R-18/221 July 2018 Exposure Pathways to High-Consequence Pathogens in the Wastewater Collection and Treatment Systems by Sandip Chattopadhyay, Ph.D. Sarah Taft, Ph.D. Threat and Consequence Assessment Division National Homeland Security Research Center Cincinnati, OH 45268 Contract No. EP-C-14-001 to ICF under Work Assignment 40 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Project Officer Office of Research and Development Homeland Security Research Program Cincinnati, OH 45268 Disclaimer The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through its Office of Research and Development funded and managed the research described here under Contract No. EP-C-14-001 to ICF under Work Assignment 40. It has been subjected to the Agency’s review and has been approved for publication. Note that approval does not signify that the contents necessarily reflect the views of the Agency. Any mention of trade names, products, or services does not imply an endorsement by the U.S. Government or EPA. The EPA does not endorse any commercial products, services, or enterprises. Questions concerning this document or its application should be addressed to: Sandip Chattopadhyay, Ph.D., M.B.A. National Homeland Security Research Center Office of Research and Development U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 26 W. Martin Luther King Drive, MS NG16 Cincinnati, OH 45268 Phone: 513-569-7549 Fax: 513-487-2555 E-mail: [email protected] ii Table of Contents Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................... iii Acronyms ...................................................................................................................................... vii Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................... ix 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 1 2 Problem Formulation ............................................................................................................... 3 3 Potential Disease Transmission During Wastewater Collection and Treatment ..................... 5 4 Fate and Transport of Pathogens During Wastewater Collection and Treatment ................... 8 4.1 Collection ......................................................................................................................... 8 4.2 Pathogens in Wastewater During Transport and Treatment .......................................... 12 4.3 Formation of Bioaerosols ............................................................................................... 16 4.3.1 Background ...................................................................................................... 16 4.3.2 Bioaerosol Generation During the Toilet Flush .............................................. 20 4.3.3 Bioaerosol Generation During Wastewater Treatment ................................... 26 5 Challenges to Performance of Quantitative Microbial Exposure Assessment ...................... 34 6 Overview of Screening Process ............................................................................................. 36 6.1 Conceptual Exposure Model for Exposure in the Wastewater System .......................... 36 6.2 Elements of Screening Process ...................................................................................... 39 6.2.1 Pathogen Disease Transmission Characteristics .............................................. 42 6.2.2 Pathogen Potential to Persist in Wastewater or Deposited Droplet ................. 43 6.2.3 Pathogen Potential to Form Viable Bioaerosols .............................................. 43 6.2.4 Bridging Pathogen-specific Data Gaps for Fate and Transport ....................... 44 6.3 Selection of Emerging Pathogens for Two Case Study Evaluations ............................. 49 7 Case Study: Ebola Virus ........................................................................................................ 50 7.1 Does Pathogen Exhibit Identified Disease Transmission Characteristics? .................... 50 7.1.1 Pathogen Shedding in Feces, Urine, or Vomit ................................................ 50 7.1.2 Disease Transmission and Associated Exposure Doses by Route of Exposure ......................................................................................................... 52 7.1.3 Is Ebola Virus a High-Consequence Pathogen? .............................................. 53 7.2 Does the Pathogen Persist in Wastewater or Deposited Droplet? .................................. 53 7.2.1 Wastewater Persistence ................................................................................... 53 7.2.2 Deposited Droplet Persistence ......................................................................... 59 7.3 Does Pathogen Form Viable Bioaerosols from a Toilet Flush or the Wastewater Treatment Process? ........................................................................................................ 59 7.4 Conclusion: Could Ebola Virus Form Viable Exposure Pathways in the Wastewater System? ...................................................................................................... 61 8 Case Study: Bacillus anthracis Spores .................................................................................. 63 8.1 Does Pathogen Exhibit Identified Disease Transmission Characteristics? .................... 63 8.1.1 Direct Entry via Decontamination Wastewater ............................................... 63 8.1.2 Disease Transmission and Associated Exposure Doses by Route of Exposure ......................................................................................................... 63 8.1.3 Is the Spore Form of Bacillus anthracis a High-Consequence Pathogen? ........................................................................................................ 64 8.1 Does the Pathogen Persist in Wastewater or a Deposited Droplet? ............................... 66 8.1.1 Wastewater Persistence ................................................................................... 66 iii 8.1.2 Deposited Droplet Persistence ......................................................................... 66 8.2 Does Pathogen Form Viable Bioaerosols from the Wastewater Treatment Process? ......................................................................................................................... 67 8.3 Conclusion: Could the Spore Form of Bacillus anthracis Form Viable Exposure Pathways in the Wastewater System? ............................................................................ 67 9 Data Gaps and Suggested Research to Further Refine Screening Process ............................ 69 10 Glossary ................................................................................................................................. 71 11 References ............................................................................................................................. 73 iv List of Tables Table 4-1. Characteristics with Potential to Lead to a Higher or Lower Dilution Factor ............. 14 Table 4-2. Available Data for Bioaerosol Concentration of Microorganisms from Toilet Flush. 23 Table 4-3. Range of Reported Bacterial Bioaerosol Concentrations from Identified Wastewater Treatment Processes and Maintenance Activities ................................................................... 32 Table 4-4. Range of Reported Viral Bioaerosol Concentrations from Identified Wastewater Treatment Processes................................................................................................................ 33 Table 4-5. Estimated Bioaerosol Concentration Range for Bacterial or Viral Wastewater Pathogens with Inhaled Doses for 10 Minutes, 60 Minutes, and 8 Hours .............................. 34 Table 6-1. Assumptions Incorporated in Screening Process ........................................................ 41 Table 6-2. Terminology, Definitions, and Examples for Process to Bridge Data Gaps ............... 46 Table 7-1. Summary of Ebola Disease Transmission Characteristics .......................................... 54 Table 7-2. Potential Surrogates and Benchmark Indicators for Persistence of Ebola Virus in Wastewater