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Winthrop Environmental Health Facts Subcommittee
(Winthrop Airport Hazards Committee)
Winthrop Board of Health
AIR
Brian Dumser, PhD, CIH
Chair of the Subcommittee
August 18, 1999
Summary
In many communities located close to major airports, power generation facilities, or other major industries, there is a strong perception that pollution generating activities at these facilities result in a direct negative impact on the health of residents.
Statements to this effect have been repeatedly voiced by representatives of the communities surrounding Logan airport, but, absent hard data in the existing record, no action has been taken by responsible authorities to investigate further.
Currently, plans are underway for the construction of additional facilities Logan airport which will markedly increase operational capacity and the generation of pollutants.
While potent arguments in favor of this expansion are being presented from an economic standpoint, once again no consideration is being given to the possible public health impact.
In light of the failure to address this issue by Massport, or by Federal or State regulatory authorities, the Winthrop Environmental Health Facts Subcommittee, a voluntary group made up of residents of the Town of Winthrop Massachusetts, elected to address the question directly.
A strong correlation is known to exist between exposure to petrochemical exhaust emissions and a variety of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases (1-10). Logan airport estimates its daily production of such pollutants at approximately 50,000 pounds per day (11). The Subcommittee undertook a survey to determine whether a correlation also exists between frequency and severity of respiratory disease and level of exposure to these pollutants as determined by location in Winthrop relative to the airport.
The results of this survey demonstrate that a clear increase in several respiratory diseases and disease symptoms exists between areas of the Town which are adjacent to the airport, and those more distantly located on Broad Sound.
In fact, for the most common respiratory diseases, asthma and allergy, disease is twice as common in the most heavily exposed neighborhood as it is in the least exposed.
Finding no other likely explanation for this effect, the Subcommittee proposes that airport activities, most likely the generation of airborne pollution from the combustion of gasoline and kerosene, are indeed negatively affecting the health of the residents of Winthrop.
The implications of these findings are serious.
While the unique geography and demographics of Winthrop provided a situation where the effects of airport generated pollution could be studied in isolation from other pollutant sources, Winthrop is by no means the only community impacted, nor the community most highly impacted by airport activity-generated emissions. As sample size determines the sensitivity of the analysis, only the most frequently occurring respiratory diseases could be adequately tested.
Thus, while the case can be made strongly for asthma and allergenic disease, effects on other less common serious or life-threatening respiratory and cardiopulmonary conditions which are also linked to fuel exhaust exposure remain an unexplored possibility.
Finally, while the study
convincingly illustrates the difference in impact due to relative exposure
level, it does not define a level of exposure where impact is minimal or
tolerable. In brief, the study demonstratesthat serious damage is being
done to the health of the residents of Winthrop at current levels of airport
activity, and this damage correlates with location, a measure of exposure
to airport activity-generated pollution. The Subcommittee feels it is incumbent
on State regulatory authorities responsible for the public health to further
investigate this matter, to further define the scope and severity of the
problem, and initiate processes which will return our community to the
state of health enjoyed by the majority of Massachusetts citizens.
Introduction
Winthrop is a peninsula which extends from East Boston south by south east to form the division between Broad Sound, on its eastern shore, and Boston Harbor on its western shore. A portion of the western shore entirely encloses, and closely approaches Logan airport.
Winthrop is subjected to a variety of disturbances from the airport, including excessive noise and odors from burned and unburned fuel. Although Logan carries out no air pollution monitoring in the surrounding communities, their published estimates from modeling studies indicate approximately 50,000 pounds of airborne pollutants are released daily, primarily from the combustion of Jet Fuel A.
Elsewhere it has been shown that a strong correlation exists between exposure to such pollutants and a variety of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases including lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma and allergic rhinitis (1-10). Individuals residing in communities surrounding Logan airport show a considerably higher incidence of these diseases compared to the statewide average (12-14). It has not been possible to determine whether Logan airport activities contribute substantially to this health burden however, since the urban location of these communities presents a complex picture of pollution sources, including petrochemical pollution from power plants, industries, and heavy road traffic.
Winthrop, by contrast, is a stable, mature residential community without significant pollution sources except for the airport.
Despite this fact, asthma incidence in Winthrop closely mirrors that in the mainland communities which abut the airport, and lung cancer rates for females is 50% higher than the statewide average (14).
Some neighborhoods in Winthrop are located within a few hundred feet of major airport runways, while others are located as much as a mile and a half away.
Residents report a marked difference in perception of chemical odors from the airport in relation to location in the Town, indicating that different levels of exposure occur within the Town resulting from distance from the airport and wind direction.
In consideration of these facts, this study was conducted to determine whether any correlation exists between the level of exposure to air pollutants generated by airport activity and the incidence of and frequency of symptoms to respiratory disease.
Results (abbreviated on this website)