Community exposures to airborne agricultural pesticides in California: ranking of inhalation risks

Abstract

We assessed inhalation risks to California communities from airborne agricultural pesticides by probability distribution analysis using ambient air data provided by the California Air Resources Board and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation. The pesticides evaluated include chloropicrin, chlorothalonil, chlorpyrifos, S,S,S-tributyl phosphorotrithioate, diazinon, 1,3-dichloropropene, dichlorvos (naled breakdown product), endosulfan, eptam, methidathion, methyl bromide, methyl isothiocyanate (MITC; metam sodium breakdown product), molinate, propargite, and simazine. Risks were estimated for the median and 75th and 95th percentiles of probability (50, 25, and 5% of the exposed populations). Exposure estimates greater than or equal to noncancer reference values occurred for 50% of the exposed populations (adults and children) for MITC subchronic and chronic exposures, methyl bromide subchronic exposures (year 2000 monitoring), and 1,3-dichloropropene subchronic exposures (1990 monitoring). Short-term chlorpyrifos exposure estimates exceeded the acute reference value for 50% of children (not adults) in the exposed population. Noncancer risks were uniformly higher for children due to a proportionately greater inhalation rate-to-body weight ratio compared to adults and other factors. Target health effects of potential concern for these exposures include neurologic effects (methyl bromide and chlorpyrifos) and respiratory effects (1,3-dichloropropene and MITC). The lowest noncancer risks occurred for simazine and chlorothalonil. Lifetime cancer risks of one-in-a-million or greater were estimated for 50% of the exposed population for 1,3-dichloropropene (1990 monitoring) and 25% of the exposed populations for methidathion and molinate. Pesticide vapor pressure was found to be a better predictor of inhalation risk compared to other methods of ranking pesticides as potential toxic air contaminants.