Environmental remediation of fire damaged buildings

The potentialpresence of indoor air pollutants in fire-damaged buildings stemming primarily from fire soot deposits, raises major environmental concerns in relation to potential long term health impacts on building occupants. Litigation claims often occur as a result of perceived ineffective remedial activities and the potential risk hazards of indoor air quality after the remediation is completed. This paper describes environmental remediation activities at an office building in the China Basin district of the City of San Francisco following a fire accident at a nearby wharf, which severely damaged the building. Based on an air quality sampling and chemical analysis program, a health-based risk assessment was conducted to evaluate the health effects of indoor air quality on building occupants. The risk assessment consisted of a toxicity definition of measured indoor air pollutants and an exposure assessment including the characterization of the exposure setting, the identification of exposure pathways, and the quantification of exposure. The results of the exposure assessment are combined with chemical-specific toxicity information to characterize the potential health risks at fire-damaged buildings.