Screening for asbestos fibre exposure in ambient air in Penge, Limpopo

• Published in: Air quality, atmosphere and health atmosphere and health, 2021-12, Vol.14 (12), p.2073-2078
• Main Authors: Malatji, M., Moja, S. J., Kwata, M. G., Masindi, K., Mtyelwa, O., Ngole-Jeme, V.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Asbestos; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Contingency; Data acquisition; Earth and Environmental Science; Environment; Environmental Health; Environmental protection; Exposure; Fibers; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Health risk assessment; Health risks; Pollution abatement; Risk assessment; Superfund
• ISSN: 1873-9318; 1873-9326
• DOI: 10.1007/s11869-021-01079-7

Penge is an asbestos-contaminated area with a high incidence of asbestos-related diseases amongst its residents due to exposure to airborne asbestos fibres. The following paper presents an assessment of asbestos fibre exposure in the ambient air of the area. The objective of the study was to quantify the level of airborne asbestos fibre concentration in an endeavour to understand the health risk to which residents are exposed. The study was carried out based on air analyses data of the area acquired from the Council for Geoscience as well as health risk assessment techniques guided by the Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund (EPA, 1989). It was found that the average asbestos fibre concentration in the ambient air of the study area was 0.047 f/mL which is lower than the 0.2 f/mL limit stipulated by the South African government. However, the asbestos fibre concentration in ambient air of the study area is much higher than the 0.0005 f/mL limit stipulated by the World Health Organization. The average cancer risk for all age groups in the study area was 2.08 × 10 −3 . When compared with the Environmental Protection Agency National Contingency Plan standard which accepts the risks within the range between 10 −4 (0.0001) and 10 −6 (0.000001), it was found that the results obtained in the study area generally exceed the standard. It is recommended that all of the sources of asbestos in the area be rehabilitated.