Toxic Substance Incidents in North Carolina and Their Public Health Impact, 2010—2013

BACKGROUND: The use of chemicals is an integral component of our modern lifestyles.  Many chemical agents are ubiquitous and most synthetic chemicals are created to improve living conditions; yet, they can be very toxic.  Large chemical release incidents receive considerable attention and often result in policy change. However, smaller incidents—which occur more frequently and can have acute and chronic impacts on the health of communities—commonly go unnoticed.  Since 2010, North Carolina has experienced many small chemical release incidents given its geographical location and its robust chemical manufacturing output. 

METHODS: Toxic substance release incidents are identified through multiple data sources.  For each event that meets surveillance criteria (based on toxicity and amount), NC Division of Public Health collects data on the event, victims, and chemical agent(s). These data are entered into North Carolina’s surveillance database, which is part of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry’s National Toxic Substance Incidents Program (NTSIP).  A descriptive analysis of NC NTSIP data was conducted to examine the chemical releases that occurred in North Carolina between 2010 and 2013 to determine the most commonly released chemicals, and the related public health impacts.

RESULTS: Of the 1,129 incidents identified since 2010, a total of 1,150 toxic substances were released (356 in 2010, 254 in 2011, 257 in 2012, and 283 in 2013).  Approximately 47% of the incidents were transportation related and 53% occurred at a fixed facility.  Ninety-four percent of incidents involved one chemical, 4.4% involved a chemical mixture, 1% involved two or more separate chemicals, and 0.5% involved a chemical reaction.  Overall, 200 different chemicals were released during the four year period, half of which were released only once.  The most commonly released chemicals were methamphetamine chemicals (8%), natural gas (7%), ammonia (5%) and sodium hydroxide (5%). These incidents resulted in 258 injured persons, including 19 deaths, and 172 evacuations of varying scales. 

CONCLUSIONS: The results demonstrate that North Carolina has experienced a large number of chemical releases. Despite the abundance of chemical manufacturing in the state, chemicals used to manufacture methamphetamine were the most commonly released—reflecting the surge in methamphetamine laboratories across the state—and contributed to the most injuries. In addition to encouraging companies to invest in improved training programs to educate their employees on preventing chemical releases, public health and law enforcement agencies should develop strategies to reduce the impact of methamphetamine chemical releases.