Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #117214

Keeve Nachman, MHS, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, 624 N. Broadway, Rm 513, Baltimore, MD 21205, 410-614-2188, knachman@jhsph.edu

In response to unmanageable volumes of poultry house waste (PHW) generated every year, the poultry industry is looking beyond the traditional management practice of land application to other management options such as pelletization and waste-to-energy incinerators. Roxarsone, an organoarsenical drug used in poultry feed, may limit the feasibility of PHW management options. Arsenic is a known human carcinogen and chronic exposures to the metalloid have been associated with circulatory, nervous, skin and other disorders. In the absence of regulation of metals in PHW, traditional management practices such as land application and newer options such as pelletization and incineration create opportunities for new exposures to arsenic. The primary objective of this research is to quantify risks resulting from human exposures to arsenic introduced into the environment by waste management practices of industrial poultry producers. This study will include a characterization of arsenic concentrations in raw PHW, pelletized PHW, and ash from PHW incinerators. In addition, soils amended with raw PHW and pellets will also be analyzed for arsenic content. Pathways of human exposure to arsenic will be identified and quantified. Probabilistic risk assessment will be used to determine carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks resulting from waste management practices. This will be the first study to look at environmental risks associated with the use of arsenic in poultry production and alternative PHW-management practices. In addition, a unique approach will be implemented which will take into consideration both cancer and non-cancer endpoints.

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