Environmental Protection Agency Holds Meeting to Inform Fifth Ward Residents About Testing for Toxic Chemicals

HOUSTON – The Environmental Protection Agency held a regular meeting in Houston’s Fifth Ward to provide an update on the agency’s testing of toxic chemicals in the area.

The area was identified as a cancer cluster in 2019 when it was found that there were significantly more than usual diagnoses of the deadly disease among residents of the Fifth Ward and Kashmere Gardens areas.

At Thursday’s meeting, the Environmental Protection Agency updated residents about vapor intrusion, soil and stormwater testing in the area.

Vapor intrusion is when underground contaminants in soil and groundwater evaporate and accumulate inside buildings.

Some results have already been published, others are awaited. You can see them here.

Regarding the soil contamination study, the Environmental Protection Agency states that a preliminary study or public contamination study has been completed.

EPA testing found that six of the 20 locations tested returned slightly above residential pollution levels set by the Environmental Protection Agency. All six of these locations exceeded testing levels for benzo(a)pyrene, a common chemical in urban, industrial areas and vehicle exhaust fumes. You can view the results of the background study here.

The Environmental Protection Agency is still awaiting results from 1,300 residential samples. They should begin production in January 2025.

The agency said it will begin testing for creosote-related contaminants in watersheds, with sampling taking place from Nov. 18 to Nov. 27.

You can see all the presentation materials from Thursday night’s meeting here.

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