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WTC Residential Testing Results

The work of cleaning and testing residences in lower Manhattan (south of Canal Street) is underway. Depending upon the assistance requested, EPA is arranging for licensed contractors to clean and/or test residential units (fact sheet) for asbestos in air. There is no charge for this service.

Asbestos in air test results for individual residences are provided only to residents of the affected unit. Aggregate test results are provided here. The locations of residences that have cleared or not cleared EPA's testing criteria will be identified by block.

EPA is committed to setting the most stringent standards that can be technically achieved when testing residences for asbestos in air. We have set an initial risk-based clearance level for asbestos of 0.0009 fibers per cubic centimeter (f/cc). This means that if 10,000 people are exposed to this level of asbestos for 30 years, there may be one more case of cancer than if the group had not been exposed at all.

Testing for asbestos (fact sheet) in air calls for moving a measured volume of air across a filter, then examining that filter under a microscope equipped with a grid and counting the number of asbestos fibers found. Problems arise when too many dust and fiber particles are captured by the filter. The filter becomes overloaded and technicians examining it under the microscope cannot separate out or identify individual fibers. Residences where this occurs are listed as "Not Determined." In a residence where only testing was conducted, EPA recommends that the home be cleaned and re-tested. In a residence where both cleaning and testing were done, EPA will attempt to identify potential sources and will then re-clean and re-test the home.

Test results below reflect analytical results received through 09/26/03. During the initial stage of cleaning and testing, results will be updated on a weekly basis. Once data flow is established, this table will update automatically as test reults are entered.

Test Only

Quadrant (Map)	Total Requests	Cleared	Not Cleared	Not Determined
A	126	113	1	12
B	188	176	5	7
C	134	126	2	6
D	309	302	1	6
Total	757	717	9	31

Clean and Test

Quadrant (Map)	Total Requests	Cleared	Not Cleared	Not Determined
A	881	806	6	67
B	1014	976	9	29
C	755	709	18	28
D	754	742	2	10
Total	3405	3234	35	134

Table Key:
Total Requests: Number of residences requesting testing.
Cleared: Number of residences with all results below the EPA clearance level.
Not Cleared: Number of residences with any results above the EPA clearance level.
Not Determined: Number of apartments with samples not analyzed due to filter overload, etc.

Please Note: Individual test results will be mailed in four to six weeks. Please be patient and refrain from calling.




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