Abstract:
The Total Exposure Assessment Methodology (TEAM) was designed by the EPA to
develop and demonstrate methods to measure human exposure to toxic substances
in air and drinking water. The goals of Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) TEAM
were to develop methods to measure individual total exposure (from air, food,
and water) and the resulting body burden of toxic and carcinogenic chemicals,
and to apply
... these methods within a probability-based sampling framework to
estimate exposures and body burdens of urban populations in several U.S.
cities. To achieve these goals, air sampling was conducted to measure personal
exposure to airborne toxic chemicals and a specially-designed spirometer was
developed and used to measure the same chemicals in exhaled breath. The survey
design consisted of a three stage stratified probability selection approach to
ensure inclusion of potentially highly exposed groups. Related objectives of
the VOC TEAM studies were to: determine the relationships between personal,
indoor, outdoor, and blood, urine, and exhaled breath concentrations; determine
the variability of VOC concentrations within a home; and determine seasonal and
multi-year variability. The Study was conducted in three phases.
A field test of the methodology (Phase I) was carried out between July and
December 1980 in Bayonne, and Elizabeth, New Jersey and Research Triangle Park,
NC. The objective of Phase II, carried out between September 1981 and February
1983, was to estimate the distribution of exposures to target substances for a
target population in an industrial/chemical manufacturing area (Bayonne, and
Elizabeth, New Jersey) and to compare these estimated exposures to those
estimated for populations in nonchemical manufacturing areas (Greensboro, NC
and Devils Lake, ND). In Phase III, carried out between February and June 1984,
the methodology refined during Phase II was applied to target populations in
California. After completion of these three phases, a separate VOC TEAM study
was carried out in Baltimore, MD during 1987 because Baltimore lacks the
petroleum and chemical manufacturing plants present in most of the previous
TEAM study sites and may therefore be more representative of many U.S. cities.
Focused studies were also conducted in New Jersey and Los Angeles during 1987
to further explore the sources and factors contributing to personal VOC
exposures identified in the earlier TEAM studies.
LANGUAGE:
English
ACCESS/AVAILABILITY:
Data Center: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)
Dissemination Media: Hard copy (agency reports, journal
publications), tape, diskette
File Format: SAS
Access Instructions: Contact the data center.
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Availability Status: On Request
Documentation Available: 
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