Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 10
Application of GIS in Evaluating the Potential
Impacts of Land Application of Biosolids
on Human Health
Kevin P. Czajkowski, April Ames, Bhuiyan Alam, Sheryl Milz,
Robert Vincent, Wendy McNulty, Timothy W. Ault, Michael Bisesi,
Brian Fink, Sadik Khuder, Teresa Benko, James Coss, David Czajkowski,
Subramania Sritharan, Krishnakumar Nedunuri, Stanislov Nikolov,
Jason Witter, and Alison Spongberg
Abstract
This chapter describes the development and use of a geographic infor-
mation system (GIS) in an environmental health investigation of the application of
Class B biosolids (sewage sludge) on agricultural fields. The research project is
broad-based including field observations and modeling to investigate the presence
of microorganisms, metals, and pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs)
in biosolids applied agricultural fields and the associated runoff. These data has
been linked with remote sensing imagery and added to GIS layers for Wood, Lucas
and Greene Counties in Ohio. Specifically, this project describes the way in which
a GIS was developed and utilized with a mailed, epidemiological health survey to
investigate the potential impact of biosolids application to agricultural fields in rela-
tion to self-reported human health symptoms, acute diseases and chronic diseases
among groups of individuals living specified distances from fields where biosolids
were permitted and applied. For Wood County, of the 24 symptoms in the survey, six
were statistically higher near biosolids permitted fields and of the 29 diseases in the
survey, five were statistically higher near biosolids permitted fields. The Lucas and
Greene County surveys are still being analyzed. Our future work includes refine-
ment of the spatial analysis and health survey to include the application of biosolids
and the constituents of the biosolids to fields, distances to any farm field and to other
potential relationships to health effects.
Keywords
Epidemiology
·
Biosolids
·
Agriculture
·
Pharmaceuticals and Personal
Care Products
·
Heavy Metals
·
Human Pathogens
