From US Environmental Protection Agency
OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND
DEVELOPMENT
HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES TECHNICAL
LIAISON
REGION 9 NEWSLETTER
Spring 2005, Edition 31

[Excerpted Material]

The objective of this project was to determine the potential exposure threat to current
and future residents from the consumption of fruits and vegetables grown within the
area of concern at the site. The Las Vegas Lab's ERT section was requested to provide
support to this effort. To accomplish this, an investigation was conducted that included a vegetation reconnaissance throughout the site. Fifteen targeted sampling locations and two reference areas were selected for the collection of soil and edible plant tissue samples to determine whether PAHs are transferred from soil to plant roots and then translocated from roots to edible plant parts. At each sampling location, fruits, vegetables or edible weed flowers were collected for PAH analysis. At the same time, a soil sample was collected from the root zone of the target plants to link the PAHs in the soil to the PAH accumulation in the plant tissues. The plant tissues sampled were fruits (apple, fig, and tomato), fava bean seeds, and flowers of Cat's-Ear.