For residents over a contamination plume at hazardous substance sites, what exposure routes might they experience that neighbors just outside the zone do not?
Answer
Vapor intrusion into basements or consumption of contaminated well water.
Local contamination at hazardous substance sites often remains confined to subsurface plumes in soil or groundwater. Residents directly above this contamination are uniquely vulnerable to exposure pathways that do not cross into adjacent properties, such as volatile chemicals entering living spaces through foundation cracks (vapor intrusion) or utilizing private water sources that draw directly from the contaminated plume.
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