Waterborne Naturally Occurring Asbestos: a case study from Piedmont (NW Italy)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiara Avataneo ◽  
Elena Belluso ◽  
Massimo Bergamini ◽  
Silvana Capella ◽  
Domenico Antonio De Luca ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Anthropogenic Sources ◽  
High Dose ◽  
Precipitation Pattern ◽  
The North ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Hydrogeological Characteristics ◽  
Naturally Occurring Asbestos ◽  
North Western

<p>Water pollution by asbestos may result from anthropogenic sources, such as water passing in cement-asbestos aqueduct pipes, or natural sources. Referring to this second case, pollution could be due to the flow of superficial water or groundwater into naturally occurring asbestos (NOA) in rock formations like green stones and serpentinites.</p><p>Asbestos-bearing rocks weathering is the principal natural cause of fibres water-dispersion. Despite the abundant occurrence of NOA rocks where water can flow (underground and superficially) in the North-Western part of the Alps, a few is known about the mechanism of fibres release in water and the correlation with the geolithological and hydrogeological characteristics of the area.</p><p>Moreover, the knowledge on the eventual noxiousness of waterborne fibres have still to be deepened: in fact, they can come into contact with human being as airborne fibres after water vaporization, or by ingestion, especially if fibres are present in drinking water. While a lot is known about disease caused by airborne asbestos fibres high-dose respiration, not enough has been yet comprehended about potential noxiousness of fibre ingestion. Following some in vivo studies, US-EPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) defined a maximum contaminant level of 7x10<sup>6</sup> ff/l in drinking water, but this limit is not fully shared by the whole scientific community.</p><p>Against this background, it has become fundamental to clarify the main aspects related to waterborne fibres, in particular their natural occurrence in water and their transportation due to water flowing into NOA. Consequently, decision has been made to conduct a study on the former chrysotile mine of Balangero, in Piedmont (Italy), which was selected as a reference case study for its great significance in the North-Western Alps context. The case study was developed in collaboration with R.S.A. s.r.l., the company that is in charge of the site remediation.</p><p>A sampling and analysis campaign regarding the superficial hydrographic network of the area was settled: 5 different sampling points were selected, 2 of them inside the principal site perimeter and 3 in the villages situated downstream of the site. They have been monitored for about one year, to evaluate the seasonal variability.</p><p>The main aims of the research are:</p><ul><li>the evaluation of asbestos concentration in term of number of fibres per liter (ff/l);</li> <li>the correlation between the concentration variability and the precipitation pattern over the four seasons;</li> <li>the evaluation of asbestos concentration defined as mass per liter (pg/l), depending on fibres dimension;</li> <li>the study of fibres characteristics, such as their dimension, morphology and chemical composition;</li> <li>the study of a possible correlation between asbestos concentration in pg/l and ff/l;</li> <li>the potential presence of fibres bundles or aggregates which can constitute a problem in the evaluation of the asbestos concentration, in particular for the correlation between ff/l and pg/l.</li> </ul><p>Finally, an attempt to relate the number of waterborne fibres to those that can eventually be released in air is still ongoing.</p>

Groundwater flow in Naturally Occurring Asbestos (NOA) rich settings: new findings on the relation among concentration, types and mobility of mineral fibres, and geological characteristics of aquifer formations.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiara Avataneo ◽  
Elena Belluso ◽  
Silvana Capella ◽  
Manuela Lasagna ◽  
Domenico Antonio De Luca
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Groundwater Flow ◽  
Polluted Water ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
The North ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Hydrogeological Characteristics ◽  
New Findings ◽  
Naturally Occurring Asbestos ◽  
North Western

<p>Weathering and erosion of asbestos-bearing rocks, such as meta-ophiolites (e.g. serpentinite rocks and metabasites), is the principal natural cause of asbestos water dispersion in Naturally Occurring Asbestos (NOA) rich settings. Water pollution by asbestos may occur as a consequence of superficial and groundwater flow through natural rock formations with NOA, depending on several characteristics of either the rocks (e.g. mineralogical composition, fracture grade) and hence the water (e.g. pH, speed).</p><p>Given the importance of groundwater resources for both drinking water and agricultural and industrial activities, groundwater asbestos pollution represents an environmental problem and could even constitute a risk for human health. In fact, waterborne asbestos can come into contact with human beings as airborne fibres after water vaporization, or by ingestion, especially if they are present in drinking water. While a lot is known about diseases caused by airborne asbestos respiration, not enough has been yet understood about potential noxiousness of its ingestion. For this reason, the necessity to set a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for asbestos in potentially usable water is still debated.</p><p>As the North-Western and Central Alps are rich in NOA and also in naturally occurring asbestiform minerals non-asbestos classified, it’s essential to understand if, how and which type of mineral fibres can eventually be released into water and to correlate them to the geolithological and hydrogeological characteristics of the area.</p><p>The results of a surface water and groundwater sampling and analysis campaign, settled in the North-Western Alps, will be presented. The main aim is to investigate the principal aspects related to asbestos and asbestiform fibres presence in water, in particular their natural occurrence in groundwater, linked to hydrological and geolithological characteristics of the reservoir. Furthermore, laboratory test to study the flow of polluted water through a packed column will be designed and observations on the methodology to evaluate waterborne mineral fibres behaviour into porous media will be presented.</p><p>These data are fundamental to monitor asbestos (and asbestiform) fibres transportation due to water flowing into NOA and to better understand the relationship among geology, hydrogeology and mineral fibres presence in water.</p>

scholarly journals A Multidisciplinary Tool for the Development of a Regional-scale Geotechnical Model: A Case Study in the North-Western Adriatic Coastal Area

2016 ◽  
Vol 158 ◽  
pp. 546-551 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Tonni ◽  
Irene Rocchi ◽  
Nadia Pia Cruciano ◽  
María F. García Martínez ◽  
Luca Martelli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Area ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
The North ◽  
North Western ◽  
Geotechnical Model

Overview of Naturally Occurring Asbestos in California and Southwestern Nevada

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-14
Author(s):  
R. Mark Bailey
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Nevada ◽  
North American ◽  
Volcanic Belt ◽  
Island Arc ◽  
North American Plate ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
The North ◽  
Rock Types ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Naturally Occurring Asbestos

ABSTRACT Naturally occurring asbestos (NOA) is being discovered in a widening array of geologic environments. The complex geology of the state of California is an excellent example of the variety of geologic environments and rock types that contain NOA. Notably, the majority of California rocks were emplaced during a continental collision of eastward-subducting oceanic and island arc terranes (Pacific and Farallon plates) with the westward continental margin of the North American plate between 65 and 150 MY BP. This collision and accompanying accretion of oceanic and island arc material from the Pacific plate onto the North American plate, as well as the thermal events caused by emplacement of the large volcanic belt that became today's Sierra Nevada mountain range, are the principal processes that produced the rocks where the majority of NOA-bearing units have been identified.

How did environmental disturbances affect carnivoran diversity? A case study of the Plio–Pleistocene Carnivora of the North-Western Mediterranean

2008 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 569-589 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Rita Palombo ◽  
Maria Teresa Alberdi ◽  
Beatriz Azanza ◽  
Caterina Giovinazzo ◽  
José Luis Prado ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Environmental Disturbances ◽  
The North ◽  
North Western

Dealing with asbestos presence in tunnel excavation: the Castagnola case study and the importance of the geological model

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oliviero Baietto ◽  
Francesco Amodeo ◽  
Martina Vitaliti ◽  
Giovanni Parisi ◽  
Alberto Scuderi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Investigation ◽  
High Velocity ◽  
Ventilation System ◽  
Geological Model ◽  
Tunnel Excavation ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Naturally Occurring Asbestos ◽  
Storage Methods ◽  
And Storage

<p>The presence of Naturally Occurring Asbestos (NOA) is one of the greatest danger during excavations and tunneling.  The most important instrument for the NOA content prediction is the geological model.</p><p>As part of the consultancy provided in the works of the "Terzo valico dei Giovi" which includes the excavation of numerous tunnels in areas potentially affected by rocks containing asbestos, the case study of the tunnel called "Castagnola" is illustrated. The opera is the new high velocity railway connection between Genova and Milano and the case study is located in the Piedmont southern area near Fraconalto (AL).</p><p>The “Castagnola” tunnel area is characterized by greenish - reddish rocks metabasalt covered by recent grey shales in the upper part of the area; it refers to the ophiolitic Figogna Unit, elongated in a north-south direction, which belongs to Sestri-Voltaggio Zone.</p><p>Starting from geological sections and thanks to surface investigation and core drilling, an effective geological model was built.</p><p>This study highlights how, during the progress of the works, situations other than the forecast geological model are encountered. It also highlights the importance of the environmental monitoring of the airborne fibers dispersion inside the tunnel, which has proved extremely effective even in the presence of low asbestos content in the excavated rock.</p><p>Moreover, this study describes the trends in asbestos content in the material excavated during the route of the tunnel in comparison with the concentration of airborne fibers. Furthermore, the management of the asbestos problem, from the abatement of dust to the excavation and storage methods and the installation of efficient technologies such as an aspirating ventilation system already successfully tested in a previous excavation phase, are presented.</p>

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