Guide For The Assessment Of The Vapor Intrusion Pathway

This document has been developed by the Health Risk Assessment Branch of the Air Force Institute for Operational Health (AFIOH) as an informational resource for Mr Force environmental managers who are interested in evaluating the vapor intrusion pathway (VIP), This pathway has received substantial scrutiny in recent years by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state environmental regulatory agencies; the potential health risks from vapor intrusion are being evaluated at numerous sites across 'the country. Exposures related to this pathway can result from the volatilization and migration of chemicals from contaminated groundwater and subsurface soil that can leak through cracks and holes in buildings located above the contamination. EPA has developed a detailed vapor intrusion guide (EPA, 2002a) that uses a tiered approach to evaluate the potential risks associated with this pathway. This Air Force-specific document generally follows and supports the modeling and risk assessment approaches recommended by EPA. The primary focus of this document is to provide a discussion of various approaches, problems, and solutions related to assessing and managing the VIP. This guidance covers such areas as sampling and analysis, analytical methods, indoor air quality, risk assessment, remediation, and risk management.