PCBs and Health: The Hudson River Communities Project
Summary of Average PCB Levels measured in the Hudson River Communities Project
| Average PCB level | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Study Group | Comparison Group | Living within ½ mile | Living beyond ½ mile | Living downwind | Living upwind | Fish eaters1 | Non-fish eaters2 | |
| Outdoor Air (ng/m3) | 0.72*** | 0.40 | 0.713** | 0.504 | 0.73** | 0.55 | - | - |
| Blood (ppb) | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.65* | 3.1 |
ng/m3 = nanograms per cubic meter
ppb = parts per billion
1 Fish eaters from both study and comparison groups.
2 Non-fish eaters from both study and comparison groups.
3 Results for people living within ¾ mile. NOTE: The air group data utilized ¾ of a mile rather than ½ mile because of the lower number of participants in the air group as compared to the blood group.
4 Results for people living beyond ¾ mile.
5 Eight fish eaters, or 16% of the fish eaters, had blood PCB levels of more than 5 ppb. One fish eater had a PCB level above 10 ppb.
*** Statistically significant difference between groups at .<0.01
** Statistically significant difference between groups at .<0.05
* Statistically significant difference between groups at .<0.10
