Presentation Abstract
The Washington state Department of Ecology recently partnered with roofing manufacturers, their associations, municipal stormwater programs, and environmental stakeholders to design and conduct a study to assess toxic chemicals in the stormwater runoff from roofing materials. This interdisciplinary team, know as the Roofing Task Force (RTF), brought together experts in roofing materials and manufacturing processes, roof coatings, stormwater quality, and regulatory requirements. By working together the RTF and Ecology leveraged their collective knowledge to design a more robust study. The study was designed to understand whether the premise that roofing runoff is a contributor to degrading water quality in the Puget Sound basin, as postulated in previous studies (Ecology, 2011 a and b). Scientifically credible data are becoming increasingly important to guide permitted jurisdictions and industries in compliance with NPDES stormwater permits and cost-effective investment in BMPs. The previous Ecology studies had indicated that roofing materials appeared to be major sources of copper, cadmium, zinc, arsenic, and possibly polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and phthalates in the Puget Sound basin (Ecology, 2011a and b). To systematically identify sources of these pollutants, Ecology collected and analyzed samples of runoff from 18 panels constructed of new roofing materials during ten storm events in Lacey, WA. Panels did not include other roofing components such as flashings gutters and downspouts, and HVAC systems. The panels represented 14 types of new roofing material that are the most commonly installed in the Puget Sound basin plus some of the emerging technologies for commercial roofs. Analysis of the roof runoff included total metals (arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc) and organic compounds (PAHs, phthalates, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). The new, un-aged roofing materials evaluated in this study did not appear to be releasing organics to the runoff; however, analyses identified statistically significantly higher concentrations of arsenic, copper and zinc in runoff from several roofing types when compared to the glass controls. The study results will provide the basis for jurisdictions to cities to establish policy they may apply to for specific pollutant-generating roofs. Ecology will likely begin evaluating other roofing components as sources of metals released within the Puget Sound basin.
Session Title
Session S-04B: Water Quality I
Conference Track
Toxics
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2014 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
1-5-2014 8:30 AM
End Date
1-5-2014 10:00 AM
Location
Room 608-609
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Roofing--Environmental aspects--Washington (State)--Puget Sound; Roof drainage--Environmental aspects--Washington (State)--Puget Sound; Urban runoff--Environmental aspects--Washington (State)--Puget Sound
Subjects – Names (LCNAF)
Washington (State). Department of Ecology
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Puget Sound (Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Included in
Roofing Materials Assessment - Investigation of Toxic Chemicals in Roof Runoff
Room 608-609
The Washington state Department of Ecology recently partnered with roofing manufacturers, their associations, municipal stormwater programs, and environmental stakeholders to design and conduct a study to assess toxic chemicals in the stormwater runoff from roofing materials. This interdisciplinary team, know as the Roofing Task Force (RTF), brought together experts in roofing materials and manufacturing processes, roof coatings, stormwater quality, and regulatory requirements. By working together the RTF and Ecology leveraged their collective knowledge to design a more robust study. The study was designed to understand whether the premise that roofing runoff is a contributor to degrading water quality in the Puget Sound basin, as postulated in previous studies (Ecology, 2011 a and b). Scientifically credible data are becoming increasingly important to guide permitted jurisdictions and industries in compliance with NPDES stormwater permits and cost-effective investment in BMPs. The previous Ecology studies had indicated that roofing materials appeared to be major sources of copper, cadmium, zinc, arsenic, and possibly polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and phthalates in the Puget Sound basin (Ecology, 2011a and b). To systematically identify sources of these pollutants, Ecology collected and analyzed samples of runoff from 18 panels constructed of new roofing materials during ten storm events in Lacey, WA. Panels did not include other roofing components such as flashings gutters and downspouts, and HVAC systems. The panels represented 14 types of new roofing material that are the most commonly installed in the Puget Sound basin plus some of the emerging technologies for commercial roofs. Analysis of the roof runoff included total metals (arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc) and organic compounds (PAHs, phthalates, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). The new, un-aged roofing materials evaluated in this study did not appear to be releasing organics to the runoff; however, analyses identified statistically significantly higher concentrations of arsenic, copper and zinc in runoff from several roofing types when compared to the glass controls. The study results will provide the basis for jurisdictions to cities to establish policy they may apply to for specific pollutant-generating roofs. Ecology will likely begin evaluating other roofing components as sources of metals released within the Puget Sound basin.
