The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), a public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, today is releasing the final version of its public health assessment (PHA) of the Callahan Mining Corp. NPL site in Brooksville (Cape Rosier), Maine.

The PHA evaluates whether exposure to site contamination could cause harm to persons living near or visiting the site. ATSDR is required by Congress to conduct public health assessments on all sites on the National Priorities List (NPL), and the Callahan Mining Corp. site is listed on the NPL.

The final version contains comments from the members of the public who reviewed the PHA (without identifying them by name), along with ATSDR's responses.

Conclusions

ATSDR reviewed available environmental data, exposure scenarios and community health concerns to determine whether exposure associated with the site can lead to adverse health effects. On the basis of this information, ATSDR concludes the following:

• The site contains physical hazards and elevated levels of heavy metals. Physical hazards could cause injury to people visiting the site.
• Because of the low frequency and duration of likely exposures, people exposed to heavy metals and other contaminants at the site are not expected to experience adverse health effects. Further data collected during the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) remedial investigation process might modify this conclusion.
• Several contaminants found at the site are known to accumulate in fish and shellfish. Not enough current information exists on potential contaminant levels to fully determine whether adverse health effects are possible from eating fish or shellfish collected from on or near the site. On the basis of limited samples, people who occasionally eat mussels from Goose Cove are not likely to experience adverse health effects. However, collecting or eating shellfish (including clams, mussels and oysters) from Goose Pond, Goose Cove, and other nearby areas is banned because of elevated levels of metals and other pollution.

The Callahan Mining Corp. site is a former zinc/copper open-pit mine on the Cape Rosier peninsula in the town of Brooksville, Maine. The mine was operated adjacent to and beneath Goose Pond, which was dammed and drained during operations to allow the mining to take place. The open-pit mining operation and processes contaminated the site with metals. Since the mine ceased operations in 1972, dams preventing water from entering Goose Pond have been removed, and the pit currently is under water. Elevated levels of heavy metals, including cadmium, copper, lead and zinc, have been measured in surface water, sediments, biota, soil and waste piles on the site.

Recommendations

ATSDR makes the following recommendations about the site:

• Property owners should discourage access to the site by using signs and/or barriers until physical hazards are removed and clean-up activities are completed.
• EPA, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, or other relevant agencies should conduct more extensive sampling to determine concentrations of heavy metals in fish and shellfish tissues in Goose Pond, Goose Cove and, if determined to be appropriate, in waters adjacent to Goose Cove. Adequate background sampling should be conducted to determine the naturally occurring concentrations of heavy metals in the Brooksville area.
• The Holbrook Island Sanctuary ranger and Brooksville and Maine State police should increase vigilance to ensure that people follow the shellfish ban and other fish advisories applicable near the site.

A limited number of copies of the public health assessment are available to community members at the following repository:

Brooksville Public Service Building
Brooksville, Maine

Community members seeking information on the procedures or the content of the PHA may contact Jill Dyken or Annmarie DePasquale, ATSDR environmental health scientists, or Dawn O'Connor, ATSDR community involvement specialist, toll free, at 1-888-422-8737. ATSDR Regional Representative Bill Sweet also may be contacted at 617-918-1490. Callers should refer to the Callahan site in Brooksville, Maine.