Evaluation of exposures to air toxics from natural gas compressor stations in the barnett shale

Air toxic concentrations surrounding a natural gas compressor station were measured, and dispersion modeling was conducted to evaluate potential health impacts under various meteorological conditions at multiple locations. The site contained 12 engines, 600-2400 hp. ISCST3 was used to estimate concentrations at thousands of receptors for 8760 hourly meteorological data values. Modeled concentrations of benzene, carbonyl sulfide, dimethyl disulfide, ethyl benzene, ethyl methyl benzene, hexachlorobutadiene, toluene, 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, and o-xylene exceeded both short-term and long-term ESL. Short-term ESLs were not exceeded during measurement, but were exceeded when the year's worth of 1-hr meteorological data was modeled. Collecting ambient samples near compressor stations on one day was not sufficient to assess the station's maximum impact on surrounding air quality. This is an abstract of a paper presented at the 103rd Air and Waste Management Association Annual Conference and Exhibition (Calgary, Alberta, Canada 6/22-25/2010).