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STDMachine OP t1_j8mgqyl wrote

Notable mention from article about why this could easily reach us:

That downwind location is why Maine is often referred to as “the tailpipe of the nation,” according to Jeff Crawford, director of the Maine Bureau of Air Quality.

“Maine, because of its geographic location, is at the downwind terminus of the northeast corridor,” Crawford said. “It is especially impacted by transported emissions from states and regions to our south.”

“If we monitored elevated levels of vinyl chloride last week, these levels would most certainly be detected by our analytical lab,” Crawford said. “With respect to specific health concerns or impacts from vinyl chloride, the [Maine Department of Environmental Protection] always defers to the Maine Center for Disease Control.”

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lucianbelew t1_j8mwr5x wrote

> If we monitored elevated levels of vinyl chloride last week

Weird that we don't dig into why this is an 'if' and not a 'because we monitored, we saw' here.

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efshoemaker t1_j8n1vvn wrote

They did collect samples. They do that every 6 days year round per the article. But the samples take a few weeks to analyze.

So the quote is saying that if levels were elevated then it will show up in the monitoring samples from last week, but they won’t get the analysis results of those samples back until March.

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geneticswag t1_j8n69yb wrote

weird it takes weeks when there's probably tens of millions of dollars worth of spectroscopy equipment here between all the labs and pharma co's

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vikingenvy t1_j8nc19j wrote

It’s a little more complicated than just pressing a button on a random GCMS at Idexx.

Source: science education

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geneticswag t1_j8ncf41 wrote

I've been out of the lab for a decade now - I just know words that can get me into trouble ;)

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vikingenvy t1_j8nert7 wrote

Lol. Don’t tell me you were basing the decision of Maine’s armed response to Ohio on an unvalidated test method.

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geneticswag t1_j8nfkk3 wrote

more just suggesting we have a ton of equipment around to support running spectroscopy assays if it turned out that spectrophotometers and personnel were driving up the result times is all

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k_mainer t1_j8pgbem wrote

But not within 24 to 48 hours which is when we would have expected to see results from Ohio contamination.

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Fun-Gap4015 t1_j8nhqx5 wrote

Probably because vinyl chloride isn't a constant issue to be on the lookout for.

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Sufficient_Risk1684 t1_j8mybqi wrote

I think it's just processing lag. Probably take sample but process lags, as that is not something that is usually looked for.

And frankly the amount of burned chemical is miniscule compared to the atmospheric dilution. I'm going with this event outside the immediate area is environmentally irrelevant.

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ghostsintherafters t1_j8n0oom wrote

Oh, thank god you've determined that. Ok. Nothing to see here! This guy says it's irrelevant

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Sufficient_Risk1684 t1_j8n2y7z wrote

A rail car tank holds maybe 6,000 cubic feet. Vaporize that in a single cubic mile of air and you are already diluted to 1 part per 25 million.

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IamSauerKraut t1_j8oqhft wrote

Welp, here is what the burn looked like from a passing airliner: https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/112ptb9/passenger_photo_while_plane_flew_near_east/

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ripbingers t1_j8n2b9e wrote

That's baseless speculation. Nothing in your response addresses the fate and transport of this specific pollutant or the as yet publicly unknown chemicals that were also onboard.

What you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

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Sufficient_Risk1684 t1_j8n4ou0 wrote

Mmm sure. Except its simple math. Air mixes rapidly. The volume of the rail cars is known. Water quality hazard in the area and downstream? Definitely. Local air quality hazard sure. 1000 miles away after atmospheric mixing? Parts per billion. Or less.

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HowLittleIKnow t1_j8nsxgn wrote

Has anyone ever actually heard Maine referred to as "the tailpipe of the nation"?

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sweetest-heart t1_j8oest0 wrote

Surprisingly yes, but it was more in the context of coal emissions from the Midwest/Appalachia and Maine having the third highest rate of asthma in the country behind Hawaii and Massachusetts (surprising based on how rural we are comparatively)

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IamSauerKraut t1_j8oq5ob wrote

All those summer time ozone warnings... plus, for those of us familiar with Mt. Washington, everything atmospheric swings on by up there.

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gretchens t1_j8pog8d wrote

Yes- especially in the 80s with acid rain worries.

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CombinationSea6976 t1_j8olm99 wrote

Never. Sounds like a pejorative term just like certain municipalities have been dubbed “the asshole of New England”.

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[deleted] t1_j8rdqji wrote

[deleted]

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STDMachine OP t1_j8rfa6p wrote

Not fear mongering lmao, I selected that one block of text because it explained why/how this could potentially reach us and that the event is actually relevant to us.

Because my initial thought when reading about this event over a week ago was "luckily that can't reach us it's so far away" (and I bet a lot of people had that same thought).

But looks like I was wrong and it is definitely possible to reach us and that block explains how it can reach us.

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