The Arizona Department of Health Services conducted a carbon monoxide exposure survey among recreational boaters at the Maricopa County Lake Pleasant Regional Park during the 2003 Labor Day weekend. To investigate the extent that recreational boaters are exposed to carbon monoxide from a variety of watercraft, ADHS measured exhaled carbon monoxide to determine the amount of carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) present in their blood. To determine whether a widespread public health hazard exists because of carbon monoxide exposure from watercraft, the ADHS health consultation, "Investigation of Carbon Monoxide Exposure, Rotary Beach at the London Bridge, Lake Havasu, Arizona, May 25-26, 2003", recommended conducting further biomonitoring studies at other recreational lakes in Arizona. ADHS asked the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), under its Cooperative Agreement Program with ADHS, to interpret data from the Lake Pleasant survey and to determine whether carbon monoxide exposure is a public health hazard among recreational boaters at Lake Pleasant.

In September 1999, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency contacted the Arizona Department of Health Services, Office of Environmental Health, concerning potential contamination of private drinking water wells along Lynx Creek in the Walker, Arizona, mining district. Historical mining activities in the area might have resulted in contamination of groundwater by acid mine runoff as well as metals from extraction processes. EPA and ADHS determined the historical mining activity had caused environmental damage and the potential for adverse human health impacts. ADHS initiated a private well sampling program to determine if the mining activity has had an adverse impact on the quality of water from these wells. Several area residents have expressed concerns about their water quality. The objective of this public health consultation is to evaluate the potential for health effects from exposure to contaminants in private drinking water wells in the Walker, Arizona area.

Until recently carbon monoxide poisonings were thought to occur in enclosed, poorly ventilated areas. However, open-air cases of poisoning have recently been reported including exposures from exhaust from various kinds of watercraft including houseboats, cabin cruisers and ski boats. Unlike automobiles, boat engines do not have mechanisms to reduce carbon monoxide emissions. The density of watercraft and the large numbers of people using the channel creates the opportunity for individuals to be exposed to excessive carbon monoxide emissions. This exposure investigation examines the extent of carbon monoxide exposure in recreational boaters in the Rotary Beach area near the London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona during the Memorial Day Holiday in 2003. The objective of the investigation is to determine whether a public health hazard from carbon monoxide exposure exists in an area heavily used by recreational boaters.