The Strategic Plan comprises an ambitious set of goals and objectives. It is a “living” document that will guide our focus and activities. As such, some objectives and expected results will be subject to change as information and events unfold. Objectives and measures aligned to drive achievement have also been developed in Units, Sections, and Divisions throughout the Department.

The Arizona Department of Health Services completed this health consultation at the request of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. This consult evaluates whether soil vapors from volatile organic compounds in the subsurface near the Silver Creek Subdivision in Tucson, Arizona are present at levels that may cause adverse health effects.

The Rodeo-Chediski Fire Complex began as a small blaze in a remote region of east-central Arizona and within days erupted into the largest wildfire in Arizona history. Fortunately, no lives were lost. However, from June 18, 2002 to the time of its containment on July 7, 2002, the Rodeo-Chediski fire destroyed over 490 structures and 467,000 acres of ponderosa pine and pinyon-juniper woodland—an estimated 500 million to 1.3 billion board feet of timber. Jurisdictions involved included the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest, the Tonto National Forest, and private lands adjacent to Highway 260, from the Town of Forest Lakes east to the City of Show Low. Virtually all of the acres burned were in Navajo County, with some damage in the contiguous counties of Coconino, Apache, and Gila Counties. This health assessment describes the fire events and summarizes the resulting public health impacts from the fire.

Previous studies at Lake Havasu and Lake Powell, combined with other national data indicate that carbon monoxide poisoning from recreational watercraft can create a significant health hazard. The current study was designed not to repeat the 2003 study. Instead, it was designed to explore the potential health effects of carbon monoxide under the conditions of Humbug Cove. Humbug Cove is known for congregating idling boats, higher frequency of alcohol consumption, and being a location that was secluded and sheltered from breezes or wind.

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.

This report presents an assessment of human health risks from exposure to surface soil metals in the Old Tungsten Mill, Tucson, AZ. City of Tucson officials had planned to build a park, on a parcel of land they owned west of Silverbell Road and north of Speedway Boulevard in Tucson, Pima County, Arizona. They had raised $200,000 in bond money to study what was the Old Tungsten Mill site when they found high levels of contaminants in the soil. The Arizona Department of Health Services, Risk Assessment & Health Consultation Program offered assistance to the city. On October 13th, 2006 City Officials asked ADHS to perform a health consultation to evaluate whether exposure to contaminants in soil pose a public health hazard, either currently or during possible future reuse of the land.

The Santa Cruz County Health Department and the sheriff's office, along with the U.S. Border Patrol have expressed concerns regarding incidental contact with the water in Nogales Wash, Arizona. The public has expressed significant concern about direct public exposure to waters flowing in the wash. The Arizona Department of Health Services completed this health consultation to evaluate the levels of organic and inorganic chemicals at the request of the Santa Cruz County Health Department.

The Arizona Department of Health Services received a request for a Health Consultation from the City of Litchfield Park, dated March 5, 2007. The nature of the request was for ADHS to determine if there was a risk to public health from eating fish taken from Tierra Verde Lake. The City sponsors an annual fishing derby and believed that some citizens were eating the fish they caught. The City tested their lake water and for the very first time, measurable amounts of perchlorates were detected. The probable source for the perchlorates was thought to be from a groundwater, contaminant plume originating from the Phoenix Goodyear Airport Superfund Site.

In March 2004, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requested information on efforts to monitor and protect children from exposure to lead in drinking water at schools. The Arizona Department of Health Services reviewed the state lead poisoning registry, and analyzed drinking water samples from 45 randomly selected schools. The Office of Environmental Health provided this consultation to help document our findings and supplement our response to the EPA. This work was also undertaken to help provide useful information should hazardous waste sites be discovered in the future near these schools. We also wanted to apply the ATSDR health assessment process in support of state and federal efforts to protect the health of children.

Local residents expressed their concerns regarding the tailings from the Iron King Mine and Humboldt Smelter at Dewey-Humboldt, AZ. The purpose of this health consultation is to evaluate the available water and soil sampling results to determine if the detected metal levels pose adverse health effects when residents come into contact with the water or soil. In 2008, EPA initiated the field investigation portion of the Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study for the Site. The primary objectives of the RI/FS are to determine the nature and extent of contamination and to gather sufficient information so that EPA can select a long-term remedy that eliminates, reduces, or controls risks to human health. The investigation included the collection of airborne particulates, groundwater, surface water, surface soil, subsurface soil, and sediment data across the entire Site. Data from the RI/FS was not available at the time the health consultation was prepared and thus it was not incorporated into this health consultation.