Housewives' exposure to volatile organic compounds relative to proximity to roadside service stations

Residents in neighborhoods near a service station and/or major roadway would be expected to be exposed to elevated ambient volatile organic compound (VOC) levels compared to those further away from such source(s). We confirmed this and examined whether the anticipated high outdoor levels near a service station and/or major roadway outweighed the indoor levels as a factor for the exposure of nearby residents. Unlike the outdoor air concentrations, neither the indoor air nor breath concentrations were different for the two residential zones tested. The outdoor concentrations were higher during the daytime than at night, however, the indoor air and breath concentrations showed no difference between the two periods. The elevated outdoor levels nearby service stations were not identified as a major contributor to the exposure of housewives living in close proximity. Instead, it appeared that the indoor air levels were the major contributor to housewives' exposure in both residential zones. This was further supported by the finding that the indoor levels were actually higher than the outdoor levels, and that there was a significant correlation between the indoor and breath levels. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.