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ABSTRACTThe chemical industry releases various types of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere, and the concentration of VOCs emitted from chimneys is regulated worldwide. However, some VOCs such as benzene are highly carcinogenic, while others such as ethylene and propylene may cause secondary air pollution, owing to their high ozone-generating ability. Accordingly, the US EPA(United State, Environment Protect Agency) introduced a fenceline monitoring system that regulates the concentration of VOCs at the boundary of a facility, away from the chimney source. This system was first introduced in the petroleum refining industry, which simultaneously emits benzene, affecting the local community because of its high carcinogenicity, and ethylene, propylene, xylene, and toluene, which have a high photochemical ozone creation potential (POCP). These emissions contribute to air pollution. In Korea, the concentration at the chimney is regulated; however, the concentration at the plant boundary is not considered. In accordance with the EPA regulations, Korea’s petroleum refining industries were identified and the limitations of the Clean Air Conservation Act were studied. The average concentration of benzene at the research facility examined in this study was 8.53 µg/m3, which complied with the benzene action level of 9 µg/m3. However, this value was exceeded at some points along the fenceline, in proximity to the benzene-toluene-xylene (BTX) manufacturing process. The composition ratios of toluene and xylene were 27% and 16%, respectively, which were higher than those of ethylene or propylene. These results suggest that reduction measures in the BTX manufacturing process are necessary. This study shows that legal regulations should enforce reduction measures through continuous monitoring at the fenceline of petroleum refineries in Korea.Implications: Although volatile organic compounds(VOCs) are essential in various industrial sites, they adversely affect the health of people in the near community. Benzene is highly carcinogenic, so it is dangerous if exposed continuously. In addition, there are various types of VOCs, which combine with atmospheric ozone to generate smog. Globally, VOCs are managed as Total VOCs. However, through this study, VOCs have priority, and in the case of the petroleum refining industry, it is suggested that VOCs should be preemptively measured and analyzed to be regulated. In addition, it is necessary to minimize the impact on the local community by regulating the concentration at the fenceline beyond the chimney measurement.

Hypertension is a common disease found in 1.13 billion adults worldwide. Several animal studies have provided evidence of the joint effect of alcohol drinking and cadmium exposure on hypertension. However, no epidemiologic study has examined the association between these 2 risk factors and hypertension. Therefore, we examined the individual effects of alcohol drinking and cadmium and the joint effect of their coexposure on hypertension in the general population. We analyzed data from 8,403 South Korean adults who had been randomly assigned to the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2008 to 2013. Multiple linear and logistic regression analyses were conducted to estimate the association of alcohol drinking and blood cadmium concentration with blood pressure and the odds ratio (OR) for hypertension. The weighted prevalence of hypertension and high‐risk drinking was 25.7 and 13.6%, respectively. The weighted geometric mean of blood cadmium levels was 0.94 μg/L (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.93 to 0.96). After adjusting for demographic characteristics, anthropometric measurements, health‐related behaviors, and dietary and disease variables, the OR for hypertension in the group with the high‐risk alcohol drinking was 1.67 (95% CI: 1.34 to 2.06) compared with the group without high‐risk alcohol drinking. When the highest and the lowest blood cadmium quartiles were compared, the OR for hypertension was 1.46 (95% CI: 1.15 to 1.86). The positive joint effect of high‐risk drinking and blood cadmium levels was statistically significant for systolic blood pressure (SBP; p= 0.037) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP; p< 0.001). Our results show that heavy alcohol drinking had a joint effect with cadmium exposure to increase the risk of hypertension. Future efforts are needed to reduce alcohol drinking and environmental cadmium exposure to prevent hypertension in the general population. Alcohol plus cadmium can amplify blood pressure and cardiovascular risk. Alcohol increases the absorption of cadmium in the body, and evidence suggests that the two substances contribute to hypertension via shared physiological pathways. This is the first known epidemiological study that investigates the joint effect of alcohol drinking and exposure to environmental cadmium on the risk of hypertension in the general population. Our findings underline the importance of reducing alcohol consumption and cadmium exposure as a matter of public health.