"This inquiry arose out of the exposure of workers to crystalline silica in the sandblasting industry. One worker, Mr Richard White, unsuccessfully sought compensation for lung disease allegedly as a result of exposure in the 1970s during employment as a sandblaster. Mr White then contacted others who knew or suspected that they had acquired lung or other disease through sandblasting, eventually obtaining over 900 names. It appeared that very few had received or sought compensation for their disability."--P. xi.
This book examines toxic chemicals that may be present in the workplace and--with easy-to-understand, nontechnical language--examines the steps an organization can take to manage them.
Incineration has been used widely for waste disposal, including household, hazardous, and medical wasteâ€"but there is increasing public concern over the benefits of combusting the waste versus the health risk from pollutants emitted during combustion. Waste Incineration and Public Health informs the emerging debate with the most up-to-date information available on incineration, pollution, and human healthâ€"along with expert conclusions and recommendations for further research and improvement of such areas as risk communication. The committee provides details on: Processes involved in incineration and how contaminants are released. Environmental dynamics of contaminants and routes of human exposure. Tools and approaches for assessing possible human health effects. Scientific concerns pertinent to future regulatory actions. The book also examines some of the social, psychological, and economic factors that affect the communities where incineration takes place and addresses the problem of uncertainty and variation in predicting the health effects of incineration processes.
Collection of conference papers on public health and occupational health effects of exposure to fibrous and particulate dusts (esp. Asbestos) - covers current concepts in fibre pathogenicity (disease and occupational disease), and health implications of inorganic mineral fibres, fibrous materials, mineral contamination of talcs, non-fibrous talcs and other non-fibrous organic and inorganic toxic substances, and considers relevant ggovernment regulations. Graphs, photographs, references and statistical tables.
The workplace is where 156 million working adults in the United States spend many waking hours, and it has a profound influence on health and well-being. Although some occupations and work-related activities are more hazardous than others and face higher rates of injuries, illness, disease, and fatalities, workers in all occupations face some form of work-related safety and health concerns. Understanding those risks to prevent injury, illness, or even fatal incidents is an important function of society. Occupational safety and health (OSH) surveillance provides the data and analyses needed to understand the relationships between work and injuries and illnesses in order to improve worker safety and health and prevent work-related injuries and illnesses. Information about the circumstances in which workers are injured or made ill on the job and how these patterns change over time is essential to develop effective prevention programs and target future research. The nation needs a robust OSH surveillance system to provide this critical information for informing policy development, guiding educational and regulatory activities, developing safer technologies, and enabling research and prevention strategies that serves and protects all workers. A Smarter National Surveillance System for Occupational Safety and Health in the 21st Century provides a comprehensive assessment of the state of OSH surveillance. This report is intended to be useful to federal and state agencies that have an interest in occupational safety and health, but may also be of interest broadly to employers, labor unions and other worker advocacy organizations, the workers' compensation insurance industry, as well as state epidemiologists, academic researchers, and the broader public health community. The recommendations address the strengths and weaknesses of the envisioned system relative to the status quo and both short- and long-term actions and strategies needed to bring about a progressive evolution of the current system.
This book is the eighth volume in the series Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Selected Airborne Chemicals, and reviews AEGLs for acrolein, carbon monoxide, 1,2-dichloroethene, ethylenimine, fluorine, hydrazine, peracetic acid, propylenimine, and sulfur dioxide for scientific accuracy, completeness, and consistency with the NRC guideline reports.
Providing material for practitioners and students alike, Chemical Exposure and Toxic Responses is a clear and straightforward presentation of industrial toxicology. Exposure to toxic chemicals is of major concern to health professionals. In recent years, the scope and importance of hazardous materials toxicology has expanded and now impacts financial institutions, government, private corporations, and many other organizations as well. Chemical Exposure and Toxic Responses presents the myriad health implications of hazardous chemicals in a single source. This book is organized so that readers can proceed from a general perspective on the problem of chemical exposure and toxic responses to an understanding of toxicology and a method of inquiry. Written for anyone who needs practical toxicological information, the book compactly and efficiently presents the scientific basis of toxicology as it applies to the workplace. It covers the diverse chemical hazards encountered in the work environment and provides a practical understanding of these hazards for those charged with protecting the health and well being of people at work. Chemical Exposure and Toxic Responses consists of three parts: Part I establishes the general principles of industrial toxicology; Part II addresses specific effects of toxic agents on specific physiological organs and systems; and Part III is devoted to the evaluation of hazards in the workplace.
