Environmental Health and Safety

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Most people know that smoking cigarettes can lead to severe lung damage, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD. What they may not realize is that COPD can occur from exposure to hazardous substances at work as well. At the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), investigators are studying the causes and how to prevent COPD.

Lung disease from work-related exposure to coal mine dust can damage different parts of the lungs, including the small airways. When these airways, which resemble twigs branching off the trunk of a tree, are damaged, breathing can become significantly difficult.

Asbestos is a long, thin, fibrous mineral made of up of microscopic crystals. There are six different types that are split up into two different groups: serpentine or amphibole. Serpentine asbestos is classified by its layered structure and curly fibers. One particular type of serpentine asbestos – chrysotile – is most commonly found in building materials throughout the United States.

Welders exposed to airborne manganese at estimated levels below federal occupational safety standards exhibit neurological problems similar to Parkinson’s disease, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Further, the more they are exposed to manganese-containing welding fumes, the faster the workers’ signs and symptoms worsen.

European workers are angry about a recent directive from the European Commission that fails to include diesel engine exhaust among the toxins that people should be protected from in the workplace.

Cancer and hearing loss rates are down, global demand for respirators is up and France passes a law to help workers with a digital divide. These were among the top stories featured this week on ISHN.com.

Ensuring safe and healthy workplaces is a top priority of the Labor Department. It’s also a smart career path for people interested in making sure offices, factories, mines and other workplaces are safe from hazards and adhere to regulations concerning health, safety and the environment. The median wages for all of these jobs are also higher than the median wage for all occupations ($36,200). Here’s a closer look at nine options:

Releases of toxic chemicals into the air fell 56% from 2005-2015 at industrial facilities submitting data to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) National Analysis, according to the EPA. The recently released report shows an 8% decrease from 2014 to 2015 at facilities reporting to the program contributed to this ten-year decline. Hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, toluene and mercury were among chemicals with significantly lower air releases at TRI-covered facilities.

Happy New Year. As we start afresh in 2017 I wanted to share my recent editorial in the British journal, Occupational Medicine, “Occupational health issues in the USA”. The article highlights some of the occupational safety and health issues identified as needing attention by the industry sector groups of the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA).