The use of animals as a surveillance tool for monitoring environmental health hazards, human health hazards and bioterrorism.

Science.gov (United States)

Neo, Jacqueline Pei Shan; Tan, Boon Huan

2017-05-01

This review discusses the utilization of wild or domestic animals as surveillance tools for monitoring naturally occurring environmental and human health hazards. Besides providing early warning to natural hazards, animals can also provide early warning to societal hazards like bioterrorism. Animals are ideal surveillance tools to humans because they share the same environment as humans and spend more time outdoors than humans, increasing their exposure risk. Furthermore, the biologically compressed lifespans of some animals may allow them to develop clinical signs more rapidly after exposure to specific pathogens. Animals are an excellent channel for monitoring novel and known pathogens with outbreak potential given that more than 60 % of emerging infectious diseases in humans originate as zoonoses. This review attempts to highlight animal illnesses, deaths, biomarkers or sentinel events, to remind human and veterinary public health programs that animal health can be used to discover, monitor or predict environmental health hazards, human health hazards, or bioterrorism. Lastly, we hope that this review will encourage the implementation of animals as a surveillance tool by clinicians, veterinarians, ecosystem health professionals, researchers and governments. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

BEHAVIORAL HAZARD IN HEALTH INSURANCE*

Science.gov (United States)

Baicker, Katherine; Mullainathan, Sendhil; Schwartzstein, Joshua

2015-01-01

A fundamental implication of standard moral hazard models is overuse of low-value medical care because copays are lower than costs. In these models, the demand curve alone can be used to make welfare statements, a fact relied on by much empirical work. There is ample evidence, though, that people misuse care for a different reason: mistakes, or “behavioral hazard.” Much high-value care is underused even when patient costs are low, and some useless care is bought even when patients face the full cost. In the presence of behavioral hazard, welfare calculations using only the demand curve can be off by orders of magnitude or even be the wrong sign. We derive optimal copay formulas that incorporate both moral and behavioral hazard, providing a theoretical foundation for value-based insurance design and a way to interpret behavioral “nudges.” Once behavioral hazard is taken into account, health insurance can do more than just provide financial protection—it can also improve health care efficiency. PMID:23930294

Occupational health hazards in mining: an overview

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Donoghue, A.M. [Alcoa World Alumina Australia, Perth, WA (Australia)

2004-08-01

This review article outlines the physical, chemical, biological, ergonomic and psychosocial occupational health hazards of mining and associated metallurgical processes. Mining remains an important industrial sector in many parts of the world and although substantial progress has been made in the control of occupational health hazards, there remains room for further risk reduction. This applies particularly to traumatic injury hazards, ergonomic hazards and noise. Vigilance is also required to ensure exposures to coal dust and crystalline silica remain effectively controlled.

Assessment of Occupational Hazards, Health Problems and Safety ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

UNIBEN

Background: Petrol station attendants encounter several hazards and health problems while working. This study was conducted to determine the occupational hazards, health ..... engineering conference on sustainable ... Industrial Health.

Review of comparative studies of health hazards associated with electric power generation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paskievici, W.

1982-01-01

Twenty comparative studies on health hazards associated with different methods of energy production were reviewed in order to highlight the methodological problems which are characteristic of this type of study and attempt to bring the results obtained closer together by using a more consistent methodological approach. The main conceptual difficulties lie in the delineation of the boundaries of a fuel cycle, the choice of technologies, dose-effect relationships and health hazard estimates, and in finding equivalent values in the case of real and hypothetical risks and of present and future risks. Practical limitations in predicting the number and gravity of illnesses and accidents both in workers and the population were also reviewed. The health effects associated with the coal, oil, natural gas and uranium cycles were estimated with the following assumptions: exclusion of risks associated with non-fuel resources, use of advanced technologies, use of linear non-threshold dose-effect relationships, exclusion of hypothetical accidents and exclusion or discounting to present worth of long-term risks (>500 years). It can be concluded from these calculations that the health hazards from all the energy sources considered are relatively low and therefore acceptable, natural gas being the safest source followed by uranium, oil and coal in that order. The uncertainty factors are discussed and methods to improve the results are proposed. It is also shown that the radiological risks to workers in the PHWR cycle are approximately half those of the LWR cycle. (author)

Environmental Public Health Tracking: a cost-effective system for characterizing the sources, distribution and public health impacts of environmental hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Saunders, P J; Middleton, J D; Rudge, G

2017-09-01

The contemporary environment is a complex of interactions between physical, biological, socio-economic systems with major impacts on public health. However, gaps in our understanding of the causes, extent and distribution of these effects remain. The public health community in Sandwell West Midlands has collaborated to successfully develop, pilot and establish the first Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) programme in Europe to address this 'environmental health gap' through systematically linking data on environmental hazards, exposures and diseases. Existing networks of environmental, health and regulatory agencies developed a suite of innovative methods to routinely share, integrate and analyse data on hazards, exposures and health outcomes to inform interventions. Effective data sharing and horizon scanning systems have been established, novel statistical methods piloted, plausible associations framed and tested, and targeted interventions informed by local concerns applied. These have influenced changes in public health practice. EPHT is a powerful tool for identifying and addressing the key environmental public health impacts at a local level. Sandwell's experience demonstrates that it can be established and operated at virtually no cost. The transfer of National Health Service epidemiological skills to local authorities in 2013 provides an opportunity to expand the programme to fully exploit its potential. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Faculty of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

Occupational Health Hazards in ICU Nursing Staff

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Helena Eri Shimizu

2010-01-01

Full Text Available This study analyzed occupational health hazards for Intensive Care Unit (ICU nurses and nursing technicians, comparing differences in the number and types of hazards which occur at the beginning and end of their careers. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out with 26 nurses and 96 nursing technicians from a public hospital in the Federal District, Brazil. A Likert-type work-related symptom scale (WRSS was used to evaluate the presence of physical, psychological, and social risks. Data were analyzed with the use of the SPSS, version 12.0, and the Kruskal-Wallis test for statistical significance and differences in occupational health hazards at the beginning and at the end of the workers' careers. As a workplace, ICUs can cause work health hazards, mostly physical, to nurses and nursing technicians due to the frequent use of physical energy and strength to provide care, while psychological and social hazards occur to a lesser degree.

A proposal for prevention of acute radiation hazard and social panic regarding orphan sources in Japan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takahash, T. [Research Reactor Institute, Kyoto Univ., Osaka (Japan); Kai, M. [Oita Univ., of Nursing and Health Sciences, Oita (Japan); Yamazaki, K. [Chiyoda Technol Corporation, Tokyo (Japan); Gomi, K. [Japan Radioisotope Association, Tokyo (Japan); Nakazato, K. [School of Medicine, Keio univ., Tokyo (Japan); Iida, T. [Nagoya Univ., Nagoya (Japan)

2002-07-01

To respond to an increase of social problems concerning orphan sources in Japan, a working group was formed in the Japan Health Physics Society. In this working group, we investigated how to prevent acute radiation hazard or social panic regarding orphan sources in scrap metal and detection system for orphan sources brought into scrap yards before recycle. For detection system in a scrap yard we conducted an experiment on detectability of monitoring instrument using a radiation source mixed in scrap metal on a truck. The result showed that it was not easy to detect even a high-level source if it was shielded by scrap metal. We also estimated detection limits for radioactive materials in scrap metal by calculation that was validated with experimental data. We summarized present status about orphan sources in Japan and proposed a categorization of orphan sources according to dose rates to deal with unknown sources in a scrap yard. Our report includes some proposals to the government, industry and academic world for preventing acute radiation hazard and social panic.

A proposal for prevention of acute radiation hazard and social panic regarding orphan sources in Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahash, T.; Kai, M.; Yamazaki, K.; Gomi, K.; Nakazato, K.; Iida, T.

2002-01-01

To respond to an increase of social problems concerning orphan sources in Japan, a working group was formed in the Japan Health Physics Society. In this working group, we investigated how to prevent acute radiation hazard or social panic regarding orphan sources in scrap metal and detection system for orphan sources brought into scrap yards before recycle. For detection system in a scrap yard we conducted an experiment on detectability of monitoring instrument using a radiation source mixed in scrap metal on a truck. The result showed that it was not easy to detect even a high-level source if it was shielded by scrap metal. We also estimated detection limits for radioactive materials in scrap metal by calculation that was validated with experimental data. We summarized present status about orphan sources in Japan and proposed a categorization of orphan sources according to dose rates to deal with unknown sources in a scrap yard. Our report includes some proposals to the government, industry and academic world for preventing acute radiation hazard and social panic

Occupational Health Hazards among Healthcare Workers in Kampala, Uganda

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rawlance Ndejjo

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. To assess the occupational health hazards faced by healthcare workers and the mitigation measures. Methods. We conducted a cross-sectional study utilizing quantitative data collection methods among 200 respondents who worked in 8 major health facilities in Kampala. Results. Overall, 50.0% of respondents reported experiencing an occupational health hazard. Among these, 39.5% experienced biological hazards while 31.5% experienced nonbiological hazards. Predictors for experiencing hazards included not wearing the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE, working overtime, job related pressures, and working in multiple health facilities. Control measures to mitigate hazards were availing separate areas and containers to store medical waste and provision of safety tools and equipment. Conclusion. Healthcare workers in this setting experience several hazards in their workplaces. Associated factors include not wearing all necessary protective equipment, working overtime, experiencing work related pressures, and working in multiple facilities. Interventions should be instituted to mitigate the hazards. Specifically PPE supply gaps, job related pressures, and complacence in adhering to mitigation measures should be addressed.

Simultaneous assessments of occurrence, ecological, human health, and organoleptic hazards for 77 VOCs in typical drinking water sources from 5 major river basins, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xichao; Luo, Qian; Wang, Donghong; Gao, Jijun; Wei, Zi; Wang, Zijian; Zhou, Huaidong; Mazumder, Asit

2015-11-01

Owing to the growing public awareness on the safety and aesthetics in water sources, more attention has been given to the adverse effects of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on aquatic organisms and human beings. In this study, 77 target VOCs (including 54 common VOCs, 13 carbonyl compounds, and 10 taste and odor compounds) were detected in typical drinking water sources from 5 major river basins (the Yangtze, the Huaihe, the Yellow, the Haihe and the Liaohe River basins) and their occurrences were characterized. The ecological, human health, and olfactory assessments were performed to assess the major hazards in source water. The investigation showed that there existed potential ecological risks (1.30 × 10 ≤ RQtotals ≤ 8.99 × 10) but little human health risks (6.84 × 10(-7) ≤ RQtotals ≤ 4.24 × 10(-4)) by VOCs, while that odor problems occurred extensively. The priority contaminants in drinking water sources of China were also listed based on the present assessment criteria. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health and safety information program for hazardous materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Brien, M.P.; Fallon, N.J.; Kuehner, A.V.

1979-01-01

The system is used as a management tool in several safety and health programs. It is used to: trace the use of hazardous materials and to determine monitoring needs; inform the occupational physician of the potential health problems associated with materials ordered by a given individual; inform the fire and rescue group of hazardous materials in a given building; provide waste disposal recommendations to the hazardous waste management group; assist the hazardous materials shipping coordinator in identifying materials which are regulated by the Department of Transportation; and guide management decisions in the area of recognizing and rectifying unsafe conditions. The information system has been expanded from a manual effort to provide a brief description of health hazards of chemicals used at the lab to a computerized health and safety information system which serves the needs of all personnel who may encounter the material in the course of their work. The system has been designed to provide information needed to control the potential problems associated with a hazardous material up to the time that it is consumed in a given operation or is sent to the waste disposal facility

Health hazards due to radon and its daughters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, H.A.; Qureshi, I.E.; Tufail, M.

1993-01-01

The health hazards liked to radon and its daughters have become a matter of great public concern. When inhaled, a fraction of radon is dissolved into the lung fluid, from where it is transported to other parts of the body. The radiation damage is caused to the lungs due to alpha decay of radon during its transit time within the respiratory tract. Radon daughters are found to be even more dangerous than radon itself. These daughters attach themselves to dust particles present in the air. Some of the aerosols so produced enter the lungs and enter the blood stream. It has now been confirmed that radon and its daughters contribute about 70% of the internal dose received by an individual from natural radiation sources. The danger of indoor radon and its daughters is even higher for energy-saving houses and those having poor ventilation systems. This paper briefly describes the health hazards due to radon and its daughters. Different methods employed for the measurement of concentrations of radon and their daughters are described. The experience gained from the nation-wide surveys carried out in different countries is also given. (author). 18 refs, 3 figs, 1 tab

Assessment of occupational hazards, health problems and safety ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Petrol station attendants encounter several hazards and health problems while working. This study was conducted to determine the ... Hazards reported included inhalation of petrol fumes 145 (67.4%), confrontation from customers 112 (52.1%) and noise 98 (45.6%). Health problems reported included ...

Health Issues: Do Cell Phones Pose a Health Hazard?

Science.gov (United States)

... Procedures Home, Business, and Entertainment Products Cell Phones Health Issues Share Tweet Linkedin Pin it More sharing ... it Email Print Do cell phones pose a health hazard? Many people are concerned that cell phone ...

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH HAZARDS AMONG QUARRY ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Key Words: Occupational health hazards, Industrial pollution, Quarry industry, ... fireworks and signaling apparatus and for setting blind rivets and forming ... in the air, physiological risks and psychological trauma (Ajayi & Osibanjo, 1995).

Toxicology primer: understanding workplace hazards and protecting worker health.

Science.gov (United States)

Arble, Janice

2004-06-01

Hazardous substances are ubiquitous in the environment and common in industrialized societies. Serious harm can occur with sufficient exposures under certain conditions. However, much harm can be avoided if hazardous substances are handled with respect and appreciation for their use and potential. Occupational health nurses must be aware of potential hazards to employees in the work environment and apply scientific principles to their practice of promoting worker safety and health.

Perception and prevalence of work-related health hazards among health care workers in public health facilities in southern India.

Science.gov (United States)

Senthil, Arasi; Anandh, Balasubramanian; Jayachandran, Palsamy; Thangavel, Gurusamy; Josephin, Diana; Yamini, Ravindran; Kalpana, Balakrishnan

2015-01-01

Health care workers (HCWs) are exposed to occupational related health hazards. Measuring worker perception and the prevalence of these hazards can help facilitate better risk management for HCWs, as these workers are envisaged to be the first point of contact, especially in resource poor settings. To describe the perception of occupational health hazards and self-reported exposure prevalence among HCWs in Southern India. We used cross sectional design with stratified random sampling of HCWs from different levels of health facilities and categories in a randomly selected district in Southern India. Data on perception and exposure prevalence were collected using a structured interview schedule developed by occupational health experts and administered by trained investigators. A total of 482 HCWs participated. Thirty nine percent did not recognize work-related health hazards, but reported exposure to at least one hazard upon further probing. Among the 81·5% who reported exposure to biological hazard, 93·9% had direct skin contact with infectious materials. Among HCWs reporting needle stick injury, 70·5% had at least one in the previous three months. Ergonomic hazards included lifting heavy objects (42%) and standing for long hours (37%). Psychological hazards included negative feelings (20·3%) and verbal or physical abuse during work (20·5%). More than a third of HCWs failed to recognize work-related health hazards. Despite training in handling infectious materials, HCWs reported direct skin contact with infectious materials and needle stick injuries. RESULTS indicate the need for training oriented toward behavioral change and provision of occupational health services.

76 FR 4155 - National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories: Gasoline...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-24

... 63 National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories: Gasoline Distribution Bulk Terminals, Bulk Plants, and Pipeline Facilities; and Gasoline Dispensing Facilities; Final...] RIN 2060-AP16 National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories: Gasoline...

21 CFR 2.5 - Imminent hazard to the public health.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Imminent hazard to the public health. 2.5 Section... GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE RULINGS AND DECISIONS General Provisions § 2.5 Imminent hazard to the public health... a significant threat of danger to health, creates a public health situation (1) that should be...

Physically and psychologically hazardous jobs and mental health in Thailand.

Science.gov (United States)

Yiengprugsawan, Vasoontara; Strazdins, Lyndall; Lim, Lynette L-Y; Kelly, Matthew; Seubsman, Sam-ang; Sleigh, Adrian C

2015-09-01

This paper investigates associations between hazardous jobs, mental health and wellbeing among Thai adults. In 2005, 87 134 distance-learning students from Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University completed a self-administered questionnaire; at the 2009 follow-up 60 569 again participated. Job characteristics were reported in 2005, psychological distress and life satisfaction were reported in both 2005 and 2009. We derived two composite variables grading psychologically and physically hazardous jobs and reported adjusted odds ratios (AOR) from multivariate logistic regressions. Analyses focused on cohort members in paid work: the total was 62 332 at 2005 baseline and 41 671 at 2009 follow-up. Cross-sectional AORs linking psychologically hazardous jobs to psychological distress ranged from 1.52 (one hazard) to 4.48 (four hazards) for males and a corresponding 1.34-3.76 for females. Similarly AORs for physically hazardous jobs were 1.75 (one hazard) to 2.76 (four or more hazards) for males and 1.70-3.19 for females. A similar magnitude of associations was found between psychologically adverse jobs and low life satisfaction (AORs of 1.34-4.34 among males and 1.18-3.63 among females). Longitudinal analyses confirm these cross-sectional relationships. Thus, significant dose-response associations were found linking hazardous job exposures in 2005 to mental health and wellbeing in 2009. The health impacts of psychologically and physically hazardous jobs in developed, Western countries are equally evident in transitioning Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand. Regulation and monitoring of work conditions will become increasingly important to the health and wellbeing of the Thai workforce. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press.

Physically and psychologically hazardous jobs and mental health in Thailand

Science.gov (United States)

Yiengprugsawan, Vasoontara; Strazdins, Lyndall; Lim, Lynette L.-Y.; Kelly, Matthew; Seubsman, Sam-ang; Sleigh, Adrian C.

2015-01-01

This paper investigates associations between hazardous jobs, mental health and wellbeing among Thai adults. In 2005, 87 134 distance-learning students from Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University completed a self-administered questionnaire; at the 2009 follow-up 60 569 again participated. Job characteristics were reported in 2005, psychological distress and life satisfaction were reported in both 2005 and 2009. We derived two composite variables grading psychologically and physically hazardous jobs and reported adjusted odds ratios (AOR) from multivariate logistic regressions. Analyses focused on cohort members in paid work: the total was 62 332 at 2005 baseline and 41 671 at 2009 follow-up. Cross-sectional AORs linking psychologically hazardous jobs to psychological distress ranged from 1.52 (one hazard) to 4.48 (four hazards) for males and a corresponding 1.34–3.76 for females. Similarly AORs for physically hazardous jobs were 1.75 (one hazard) to 2.76 (four or more hazards) for males and 1.70–3.19 for females. A similar magnitude of associations was found between psychologically adverse jobs and low life satisfaction (AORs of 1.34–4.34 among males and 1.18–3.63 among females). Longitudinal analyses confirm these cross-sectional relationships. Thus, significant dose–response associations were found linking hazardous job exposures in 2005 to mental health and wellbeing in 2009. The health impacts of psychologically and physically hazardous jobs in developed, Western countries are equally evident in transitioning Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand. Regulation and monitoring of work conditions will become increasingly important to the health and wellbeing of the Thai workforce. PMID:24218225

Physics-Based Hazard Assessment for Critical Structures Near Large Earthquake Sources

Science.gov (United States)

Hutchings, L.; Mert, A.; Fahjan, Y.; Novikova, T.; Golara, A.; Miah, M.; Fergany, E.; Foxall, W.

2017-09-01

We argue that for critical structures near large earthquake sources: (1) the ergodic assumption, recent history, and simplified descriptions of the hazard are not appropriate to rely on for earthquake ground motion prediction and can lead to a mis-estimation of the hazard and risk to structures; (2) a physics-based approach can address these issues; (3) a physics-based source model must be provided to generate realistic phasing effects from finite rupture and model near-source ground motion correctly; (4) wave propagations and site response should be site specific; (5) a much wider search of possible sources of ground motion can be achieved computationally with a physics-based approach; (6) unless one utilizes a physics-based approach, the hazard and risk to structures has unknown uncertainties; (7) uncertainties can be reduced with a physics-based approach, but not with an ergodic approach; (8) computational power and computer codes have advanced to the point that risk to structures can be calculated directly from source and site-specific ground motions. Spanning the variability of potential ground motion in a predictive situation is especially difficult for near-source areas, but that is the distance at which the hazard is the greatest. The basis of a "physical-based" approach is ground-motion syntheses derived from physics and an understanding of the earthquake process. This is an overview paper and results from previous studies are used to make the case for these conclusions. Our premise is that 50 years of strong motion records is insufficient to capture all possible ranges of site and propagation path conditions, rupture processes, and spatial geometric relationships between source and site. Predicting future earthquake scenarios is necessary; models that have little or no physical basis but have been tested and adjusted to fit available observations can only "predict" what happened in the past, which should be considered description as opposed to prediction

Environmental Health and Safety Hazards Experienced by Home Health Care Providers: A Room-by-Room Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Polivka, Barbara J; Wills, Celia E; Darragh, Amy; Lavender, Steven; Sommerich, Carolyn; Stredney, Donald

2015-11-01

The number of personnel providing in-home health care services is increasing substantially. The unique configuration of environmental hazards in individual client homes has a significant impact on the safety and health of home health care providers (HHPs). This mixed-methods study used data from a standardized questionnaire, focus groups, and individual interviews to explore environmental health and safety hazards encountered by HHPs in client homes. The participant sample (N = 68) included nurses, aides, therapists, and owners/managers from a variety of geographic locations. The most often-reported hazards were trip/slip/lift hazards, biohazards, and hazards from poor air quality, allergens, pests and rodents, and fire and burns. Frequency of identified key hazards varied by room, that is, kitchen (e.g., throw rugs, water on floor), bathroom (e.g., tight spaces for client handling), bedroom (e.g., bed too low), living room (e.g., animal waste), and hallway (e.g., clutter). Findings indicate the need for broader training to enable HHPs to identify and address hazards they encounter in client homes. © 2015 The Author(s).

Environmental epidemiology, Volume 1: Public health and hazardous wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1991-01-01

Environmental Epidemiology, Volume 1, represents the first of several planned volumes on the uses of epidemiologic techniques to study environmental public health issues. This text focuses on environmental epidemiology as it relates to hazardous waste in the United States. This study was commissioned by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to examine available data for evidence of adverse health effects on human populations exposed to hazardous waste. The committee was also asked to identify data gaps which were impediments to analyzing hazardous waste health effects and to suggest ways that such environmental health assessments might be improved. The committee's solution to the paucity of data on this issue was to concentrate in this volume on identifying the available, peer-reviewed data and, consequently, the major data gaps. The study opens with a recapitulation of the context of hazardous waste sites in the United States, the approaches currently used by state and federal epidemiologists in analyzing hazardous waste exposure and effects, and candid assessment of the problems associated with environmental exposure assessment. From that context, the committee then presents the data currently available to assess human exposures through air, domestic water consumption, soil, and the food chain. The general focus here is on biomarker data as the date of choice. As with all NAS reports, this one closes with general conclusions and recommendations. Environmental health risk assessors will find this volume a valuable resource

Potential health hazard of nuclear fuel waste and uranium ore

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mehta, K.; Sherman, G.R.; King, S.G.

1991-06-01

The variation of the radioactivity of nuclear fuel waste (used fuel and fuel reprocessing waste) with time, and the potential health hazard (or inherent radiotoxicity) resulting from its ingestion are estimated for CANDU (Canada Deuterium Uranium) natural-uranium reactors. Four groups of radionuclides in the nuclear fuel waste are considered: actinides, fission products, activation products of zircaloy, and activation products of fuel impurities. Contributions from each of these groups to the radioactivity and to the potential health hazard are compared and discussed. The potential health hazard resulting from used fuel is then compared with that of uranium ore, mine tailings and refined uranium (fresh fuel) on the basis of equivalent amounts of uranium. The computer code HAZARD, specifically developed for these computations, is described

Occupational health hazards among health care workers of Shahid Sadoughi Hospital

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Ghavidel

2007-04-01

Full Text Available Background and AimsBiological hazards exist throughout all healthcare settings and include airborne and blood borne pathogens. Health care workers are also subject to exposure to hazardous chemicals such as disinfectants and sterilizing agents. In addition to the traditional aforementioned categories of occupational hazards, health care workers experience the stress of being directly responsible for the care of very sick and dying patients, which, coupled with  increasing workloads, can seriously threaten their health and well-being.MethodsThe study population was all hospital staff (# 207, of whom198 health care workers eventually participated in the study. The questionnaires were administered to doctors, nurses and ward orderlies in Shahid Sadoughi Teaching Hospital Yazd, Iran. Data were analyzed by SPSS11.5 software using Fisher's exact and Chi square tests.ResultsThe common occupational health hazards were work-related stress (60.1%, bloodstains on skin (51%, needle-stick injuries (42.9%, assault from patients (21.2%, skin reaction (19.2%, sleep disturbance (15.2%, stew blood on mucosal (3.1% and use of drugs (4.5%. Nearly 4.5% of the staff used tranquilizers to cope with the work stress. A greater percentage of doctors compared to nurses and ward orderlies used safety precautions such as gloves, facemasks and aprons. 70.2% staff employed regular hand-washing after various procedures 68.2% of staff adopted regularly proper disposal of needles and sharps into separate puncture resistant containers. About 55.6% of the staff recap used needles.ConclusionIn according to frequent types of occupational related dangers, corporation between chiefs and members of health care center to decrease these seems wishful and we recommend preparing and distributing necessary guidelines with related awareness among these groups.

Sources of uncertainty in characterizing health risks from flare emissions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hrudey, S.E.

2000-01-01

The assessment of health risks associated with gas flaring was the focus of this paper. Health risk assessments for environmental decision-making includes the evaluation of scientific data to identify hazards and to determine dose-response assessments, exposure assessments and risk characterization. Gas flaring has been the cause for public health concerns in recent years, most notably since 1996 after a published report by the Alberta Research Council. Some of the major sources of uncertainty associated with identifying hazardous contaminants in flare emissions were discussed. Methods to predict human exposures to emitted contaminants were examined along with risk characterization of predicted exposures to several identified contaminants. One of the problems is that elemental uncertainties exist regarding flare emissions which places limitations of the degree of reassurance that risk assessment can provide, but risk assessment can nevertheless offer some guidance to those responsible for flare emissions

Hazard-ranking of agricultural pesticides for chronic health effects in Yuma County, Arizona.

Science.gov (United States)

Sugeng, Anastasia J; Beamer, Paloma I; Lutz, Eric A; Rosales, Cecilia B

2013-10-01

With thousands of pesticides registered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, it not feasible to sample for all pesticides applied in agricultural communities. Hazard-ranking pesticides based on use, toxicity, and exposure potential can help prioritize community-specific pesticide hazards. This study applied hazard-ranking schemes for cancer, endocrine disruption, and reproductive/developmental toxicity in Yuma County, Arizona. An existing cancer hazard-ranking scheme was modified, and novel schemes for endocrine disruption and reproductive/developmental toxicity were developed to rank pesticide hazards. The hazard-ranking schemes accounted for pesticide use, toxicity, and exposure potential based on chemical properties of each pesticide. Pesticides were ranked as hazards with respect to each health effect, as well as overall chronic health effects. The highest hazard-ranked pesticides for overall chronic health effects were maneb, metam-sodium, trifluralin, pronamide, and bifenthrin. The relative pesticide rankings were unique for each health effect. The highest hazard-ranked pesticides differed from those most heavily applied, as well as from those previously detected in Yuma homes over a decade ago. The most hazardous pesticides for cancer in Yuma County, Arizona were also different from a previous hazard-ranking applied in California. Hazard-ranking schemes that take into account pesticide use, toxicity, and exposure potential can help prioritize pesticides of greatest health risk in agricultural communities. This study is the first to provide pesticide hazard-rankings for endocrine disruption and reproductive/developmental toxicity based on use, toxicity, and exposure potential. These hazard-ranking schemes can be applied to other agricultural communities for prioritizing community-specific pesticide hazards to target decreasing health risk. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hazard-Ranking of Agricultural Pesticides for Chronic Health Effects in Yuma County, Arizona

Science.gov (United States)

Sugeng, Anastasia J.; Beamer, Paloma I.; Lutz, Eric A.; Rosales, Cecilia B.

2013-01-01

With thousands of pesticides registered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, it not feasible to sample for all pesticides applied in agricultural communities. Hazard-ranking pesticides based on use, toxicity, and exposure potential can help prioritize community-specific pesticide hazards. This study applied hazard-ranking schemes for cancer, endocrine disruption, and reproductive/developmental toxicity in Yuma County, Arizona. An existing cancer hazard-ranking scheme was modified, and novel schemes for endocrine disruption and reproductive/developmental toxicity were developed to rank pesticide hazards. The hazard-ranking schemes accounted for pesticide use, toxicity, and exposure potential based on chemical properties of each pesticide. Pesticides were ranked as hazards with respect to each health effect, as well as overall chronic health effects. The highest hazard-ranked pesticides for overall chronic health effects were maneb, metam sodium, trifluralin, pronamide, and bifenthrin. The relative pesticide rankings were unique for each health effect. The highest hazard-ranked pesticides differed from those most heavily applied, as well as from those previously detected in Yuma homes over a decade ago. The most hazardous pesticides for cancer in Yuma County, Arizona were also different from a previous hazard-ranking applied in California. Hazard-ranking schemes that take into account pesticide use, toxicity, and exposure potential can help prioritize pesticides of greatest health risk in agricultural communities. This study is the first to provide pesticide hazard-rankings for endocrine disruption and reproductive/developmental toxicity based on use, toxicity, and exposure potential. These hazard-ranking schemes can be applied to other agricultural communities for prioritizing community-specific pesticide hazards to target decreasing health risk. PMID:23783270

Health hazards related to Soba sewage treatment plant, Sudan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rasha Osman Abdelwahab Abdelmoneim

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to determine the health hazards acquired by the residents nearby Soba sewage treatment plant. A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in Soba locality, Khartoum, Sudan. An interviewer-administrated questionnaire was assigned to 462 residents of the area living in four geographically distributed squares around the sewage plant. The data was analyzed in SPSS; Cronbach’s alpha reliability scale of measurement was used to check the internal validity of six variables related to the quality of life. A logistic regression analysis was used to assess the relationship between the health hazards and the quality of life. Among the 462 residents, difficulty in breathing (37.9% and nausea (37.2 were the principal health hazards. Moreover, the residents had a satisfactory level of awareness (88.7% about the health hazards. The utmost impact on the quality of life was psychological (97.2%. It was statistically correlated with the reported factors, which impacted the quality of life in the district as revealed by the Cronbach’s alpha reliability test with absenteeism (P=0.026, disability (P=0.014, socialization (P=0.032 and death (P=0.016. A logistic regression analysis revealed chemical hazards had a statistically significant association (P<0.05 with quality of life of the residents of Soba district. The study strongly entails the fact that sewage treatment plants crave exceptional consideration from the concerned responsible authorities, together with the fact that the evolved health threats should be confronted with immense responsibility as soon as possible.

Probabilistic induction of delayed health hazards in occupational radiation workers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohamad, M.H.M.; Abdel-Ghani, A.H.

2003-01-01

Occupational radiation workers are periodically monitored for their personal occupational dose. Various types of radiation measurement devices are used, mostly film badges and thermoluminescent dosimeters. Several thousand occupational radiation workers were monitored over a period of seven years (jan. 1995- Dec. 2001). These included atomic energy personnel, nuclear materials personnel, staff of mediology departments (diagnostic, therapeutic and nuclear medicine) and industrial occupational workers handling industrial radiography equipment besides other applications of radiation sources in industry. The probably of induction of health hazards in these radiation workers was assessed using the nominal probability coefficient adopted by the ICRP (1991) for both hereditary effects and cancer induction. In this treatise, data procured are presented and discussed inthe light of basic postulations of probabilistic occurrence of radiation induced delayed health effects

Recognizing Job Health Hazards. Module SH-08. Safety and Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

This student module on recognizing job health hazards is one of 50 modules concerned with job safety and health. This module presents the four general categories of environmental conditions or stresses: chemical, physical, biological, and ergonomic. Following the introduction, 14 objectives (each keyed to a page in the text) the student is…

REFUSE DISPOSAL AND ITS ATTENDANT HEALTH HAZARDS: A ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Oyem

HAZARDS: A CASE STUDY OF AGBOR, DELTA STATE OF. NIGERIA ... acceptable environmental quality, sound public health, and ... solid waste management and public health, .... by the public relations department of the council to sensitize.

Hazardous waste and health impact: a systematic review of the scientific literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Fazzo, L; Minichilli, F; Santoro, M; Ceccarini, A; Della Seta, M; Bianchi, F; Comba, P; Martuzzi, M

2017-10-11

Waste is part of the agenda of the European Environment and Health Process and included among the topics of the Sixth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health. Disposal and management of hazardous waste are worldwide challenges. We performed a systematic review to evaluate the evidence of the health impact of hazardous waste exposure, applying transparent and a priori defined methods. The following five steps, based on pre-defined systematic criteria, were applied. 1. Specify the research question, in terms of "Population-Exposure-Comparators-Outcomes" (PECO). people living near hazardous waste sites; Exposure: exposure to hazardous waste; Comparators: all comparators; Outcomes: all diseases/health disorders. 2. Carry out the literature search, in Medline and EMBASE. 3. Select studies for inclusion: original epidemiological studies, published between 1999 and 2015, on populations residentially exposed to hazardous waste. 4. Assess the quality of selected studies, taking into account study design, exposure and outcome assessment, confounding control. 5. Rate the confidence in the body of evidence for each outcome taking into account the reliability of each study, the strength of the association and concordance of results.Fifty-seven papers of epidemiological investigations on the health status of populations living near hazardous waste sites were selected for the evidence evaluation. The association between 95 health outcomes (diseases and disorders) and residential exposure to hazardous waste sites was evaluated. Health effects of residential hazardous waste exposure, previously partially unrecognized, were highlighted. Sufficient evidence was found of association between exposure to oil industry waste that releases high concentrations of hydrogen sulphide and acute symptoms. The evidence of causal relationship with hazardous waste was defined as limited for: liver, bladder, breast and testis cancers, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, asthma, congenital anomalies

Chemical incidents resulted in hazardous substances releases in the context of human health hazards

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Pałaszewska-Tkacz

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Objectives: The research purpose was to analyze data concerning chemical incidents in Poland collected in 1999–2009 in terms of health hazards. Material and Methods: The data was obtained, using multimodal information technology (IT system, from chemical incidents reports prepared by rescuers at the scene. The final analysis covered sudden events associated with uncontrolled release of hazardous chemical substances or mixtures, which may potentially lead to human exposure. Releases of unidentified substances where emergency services took action to protect human health or environment were also included. Results: The number of analyzed chemical incidents in 1999–2009 was 2930 with more than 200 different substances released. The substances were classified into 13 groups of substances and mixtures posing analogous risks. Most common releases were connected with non-flammable corrosive liquids, including: hydrochloric acid (199 cases, sulfuric(VI acid (131 cases, sodium and potassium hydroxides (69 cases, ammonia solution (52 cases and butyric acid (32 cases. The next group were gases hazardous only due to physico-chemical properties, including: extremely flammable propane-butane (249 cases and methane (79 cases. There was no statistically significant trend associated with the total number of incidents. Only with the number of incidents with flammable corrosive, toxic and/or harmful liquids, the regression analysis revealed a statistically significant downward trend. The number of victims reported was 1997, including 1092 children and 18 fatalities. Conclusions: The number of people injured, number of incidents and the high 9th place of Poland in terms of the number of Seveso establishments, and 4 times higher number of hazardous industrial establishments not covered by the Seveso Directive justify the need for systematic analysis of hazards and their proper identification. It is advisable enhance health risk assessment, both qualitative and

Forecasting extreme temperature health hazards in Europe

Science.gov (United States)

Di Napoli, Claudia; Pappenberger, Florian; Cloke, Hannah L.

2017-04-01

Extreme hot temperatures, such as those experienced during a heat wave, represent a dangerous meteorological hazard to human health. Heat disorders such as sunstroke are harmful to people of all ages and responsible for excess mortality in the affected areas. In 2003 more than 50,000 people died in western and southern Europe because of a severe and sustained episode of summer heat [1]. Furthermore, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change heat waves are expected to get more frequent in the future thus posing an increasing threat to human lives. Developing appropriate tools for extreme hot temperatures prediction is therefore mandatory to increase public preparedness and mitigate heat-induced impacts. A recent study has shown that forecasts of the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) provide a valid overview of extreme temperature health hazards on a global scale [2]. UTCI is a parameter related to the temperature of the human body and its regulatory responses to the surrounding atmospheric environment. UTCI is calculated using an advanced thermo-physiological model that includes the human heat budget, physiology and clothing. To forecast UTCI the model uses meteorological inputs, such as 2m air temperature, 2m water vapour pressure and wind velocity at body height derived from 10m wind speed, from NWP models. Here we examine the potential of UTCI as an extreme hot temperature prediction tool for the European area. UTCI forecasts calculated using above-mentioned parameters from ECMWF models are presented. The skill in predicting UTCI for medium lead times is also analysed and discussed for implementation to international health-hazard warning systems. This research is supported by the ANYWHERE project (EnhANcing emergencY management and response to extreme WeatHER and climate Events) which is funded by the European Commission's HORIZON2020 programme. [1] Koppe C. et al., Heat waves: risks and responses. World Health Organization. Health and

An Offline-Online Android Application for Hazard Event Mapping Using WebGIS Open Source Technologies

Science.gov (United States)

Olyazadeh, Roya; Jaboyedoff, Michel; Sudmeier-Rieux, Karen; Derron, Marc-Henri; Devkota, Sanjaya

2016-04-01

Nowadays, Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) plays an important role in better understanding and managing disaster risk reduction around the world. National and local government, NGOs and other stakeholders are increasingly seeking and producing data on hazards. Most of the hazard event inventories and land use mapping are based on remote sensing data, with little ground truthing, creating difficulties depending on the terrain and accessibility. Open Source WebGIS tools offer an opportunity for quicker and easier ground truthing of critical areas in order to analyse hazard patterns and triggering factors. This study presents a secure mobile-map application for hazard event mapping using Open Source WebGIS technologies such as Postgres database, Postgis, Leaflet, Cordova and Phonegap. The objectives of this prototype are: 1. An Offline-Online android mobile application with advanced Geospatial visualisation; 2. Easy Collection and storage of events information applied services; 3. Centralized data storage with accessibility by all the service (smartphone, standard web browser); 4. Improving data management by using active participation in hazard event mapping and storage. This application has been implemented as a low-cost, rapid and participatory method for recording impacts from hazard events and includes geolocation (GPS data and Internet), visualizing maps with overlay of satellite images, viewing uploaded images and events as cluster points, drawing and adding event information. The data can be recorded in offline (Android device) or online version (all browsers) and consequently uploaded through the server whenever internet is available. All the events and records can be visualized by an administrator and made public after approval. Different user levels can be defined to access the data for communicating the information. This application was tested for landslides in post-earthquake Nepal but can be used for any other type of hazards such as flood, avalanche

Health information technologies : From hazardous to the dark side

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Saunders, C.; Rutkowski, Anne; Pluyter, J.R.; Spanjers, R.

This article explores the effects of health information technologies (HIT) in operating rooms (ORs). When functioning well, HIT are a boon to mankind. However, HIT in the OR also create hazards for patients for a number of interrelated reasons. We introduce 5 interrelated components of hazard

Property-close source separation of hazardous waste and waste electrical and electronic equipment - A Swedish case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernstad, Anna; Cour Jansen, Jes la; Aspegren, Henrik

2011-01-01

Through an agreement with EEE producers, Swedish municipalities are responsible for collection of hazardous waste and waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). In most Swedish municipalities, collection of these waste fractions is concentrated to waste recycling centres where households can source-separate and deposit hazardous waste and WEEE free of charge. However, the centres are often located on the outskirts of city centres and cars are needed in order to use the facilities in most cases. A full-scale experiment was performed in a residential area in southern Sweden to evaluate effects of a system for property-close source separation of hazardous waste and WEEE. After the system was introduced, results show a clear reduction in the amount of hazardous waste and WEEE disposed of incorrectly amongst residual waste or dry recyclables. The systems resulted in a source separation ratio of 70 wt% for hazardous waste and 76 wt% in the case of WEEE. Results show that households in the study area were willing to increase source separation of hazardous waste and WEEE when accessibility was improved and that this and similar collection systems can play an important role in building up increasingly sustainable solid waste management systems.

Impact of earthquake source complexity and land elevation data resolution on tsunami hazard assessment and fatality estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Muhammad, Ario; Goda, Katsuichiro

2018-03-01

This study investigates the impact of model complexity in source characterization and digital elevation model (DEM) resolution on the accuracy of tsunami hazard assessment and fatality estimation through a case study in Padang, Indonesia. Two types of earthquake source models, i.e. complex and uniform slip models, are adopted by considering three resolutions of DEMs, i.e. 150 m, 50 m, and 10 m. For each of the three grid resolutions, 300 complex source models are generated using new statistical prediction models of earthquake source parameters developed from extensive finite-fault models of past subduction earthquakes, whilst 100 uniform slip models are constructed with variable fault geometry without slip heterogeneity. The results highlight that significant changes to tsunami hazard and fatality estimates are observed with regard to earthquake source complexity and grid resolution. Coarse resolution (i.e. 150 m) leads to inaccurate tsunami hazard prediction and fatality estimation, whilst 50-m and 10-m resolutions produce similar results. However, velocity and momentum flux are sensitive to the grid resolution and hence, at least 10-m grid resolution needs to be implemented when considering flow-based parameters for tsunami hazard and risk assessments. In addition, the results indicate that the tsunami hazard parameters and fatality number are more sensitive to the complexity of earthquake source characterization than the grid resolution. Thus, the uniform models are not recommended for probabilistic tsunami hazard and risk assessments. Finally, the findings confirm that uncertainties of tsunami hazard level and fatality in terms of depth, velocity and momentum flux can be captured and visualized through the complex source modeling approach. From tsunami risk management perspectives, this indeed creates big data, which are useful for making effective and robust decisions.

Chemical incidents resulted in hazardous substances releases in the context of human health hazards.

OpenAIRE

Palaszewska-Tkacz, Anna; Czerczak, Sławomir; Konieczko, Katarzyna

2017-01-01

Objectives: The research purpose was to analyze data concerning chemical incidents in Poland collected in 1999–2009 in terms of health hazards. Material and Methods: The data was obtained, using multimodal information technology (IT) system, from chemical incidents reports prepared by rescuers at the scene. The final analysis covered sudden events associated with uncontrolled release of hazardous chemical substances or mixtures, which may potentially lead to human exposure. Releases of uniden...

Participatory Research Revealing the Work and Occupational Health Hazards of Cooperative Recyclers in Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonia M. N. Felipone

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Although informal waste collectors are sometimes organized in cooperatives, their working conditions remain extremely precarious and unsafe. The paper discusses the findings of action oriented, participatory qualitative research with several recycling groups in the metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil. During workshops with the recyclers mapping, acting, and drawing methods helped reveal health hazards from collection, separation and transportation of recyclable materials. Major health problems relate to chemical and biological hazards, musculoskeletal damage, mechanical trauma and poor emotional wellbeing. The recent federal legislation on solid waste management opens new avenues for the inclusion of recycling cooperatives in selective waste collection. Nevertheless, we express the need to consider the distinctive characteristics and vulnerabilities of recycling groups, when developing safer work environments in these social businesses. We also suggest that the workspace be ergonomically organized and that public awareness campaigns about selective waste collection are conducted regularly to increase the quality of source separation. The introduction of electric hand pushed carts can further reduce health strains. This research has produced a better understanding of the work of the recyclers and related health risks. The interactive qualitative research methodology has allowed for the co-creation and mobilization of specific knowledge on health and safety in recycling cooperatives.

Health hazards of cement dust

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meo, Sultan A.

2004-01-01

ven in the 21st century, millions of people are working daily in a dusty environment. They are exposed to different types of health hazards such as fume, gases and dust, which are risk factors in developing occupational disease. Cement industry is involved in the development of structure of this advanced and modern world but generates dust during its production. Cement dust causes lung function impairment, chronic obstructive lung disease, restrictive lung disease, pneumoconiosis and carcinoma of the lungs, stomach and colon. Other studies have shown that cement dust may enter into the systemic circulation and thereby reach the essentially all the organs of body and affects the different tissues including heart, liver, spleen, bone, muscles and hairs and ultimately affecting their micro-structure and physiological performance. Most of the studies have been previously attempted to evaluate the effects of cement dust exposure on the basis of spirometry or radiology, or both. However, collective effort describing the general effects of cement dust on different organ and systems in humans or animals, or both has not been published. Therefore, the aim of this review is to gather the potential toxic effects of cement dust and to minimize the health risks in cement mill workers by providing them with information regarding the hazards of cement dust. (author)

Using hazard maps to identify and eliminate workplace hazards: a union-led health and safety training program.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Joe; Collins, Michele; Devlin, John; Renner, Paul

2012-01-01

The Institute for Sustainable Work and Environment and the Utility Workers Union of America worked with a professional evaluator to design, implement, and evaluate the results of a union-led system of safety-based hazard identification program that trained workers to use hazard maps to identify workplace hazards and target them for elimination. The evaluation documented program implementation and impact using data collected from both qualitative interviews and an on-line survey from worker trainers, plant managers, and health and safety staff. Managers and workers reported that not only were many dangerous hazards eliminated as a result of hazard mapping, some of which were long-standing, difficult-to-resolve issues, but the evaluation also documented improved communication between union members and management that both workers and managers agreed resulted in better, more sustainable hazard elimination.

Women's Magazines' Coverage of Smoking Related Health Hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Kessler, Lauren

1989-01-01

Examines the extent to which women's magazines with a strong interest in health covered various health hazards associated with smoking. Finds that six major women's magazines have virtually no coverage of smoking and cancer. Suggests that self-censorship may have helped determine editorial content more than pressure from tobacco companies. (RS)

Hazardous waste: cleanup and prevention

Science.gov (United States)

Vandas, Stephen; Cronin, Nancy L.; Farrar, Frank; Serrano, Guillermo Eliezer Ávila; Yajimovich, Oscar Efraín González; Muñoz, Aurora R.; Rivera, María del C.

1996-01-01

Our lifestyles are supported by complex Industrial activities that produce many different chemicals and chemical wastes. The Industries that produce our clothing, cars, medicines, paper, food, fuels, steel, plastics, and electric components use and discard thousands of chemicals every year. At home we may use lawn chemicals, solvents, disinfectants, cleaners, and auto products to Improve our quality of life. A chemical that presents a threat or unreasonable risk to people or the environment Is a hazardous material. When a hazardous material can no longer be used, It becomes a hazardous waste. Hazardous wastes come from a variety of sources, from both present and past activities. Impacts to human health and the environment can result from Improper handling and disposal of hazardous waste.

Health hazards from environmental pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wichmann, H.E.

1990-01-01

Three examples from current research are cited in order to show the health hazards from environmental pollution and to describe methods of risk quantification: (1) The smog situation of January 1985 is analyzed on the basis of detailed morbidity and mortality statistics; (2) The current knowledge on the contribution of radon decay products to lung cancer is discussed; (3) The problem of abandoned industrial sites is illustrated by a population group living on contaminated ground. (orig.) [de

Hazardous Health Behaviour among Medical Students: a Study from Turkey.

Science.gov (United States)

Nacar, Melis; Cetinkaya, Fevziye; Baykan, Zeynep; Yilmazel, Gulay; Elmali, Ferhan

2015-01-01

Hazardous health behaviour in young people is an important factor that affects the individual risk for non-communicable diseases and other disorders later in life. This study aimed to determine the hazardous health behaviour of first and last class medical students of Erciyes University. This descriptive study was carried out with 240 medical students from the first and 130 students from the last (sixth) class. Data were obtained by questionnaire between March-April 2012. In total, 339 students were included with a response rate of 91.6%. Socio-demographic characteristics, school success, self-reported economic difficulties, health perceptions, hazardous health behaviour related to chronic disease, tobacco, alcohol, substance use, body weight, height, traffic, violence and nutrition were assessed in line with the literature. Of the participants; 64.0% were from first and 36.0% were from the last class. Mean ages for the first and last classes were 19.4 ± 1.5 and 24.0 ± 1.5 years, respectively. In the current study, males exhibited more hazardous behaviour than females. Sime 19.8% of the students in the study group used alcohol, 35.4% used a waterpipe, and 24.8% used tobacco at least once. These rates increased in both genders in the last class and the increase in males was significant. Some 3.8% of the students in the current study used pleasure-inducing illegal substances at least once. All the students participating in the current study were single, the number of males reported not using condoms (8.6%) was 4.56 times higher compared to females. Some 64.0% of the students did not perform physical activity lasting at least 30 minutes for five times a week, 13.0% did not sleep for mean 7-8 hours daily, males having a 2.9 times higher risk. More than 1/3 of the students did not consume cooked vegetable dishes and 1/4 did not consume fresh fruits and salads, the rates were higher among males. In the current study, hazardous health behaviour was prevalent among

A global probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment from earthquake sources

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, Gareth; Griffin, Jonathan; Lovholt, Finn; Glimsdal, Sylfest; Harbitz, Carl; Thio, Hong Kie; Lorito, Stefano; Basili, Roberto; Selva, Jacopo; Geist, Eric L.; Baptista, Maria Ana

2017-01-01

Large tsunamis occur infrequently but have the capacity to cause enormous numbers of casualties, damage to the built environment and critical infrastructure, and economic losses. A sound understanding of tsunami hazard is required to underpin management of these risks, and while tsunami hazard assessments are typically conducted at regional or local scales, globally consistent assessments are required to support international disaster risk reduction efforts, and can serve as a reference for local and regional studies. This study presents a global-scale probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment (PTHA), extending previous global-scale assessments based largely on scenario analysis. Only earthquake sources are considered, as they represent about 80% of the recorded damaging tsunami events. Globally extensive estimates of tsunami run-up height are derived at various exceedance rates, and the associated uncertainties are quantified. Epistemic uncertainties in the exceedance rates of large earthquakes often lead to large uncertainties in tsunami run-up. Deviations between modelled tsunami run-up and event observations are quantified, and found to be larger than suggested in previous studies. Accounting for these deviations in PTHA is important, as it leads to a pronounced increase in predicted tsunami run-up for a given exceedance rate.

Impacts on health and safety from transfer/consolidation of nuclear materials and hazardous chemicals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gallucci, R.H.V.

1994-11-01

Environmental restoration plans at the US Department of Energy (USDOE) Hanford Site calls for transfer/consolidation of ''targets/threats,'' namely nuclear materials and hazardous chemicals. Reductions in the health and safety hazards will depend on the plans implemented. Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) estimated these potential impacts, assuming implementation of the current reference plan and employing ongoing risk and safety analyses. The results indicated the potential for ''significant'' reductions in health and safety hazards in the long term (> 25 years) and a potentially ''noteworthy'' reduction in health hazard in the short term (≤ 25 years)

Low Wages as Occupational Health Hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Leigh, J Paul; De Vogli, Roberto

2016-05-01

The history of occupational medicine has been characterized by ever-widening recognition of hazards, from fires in 1911 to asbestos in the 1960s, to job strain in the 1990s. In this essay, we argue for broadening the recognition further to include low wages. We first review possible mechanisms explaining the effects of wages on health or health behaviors. Mechanisms involve self-esteem, job satisfaction, deprivation, social rank, the "full" price of bad health, patience, and the ability to purchase health-producing goods and services. Second, we discuss empirical studies that rely on large, typically national, data sets and statistical models that use either instrumental variables or natural experiments and also account for other family income. Finally, we draw implications for laws governing minimum wages and labor unions.

[Critical aspects of the management of "hazardous" health care workers. Consensus document].

Science.gov (United States)

Magnavita, N; Cicerone, Marina; Cirese, Vania; De Lorenzo, G; Di Giannantonios, M; Fileni, A; Goggiamani, Angela; Magnavita, Giulia; Marchi, Edda; Mazzullo, D; Monami, F; Monami, S; Puro, V; Ranalletta, Dalila; Ricciardi, G; Sacco, A; Spagnolo, A; Spagnolo, A G; Squarcione, S; Zavota, Giovanna

2006-01-01

A worker is considered to be hazardous to others when, in the course of performing a specific work task, his/her health problems (e.g., substance dependence, emotional disorders, physical disability, transmissible diseases) pose a risk for other workers' or the public's health and safety, or begins to interfere with ability to function in profession life. The presence of certain illnesses or the fact that a health care worker is impaired because of them do not necessarily imply that he, or she, is hazardous for others. Working in health care increases the probability that an impaired worker being hazardous for others. Management of hazardous workers requires new techniques and procedures, and specific policies. An interdisciplinary group of experts from medical, bioethical, legal and administrative disciplines, together with trade union and employers' representatives, is currently attempting to define a way to put prevention measures into practice in accordance with state laws and individual rights. A consensus document is presented, covering critical aspects such as: social responsibility of the employer, risk management, informed consent, non compliance, confidentiality, responsibility of workers, disclosure of risk to patients, non-discrimination, counselling and recovery of impaired workers, effectiveness of international guidelines. Occupational health professionals are obliged to adhere to ethical principles in the management of "hazardous" workers; the assessment of ethical costs and benefits for the stakeholders is the basis for appropriate decisions.

Computer use and health hazard: perceptions from Nigeria's ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Computer use and health hazard: perceptions from Nigeria's Premier University. ... the combination of headache, vision and ergonomic related problems. ... and pains and Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) as ...

Which moral hazard? Health care reform under the Affordable Care Act of 2010.

Science.gov (United States)

Mendoza, Roger Lee

2016-06-20

Purpose - Moral hazard is a concept that is central to risk and insurance management. It refers to change in economic behavior when individuals are protected or insured against certain risks and losses whose costs are borne by another party. It asserts that the presence of an insurance contract increases the probability of a claim and the size of a claim. Through the US Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010, this study seeks to examine the validity and relevance of moral hazard in health care reform and determine how welfare losses or inefficiencies could be mitigated. Design/methodology/approach - This study is divided into three sections. The first contrasts conventional moral hazard from an emerging or alternative theory. The second analyzes moral hazard in terms of the evolution, organization, management, and marketing of health insurance in the USA. The third explains why and how salient reform measures under the ACA might induce health care consumption and production in ways that could either promote or restrict personal health and safety as well as social welfare maximization. Findings - Insurance generally induces health care (over) consumption. However, not every additional consumption, with or without adverse selection, can be considered wasteful or risky, even if it might cost insurers more in the short run. Moral hazard can generate welfare and equity gains. These gains might vary depending on which ACA provisions, insured population, covered illnesses, treatments, and services, as well as health outcomes are taken into account, and because of the relative ambiguities surrounding definitions of "health." Actuarial risk models can nonetheless benefit from incorporating welfare and equity gains into their basic assumptions and estimations. Originality/value - This is the first study which examines the ACA in the context of the new or alternative theory of moral hazard. It suggests that containing inefficient moral hazard, and encouraging its desirable

Probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment at Seaside, Oregon, for near-and far-field seismic sources

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez, F.I.; Geist, E.L.; Jaffe, B.; Kanoglu, U.; Mofjeld, H.; Synolakis, C.E.; Titov, V.V.; Areas, D.; Bellomo, D.; Carlton, D.; Horning, T.; Johnson, J.; Newman, J.; Parsons, T.; Peters, R.; Peterson, C.; Priest, G.; Venturato, A.; Weber, J.; Wong, F.; Yalciner, A.

2009-01-01

The first probabilistic tsunami flooding maps have been developed. The methodology, called probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment (PTHA), integrates tsunami inundation modeling with methods of probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA). Application of the methodology to Seaside, Oregon, has yielded estimates of the spatial distribution of 100- and 500-year maximum tsunami amplitudes, i.e., amplitudes with 1% and 0.2% annual probability of exceedance. The 100-year tsunami is generated most frequently by far-field sources in the Alaska-Aleutian Subduction Zone and is characterized by maximum amplitudes that do not exceed 4 m, with an inland extent of less than 500 m. In contrast, the 500-year tsunami is dominated by local sources in the Cascadia Subduction Zone and is characterized by maximum amplitudes in excess of 10 m and an inland extent of more than 1 km. The primary sources of uncertainty in these results include those associated with interevent time estimates, modeling of background sea level, and accounting for temporal changes in bathymetry and topography. Nonetheless, PTHA represents an important contribution to tsunami hazard assessment techniques; viewed in the broader context of risk analysis, PTHA provides a method for quantifying estimates of the likelihood and severity of the tsunami hazard, which can then be combined with vulnerability and exposure to yield estimates of tsunami risk. Copyright 2009 by the American Geophysical Union.

Occupational health hazards among quarry employees in Ebonyi ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Occupational health hazards among quarry employees in Ebonyi state, ... how these problems affect the conditions of employees in such industries in Ebonyi State. ... the level of compliance of safety and protective devices among employees.

Seismic source characterization for the 2014 update of the U.S. National Seismic Hazard Model

Science.gov (United States)

Moschetti, Morgan P.; Powers, Peter; Petersen, Mark D.; Boyd, Oliver; Chen, Rui; Field, Edward H.; Frankel, Arthur; Haller, Kathleen; Harmsen, Stephen; Mueller, Charles S.; Wheeler, Russell; Zeng, Yuehua

2015-01-01

We present the updated seismic source characterization (SSC) for the 2014 update of the National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM) for the conterminous United States. Construction of the seismic source models employs the methodology that was developed for the 1996 NSHM but includes new and updated data, data types, source models, and source parameters that reflect the current state of knowledge of earthquake occurrence and state of practice for seismic hazard analyses. We review the SSC parameterization and describe the methods used to estimate earthquake rates, magnitudes, locations, and geometries for all seismic source models, with an emphasis on new source model components. We highlight the effects that two new model components—incorporation of slip rates from combined geodetic-geologic inversions and the incorporation of adaptively smoothed seismicity models—have on probabilistic ground motions, because these sources span multiple regions of the conterminous United States and provide important additional epistemic uncertainty for the 2014 NSHM.

Consumer health hazards in international food trade

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Achterbosch, T.J.

2007-01-01

Emerging risks have been defined as potential food-borne, feed-borne, or diet-related hazards that may become a risk for human health in the future. This study disentangles how emerging risks relate to international trade. It develops a basic framework for the economic analysis of emerging risks,

The palm wine trade: occupational and health hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Mbuagbaw, L; Noorduyn, S G

2012-10-01

The palm wine trade is an important economic activity for many tropical rural areas worldwide. In West Africa, palm wine holds high sociocultural and traditional values. Wine tappers often climb very tall trees with rudimentary equipment to harvest palm sap and risk severe injuries in the event of a fall. Furthermore, the wine quickly ferments beyond the desired taste and alcohol content, reducing the market power of these tappers. Therefore, to maximize benefits or to enhance shelf life, a variety of components are added to the palm tree sap, introducing the possibility of deadly contaminants. This paper highlights the public health implications of uncontrolled palm wine production and the relative neglect of the wine tapper. We draw from the limited published literature and use Cameroon as a case study. The palm wine trade can be more productive and safe if tappers work in cooperatives to improve their market power. Public health authorities need to monitor the quality of this cheap and common source of alcohol and enact regulations to protect wine tappers from the current level of occupational hazards. There are varying levels of progress to control quality and ensure safety in different parts of the world. Legislation and collaboration with traditional structures may offer a framework for change.

The Palm Wine Trade: Occupational and Health Hazards

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L Mbuagbaw

2012-08-01

Full Text Available The palm wine trade is an important economic activity for many tropical rural areas worldwide. In West Africa, palm wine holds high sociocultural and traditional values. Wine tappers often climb very tall trees with rudimentary equipment to harvest palm sap and risk severe injuries in the event of a fall. Furthermore, the wine quickly ferments beyond the desired taste and alcohol content, reducing the market power of these tappers. Therefore, to maximize benefits or to enhance shelf life, a variety of components are added to the palm tree sap, introducing the possibility of deadly contaminants. This paper highlights the public health implications of uncontrolled palm wine production and the relative neglect of the wine tapper. We draw from the limited published literature and use Cameroon as a case study. The palm wine trade can be more productive and safe if tappers work in cooperatives to improve their market power. Public health authorities need to monitor the quality of this cheap and common source of alcohol and enact regulations to protect wine tappers from the current level of occupational hazards. There are varying levels of progress to control quality and ensure safety in different parts of the world. Legislation and collaboration with traditional structures may offer a framework for change.

Diesel particles - a health hazard

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ege, C.

2004-08-15

To all appearances, small particles belong to the pollutants presenting the biggest health hazards. Particles come especially from diesel-powered vehicles. According to researchers, particles cause thousands of early deaths each year in the big cities in Denmark alone, and up to 1,250 of these deaths could be prevented by fitting particle filters on diesel-powered vehicles. That is more than deaths caused by traffic accidents. Especially the elderly are affected. In addition, the small particles seem to aggravate asthma incidences, including the many children with asthma. What makes the small particles so very dangerous is that they can enter the smallest of vessels of the lungs. There is a solution within sight to this grave health hazard. The solution is called particle filters, but they will not come automatically. It requires initiatives in the form of legislation, green taxes and subsidies. The EU is introducing stricter regulations regarding particle emission from heavy vehicles from 2006, though only for new vehicles. It will therefore take many years to abate the problem this way. In the present pamphlet, the Danish Ecological Council offers a number of specific proposals on how to further the introduction of filters on diesel vehicles. The Danish government has taken a small step in the right direction by establishing a subsidy scheme for particle filters. Yet the amount allocated is too small and, because it is not followed up by setting taxes on polluting vehicles, it will have little effect. (au)

High-resolution sampling and analysis of ambient particulate matter in the Pearl River Delta region of southern China: source apportionment and health risk implications

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Shengzhen; Davy, Perry K.; Huang, Minjuan; Duan, Jingbo; Wang, Xuemei; Fan, Qi; Chang, Ming; Liu, Yiming; Chen, Weihua; Xie, Shanju; Ancelet, Travis; Trompetter, William J.

2018-02-01

Hazardous air pollutants, such as trace elements in particulate matter (PM), are known or highly suspected to cause detrimental effects on human health. To understand the sources and associated risks of PM to human health, hourly time-integrated major trace elements in size-segregated coarse (PM2.5-10) and fine (PM2.5) particulate matter were collected at the industrial city of Foshan in the Pearl River Delta region, China. Receptor modeling of the data set by positive matrix factorization (PMF) was used to identify six sources contributing to PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations at the site. Dominant sources included industrial coal combustion, secondary inorganic aerosol, motor vehicles and construction dust along with two intermittent sources (biomass combustion and marine aerosol). The biomass combustion source was found to be a significant contributor to peak PM2.5 episodes along with motor vehicles and industrial coal combustion. Conditional probability function (CPF) analysis was applied to estimate the source locations using the PMF-resolved source contribution coupled with the surface wind direction data. Health exposure risk of hazardous trace elements (Pb, As, Si, Cr, Mn and Ni) and source-specific values were estimated. The total hazard quotient (HQ) of PM2.5 was 2.09, higher than the acceptable limit (HQ = 1). The total carcinogenic risk (CR) was 3.37 × 10-3 for PM2.5, which was 3 times higher than the least stringent limit (1.0 × 10-4). Among the selected trace elements, As and Pb posed the highest non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks to human health, respectively. In addition, our results show that the industrial coal combustion source is the dominant non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risk contributor, highlighting the need for stringent control of this source. This study provides new insight for policy makers to prioritize sources in air quality management and health risk reduction.

Health and Safety Procedures Manual for hazardous waste sites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Thate, J.E.

1992-09-01

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory Chemical Assessments Team (ORNL/CAT) has developed this Health and Safety Procedures Manual for the guidance, instruction, and protection of ORNL/CAT personnel expected to be involved in hazardous waste site assessments and remedial actions. This manual addresses general and site-specific concerns for protecting personnel, the general public, and the environment from any possible hazardous exposures. The components of this manual include: medical surveillance, guidance for determination and monitoring of hazards, personnel and training requirements, protective clothing and equipment requirements, procedures for controlling work functions, procedures for handling emergency response situations, decontamination procedures for personnel and equipment, associated legal requirements, and safe drilling practices.

Safety, health and environmental committee (JKSHE): Establishing chemical hazard management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shyen, A.K.S.; Noriah Mod Ali; Sangau, J.K.

2012-01-01

Most of the laboratories in Malaysian Nuclear Agency are using chemicals in their research activities. However, it is known that using of chemicals without proper knowledge especially on the material characteristics as well as safe handling procedure may cause great harm to the workers. Therefore, Safety, Health and Environmental Committee (JKSHE) sees the need to establish a good chemical hazard management to ensure that a safe and healthy workplace and environment is provided. One of the elements in chemical hazard management is to carry out Chemical Hazard Risk Assessment (CHRA). The assessment was done so that decision can be made on suitable control measures upon use of such chemicals, such as induction and training courses to be given to the workers and health surveillance activities that may be needed to protect the workers. For this, JKSHE has recommended to conduct CHRA for one of the laboratories at Secondary Standard Dosimetry Laboratory (SSDL) namely Film Dosimeter Processing Room (dark room) as the initial effort towards a better chemical hazard management. This paper presents the case study where CHRA was conducted to identify the chemical hazards at the selected laboratory, the adequacy of existing control measures and finally the recommendation for more effective control measures. (author)

Reducing hazards for animals from humans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul-Pierre Pastoret

2012-06-01

Full Text Available If animals may be a source of hazards for humans, the reverse is equally true. The main sources of hazards from humans to animals, are the impact of human introduction of transboundary animal diseases, climate change, globalisation, introduction of invasive species and reduction of biodiversity.There is also a trend toward reducing genetic diversity in domestic animals, such as cattle; there are presently around 700 different breeds of cattle many of which at the verge of extinction (less than 100 reproductive females. The impact of humans is also indirect through detrimental effects on the environment. It is therefore urgent to implement the new concept of “one health"....

Causal Analysis of the Inadvertent Contact with an Uncontrolled Electrical Hazardous Energy Source (120 Volts AC)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

David E. James; Dennis E. Raunig; Sean S. Cunningham

2014-10-01

On September 25, 2013, a Health Physics Technician (HPT) was performing preparations to support a pneumatic transfer from the HFEF Decon Cell to the Room 130 Glovebox in HFEF, per HFEF OI 3165 section 3.5, Field Preparations. This activity involves an HPT setting up and climbing a portable ladder to remove the 14-C meter probe from above ball valve HBV-7. The HPT source checks the meter and probe and then replaces the probe above HBV-7, which is located above Hood ID# 130 HP. At approximately 13:20, while reaching past the HBV-7 valve position indicator switches in an attempt to place the 14-C meter probe in the desired location, the HPT’s left forearm came in contact with one of the three sets of exposed terminals on the valve position indication switches for HBV 7. This resulted in the HPT receiving an electrical shock from a 120 Volt AC source. Upon moving the arm, following the electrical shock, the HPT noticed two exposed electrical connections on a switch. The HPT then notified the HFEF HPT Supervisor, who in turn notified the MFC Radiological Controls Manager and HFEF Operations Manager of the situation. Work was stopped in the area and the hazard was roped off and posted to prevent access to the hazard. The HPT was escorted by the HPT Supervisor to the MFC Dispensary and then preceded to CFA medical for further evaluation. The individual was evaluated and released without any medical restrictions. Causal Factor (Root Cause) A3B3C01/A5B2C08: - Knowledge based error/Attention was given to wrong issues - Written Communication content LTA, Incomplete/situation not covered The Causal Factor (root cause) was attention being given to the wrong issues during the creation, reviews, verifications, and actual performance of HFEF OI-3165, which covers the need to perform the weekly source check and ensure placement of the probe prior to performing a “rabbit” transfer. This resulted in the hazard not being identified and mitigated in the procedure. Work activities

Beryllium. Health hazards and their control. Pt. 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lires, O.A.; Delfino, C.A.; Botbol, J.

1991-01-01

In this work (continuation of 'Beryllium' series) health hazards, toxic effects, limits of permissible atmospheric contamination and safe exposure to beryllium are described. Guidelines to the design, control operations and hygienic precautions of the working facilities are given. (Author) [es

Distribution, sources and health risk assessment of mercury in kindergarten dust

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Guangyi; Li, Zhonggen; Bi, Xiangyang; Chen, Yupeng; Lu, Shuangfang; Yuan, Xin

2013-07-01

Mercury (Hg) contamination in urban area is a hot issue in environmental research. In this study, the distribution, sources and health risk of Hg in dust from 69 kindergartens in Wuhan, China, were investigated. In comparison with most other cities, the concentrations of total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) were significantly elevated, ranging from 0.15 to 10.59 mg kg-1 and from 0.64 to 3.88 μg kg-1, respectively. Among the five different urban areas, the educational area had the highest concentrations of THg and MeHg. The GIS mapping was used to identify the hot-spot areas and assess the potential pollution sources of Hg. The emissions of coal-power plants and coking plants were the main sources of THg in the dust, whereas the contributions of municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills and iron and steel smelting related industries were not significant. However, the emission of MSW landfills was considered to be an important source of MeHg in the studied area. The result of health risk assessment indicated that there was a high adverse health effect of the kindergarten dust in terms of Hg contamination on the children living in the educational area (Hazard index (HI) = 6.89).

Risks and hazards from conventional and radiation sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iyer, P.S.; Ganguly, A.K.

1978-01-01

Beneficial uses of radioisotopes in medicine, industry, agriculture and research are discussed. In absence of adequate safety precautions, uses of radiation may also result in harmful biological effects or genetic effects. Radiation risks and hazards are evaluated by comparing with other risks and hazards which are routinely encountered. The risk of fatality per year by various causes in U.S.A. is given. It is stated with examples and observations that some of the routine habits and necessities and minor luxuries are more risky than radiation risks. Countrywide radiation safety program in India by the Department of Atomic Energy is described in brief. Data are given to show that the risks from radiation are much lower in comparison with many conventional sources. More efficient equipment such as image intensifier is recommended to help to reduce the patient dose. It is stated that caution has to be exercised while handling the X-ray machines which may be harmful not only to patients but to doctors also. As regards, nuclear medicine, it is mentioned that though it is a fast expanding speciality in India, the number of procedures carried out in various centres is small as compared to U.S.A. and France. Some instances are given to show the consequences of the ignorance of the radiation hazards in operating machines in X-ray and gamma ray beam therapy facilities. A survey made by DRP, BARC revealed that some research laboratories lacked basic radiation protection requirements in using X-ray crystallography or analytical equipment. (B.G.W.)

Risk Assessment of Physical Health Hazards in Al-Azhar University Hospital in New Damietta, Egypt

OpenAIRE

Mohammed El-Hady Imam*, Raed Mohammed Alazab**,

2013-01-01

Introduction: Personnel working in hospitals are exposed to many occupational hazards that may threaten their health and safety. Physical hazards that are encountered in hospital working environment include temperature, illumination, noise, electrical injuries, and radiation. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to identify physical health hazards in all departments of Al-Azhar University Hospital in new Damietta, to measure risk level of these hazards, and to recognize safety me...

Communications on hazards to the ecology, public health and the society as a result of modern technologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoffmann, R.; Borgmann, M.; Wiedemann, P.; Rohrmann, B.

1988-01-01

The bibliography covers journals, books and grey literature published since 1980 to date in the field of communications research on the issue of hazards to the ecology, public health and the society as a result of modern technologies. The scientific research disciplines contributing in this context are sociology, psychology, political sciences, appropriate sectors of engineering science and scientific management. The technological subjects covered include: Nuclear energy, fossil energy sources, other energy sources, the chemical industry and pharmaceutical industry, the petrochemical industry, biological engineering, climate research, the CO 2 problem and the ozone layer, and medical aspects. (DG) [de

Health hazards to children in agriculture.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilk, V A

1993-09-01

Children comprise a significant portion of the agricultural workforce and are exposed to many workplace hazards, including farm machinery, pesticides, poor field sanitation, unsafe transportation, and fatigue from doing physically demanding work for long periods. Migrant farmworker children face the additional hazard of substandard or nonexistent housing in the fields. Children account for a disproportionate share of agricultural workplace fatalities and disabling injuries, with more than 300 deaths and 27,000 injuries per year. The most common cause of fatal and nonfatal injury among children in agriculture is farm machinery, with tractors accounting for the greatest number. Remedies to the problems of child labor must take into account family economics and the need for child care. Labor law reform and rigorous enforcement of existing laws and of workplace health and safety requirements are vital to better protect the children and adults working in agriculture.

Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment in Water Treatment Plant considering Environmental Health and Safety Practice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Falakh Fajrul

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Water Treatment Plant (WTP is an important infrastructure to ensure human health and the environment. In its development, aspects of environmental safety and health are of concern. This paper case study was conducted at the Water Treatment Plant Company in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia. Hazard identification and risk assessment is one part of the occupational safety and health program at the risk management stage. The purpose of this study was to identify potential hazards using hazard identification methods and risk assessment methods. Risk assessment is done using criteria of severity and probability of accident. The results obtained from this risk assessment are 22 potential hazards present in the water purification process. Extreme categories that exist in the risk assessment are leakage of chlorine and industrial fires. Chlorine and fire leakage gets the highest value because its impact threatens many things, such as industrial disasters that could endanger human life and the environment. Control measures undertaken to avoid potential hazards are to apply the use of personal protective equipment, but management will also be better managed in accordance with hazard control hazards, occupational safety and health programs such as issuing work permits, emergency response training is required, Very useful in overcoming potential hazards that have been determined.

Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment in Water Treatment Plant considering Environmental Health and Safety Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Falakh, Fajrul; Setiani, Onny

2018-02-01

Water Treatment Plant (WTP) is an important infrastructure to ensure human health and the environment. In its development, aspects of environmental safety and health are of concern. This paper case study was conducted at the Water Treatment Plant Company in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia. Hazard identification and risk assessment is one part of the occupational safety and health program at the risk management stage. The purpose of this study was to identify potential hazards using hazard identification methods and risk assessment methods. Risk assessment is done using criteria of severity and probability of accident. The results obtained from this risk assessment are 22 potential hazards present in the water purification process. Extreme categories that exist in the risk assessment are leakage of chlorine and industrial fires. Chlorine and fire leakage gets the highest value because its impact threatens many things, such as industrial disasters that could endanger human life and the environment. Control measures undertaken to avoid potential hazards are to apply the use of personal protective equipment, but management will also be better managed in accordance with hazard control hazards, occupational safety and health programs such as issuing work permits, emergency response training is required, Very useful in overcoming potential hazards that have been determined.

Rockfall hazard assessment integrating probabilistic physically based rockfall source detection (Norddal municipality, Norway).

Science.gov (United States)

Yugsi Molina, F. X.; Oppikofer, T.; Fischer, L.; Hermanns, R. L.; Taurisano, A.

2012-04-01

Traditional techniques to assess rockfall hazard are partially based on probabilistic analysis. Stochastic methods has been used for run-out analysis of rock blocks to estimate the trajectories that a detached block will follow during its fall until it stops due to kinetic energy loss. However, the selection of rockfall source areas is usually defined either by multivariate analysis or by field observations. For either case, a physically based approach is not used for the source area detection. We present an example of rockfall hazard assessment that integrates a probabilistic rockfall run-out analysis with a stochastic assessment of the rockfall source areas using kinematic stability analysis in a GIS environment. The method has been tested for a steep more than 200 m high rock wall, located in the municipality of Norddal (Møre og Romsdal county, Norway), where a large number of people are either exposed to snow avalanches, rockfalls, or debris flows. The area was selected following the recently published hazard mapping plan of Norway. The cliff is formed by medium to coarse-grained quartz-dioritic to granitic gneisses of Proterozoic age. Scree deposits product of recent rockfall activity are found at the bottom of the rock wall. Large blocks can be found several tens of meters away from the cliff in Sylte, the main locality in the Norddal municipality. Structural characterization of the rock wall was done using terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) point clouds in the software Coltop3D (www.terranum.ch), and results were validated with field data. Orientation data sets from the structural characterization were analyzed separately to assess best-fit probability density functions (PDF) for both dip angle and dip direction angle of each discontinuity set. A GIS-based stochastic kinematic analysis was then carried out using the discontinuity set orientations and the friction angle as random variables. An airborne laser scanning digital elevation model (ALS-DEM) with 1 m

Experiences of frontline nursing staff on workplace safety and occupational health hazards in two psychiatric hospitals in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Alhassan, Robert Kaba; Poku, Kwabena Adu

2018-06-06

Psychiatric hospitals need safe working environments to promote productivity at the workplace. Even though occupational health and safety is not completely new to the corporate society, its scope is largely limited to the manufacturing/processing industries which are perceived to pose greater dangers to workers than the health sector. This paper sought to explore the experiences of frontline nursing personnel on the occupational health and safety conditions in two psychiatric hospitals in Ghana. This is an exploratory cross-sectional study among 296 nurses and nurse-assistants in Accra (n = 164) and Pantang (n = 132) psychiatric hospitals using the proportional stratified random sampling technique. Multivariate Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression test was conducted to ascertain the determinants of staff exposure to occupational health hazards and the frequency of exposure to these occupational health hazards on daily basis. Knowledge levels on occupational health hazards was high in Accra and Pantang psychiatric hospitals (i.e. 92 and 81% respectively), but barely 44% of the 296 interviewed staff in the two hospitals said they reported their most recent exposure to an occupational health hazard to hospital management. It was found that staff who worked for more years on the ward had higher likelihood of exposure to occupational health hazards than those who worked for lesser years (p = 0.002). The category of occupational health hazards reported most were the physical health hazards. Psychosocial hazards were the least reported health hazards. Frequency of exposure to occupational health hazards on daily basis was positively associated with work schedules of staff particularly, staff on routine day schedule (Coef = 4.49, p = 0.011) and those who alternated between day and night schedules (Coef = 4.48, p = 0.010). Occupational health and safety conditions in the two hospitals were found to be generally poor. Even though majority of

Seismic Hazard characterization study using an earthquake source with Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis (PSHA) method in the Northern of Sumatra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yahya, A.; Palupi, M. I. R.; Suharsono

2016-01-01

Sumatra region is one of the earthquake-prone areas in Indonesia because it is lie on an active tectonic zone. In 2004 there is earthquake with a moment magnitude of 9.2 located on the coast with the distance 160 km in the west of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam and triggering a tsunami. These events take a lot of casualties and material losses, especially in the Province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam and North Sumatra. To minimize the impact of the earthquake disaster, a fundamental assessment of the earthquake hazard in the region is needed. Stages of research include the study of literature, collection and processing of seismic data, seismic source characterization and analysis of earthquake hazard by probabilistic methods (PSHA) used earthquake catalog from 1907 through 2014. The earthquake hazard represented by the value of Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) and Spectral Acceleration (SA) in the period of 0.2 and 1 second on bedrock that is presented in the form of a map with a return period of 2475 years and the earthquake hazard curves for the city of Medan and Banda Aceh. (paper)

Occupational health hazards in street sweepers of Chandrapur city, central India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Patil Priyanka

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Street sweepers play an important role in maintaining health and hygiene in cities. They are exposed to road dust and other contaminants while cleaning streets. Exposure of this dust and contaminants irritates respiratory symptoms and airway obstruction. Twenty workers were selected as sample size (10 male and 10 female and 10 individual as control (5 male and 5 female for analysis of occupational health hazards in street sweepers of Chandrapur city. The study was carried out from November 2015 to January 2016. Peak Expiratory Flow Rate analysis which was carried out through Breath-o meter and other occupational health hazards through interview schedule specially designed and developed for this study. The results of the study showed that, Peak Expiratory Flow Rate values were lower in exposed workers (sample population as compared with control group. These workers were exposed to number of environmental and occupational hazards leading to musculoskeletal disorders (100%, respiratory problems (95%, dermatological problems (90%, headache (75% and gastrointestinal problems (15% during work. It was further observed that theses workers were suffering from allergies (100%, cough and cold (75%, asthma and bronchitis lungs (65%, hearing disorder (50%, malaria and typhoid (25%, fever (15% and vomiting (10% after completion of work. To reduce occupational health hazards in sweepers, they must be made alert and aware of potential health risk arising from their work. Reduction in exposure and use of personal protective equipments should be encouraged.INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTVolume-6, Issue-2, Mar-May 2017, Page: 9-18

Worrying about terrorism and other acute environmental health hazard events.

Science.gov (United States)

Greenberg, Michael; Babcock-Dunning, Lauren

2012-04-01

To better understand why some people worry more about terrorism compared with others, we measured how much US residents worried about a terrorist event in their area and examined the association of their fears with their concerns about acute and chronic hazards and other correlates. In 2008 (n = 600) and 2010 (n = 651), we performed a random-digit dialing national landline telephone survey. We asked about worries about terrorism and 5 other environmental health hazard issues. We also collected demographic and socioeconomic data. Only 15% worried "a great deal" about a terrorist event in their area and 18% to 33% were greatly concerned about other environmental issues. Fear about acute hazard events was a stronger predictor of a great deal of concern about terrorism than were age, race/ethnicity, gender, educational achievement, and other correlates. Those who worried most about acute environmental health hazard events were most likely to worry about terrorism. Also, those who were older, poorer, Blacks, or Latinos, or who lived in populous urban areas felt they were most vulnerable to terrorist attacks. We recommend methods to involve US citizens as part of disaster planning.

Possible health hazards of nuclear power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kneale, G.W.

1981-01-01

In considering the possible health hazards of nuclear power, evidence is examined that official estimates of risks, on which governments may be supposed to base their decisions as to the acceptibility of a nuclear power programme, may be understated. In particular the case that the Hanford survey is more appropriate as a basis of risk estimation than the survey of the survivors of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan, The Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission Study, is discussed. (U.K.)

The health cost of energy. The health impacts of the different energy sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Masse, Roland

2017-01-01

This publication proposes an assessment of impacts of the different energy sources on public health. After a discussion of general aspects regarding this issue, the author addresses the identification and assessment of risks. While referring to different statistical data, he discusses the impacts of accidents in terms of dead, injured or evacuated people. He also addresses health impacts during a normal operation of power plants, i.e. in the case of nuclear plants (issue of exposure to various levels of radiation at the different steps of fuel cycle), of carbon-based plants (health risks and impacts during coal extraction, due to CO 2 emissions and to other toxic emissions, due to atmospheric pollution, identified risks, modelling attempts, assessment of a loss in life expectancy), and of other energies. While acknowledging that there are still many unknowns to assess these health impacts, the author compares these assessments. A summarized version of this article is proposed, in which the author briefly comments data regarding severe accidents related to energy production, discusses health consequences of electric power production and use, and makes a distinction between the most and less hazardous energies as far as public health is concerned

International trade agreements: hazards to health?

Science.gov (United States)

Shaffer, Ellen R; Brenner, Joseph E

2004-01-01

Since the 1980s, neoliberal policies have prescribed reducing the role of governments, relying on market forces to organize and provide health care and other vital human services. In this context, international trade agreements increasingly serve as mechanisms to enforce the privatization, deregulation, and decentralization of health care and other services, with important implications for democracy as well as for health. Critics contend that social austerity and "free" trade agreements contribute to the rise in global poverty and economic inequality and instability, and therefore to increased preventable illness and death. Under new agreements through the World Trade Organization that cover vital human services such as health care, water, education, and energy, unaccountable, secret trade tribunals could overrule decisions by democratically elected officials on public financing for national health care systems, licensing and training standards for health professionals, patient safety and quality regulations, occupational safety and health, control of hazardous substances such as tobacco and alcohol, the environment, and affordable access to safe water and sanitation. International negotiations in 2003 in Cancun and in Miami suggested that countervailing views are developing momentum. A concerned health care community has begun to call for a moratorium on trade negotiations on health care and water, and to reinvigorate an alternative vision of universal access to vital services.

Health risk assessment for arsenic in water sources of cankiri province of Turkey

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caylak, Emrah

2012-01-01

To investigate the levels of arsenic (As) in the water sources of Cankiri Province, the samples were collected from the stations of central Cankiri (n = 27) and Kursunlu town (n = 12) during 2009 and 2010. The concentrations of As were analyzed with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer, and then compared with permissible limit, 10 μg/L in drinking water, by Turkish legislation and World Health Organization (WHO). The As levels were higher than this limit (mean value 10-30 μg/L in 26 stations), whereas, they were found to be >30 μg/L in 12 sampling points. The water sources were categorized for health risk assessment such as reservoir, tap, well, and spring, and then chronic daily intake for oral and dermal exposure to As via drinking water, hazard quotient (HQ), and hazard index were calculated by using indices. The HQ values were found to be >1 in all samples of Cankiri Province. The effects of As on human health were then evaluated using carcinogenic risk (CR). CR values for As were also estimated to be >10 -5 in drinking water samples of Cankiri Province and might exert potential CR for people. These assessments would point out required drinking water treatment strategy to ensure safety of consumers. (Copyright copyright 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Severe scratcher-reaction: an unknown health hazard?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carsten Sauer Mikkelsen

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Tattoos are well known to cause skin problems and the number of reported adverse reactions after tattooing has increased. Illegally imported tattoo ink is unrestrained and can contain unknown ingredients and contamination thereby posing a serious health hazard. We present a case illustrating the risk of pronounced phototoxic allergic reaction and other severe complications after using home kit tattoo ink.

Occupational Health and the Visual Arts: An Introduction.

Science.gov (United States)

Hinkamp, David; McCann, Michael; Babin, Angela R

2017-09-01

Occupational hazards in the visual arts often involve hazardous materials, though hazardous equipment and hazardous work conditions can also be found. Occupational health professionals are familiar with most of these hazards and are particularly qualified to contribute clinical and preventive expertise to these issues. Articles illustrating visual arts health issues were sought and reviewed. Literature sources included medical databases, unindexed art-health publications, and popular press articles. Few medical articles examine health issues in the visuals arts directly, but exposures to pigments, solvents, and other hazards found in the visual arts are well described. The hierarchy of controls is an appropriate model for controlling hazards and promoting safer visual art workplaces. The health and safety of those working in the visual arts can benefit from the occupational health approach. Sources of further information are available.

Health Risk Assessment on Hazardous Ingredients in Household Deodorizing Products

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Minjin Lee

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The inhalation of a water aerosol from a humidifier containing disinfectants has led to serious lung injuries in Korea. To promote the safe use of products, the Korean government enacted regulations on the chemicals in various consumer products that could have adverse health effects. Given the concern over the potential health risks associated with the hazardous ingredients in deodorizing consumer products, 17 ingredients were analyzed and assessed according to their health risk on 3 groups by the application type in 47 deodorizing products. The risk assessment study followed a stepwise procedure (e.g., collecting toxicological information, hazard identification/exposure assessment, and screening and detailed assessment for inhalation and dermal routes. The worst-case scenario and maximum concentration determined by the product purpose and application type were used as the screening assessment. In a detailed assessment, the 75th exposure factor values were used to estimate the assumed reasonable exposure to ingredients. The exposed concentrations of seven ingredients were calculated. Due to limitation of toxicity information, butylated hydroxyl toluene for a consumer’s exposure via the dermal route only was conducted for a detailed assessment. This study showed that the assessed ingredients have no health risks at their maximum concentrations in deodorizing products. This approach can be used to establish guidelines for ingredients that may pose inhalation and dermal hazards.

Health Risk Assessment on Hazardous Ingredients in Household Deodorizing Products

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Minjin; Kim, Joo-Hyon; Lee, Daeyeop; Kim, Jaewoo; Lim, Hyunwoo; Seo, Jungkwan; Park, Young-Kwon

2018-01-01

The inhalation of a water aerosol from a humidifier containing disinfectants has led to serious lung injuries in Korea. To promote the safe use of products, the Korean government enacted regulations on the chemicals in various consumer products that could have adverse health effects. Given the concern over the potential health risks associated with the hazardous ingredients in deodorizing consumer products, 17 ingredients were analyzed and assessed according to their health risk on 3 groups by the application type in 47 deodorizing products. The risk assessment study followed a stepwise procedure (e.g., collecting toxicological information, hazard identification/exposure assessment, and screening and detailed assessment for inhalation and dermal routes). The worst-case scenario and maximum concentration determined by the product purpose and application type were used as the screening assessment. In a detailed assessment, the 75th exposure factor values were used to estimate the assumed reasonable exposure to ingredients. The exposed concentrations of seven ingredients were calculated. Due to limitation of toxicity information, butylated hydroxyl toluene for a consumer’s exposure via the dermal route only was conducted for a detailed assessment. This study showed that the assessed ingredients have no health risks at their maximum concentrations in deodorizing products. This approach can be used to establish guidelines for ingredients that may pose inhalation and dermal hazards. PMID:29652814

Classification of Large-Scale Remote Sensing Images for Automatic Identification of Health Hazards: Smoke Detection Using an Autologistic Regression Classifier.

Science.gov (United States)

Wolters, Mark A; Dean, C B

2017-01-01

Remote sensing images from Earth-orbiting satellites are a potentially rich data source for monitoring and cataloguing atmospheric health hazards that cover large geographic regions. A method is proposed for classifying such images into hazard and nonhazard regions using the autologistic regression model, which may be viewed as a spatial extension of logistic regression. The method includes a novel and simple approach to parameter estimation that makes it well suited to handling the large and high-dimensional datasets arising from satellite-borne instruments. The methodology is demonstrated on both simulated images and a real application to the identification of forest fire smoke.

Surveillance of Washington OSHA exposure data to identify uncharacterized or emerging occupational health hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Lofgren, Don J; Reeb-Whitaker, Carolyn K; Adams, Darrin

2010-07-01

Chemical substance exposure data from the Washington State Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) program were reviewed to determine if inspections conducted as a result of a report of a hazard from a complainant or referent may alert the agency to uncharacterized or emerging health hazards. Exposure and other electronically stored data from 6890 health inspection reports conducted between April 2003 and August 2008 were extracted from agency records. A total of 515 (7%) inspections with one or more personal airborne chemical substance samples were identified for further study. Inspections by report of a hazard and by targeting were compared for the following: number of inspections, number and percentage of inspections with workers exposed to substances above an agency's permissible exposure limit, types of industries inspected, and number and type of chemical substances assessed. Report of a hazard inspections documented work sites with worker overexposure at the same rate as agency targeted inspections (approximately 35% of the time), suggesting that complainants and referents are a credible pool of observers capable of directing the agency to airborne chemical substance hazards. Report of a hazard inspections were associated with significantly broader distribution of industries as well as a greater variety of chemical substance exposures than were targeted inspections. Narrative text that described business type and processes inspected was more useful than NAICS codes alone and critical in identifying processes and industries that may be associated with new hazards. Finally, previously identified emerging hazards were found among the report of a hazard data. These findings indicate that surveillance of OSHA inspection data can be a valid tool to identify uncharacterized and emerging health hazards. Additional research is needed to develop criteria for objective review and prioritization of the data for intervention. Federal OSHA and other state

Adverse selection and moral hazard in health insurance

OpenAIRE

Bien, Franck; Alary, David

2006-01-01

In this paper, we want to characterize the optimal health insurance contract with adverse selection and moral hazard. We assume that policyholders differ by the permanent health status loss and choose an unobservable preventive effort in order to reduce the probability of illness which is ex-ante identical. The difference in illness'after-effect modifies policyholders' preventive actions. By the way, they differ in probabilities of illness leading to a situation close to Rothschild and Stigli...

Effectiveness of Awareness Package on Occupational Health Hazards among Ragpickers of New Delhi, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Agarwalla, Rashmi; Pathak, Rambha; Singh, Mitasha; Islam, Farzana; Parashar, Mamta

2017-01-01

Ragpickers are informal workers who collect recyclable materials to earn a small wage on daily basis. They work in vulnerable conditions and awareness regarding occupational and environmental hazard is essential for them. To study the effectiveness of awareness program on various occupational health hazards among the ragpickers. This interventional study was conducted from May through October 2016 among the ragpickers living near field practice area of Department of Community Medicine and those living in slum areas around HAHC Hospital, New Delhi, India. The awareness regarding occupational and environmental health hazards was assessed using a pretested and predesigned pro forma. Snowball sampling technique was used to select the ragpickers from the various areas. Health awareness and education package was designed for the ragpickers. The package was delivered by medical officers and health workers. A posttest assessment was done 2 weeks after the awareness activity. Among 150 ragpickers, there was significant improvement in knowledge immediate post training on knowledge of occupational hazard and hygiene. Efforts should be put to develop training materials on occupation and environmental health and injury issue relating to waste management.

Energy Drinks: A New Health Hazard for Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Pennington, Nicole; Johnson, Molly; Delaney, Elizabeth; Blankenship, Mary Beth

2010-01-01

A new hazard for adolescents is the negative health effects of energy drink consumption. Adolescents are consuming these types of drinks at an alarming amount and rate. Specific effects that have been reported by adolescents include jitteriness, nervousness, dizziness, the inability to focus, difficulty concentrating, gastrointestinal upset, and…

High-resolution sampling and analysis of air particulate matter in the Pear River Delta region of Southern China: source apportionment and health risk assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, S.; Day, P. K.; Wang, X.

2017-12-01

Hazardous air pollutants, such as trace elements in particulate matters (PM), are known or highly suspected to cause detrimental effects on human health. To understand the sources and associated risks of PM to human health, hourly time-integrated major trace elements in size-segregated coarse (PM10-2.5) and fine (PM2.5) particulate matter were collected and examined in an industrial city of Foshan in the Pearl River Delta region, China. Receptor modeling of the dataset by positive matrix factorization (PMF) was used to identify six sources contributing to PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations at the site. Dominant sources included industrial coal combustion, secondary inorganic aerosol, motor vehicles and construction dust along with two intermittent sources, biomass combustion and marine aerosol. The biomass combustion source was found to be a significant contributor to peak PM2.5 episodes along with motor vehicles and industrial coal combustion. Conditional probability function (CPF) was applied to estimate the local source effects from wind direction using the PMF-resolved source contribution coupled with the surface wind direction data. Health exposure risk for hazardous trace elements (Pb, As, Cr, Ni, Zn, V, Cu, Mn, Fe) and source-specific values were estimated. The total hazard quotient (total HQ =HI) of PM2.5 was 2.09, which is two times higher than the acceptable limit (HQ = 1). The total carcinogenic risk was 3.37*10-3 for PM2.5, which was three orders higher than the acceptable limit (i.e. 1.0*10-6). Among the selected trace elements, As and Pb posed the highest non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks for human health, respectively. In additional, our results showed that industrial coal combustion source was the dominant non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks contributor, highlighting the need for stringent control of this source. This study can provide new insight for policy makers to prioritize sources in air quality management and health risk reduction.

High-resolution sampling and analysis of ambient particulate matter in the Pearl River Delta region of southern China: source apportionment and health risk implications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Zhou

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Hazardous air pollutants, such as trace elements in particulate matter (PM, are known or highly suspected to cause detrimental effects on human health. To understand the sources and associated risks of PM to human health, hourly time-integrated major trace elements in size-segregated coarse (PM2.5–10 and fine (PM2.5 particulate matter were collected at the industrial city of Foshan in the Pearl River Delta region, China. Receptor modeling of the data set by positive matrix factorization (PMF was used to identify six sources contributing to PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations at the site. Dominant sources included industrial coal combustion, secondary inorganic aerosol, motor vehicles and construction dust along with two intermittent sources (biomass combustion and marine aerosol. The biomass combustion source was found to be a significant contributor to peak PM2.5 episodes along with motor vehicles and industrial coal combustion. Conditional probability function (CPF analysis was applied to estimate the source locations using the PMF-resolved source contribution coupled with the surface wind direction data. Health exposure risk of hazardous trace elements (Pb, As, Si, Cr, Mn and Ni and source-specific values were estimated. The total hazard quotient (HQ of PM2.5 was 2.09, higher than the acceptable limit (HQ = 1. The total carcinogenic risk (CR was 3.37 × 10−3 for PM2.5, which was 3 times higher than the least stringent limit (1.0 × 10−4. Among the selected trace elements, As and Pb posed the highest non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks to human health, respectively. In addition, our results show that the industrial coal combustion source is the dominant non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risk contributor, highlighting the need for stringent control of this source. This study provides new insight for policy makers to prioritize sources in air quality management and health risk reduction.

An examination of interventions to reduce respiratory health and injury hazards in homes of low-income families

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dixon, Sherry L.; Fowler, Cecile; Harris, Judy; Moffat, Sally; Martinez, Yolanda; Walton, Heather; Ruiz, Bernice; Jacobs, David E.

2009-01-01

We evaluated whether combining asthma trigger reduction with housing structural repairs, device disbursement and education in low-income households with children would improve self-reported respiratory health and reduce housing-related respiratory health and injury hazards (convenience sample of n=67 homes with 63 asthmatic and 121 non-asthmatic children). At baseline, a visual assessment of the home environment and a structured occupant interview were used to examine 29 potential injury hazards and 7 potential respiratory health hazards. A home-specific intervention was designed to provide the children's parents or caretakers with the knowledge, skills, motivation, supplies, equipment, and minimum housing conditions necessary for a healthy and safe home. The enrolled households were primarily Hispanic and owned their homes. On average, 8 injury hazards were observed in the homes at baseline. Four months following intervention, the average declined to 2.2 hazards per home (p<0.001), with 97% of the parents reporting that their homes were safer following the interventions. An average of 3.3 respiratory health hazards were observed in the homes at baseline. Four months following intervention, the average declined to 0.9 hazards per home (p<0.001), with 96% of parents reporting that the respiratory health of their asthmatic children improved. A tailored healthy homes improvement package significantly improves self-reported respiratory health and safety, reduces respiratory health and injury hazards, and can be implemented in concert with a mobile clinical setting

Women, Work and Health Hazards: A Fact Sheet and Cosmetologists: Health Risks at Work.

Science.gov (United States)

National Commission on Working Women, Washington, DC.

The first part of this document is a fact sheet that provides information on health hazards faced by employed women. It covers the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), job-related diseases suffered by workers in female-dominated occupations, employer responsibilities under OSHA, and the lack of statistical reporting on job-related disease.…

Antibiotic, Pesticide, and Microbial Contaminants of Honey: Human Health Hazards

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noori Al-Waili

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Agricultural contamination with pesticides and antibiotics is a challenging problem that needs to be fully addressed. Bee products, such as honey, are widely consumed as food and medicine and their contamination may carry serious health hazards. Honey and other bee products are polluted by pesticides, heavy metals, bacteria and radioactive materials. Pesticide residues cause genetic mutations and cellular degradation and presence of antibiotics might increase resistant human or animal's pathogens. Many cases of infant botulisms have been attributed to contaminated honey. Honey may be very toxic when produced from certain plants. Ingestion of honey without knowing its source and safety might be problematic. Honey should be labeled to explore its origin, composition, and clear statement that it is free from contaminants. Honey that is not subjected for analysis and sterilization should not be used in infants, and should not be applied to wounds or used for medicinal purposes. This article reviews the extent and health impact of honey contamination and stresses on the introduction of a strict monitoring system and validation of acceptable minimal concentrations of pollutants or identifying maximum residue limits for bee products, in particular, honey.

Health state of population as a criterion of harmfulness of environmental pollution with hazardous wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khacatrian, T.S.

1991-01-01

Valuation of children's health state living in an industrial city, in different microdistricts of which environmental pollution with various hazardous wastes takes place, is done. Investigation results established essential distinctions in health state of children's contingent under examination in dependence upon microdistrict of their permanent living in the given city which is connected with the environmental pollution with various hazardous wastes. The received data allow to examine the health state of population as an integral indicator of ecological situation in the region, and also as a criterion of environmental pollution with hazardous wastes. (au)

Hazard visibility and occupational health problem solving the case of the uranium industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pearson, J.

1980-01-01

Recent evidence from European research challenges the adequacy of current US exposure guidelines for underground mine radiation. This study traces the history of government regulatory agency and industry response to the hazard of excessive mine radiation in the uranium industry in Colorado some 30 years ago. Problem-solving activity by government agencies and companies is shown to coincide with how visible the health hazard to uranium miners becomes. Hazard visibility and key problem-solving variables are defined and measured. The article also discusses a number of social factors that affect societal response to evidence of an occupational health hazard. Those factors include the elusiveness of the disease and its symptoms, the social class of the victim, the level of medical and scientific interest in its cause and cure, and the economic costs of the disease

Input for seismic hazard assessment using Vrancea seismic source region

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivan, Iren-Adelina; Enescu, B.D.; Pantea, A.

1998-01-01

We use an extended and combined data base including historical and modern, qualitative and quantitative data, i.e., more than 25 events during the period 1790 - 1990 with epicentral/maximum intensities ranging from X to V degree (MSK scale), the variation interval of isoseismal curves ranging from IX th to III rd degree. The data set was analysed using both the sum phasor techniques of Ridelek and Sacks (1984) for different magnitudes and depth intervals and the Stepp's method. For the assessment of seismic hazard we need a pattern of seismic source regions including an estimation for the maximum expected magnitude and the return period for the studied regions. Another necessary step in seismic hazard assessment is to develop attenuation relationships specific to a seismogenic zone, particularly to sub-crustal earthquakes of Vrancea region. The conceptual frame involves the use of appropriate decay models and consideration of the randomness in the attenuation, taking into account the azimuthal variation of the isoseist shapes. (authors)

A review on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: Source, environmental impact, effect on human health and

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hussein I. Abdel-Shafy

2016-03-01

The aim of this review is to discuss PAHs impact on the environmental and the magnitude of the human health risks posed by such substances. They also contain important information on concentrations, burdens and fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs in the atmosphere. The main anthropogenic sources of PAHs and their effect on the concentrations of these compounds in air are discussed. The fate of PAHs in the air, their persistence and the main mechanisms of their losses are presented. Health hazards associated with PAH air pollution are stressed.

Energy. Health, environment, and safety hazards. Final report from the Energy Commission. Energi. Haelso- miljoe- och saekerhetsrisker. Slutbetaenkande av energikommissionen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1978-01-01

The Swedish Energy Commission in its main report (''Energy'', SOU 1978:17) presented its considerations and put forward its proposals for a Swedish Energy policy for the next decade. This report contains complementary information on health hazards, risks of major accidents and sabotage, and problems of waste management. The presentation takes the form of a comparison of such risks in relation to different sources of energy. The Commission is not unanimous in its estimates of the relative hazards of different energysystems. The Commission recommends the initiation of a large number of studies concerning the possible ways the increase the safety and reduce the adverse effects of energy production.

Hazardous Source Estimation Using an Artificial Neural Network, Particle Swarm Optimization and a Simulated Annealing Algorithm

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wang, Rongxiao; Chen, B.; Qiu, S.; Ma, Liang; Zhu, Zhengqiu; Wang, Yiping; Qiu, Xiaogang

2018-01-01

Locating and quantifying the emission source plays a significant role in the emergency management of hazardous gas leak accidents. Due to the lack of a desirable atmospheric dispersion model, current source estimation algorithms cannot meet the requirements of both accuracy and efficiency. In

A survey of occupational health hazards among 7,610 female workers in China's electronics industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Wenlan; Lao, Xiang Qian; Pang, Shulan; Zhou, Jianjiao; Zhou, Anshou; Zou, Jianfang; Mei, Liangying; Yu, Ignatius Tak-sun

2013-01-01

To investigate the occupational hazards among Chinese female workers in the electronics industry, the authors systematically sampled a total of 8,300 female workers at random across 4 provinces in a variety of electronics factories. A detailed questionnaire was used to collect information on occupational hazards and the occurrence of occupation-related diseases. The results show that 4,283 female workers (51.9%) were exposed to 1 or more occupational hazards. The most common chemical hazard was organic solvent, and the second most common was heavy metals. The ergonomic hazards included repetitive movements, poor standing posture, and the lifting of heavy goods. More than 60% of the female workers self-reported occupation-related diseases. These results showed that occupational health hazards were common in the electronics industry in China and that they caused serious occupation-related health problems for the female workers therein.

Deterministic approach for multiple-source tsunami hazard assessment for Sines, Portugal

OpenAIRE

Wronna, M.; Omira, R.; Baptista, M. A.

2015-01-01

In this paper, we present a deterministic approach to tsunami hazard assessment for the city and harbour of Sines, Portugal, one of the test sites of project ASTARTE (Assessment, STrategy And Risk Reduction for Tsunamis in Europe). Sines has one of the most important deep-water ports, which has oil-bearing, petrochemical, liquid-bulk, coal, and container terminals. The port and its industrial infrastructures face the ocean southwest towards the main seismogenic sources. This...

Hazard Ranking Methodology for Assessing Health Impacts of Unconventional Natural Gas Development and Production: The Maryland Case Study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meleah D Boyle

Full Text Available The recent growth of unconventional natural gas development and production (UNGDP has outpaced research on the potential health impacts associated with the process. The Maryland Marcellus Shale Public Health Study was conducted to inform the Maryland Marcellus Shale Safe Drilling Initiative Advisory Commission, State legislators and the Governor about potential public health impacts associated with UNGDP so they could make an informed decision that considers the health and well-being of Marylanders. In this paper, we describe an impact assessment and hazard ranking methodology we used to assess the potential public health impacts for eight hazards associated with the UNGDP process. The hazard ranking included seven metrics: 1 presence of vulnerable populations (e.g. children under the age of 5, individuals over the age of 65, surface owners, 2 duration of exposure, 3 frequency of exposure, 4 likelihood of health effects, 5 magnitude/severity of health effects, 6 geographic extent, and 7 effectiveness of setbacks. Overall public health concern was determined by a color-coded ranking system (low, moderately high, and high that was generated based on the overall sum of the scores for each hazard. We provide three illustrative examples of applying our methodology for air quality and health care infrastructure which were ranked as high concern and for water quality which was ranked moderately high concern. The hazard ranking was a valuable tool that allowed us to systematically evaluate each of the hazards and provide recommendations to minimize the hazards.

Environmental and health hazard ranking and assessment of plastic polymers based on chemical composition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lithner, Delilah, E-mail: delilah.lithner@gmail.com; Larsson, Ake; Dave, Goeran

2011-08-15

Plastics constitute a large material group with a global annual production that has doubled in 15 years (245 million tonnes in 2008). Plastics are present everywhere in society and the environment, especially the marine environment, where large amounts of plastic waste accumulate. The knowledge of human and environmental hazards and risks from chemicals associated with the diversity of plastic products is very limited. Most chemicals used for producing plastic polymers are derived from non-renewable crude oil, and several are hazardous. These may be released during the production, use and disposal of the plastic product. In this study the environmental and health hazards of chemicals used in 55 thermoplastic and thermosetting polymers were identified and compiled. A hazard ranking model was developed for the hazard classes and categories in the EU classification and labelling (CLP) regulation which is based on the UN Globally Harmonized System. The polymers were ranked based on monomer hazard classifications, and initial assessments were made. The polymers that ranked as most hazardous are made of monomers classified as mutagenic and/or carcinogenic (category 1A or 1B). These belong to the polymer families of polyurethanes, polyacrylonitriles, polyvinyl chloride, epoxy resins, and styrenic copolymers. All have a large global annual production (1-37 million tonnes). A considerable number of polymers (31 out of 55) are made of monomers that belong to the two worst of the ranking model's five hazard levels, i.e. levels IV-V. The polymers that are made of level IV monomers and have a large global annual production (1-5 million tonnes) are phenol formaldehyde resins, unsaturated polyesters, polycarbonate, polymethyl methacrylate, and urea-formaldehyde resins. This study has identified hazardous substances used in polymer production for which the risks should be evaluated for decisions on the need for risk reduction measures, substitution, or even phase out

Distance education course on spatial multi-hazard risk assessment, using Open Source software

Science.gov (United States)

van Westen, C. J.; Frigerio, S.

2009-04-01

As part of the capacity building activities of the United Nations University - ITC School on Disaster Geo-Information Management (UNU-ITC DGIM) the International Institute for Geoinformation Science and Earth Observation (ITC) has developed a distance education course on the application of Geographic Information Systems for multi-hazard risk assessment. This course is designed for academic staff, as well as for professionals working in (non-) governmental organizations where knowledge of disaster risk management is essential. The course guides the participants through the entire process of risk assessment, on the basis of a case study of a city exposed to multiple hazards, in a developing country. The courses consists of eight modules, each with a guide book explaining the theoretical background, and guiding the participants through spatial data requirements for risk assessment, hazard assessment procedures, generation of elements at risk databases, vulnerability assessment, qualitative and quantitative risk assessment methods, risk evaluation and risk reduction. Linked to the theory is a large set of exercises, with exercise descriptions, answer sheets, demos and GIS data. The exercises deal with four different types of hazards: earthquakes, flooding, technological hazards, and landslides. One important consideration in designing the course is that people from developing countries should not be restricted in using it due to financial burdens for software acquisition. Therefore the aim was to use Open Source software as a basis. The GIS exercises are written for the ILWIS software. All exercises have also been integrated into a WebGIS, using the Open source software CartoWeb (based on GNU License). It is modular and customizable thanks to its object-oriented architecture and based on a hierarchical structure (to manage and organize every package of information of every step required in risk assessment). Different switches for every component of the risk assessment

Initial emission assessment of hazardous-waste-incineration facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harrington, E.S.; Holton, G.A.; O'Donnell, F.R.

1982-01-01

Health and Safety Research Division, sponsored by EPA, conducted a study to quantify emission factors from stacks, spills, fugitives, storage, and treatment for a typical hazardous waste incinerator facility. Engineering participated in preparing flowsheets and providing calculations for fugitive emissions. Typical block-flow diagrams were developed two types of hazardous waste incinerators (rotary kiln and liquid-injector) and for three capacities (small: 1 MM Btu/hr, median: 10 MM Btu/hr, and large: 150 MM Btu/hr). Storage reqirements and support services were determined in more detail. Using the properties of a typical waste, fugitive emissions were determined, including emissions from pump leaks, valve leaks, flange leaks, and tank vents. An atmospheric dispersion model was then employed to calculate atmospheric concentration and population exposure estimates. With these estimates, an assessment was performed to determine the percentage of concentrations and exposure associated with selected emissions from each source at the incineration facility. Results indicated the relative importance of each source at the incineration facility. Results indicated the relative importance of each source both in terms of public health and pollution control requirements

Fire Hazard Analysis for the Cold Neutron Source System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Jung Won; Kim, Young Ki; Wu, Sang Ik; Park, Young Cheol; Kim, Bong Soo; Kang, Mee Jin; Oh, Sung Wook

2006-04-15

As the Cold Neutron Source System for its installation in HANARO has been designing, the fire hazard analysis upon the CNS system becomes required under No. 2003-20 of the MOST notice, Technical Standard about the Fire Hazard Analysis. As a moderator, the strongly flammable hydrogen is filled in the hydrogen system of CNS. Against the fire or explosion in the reactor hall, accordingly, the physical damage on the reactor safety system should be evaluated in order to reflect the safety protection precaution in the design of CNS system. For the purpose of fire hazard analysis, the accident scenarios were divided into three: hydrogen leak during the hydrogen charging in the system, hydrogen leak during the normal operation of CNS, explosion of hydrogen buffer tank by the external fire. The analysis results can be summarized as follows. First, there is no physical damage threatening the reactor safety system although all hydrogen gas came out of the system then ignited as a jet fire. Second, since the CNS equipment island (CEI) is located enough away from the reactor, no physical damage caused by the buffer tank explosion is on the reactor in terms of the overpressure except the flying debris so that the light two-hour fireproof panel is installed in an one side of hydrogen buffer tank. Third, there are a few combustibles on the second floor of CEI so that the fire cannot be propagated to other areas in the reactor hall; however, the light two-hour fireproof panel will be built on the second floor against the external or internal fire so as to play the role of a fire protection area.

Fire Hazard Analysis for the Cold Neutron Source System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Jung Won; Kim, Young Ki; Wu, Sang Ik; Park, Young Cheol; Kim, Bong Soo; Kang, Mee Jin; Oh, Sung Wook

2006-04-01

As the Cold Neutron Source System for its installation in HANARO has been designing, the fire hazard analysis upon the CNS system becomes required under No. 2003-20 of the MOST notice, Technical Standard about the Fire Hazard Analysis. As a moderator, the strongly flammable hydrogen is filled in the hydrogen system of CNS. Against the fire or explosion in the reactor hall, accordingly, the physical damage on the reactor safety system should be evaluated in order to reflect the safety protection precaution in the design of CNS system. For the purpose of fire hazard analysis, the accident scenarios were divided into three: hydrogen leak during the hydrogen charging in the system, hydrogen leak during the normal operation of CNS, explosion of hydrogen buffer tank by the external fire. The analysis results can be summarized as follows. First, there is no physical damage threatening the reactor safety system although all hydrogen gas came out of the system then ignited as a jet fire. Second, since the CNS equipment island (CEI) is located enough away from the reactor, no physical damage caused by the buffer tank explosion is on the reactor in terms of the overpressure except the flying debris so that the light two-hour fireproof panel is installed in an one side of hydrogen buffer tank. Third, there are a few combustibles on the second floor of CEI so that the fire cannot be propagated to other areas in the reactor hall; however, the light two-hour fireproof panel will be built on the second floor against the external or internal fire so as to play the role of a fire protection area

Sources and management of hazardous waste in Papua New Guinea

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Singh, K. [Univ. of Papua New Guinea (Papua New Guinea)

1996-12-31

Papua New Guinea (PNG) has considerable mineral wealth, especially in gold and copper. Large-scale mining takes place, and these activities are the source of most of PNG`s hazardous waste. Most people live in small farming communities throughout the region. Those living adjacent to mining areas have experienced some negative impacts from river ecosystem damage and erosion of their lands. Industry is centered mainly in urban areas and Generates waste composed of various products. Agricultural products, pesticide residues, and chemicals used for preserving timber and other forestry products also produce hazardous waste. Most municipal waste comes from domestic and commercial premises; it consists mainly of combustibles, noncombustibles, and other wastes. Hospitals generate pathogenic organisms, radioactive materials, and chemical and pharmaceutical laboratory waste. Little is known about the actual treatment of waste before disposal in PNG. Traditional low-cost waste disposal methods are usually practiced, such as use of landfills; storage in surface impoundments; and disposal in public sewers, rivers, and the sea. Indiscriminate burning of domestic waste in backyards is also commonly practiced in urban and rural areas. 10 refs., 4 tabs.

A CONCEPTUAL DISASTER RISK REDUCTION FRAMEWORK FOR HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amir S. GOHARDANI

2013-06-01

Full Text Available The health and safety hazard status of construction workers is constantly challenged by the projects in the built environment. In this article, various aspects of health and safety hazards for construction workers have been reviewed and investigated through a disaster risk reduction prism. This approach has further led to the perception of glancing at the construction sector as an ongoing disaster zone and equally provides a new management perspective. From this perspective, the occurrence of a disaster within the construction sector corresponds to the temporary or permanent ill-health or death of a construction worker. Geographical location is one of the factors that play an important role in addressing the health and safety hazards for construction workers. In addition to the location, geographical considerations equally encapsulate regional, cultural, governmental and work ethical effects. These effects may potentially contribute to disparities in the construction sector. With an increasing level of understanding for health and safety hazards in the construction domain, more efficient prevention measures can be taken in order to enable a disaster management cycle, capable of responding to the rigorous demands of the construction sector.

Parent's knowledge and perceptions of the health effects of environmental hazards in sakarya, turkey

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nursan, C.; Sevin, A.; Cemile, D.; Pinar, T.; Sevin, A

2014-01-01

Objective: To assess the knowledge and perception of parents of high school students about the health effects of environmental hazards in Sakarya province of Turkey. Method: The cross-section study was conducted in May 2009 in which randomly assigned 362 parents answered a questionnaire inquiring about the sociodemographics and a list of environmental hazards such as tobacco smoking, sunlight exposure and skin cancer, global climate change, air pollution, noise exposure, smoking during pregnancy and low birth-weight, exposure to radon and lung cancer, reducing radon, air pollution and cardiovascular diseases, base station and childhood leukaemia, extremely low frequency electric and magnetic fields and brain tumour. The participants were also asked about water pollution, environmental tobacco smoke, air pollution, ozone depletion, exposure to radon gas, soil pollution, noise pollution, formaldehyde related with furniture, ground ozone and pesticides etc. SPSS 15 was used for statistical analysis. Results: Among the participants 226 (62.4%) were females, and 284 (78.5%) were in the 31-45 age group. There were 246 (68%) high school or university graduates. Of the participants, 357 (98.6%) knew that smoking was a health risk, but exposure to radon gas was not that prevalent (n=194; 53.6%). The most intimidating risk was claimed as unsafe water (n=311; 85.9%), while noise exposure was the least source of worry among the environmental risks (n=134; 37.0%). Conclusion: There is a necessity to inform the public about less-known but significant environmental risks such as radon gas and noise exposure which may cause health problems. (author)

Parent's knowledge and perceptions of the health effects of environmental hazards in Sakarya, Turkey.

Science.gov (United States)

Nursan, Cinar; Müge, Alvur Tuncay; Cemile, Dede; Pinar, Topsever; Sevin, Altinkaynak

2014-01-01

To assess the knowledge and perception of parents of high school students about the health effects of environmental hazards in Sakarya province of Turkey. The cross-section study was conducted in May 2009 in which randomly assigned 362 parents answered a questionnaire inquiring about the sociodemographics and a list of environmental hazards such as tobacco smoking, sunlight exposure and skin cancer, global climate change, air pollution, noise exposure, smoking during pregnancy and low birth-weight, exposure to radon and lung cancer, reducing radon, air pollution and cardiovascular diseases, base station and childhood leukaemia, extremely low frequency electric and magnetic fields and brain tumour.The participants were also asked about water pollution, environmental tobacco smoke, air pollution, ozone depletion, exposure to radon gas, soil pollution, noise pollution, formaldehyde related with furniture, ground ozone and pesticides etc. SPSS 15 was used for statistical analysis. Among the participants 226 (62.4%) were females, and 284 (78.5%) were in the 31-45 age group. There were 246 (68%) high school or university graduates. Of the participants, 357 (98.6%) knew that smoking was a health risk, but exposure to radon gas was not that prevalent (n=194; 53.6%). The most intimidating risk was claimed as unsafe water (n=311; 85.9%), while noise exposure was the least source of worry among the environmental risks (n=134; 37.0%). There is a necessity to inform the public about less-known but significant environmental risks such as radon gas and noise exposure which may cause health problems.

Coastal Hazards Impacts And Interventions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rosanna D. Gonzales

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Communitys participation in the activities like the preparation and creation of historical timeline. resource and hazard mapping as well as vulnerability assessment matrix VAM are effective tools in determining hazards impacts and interventions of a certain locality. The most common hazards are typhoons saltwater intrusion floods and drought. Data were collected through focus group discussions FGDs from respondents along coastal areas. Findings revealed that natural calamities had great impact to livelihood properties and health. The damaged business operations fishing and agricultural livelihood led to loss of income likewise the sources of water were also contaminated. Planned interventions include launching of periodic education and awareness program creation of evacuation centers and relocation sites rescue centers installation of deep well water pumps and irrigation systems solid waste management drainage and sea walls construction canal rehabilitationdredging tree planting and alternative livelihood programs.

An investigation of the health hazards of some of the chemical ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This short piece takes a limited look at the health hazards of the chemical contents of seven fruit juices sold in The Gambia. All of them have very negative effects on health. The following additives were considered: sweeteners, coloring agents, flavoring agents and acidifiers vis-à-vis established studies. [African Journal of ...

The health hazards of depleted uranium munitions. Part 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-01-01

Depleted uranium is a toxic and weakly radioactive metal used for a variety of purposes. Perhaps its most controversial use is in battlefield munitions, where it can be widely dispersed in the form of fine particles and shrapnel that may enter the bodies of combatants and others through inhalation, ingestion or wounding. It is a matter of legitimate public concern whether the use of this material in this way could create unacceptable health hazards or damage to the environment. The objective of our study has been to provide the best scientific understanding of the ways in which the material may be distributed, how it may be taken up by humans, and the potential implications for health. For politicians, any hazards to health have to be balanced against the military advantages that the use of these munitions confers. We have not tried to reach a judgment on these political issues, but we believe that a better scientific understanding of the extent of the hazards will make it easier for these wider questions to be addressed in a more objective way. This report is the first of two, and addresses the likely levels of exposure to depleted uranium, the resulting radiological risks, and the lessons to be learned from epidemiological studies. Our second report will address toxicological risks and environmental issues. So far, we conclude that risks from radiation are low for most soldiers on the battlefield, and for civilians who later return to the area. However, there are uncertainties about the maximal levels of exposure to depleted uranium on the battlefield, and there may be circumstances in which a few soldiers are exposed to levels of depleted uranium that result in a significant risk to health. Further studies are needed to determine the levels of exposure to depleted uranium that might occur on the battlefield and to judge whether such higher risks are likely to occur in practice

Hazardous substances in Europe's fresh and marine waters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Collins, Robert; Brack, Werner; Lützhøft, Hans-Christian Holten

Chemicals are an essential part of our daily lives. They are used to produce consumer goods, to protect or restore our health and to boost food production, to name but a few examples — and they are also involved in a growing range of environmental technologies. Europe's chemical and associated...... on their pattern of use and the potential for exposure. Certain types of naturally occurring chemicals, such as metals, can also be hazardous. Emissions of hazardous substances to the environment can occur at every stage of their life cycle, from production, processing, manufacturing and use in downstream...... regarding chemical contamination arising from the exploitation of shale gas has grown recently. Hazardous substances in water affect aquatic life… Hazardous substances are emitted to water bodies both directly and indirectly through a range of diffuse and point source pathways. The presence of hazardous...

Travelers' Health: Animal-Associated Hazards

Science.gov (United States)

... Chapter 2 - Safety & Security Chapter 2 - Environmental Hazards Animal-Associated Hazards Heather Bair-Brake, Ryan M. Wallace, G. Gale Galland, Nina Marano HUMAN INTERACTION WITH ANIMALS: A RISK FACTOR FOR INJURY AND ILLNESS Animals, ...

The role of health and safety experts in the management of hazardous and toxic wastes in Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Supriyadi; Hadiyanto

2018-02-01

Occupational Safety and Health Experts in Indonesia have an important role in integrating environmental health and safety factors, including in this regard as human resources assigned to undertake hazardous waste management. Comprehensive knowledge and competence skills need to be carried out responsibly, as an inherent professional occupational safety and health profession. Management leaders should continue to provide training in external agencies responsible for science in the management of toxic waste to enable occupational safety and health experts to improve their performance in the hierarchy of control over the presence of hazardous materials. This paper provides an overview of what strategies and competencies the Occupational Safety and Health expert needs to have in embracing hazardous waste management practices.

Modeling Online Health Information-Seeking Behavior in China: The Roles of Source Characteristics, Reward Assessment, and Internet Self-Efficacy.

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Weidan; Zhang, Xinyao; Xu, Kaibin; Wang, Yuanxin

2016-09-01

The outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003 marked the explosion of health information seeking online in China and the increasing emergence of Chinese health websites. There are both benefits and potential hazards of people's online health information seeking. This article intended to test part of Wilson's second model of information behavior, including source characteristics and activating mechanisms, and to identify the relationships among perceived access, perceived expertise credibility, reward assessment, Internet self-efficacy, and online health information-seeking behavior. Data were drawn from face-to-face surveys and an online survey of health information seekers (N = 393) in China. The results showed that source characteristics predicted activating mechanisms, which in turn predicted online health information-seeking behavior. Activating mechanisms, that is, reward assessment and Internet self-efficacy, mediated the relationship between source characteristics (i.e., access and credibility) and online health information-seeking behavior. Strategies for improving information access, expertise credibility, and Internet self-efficacy are discussed in order to maximize the benefits of online health information seeking and to minimize the potential harm.

Assessment of occupational health and safety hazard exposures among working college students.

Science.gov (United States)

Balanay, Jo Anne G; Adesina, Adepeju; Kearney, Gregory D; Richards, Stephanie L

2014-01-01

Adolescents and young adults have higher injury rates than their adult counterparts in similar jobs. This study used the working college student population to assess health and safety hazards in the workplace, characterize related occupational diseases and injuries, and describe worker health/safety activities provided by employers. College students (≥17 years old) were assessed via online surveys about work history, workplace exposure to hazards, occupational diseases/injuries, and workplace health/safety activities. Approximately half (51%) of participants (n = 1,147) were currently employed at the time of the survey or had been employed while enrolled in college. Restaurants (other than fast food) were the most frequently reported work setting. The most reported workplace hazards included noise exposure and contact with hot liquids/surfaces. Twenty percent of working students experienced injury at work; some injuries were severe enough to limit students' normal activities for >3 days (30%) or require medical attention (44%). Men had significantly higher prevalence of injuries (P = 0.05) and near-misses (P safety training and half were given personal protective equipment (PPE) by their employers. Risk reduction from workplace injuries and illnesses among working college students may be achieved by implementing occupational health and safety (OHS) strategies including incorporation of OHS in the college curriculum, promotion of OHS by university/college student health services, and improving awareness of OHS online resources among college students, employers, and educators. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Optimal health insurance contract : can moral hazard increase indemnity ?

OpenAIRE

Bien, Franck; Alary, David

2006-01-01

In this note, we generalize the results obtained by Barday and Lesur (2005) by considering a bivariated non separable utility function. We characterize optimal health insurance contracts. Moreover, we show that under moral hazard a sufficiently high risk aversion implies that the optimal coverage and the optimal preventive effort are higher than with perfect information.

Basic Versus Supplementary Health Insurance : Moral Hazard and Adverse Selection

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boone, J.

2014-01-01

This paper introduces a tractable model of health insurance with both moral hazard and adverse selection. We show that government sponsored universal basic insurance should cover treatments with the biggest adverse selection problems. Treatments not covered by basic insurance can be covered on the

Basic versus supplementary health insurance : Moral hazard and adverse selection

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boone, J.

This paper introduces a tractable model of health insurance with both moral hazard and adverse selection. We show that government sponsored universal basic insurance should cover treatments with the biggest adverse selection problems. Treatments not covered by basic insurance can be covered on the

Scenario based approach for multiple source Tsunami Hazard assessment for Sines, Portugal

OpenAIRE

M. Wronna; R. Omira; M. A. Baptista

2015-01-01

In this paper, we present a scenario-based approach for tsunami hazard assessment for the city and harbour of Sines – Portugal, one of the test-sites of project ASTARTE. Sines holds one of the most important deep-water ports which contains oil-bearing, petrochemical, liquid bulk, coal and container terminals. The port and its industrial infrastructures are facing the ocean southwest towards the main seismogenic sources. This work considers two different seis...

Multi-Hazard Interactions in Guatemala

Science.gov (United States)

Gill, Joel; Malamud, Bruce D.

2017-04-01

In this paper, we combine physical and social science approaches to develop a multi-scale regional framework for natural hazard interactions in Guatemala. The identification and characterisation of natural hazard interactions is an important input for comprehensive multi-hazard approaches to disaster risk reduction at a regional level. We use five transdisciplinary evidence sources to organise and populate our framework: (i) internationally-accessible literature; (ii) civil protection bulletins; (iii) field observations; (iv) stakeholder interviews (hazard and civil protection professionals); and (v) stakeholder workshop results. These five evidence sources are synthesised to determine an appropriate natural hazard classification scheme for Guatemala (6 hazard groups, 19 hazard types, and 37 hazard sub-types). For a national spatial extent (Guatemala), we construct and populate a "21×21" hazard interaction matrix, identifying 49 possible interactions between 21 hazard types. For a sub-national spatial extent (Southern Highlands, Guatemala), we construct and populate a "33×33" hazard interaction matrix, identifying 112 possible interactions between 33 hazard sub-types. Evidence sources are also used to constrain anthropogenic processes that could trigger natural hazards in Guatemala, and characterise possible networks of natural hazard interactions (cascades). The outcomes of this approach are among the most comprehensive interaction frameworks for national and sub-national spatial scales in the published literature. These can be used to support disaster risk reduction and civil protection professionals in better understanding natural hazards and potential disasters at a regional scale.

[Chemical hazards arising from shale gas extraction].

Science.gov (United States)

Pakulska, Daria

2015-01-01

The development of the shale industry is gaining momentum and hence the analysis of chemical hazards to the environment and health of the local population is extreiely timely and important. Chemical hazards are created during the exploitation of all minerals, but in the case of shale gas production, there is much more uncertainty as regards to the effects of new technologies application. American experience suggests the increasing risk of environmental contamination, mainly groundwater. The greatest, concern is the incomplete knowledge of the composition of fluids used for fracturing shale rock and unpredictability of long-term effects of hydraulic fracturing for the environment and health of residents. High population density in the old continent causes the problem of chemical hazards which is much larger than in the USA. Despite the growing public discontent data on this subject are limited. First of all, there is no epidemiological studies to assess the relationship between risk factors, such as air and water pollution, and health effects in populations living in close proximity to gas wells. The aim of this article is to identify and discuss existing concepts on the sources of environmental contamination, an indication of the environment elements under pressure and potential health risks arising from shale gas extraction.

[Application of occupational hazard risk index model in occupational health risk assessment in a decorative coating manufacturing enterprises].

Science.gov (United States)

He, P L; Zhao, C X; Dong, Q Y; Hao, S B; Xu, P; Zhang, J; Li, J G

2018-01-20

Objective: To evaluate the occupational health risk of decorative coating manufacturing enterprises and to explore the applicability of occupational hazard risk index model in the health risk assessment, so as to provide basis for the health management of enterprises. Methods: A decorative coating manufacturing enterprise in Hebei Province was chosen as research object, following the types of occupational hazards and contact patterns, the occupational hazard risk index model was used to evaluate occupational health risk factors of occupational hazards in the key positions of the decorative coating manufacturing enterprise, and measured with workplace test results and occupational health examination. Results: The positions of oily painters, water-borne painters, filling workers and packers who contacted noise were moderate harm. And positions of color workers who contacted chromic acid salts, oily painters who contacted butyl acetate were mild harm. Other positions were harmless. The abnormal rate of contacting noise in physical examination results was 6.25%, and the abnormality was not checked by other risk factors. Conclusion: The occupational hazard risk index model can be used in the occupational health risk assessment of decorative coating manufacturing enterprises, and noise was the key harzard among occupational harzards in this enterprise.

How credible are the study results? Evaluating and applying internal validity tools to literature-based assessments of environmental health hazards

Science.gov (United States)

Rooney, Andrew A.; Cooper, Glinda S.; Jahnke, Gloria D.; Lam, Juleen; Morgan, Rebecca L.; Boyles, Abee L.; Ratcliffe, Jennifer M.; Kraft, Andrew D.; Schünemann, Holger J.; Schwingl, Pamela; Walker, Teneille D.; Thayer, Kristina A.; Lunn, Ruth M.

2016-01-01

Environmental health hazard assessments are routinely relied upon for public health decision-making. The evidence base used in these assessments is typically developed from a collection of diverse sources of information of varying quality. It is critical that literature-based evaluations consider the credibility of individual studies used to reach conclusions through consistent, transparent and accepted methods. Systematic review procedures address study credibility by assessing internal validity or “risk of bias” — the assessment of whether the design and conduct of a study compromised the credibility of the link between exposure/intervention and outcome. This paper describes the commonalities and differences in risk-of-bias methods developed or used by five groups that conduct or provide methodological input for performing environmental health hazard assessments: the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) Working Group, the Navigation Guide, the National Toxicology Program’s (NTP) Office of Health Assessment and Translation (OHAT) and Office of the Report on Carcinogens (ORoC), and the Integrated Risk Information System of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA-IRIS). Each of these groups have been developing and applying rigorous assessment methods for integrating across a heterogeneous collection of human and animal studies to inform conclusions on potential environmental health hazards. There is substantial consistency across the groups in the consideration of risk-of-bias issues or “domains” for assessing observational human studies. There is a similar overlap in terms of domains addressed for animal studies; however, the groups differ in the relative emphasis placed on different aspects of risk of bias. Future directions for the continued harmonization and improvement of these methods are also discussed. PMID:26857180

Hazardous Waste

Science.gov (United States)

... chemicals can still harm human health and the environment. When you throw these substances away, they become hazardous waste. Some hazardous wastes come from products in our homes. Our garbage can include such hazardous wastes as old batteries, bug spray cans and paint thinner. U.S. residents ...

The effects of prioritize inspections on occupational health hazards control in workplaces in Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Sadeghi, Fatemah; Bahrami, Abdolrahman; Fatemi, Farin

2014-01-01

Iran, a newly industrializing country in Middle East, has a workforce of 25 million people. Most employees are working in agriculture, manufacturing, services, construction, commerce sectors, carpet weaving and mining. This article aims to explore the improvement of occupational harmful agents in workplaces due to implement "prioritize inspections". In 2012, the system of "prioritize inspections "was defined for surveillance on enterprises replace of routine inspection. From this system, the enterprises classified on four groups based on health hazards and enterprises with high risk were under more surveillance. The information about each enterprise was collected by health centers, in five provinces and reported by a recommended form to Centre of Environmental and Occupational Health (CEOH). At this program, the inspections from high and medium hazards were increased in all of provinces. The results showed there was a significant difference between the control of health hazards in before and after beginning of "prioritize inspections"(P=0.048). The control of noise, fumes and providing of proper illumination increased from 8 to 10%, 9 to 9.5%, 12.9 to 15.4%, respectively, at under study provinces in 2012 compared to 2011. The surveillance based on "prioritize inspections" increased the quality of occupational health inspections that causes to prevent occupational health diseases.

Non-invasive shallow seismic source comparison for hazardous waste site investigations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doll, W.E.

1994-01-01

Many commonly used shallow seismic sources are unacceptable for hazardous waste site investigations because they risk exhumation of contaminants in the soil, they add contaminants (e.g. lead) which are not allowed by regulations, or they add new migration paths for contaminants. Furthermore, recently developed high frequency vibrators for shallow investigations could be more effective at some sites than non-invasive impulsive sources because of their ability to tailor the source spectrum and reduce interference. The authors show preliminary results of a comparison test of eight non-invasive impulsive and swept sources in preparation for seismic reflection profiling on the Oak Ridge Reservation, Tennessee. Well log data are used to determine geologic contacts and to generate synthetic seismograms for the site. Common midpoint (CMP) seismic data for each source were collected at 95 geophone groups from 125 shot points along a 400m test line. Hydrophone data were obtained at 1.5m spacing between 61m and 133m depth in a hole near the center of the CMP line. As of March, 1994, brute stacks have been completed for three of the eight sources. Depth penetration is demonstrated in brute stacks and shot gathers, which show a 200ms reflector for all of the sources tested along portions of the line. Source effectiveness will also be evaluated by comparing images of several shallower reflectors (40--150ms) which are apparent in many of the records. Imaging of these reflectors appears to depend upon the ability of the source to generate sufficient high frequency energy (>100 Hz)

Antibiotics in dust originating from a pig-fattening farm: a new source of health hazard for farmers?

Science.gov (United States)

Hamscher, Gerd; Pawelzick, Heike Theresia; Sczesny, Silke; Nau, Heinz; Hartung, Jörg

2003-10-01

Pig-house dust originates from feed, bedding, feces, and the animals themselves. If the animals receive drugs such as antibiotics, residues of these substances may occur in manure, in the air, or on surfaces of the respective animal house. In a retrospective study, we investigated dust samples collected during two decades from the same piggery for the occurrence of various antibiotics. In 90% of these samples, we detected up to five different antibiotics, including tylosin, various tetracyclines, sulfamethazine, and chloramphenicol, in total amounts up to 12.5 mg/kg dust. High dust exposure in animal confinement buildings is believed to be a respiratory health hazard because of the high content of microorganisms, endotoxins, and allergens. Further risks may arise from the inhalation of dust contaminated with a cocktail of antibiotics. Apart from that, our data provide first evidence for a new route of entry for veterinary drugs in the environment.

Consideration of external hazards and multi-source interactions in the USNRC's site level 3 PSA project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siu, N.; Stutzke, M.; Drouin, M.; Tobin, K.; Coyne, K.; Kuritzky, A.

2014-01-01

U.S.NRC launched a project in September 2011 to evaluate the total risk at a selected reference NPP (the Vogtle plant) according to the entire initiators, including external hazards. The scope of this risk evaluation was given as 'reactor in all operational modes, including full power, low power and shutdown modes, spent fuel pool and dry cask storage, where all the internal and external hazards are considered'. As part of this study, an Integrated Site Risk Analysis (ISRA) addressing the combinations of and interactions between the different sources of radiological risk (reactors, spent fuel pool (SFP), dry casks) is underway. A number of modeling and implementation challenges were identified. The former include the problem of combinatorial explosion associated with the need to treat multiple sources over extended periods of time

The Dependency of Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Assessment on Magnitude Limits of Seismic Sources in the South China Sea and Adjoining Basins

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hongwei; Yuan, Ye; Xu, Zhiguo; Wang, Zongchen; Wang, Juncheng; Wang, Peitao; Gao, Yi; Hou, Jingming; Shan, Di

2017-06-01

The South China Sea (SCS) and its adjacent small basins including Sulu Sea and Celebes Sea are commonly identified as tsunami-prone region by its historical records on seismicity and tsunamis. However, quantification of tsunami hazard in the SCS region remained an intractable issue due to highly complex tectonic setting and multiple seismic sources within and surrounding this area. Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Assessment (PTHA) is performed in the present study to evaluate tsunami hazard in the SCS region based on a brief review on seismological and tsunami records. 5 regional and local potential tsunami sources are tentatively identified, and earthquake catalogs are generated using Monte Carlo simulation following the Tapered Gutenberg-Richter relationship for each zone. Considering a lack of consensus on magnitude upper bound on each seismic source, as well as its critical role in PTHA, the major concern of the present study is to define the upper and lower limits of tsunami hazard in the SCS region comprehensively by adopting different corner magnitudes that could be derived by multiple principles and approaches, including TGR regression of historical catalog, fault-length scaling, tectonic and seismic moment balance, and repetition of historical largest event. The results show that tsunami hazard in the SCS and adjoining basins is subject to large variations when adopting different corner magnitudes, with the upper bounds 2-6 times of the lower. The probabilistic tsunami hazard maps for specified return periods reveal much higher threat from Cotabato Trench and Sulawesi Trench in the Celebes Sea, whereas tsunami hazard received by the coasts of the SCS and Sulu Sea is relatively moderate, yet non-negligible. By combining empirical method with numerical study of historical tsunami events, the present PTHA results are tentatively validated. The correspondence lends confidence to our study. Considering the proximity of major sources to population-laden cities

Health and economic costs of alternative energy sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamilton, L.D.; Manne, A.S.

1977-01-01

National energy policy requires realistic totaling of costs in assessing energy alternatives. The Biomedical and Environmental Assessment Division (BEAD) at Brookhaven is estimating biomedical and environmental costs of energy production and use. All forms of energy, including new technologies, are being considered. Beginning with a compilation of pollutants from the energy system, the various paths to man are traced and health effects evaluated. Excess mortality and morbidity in the U.S. attributable to a total fuel cycle to produce 6.6x10 9 kwh - about a year's production of a 1000-MWe power plant - are being estimated. Where enough information is available, estimates are quantitative. In some instances only the nature of the potential hazard can be described. This assessment aims at providing initial estimates of relative impacts to identify where the important health hazards in each fuel cycle arise, thereby identifying key areas for judging the total costs of alternative energy sources, and those areas of research likely to improve the accuracy of the estimates. It was thus estimated that the production of electric power from all sources in the U.S. in 1975 was associated with between two to nineteen thousand deaths and twenty-nine to fourty-eight thousand disabilities; this is roughly between 0.2 and 2% of total deaths in U.S. ages 1-74. The estimated health effects associated with a total fuel cycle standardized to produce 10 10 kwh electric power were: from coal estimated deaths 20-200, estimated disabilities 300-500; from oil estimated deaths 3-150, estimated disabilities 150-300; from gas estimated deaths 0.2, estimated disabilities 20; from nuclear estimated deaths 1-3, estimated disabilities 8-30. The differences in the year 2000 between health impacts of the U.S. energy system under normal growth expectations and under conditions of a nuclear moratorium were estimated. On the assumption that the nuclear moratorium would require 320 additional 1000-MWe

Advanced Materials Laboratory hazards assessment document

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barnett, B.; Banda, Z.

1995-10-01

The Department of Energy Order 55OO.3A requires facility-specific hazards assessments be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with the AML. The entire inventory was screened according to the potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance at which a postulated facility event will produce consequences exceeding the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 23 meters. The highest emergency classification is a General Emergency. The Emergency Planning Zone is a nominal area that conforms to DOE boundaries and physical/jurisdictional boundaries such as fence lines and streets.

Social Hazards as Manifested Workplace Discrimination and Health (Vietnamese and Ukrainian Female and Male Migrants in Czechia).

Science.gov (United States)

Drbohlav, Dušan; Dzúrová, Dagmar

2017-10-10

Social hazards as one of the dimensions of workplace discrimination are a potential social determinant of health inequalities. The aim of this study was to investigate relations between self-reported health and social hazard characteristics (defined as-discrimination as such, violence or threat of violence, time pressure or work overload and risk of accident) among Vietnamese and Ukrainian migrants (males and females) in Czechia by age, education level and marital status. This study is based on data from a survey of 669 immigrants in Czechia in 2013. Logistic regression analysis indicates that the given independent variables (given social hazards and socio-demographic characteristics), as predictors of a quality of self-reported health are more important for immigrant females than for males, irrespective of citizenship, albeit only for some of them and to differing extents. We found out that being exposed to the selected social hazards in the workplace leads to worsening self-rated health, especially for females. On the other hand, there was no statistically significant relationship found between poor self-rated health and discrimination as such. Reality calls for more research and, consequently, better policies and practices in the field of health inequalities.

Social Hazards as Manifested Workplace Discrimination and Health (Vietnamese and Ukrainian Female and Male Migrants in Czechia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dušan Drbohlav

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Social hazards as one of the dimensions of workplace discrimination are a potential social determinant of health inequalities. The aim of this study was to investigate relations between self-reported health and social hazard characteristics (defined as—discrimination as such, violence or threat of violence, time pressure or work overload and risk of accident among Vietnamese and Ukrainian migrants (males and females in Czechia by age, education level and marital status. This study is based on data from a survey of 669 immigrants in Czechia in 2013. Logistic regression analysis indicates that the given independent variables (given social hazards and socio-demographic characteristics, as predictors of a quality of self-reported health are more important for immigrant females than for males, irrespective of citizenship, albeit only for some of them and to differing extents. We found out that being exposed to the selected social hazards in the workplace leads to worsening self-rated health, especially for females. On the other hand, there was no statistically significant relationship found between poor self-rated health and discrimination as such. Reality calls for more research and, consequently, better policies and practices in the field of health inequalities.

Waste collection in developing countries - Tackling occupational safety and health hazards at their source

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bleck, Daniela, E-mail: bleck.daniela@baua.bund.de [Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Germany (BAuA), Friedrich Henkel Weg 1-25, 44149 Dortmund (Germany); Wettberg, Wieland, E-mail: wettberg.wieland@baua.bund.de [Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Germany (BAuA), Friedrich Henkel Weg 1-25, 44149 Dortmund (Germany)

2012-11-15

Waste management procedures in developing countries are associated with occupational safety and health risks. Gastro-intestinal infections, respiratory and skin diseases as well as muscular-skeletal problems and cutting injuries are commonly found among waste workers around the globe. In order to find efficient, sustainable solutions to reduce occupational risks of waste workers, a methodological risk assessment has to be performed and counteractive measures have to be developed according to an internationally acknowledged hierarchy. From a case study in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia suggestions for the transferral of collected household waste into roadside containers are given. With construction of ramps to dump collected household waste straight into roadside containers and an adaptation of pushcarts and collection procedures, the risk is tackled at the source.

Implications of the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster: Man-Made Hazards, Vulnerability Factors, and Risk to Environmental Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Eddy, Christopher; Sase, Eriko

2015-01-01

The objective of this article was to examine the environmental health implications of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster from an all-hazards perspective. The authors performed a literature review that included Japanese and international nuclear guidance and policy, scientific papers, and reports on the Chernobyl and Three Mile Island disasters while also considering all-hazards preparedness rubrics in the U.S. The examination of the literature resulted in the following: a) the authors' "All-Hazards Planning Reference Model" that distinguishes three planning categories-Disaster Trigger Event, Man-Made Hazards, and Vulnerability Factors; b) the generalization of their model to other countries; and c) advocacy for environmental health end fate to be considered in planning phases to minimize risk to environmental health. This article discusses inconsistencies in disaster planning and nomenclature existing in the studied materials and international guidance and proposes new opportunity for developing predisaster risk assessment, risk communication, and prevention capacity building.

Building 894 hazards assessment document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Banda, Z.; Williams, M.

1996-07-01

The Department of Energy Order 5500.3A requires facility-specific hazards assessments be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with Building 894. The entire inventory was subjected to the screening criteria for potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals out of which 9 chemicals were kept for further evaluation. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance at which a postulated facility event will produce consequences exceeding the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 130 meters. The highest emergency classification is a General Emergency. The Emergency Planning Zone is a nominal 130 meter area that conforms to DOE boundaries and physical/jurisdictional boundaries such as fence lines and streets

Building 6630 hazards assessment document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williams, M.; Banda, Z.

1996-10-01

The Department of Energy Order 5500.3A requires facility-specific hazards assessments be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with Building 6630. The entire inventory was subjected to the screening criteria for potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals out of which one chemical was kept for further evaluation. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the chemical release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance at which a postulated facility event will produce consequences exceeding the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 76 meters. The highest emergency classification is an Alert. The Emergency Planning Zone is a nominal 100 meter area that conforms to DOE boundaries and physical/jurisdictional boundaries such as fence lines and streets

Occupational Health and the Arts.

Science.gov (United States)

Hinkamp, David L; McCann, Michael; Babin, Angela

2017-09-01

Work in the visual arts, performing arts, and writing can involve exposures to occupational hazards, including hazardous materials, equipment, and conditions, but few art workplaces have strong occupational health resources. Literature searches were conducted for articles that illustrate these concerns. Medical databases were searched for art-related health articles. Other sources were also reviewed, including, unindexed art-health publications, and popular press articles. Information was located that described some exposed populations, art-related hazards, and resulting disorders. Anecdotal reports were used when more complete data were not available. Health hazards in the arts are significant. Occupational health professionals are familiar with most of these concerns and understand their treatment and prevention. The occupational health approach can reduce the health hazards encountered by at-risk art workers. Additional research would benefit these efforts. Resources for further information are available.

an investigation of the health hazards of some of the chemical ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Temechegn

This short piece takes a limited look at the health hazards of the chemical contents of ... With this in mind, the researchers purchased all the powdered fruit juices sold in ... Administration (FDA) or some other regulatory body for low toxicity, ...

Development of uniform hazard response spectra for rock sites considering line and point sources of earthquakes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghosh, A.K.; Kushwaha, H.S.

2001-12-01

Traditionally, the seismic design basis ground motion has been specified by normalised response spectral shapes and peak ground acceleration (PGA). The mean recurrence interval (MRI) used to computed for PGA only. It is shown that the MRI associated with such response spectra are not the same at all frequencies. The present work develops uniform hazard response spectra i.e. spectra having the same MRI at all frequencies for line and point sources of earthquakes by using a large number of strong motion accelerograms recorded on rock sites. Sensitivity of the number of the results to the changes in various parameters has also been presented. This work is an extension of an earlier work for aerial sources of earthquakes. These results will help to determine the seismic hazard at a given site and the associated uncertainities. (author)

Fine particulate matter in the tropical environment: monsoonal effects, source apportionment, and health risk assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, M. F.; Latif, M. T.; Saw, W. H.; Amil, N.; Nadzir, M. S. M.; Sahani, M.; Tahir, N. M.; Chung, J. X.

2016-01-01

The health implications of PM2.5 in the tropical region of Southeast Asia (SEA) are significant as PM2.5 can pose serious health concerns. PM2.5 concentration and sources here are strongly influenced by changes in the monsoon regime from the south-west quadrant to the north-east quadrant in the region. In this work, PM2.5 samples were collected at a semi-urban area using a high-volume air sampler at different seasons on 24 h basis. Analysis of trace elements and water-soluble ions was performed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) and ion chromatography (IC), respectively. Apportionment analysis of PM2.5 was carried out using the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) positive matrix factorization (PMF) 5.0 and a mass closure model. We quantitatively characterized the health risks posed to human populations through the inhalation of selected heavy metals in PM2.5. 48 % of the samples collected exceeded the World Health Organization (WHO) 24 h PM2.5 guideline but only 19 % of the samples exceeded 24 h US EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). The PM2.5 concentration was slightly higher during the north-east monsoon compared to south-west monsoon. The main trace metals identified were As, Pb, Cd, Ni, Mn, V, and Cr while the main ions were SO42-, NO3-, NH4+, and Na. The mass closure model identified four major sources of PM2.5 that account for 55 % of total mass balance. The four sources are mineral matter (MIN) (35 %), secondary inorganic aerosol (SIA) (11 %), sea salt (SS) (7 %), and trace elements (TE) (2 %). PMF 5.0 elucidated five potential sources: motor vehicle emissions coupled with biomass burning (31 %) were the most dominant, followed by marine/sulfate aerosol (20 %), coal burning (19 %), nitrate aerosol (17 %), and mineral/road dust (13 %). The hazard quotient (HQ) for four selected metals (Pb, As, Cd, and Ni) in PM2.5 mass was highest in PM2.5 mass from the coal burning source and least in PM2.5 mass

Hazardous alcohol use among doctors in a Tertiary Health Center

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adetunji Obadeji

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Doctors have been identified as one of the key agents in the prevention of alcohol-related harm, however, their level of use and attitudes toward alcohol will affect such role. Aim: This study is aimed at describing the pattern of alcohol use and the predictors of hazardous drinking among hospital doctors. Setting: Study was conducted at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria. Design: A cross-sectional survey involving all the doctors in the teaching hospital. Materials and Methods: All the consenting clinicians completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and alcohol use was measured using the 10-item alcohol use disorder identification test (AUDIT and psychological well-being was measured by the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12. Statistical Analysis Used: Statistical analyses were done using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 16. Chi-square tests with Yates correction were used to describe the relationship between respondent′s characteristics and AUDIT scores as appropriate. Results: There were a total of 122 participants. Eighty-five (69.7% of them were abstainers, 28 (23% were moderate drinkers, and 9 (7.3% hazardous drinkers. With the exception of age, there was no significant relationship between sociodemographic status, years of practice, specialty of practice, and hazardous alcohol use. Experiencing stress or GHQ score above average is significantly associated with hazardous drinking. Conclusion: Hazardous drinking among hospital doctors appears to be essentially a problem of the male gender, especially among those older than 40 years. Stress and other form of psychological distress seem to play a significant role in predicting hazardous drinking among doctors.

EXPOSURE TO HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES AND MALE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH: A RESEARCH FRAMEWORK

Science.gov (United States)

The discovery in the mid-1970s that occupational exposures to pesticides could diminish or destroy the fertility of workers sparked concern about the effects of hazardous substances on male reproductive health. More recently, there is evidence that sperm quantity and quality may ...

Chemical hazards arising from shale gas extraction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daria Pakulska

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The development of the shale industry is gaining momentum and hence the analysis of chemical hazards to the environment and health of the local population is extremely timely and important. Chemical hazards are created during the exploitation of all minerals, but in the case of shale gas production, there is much more uncertainty as regards to the effects of new technologies application. American experience suggests the increasing risk of environmental contamination, mainly groundwater. The greatest concern is the incomplete knowledge of the composition of fluids used for fracturing shale rock and unpredictability of long-term effects of hydraulic fracturing for the environment and health of residents. High population density in the old continent causes the problem of chemical hazards which is much larger than in the USA. Despite the growing public discontent data on this subject are limited. First of all, there is no epidemiological studies to assess the relationship between risk factors, such as air and water pollution, and health effects in populations living in close proximity to gas wells. The aim of this article is to identify and discuss existing concepts on the sources of environmental contamination, an indication of the environment elements under pressure and potential health risks arising from shale gas extraction. Med Pr 2015;66(1:99–117

How Do Qataris Source Health Information?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sopna M Choudhury

Full Text Available Qatar is experiencing rapid population expansion with increasing demands on healthcare services for both acute and chronic conditions. Sourcing accurate information about health conditions is crucial, yet the methods used for sourcing health information in Qatar are currently unknown. Gaining a better understanding of the sources the Qatari population use to recognize and manage health and/or disease will help to develop strategies to educate individuals about existing and emerging health problems.To investigate the methods used by the Qatari population to source health information. We hypothesized that the Internet would be a key service used to access health information by the Qatari population.A researcher-led questionnaire was used to collect information from Qatari adults, aged 18-85 years. Participants were approached in shopping centers and public places in Doha, the capital city of Qatar. The questionnaire was used to ascertain information concerning demographics, health status, and utilization of health care services during the past year as well as sources of health information used.Data from a total of 394 eligible participants were included. The Internet was widely used for seeking health information among the Qatari population (71.1%. A greater proportion of Qatari females (78.7% reported searching for health-related information using the Internet compared to Qatari males (60.8%. Other commonly used sources were family and friends (37.8% and Primary Health Care Centers (31.2%. Google was the most commonly used search engine (94.8%. Gender, age and education levels were all significant predictors of Internet use for heath information (P<0.001 for all predictors. Females were 2.9 times more likely than males (P<0.001 and people educated to university or college level were 3.03 times more likely (P<0.001 to use the Internet for heath information.The Internet is a widely used source to obtain health-related information by the Qatari

Hazards in the chemical laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bretherick, L.

1987-01-01

The contents of this book are: Preface; Introduction; Health and Safety at Work Act 1974; Safety Planning and Management; Fire Protection; Reactive Chemical Hazards; Chemical Hazards and Toxicology; Health Care and First Aid; Hazardous Chemicals; Precautions against Radiations; and An American View

Determination of a Quantitative Job Severity Score Value for Health Hazards in Industry

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A. Nayebzadeh

2007-09-01

Full Text Available Background and aims   There are numerous types of health hazards in every workplace which threaten the health and well-being of employees. Therefore, various types of engineering and  administrative control approaches have been developed in industry. Control of hazardous agents can be difficult in most conditions due to economical and technical limitations. However, certain types of administrative control methods can be implemented in these cases instead of engineering or process controls. Since creating a safe environment with zero chance of occupational exposures to hazardous agents is practically impossible, it can be expected that every employee may have a certain level of exposure to one or more of hazardous agents. The probability and extent of these  exposures will depend on job's demands or work environment's conditions. Under this condition,  a "job severity score" as a quantitative value can be determined in order to choose and employ the  best possible control methodology and also to create a long-term occupational health plan.   Methods   In this study, the main goal is to develop a questionnaire as a model for assessment of job severity and tasks harmfulness. This questionnaire has five sections in which there are numbers  of questions each with a specified quantitative score.  These scores have been identified according to the brainstorming among the some experienced  experts in the fields safety, occupational health, and industrial psychology. When the final  questionnaire was completed, two well-known industrial sectors were selected as pilot plants for final verification of questionnaire in order to obtain valid questions.    Results & Conclusion   The result of this study was providing a questionnaire which might be used in similar studies for determination of job severity level at any industrial plants.

Chernobyl - an evaluation of health hazards. 3. enl. and rev. ed.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huber, E.E.; Dersee, T.; Iwert, B.

1986-01-01

The pamphlet abstracted contains some general information about the radiation hazards and health risks of nuclear power plants. The consequences of the Chernobyl reactor accident are dealt with by way of summarizing the events and by evaluating the health risks and damage the public should be prepared for. This topical report is completed by a popular presentation of the risks of nuclear power and by definitions of the major terms and measuring units. (DG) [de

Health hazard evaluation report HETA 82-361-1437, Kerr-McGee Nuclear Corporation, Grants, New Mexico

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ward, E.M.; Smith, A.B.; Thun, M.J.; Hills, B.

1984-03-01

A health-hazard evaluation at Kerr/McGee Nuclear Corporation's uranium (7440611) mill (SIC-1094) in Grants, New Mexico was conducted in November, 1982. Evaluation was requested because of union concern about exposure and possible nephrotoxic effects of yellowcake, a concentrate of natural uranium, produced at the mill. Personnel records, company environmental and personal monitoring, and urine uranium bioassay data were reviewed. Further medical evaluation at the facility is not warranted as the longest exposure to yellowcake was only 7 years. The authors recommend that Kerr/McGee use the NRC guidelines for assessing exposure. Emission source in the drier and precipitation area should be identified and engineering controls installed to reduce the exposure

Occupational health hazards in the interventional laboratory: Time for a safer environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, Lloyd W; Miller, Donald L; Balter, Stephen; Laskey, Warren; Naito, Neil; Haines, David; Ross, Allan; Mauro, Matthew A; Goldstein, James A

2018-01-04

Over the past 30 years, the advent of fluoroscopically guided interventional procedures has resulted in dramatic increments in both X-ray exposure and physical demands that predispose interventionists to distinct occupational health hazards. The hazards of accumulated radiation exposure have been known for years, but until recently the other potential risks have been ill-defined and under-appreciated. The physical stresses inherent in this career choice appear to be associated with a predilection to orthopedic injuries, attributable in great part to the cumulative adverse effects of bearing the weight and design of personal protective apparel worn to reduce radiation risk and to the poor ergonomic design of interventional suites. These occupational health concerns pertain to cardiologists, radiologists and surgeons working with fluoroscopy, pain management specialists performing nonvascular fluoroscopic procedures, and the many support personnel working in these environments. This position paper is the work of representatives of the major societies of physicians who work in the interventional laboratory environment, and has been formally endorsed by all. In this paper, the available data delineating the prevalence of these occupational health risks is reviewed and ongoing epidemiological studies designed to further elucidate these risks are summarized. The main purpose is to publicly state speaking with a single voice that the interventional laboratory poses workplace hazards that must be acknowledged, better understood and mitigated to the greatest extent possible, and to advocate vigorously on behalf of efforts to reduce these hazards. Interventional physicians and their professional societies, working together with industry, should strive toward the ultimate zero radiation exposure work environment that would eliminate the need for personal protective apparel and prevent its orthopedic and ergonomic consequences. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Copyright © 2008 Wiley�

Assessing the impact of hazardous waste on children's health: The exposome paradigm.

Science.gov (United States)

Sarigiannis, D A

2017-10-01

Assessment of the health impacts related to hazardous waste is a major scientific challenge with multiple societal implications. Most studies related to associations between hazardous waste and public health do not provide established of mechanistic links between environmental exposure and disease burden, resulting in ineffective waste management options. The exposome concept comes to overhaul the nature vs. nurture paradigm and embraces a world of dynamic interactions between environmental exposures, endogenous exposures and genetic expression in humans. In this context, the exposome paradigm provides a novel tool for holistic hazardous waste management. Waste streams and the related contamination of environmental media are not viewed in isolation, but rather as components of the expotype, the vector of exposures an individual is exposed to over time. Thus, a multi-route and multi-pathway exposure estimation can be performed setting a realistic basis for integrated health risk assessment. Waste management practices are thus assessed not only regarding their technological edge and efficacy but also their effects on human health at the individual and community level, considering intra-subject variability in the affected population. The effectiveness of the exposome approach is demonstrated in the case of Athens, the capital of Greece, where the health effects associated to long term and short term exposure to two major waste management facilities (landfill and plastic recycling) are presented. Using the exposome analysis tools, we confirmed that proximity to a landfill is critical for children neurodevelopment. However, this effect is significantly modified by parameters such as parental education level, socioeconomic status and nutrition. Proximity to a plastics recycling plant does not pose significant threats under normal operating conditions; yet, in the case of an accidental fire, release of persistent carcinogenic compounds (dioxins and furans) even for a

Hazardous Medical Waste Management as a Public Health Issue

OpenAIRE

Marinković, Natalija; Vitale, Ksenija; Afrić, Ivo; Janev Holcer, Nataša

2005-01-01

The amount of waste produced is connected with the degree of a country’s economic development; more developed countries produce more waste. This paper reviews the quantities, manipulation and treatment methods of medical waste in Croatia, as well as hazardous potentials of medical waste for human health. Medical waste must be collected and sorted in containers suitable for its characteristics, amount, means of transportation and treatment method in order to prevent contact with environment an...

Radiation hazards in uranium mining. Epidemiological and dosimetric approaches

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Myers, D.K.; Johnson, J.R.

1989-01-01

Potential health hazards resulting from exposure to various sources of radiation associated with uranium mining have been reviewed: 1) epidemiological observations on groups of miners exposed in the past to high concentrations of radon progeny have been interpreted to suggest a lifetime risk of about 3 x 10 -4 lung cancers per WLM; 2) the total risk of serious health effects resulting from exposure of workers to whole body gamma-radiation might be taken to be about 2 x 10 -2 per Sv; and 3) the potential health effects of inhalation of thoron progeny or of radioactive ore dusts can only be estimated from dosimetric calculations. A review of the uncertainties involved in these calculations suggests that ICRP estimates of the potential toxicity of inhaled thoron progeny are as good as those for inhaled radon progeny. However, the potential health hazards from inhaled uranium and thorium ore dusts have probably been overestimated by a factor of 2 to 10-fold

An innovative expression model of human health risk based on the quantitative analysis of soil metals sources contribution in different spatial scales.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yimei; Li, Shuai; Wang, Fei; Chen, Zhuang; Chen, Jie; Wang, Liqun

2018-09-01

Toxicity of heavy metals from industrialization poses critical concern, and analysis of sources associated with potential human health risks is of unique significance. Assessing human health risk of pollution sources (factored health risk) concurrently in the whole and the sub region can provide more instructive information to protect specific potential victims. In this research, we establish a new expression model of human health risk based on quantitative analysis of sources contribution in different spatial scales. The larger scale grids and their spatial codes are used to initially identify the level of pollution risk, the type of pollution source and the sensitive population at high risk. The smaller scale grids and their spatial codes are used to identify the contribution of various sources of pollution to each sub region (larger grid) and to assess the health risks posed by each source for each sub region. The results of case study show that, for children (sensitive populations, taking school and residential area as major region of activity), the major pollution source is from the abandoned lead-acid battery plant (ALP), traffic emission and agricultural activity. The new models and results of this research present effective spatial information and useful model for quantifying the hazards of source categories and human health a t complex industrial system in the future. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Revenue sources for essential services in Florida: findings and implications for organizing and funding public health.

Science.gov (United States)

Livingood, William C; Morris, Michael; Sorensen, Bonita; Chapman, Karen; Rivera, Lillian; Beitsch, Les; Street, Phil; Coughlin, Susan; Smotherman, Carmen; Wood, David

2013-01-01

The Florida Public Health Practice-Based Research Network conducted the study of Florida county health departments (CHDs) to assess relationships between self-assessed performance on essential services (ESs) and sources of funding. Primary data were collected using an online survey based on Public Health Accreditation Board standards for ES. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to assess the relationship of sources and amounts of revenue obtained from the Florida Department of Health financial system to responses to the survey of CHD capacity for ESs. Self-assessed CHD performance for each ES varied extensively among the CHDs and across the 10 ESs, ranging from a high of 98% CHDs completely or almost completely meeting the standards for ES 2 (Investigating Problems and Hazards) to a low of 32% completely or almost completely meeting standards for ES 10 (Research/Evidence). Medicaid revenue and fees were positively correlated with some ESs. Per capita revenue support varied extensively among the CHDs. Revenue for ES is decreasing and is heavily reliant on noncategorical (discretionary) revenue. This study has important implications for continued reliance on ES as an organizing construct for public health.

Health hazards of child labor in the leather products and surgical instrument manufacturing industries of Sialkot, Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Junaid, Muhammad; Malik, Riffat Naseem; Pei, De-Sheng

2017-01-01

Child labor is a major challenge in the developing countries and comprehensive health hazard identification studies on this issue are still lacking. Therefore, the current study is an effort to highlight the health concerns of child labor exposed in the key small scale industries of Sialkot, Pakistan. Our findings revealed jolting levels of heavy metals in the urine, blood, serum, saliva, and hair samples collected from the exposed children. For example, in the urine samples, Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb were measured at the respective concentrations of 39.17, 62.02, 11.94 and 10.53 μg/L in the surgical industries, and 2.10, 4.41, 1.04 and 5.35 μg/L in the leather industries. In addition, source apportionment revealed polishing, cutting, and welding sections in the surgical industries and surface coating, crusting, and stitching sections in the leather industries were the highest contributors of heavy metals in the bio-matrices of the exposed children, implying the dusty, unhygienic, and unhealthy indoor working conditions. Further, among all the bio-matrices, the hair samples expressed the highest bioaccumulation factor for heavy metals. In accordance with the heavy metal levels reported in the exposed children, higher oxidative stress was found in the children working in the surgical industries than those from the leather industries. Moreover, among heavy metals’ exposure pathways, inhalation of industrial dust was identified as the primary route of exposure followed by the ingestion and dermal contact. Consequently, chemical daily intake (CDI), carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic hazard quotients (HQs) of heavy metals were also reported higher in the exposed children and were also alarmingly higher than the corresponding US EPA threshold limits. Taken all together, children were facing serious health implications in these industries and need immediate protective measures to remediate the current situation. - Highlights: • Children occupational exposure assessment

Air conditioning systems as non-infectious health hazards inducing acute respiratory symptoms.

Science.gov (United States)

Gerber, Alexander; Fischer, Axel; Willig, Karl-Heinz; Groneberg, David A

2006-04-01

Chronic and acute exposure to toxic aerosols belongs to frequent causes of airway diseases. However, asthma attacks due to long-distance inhalative exposure to organic solvents, transmitted via an air condition system, have not been reported so far. The present case illustrates the possibility of air conditioning systems as non-infectious health hazards in occupational medicine. So far, only infectious diseases such as legionella pneumophila pneumonia have commonly been associated to air-conditioning exposures but physicians should be alert to the potential of transmission of toxic volatile substances via air conditioning systems. In view of the events of the 11th of September 2001 with a growing danger of large building terrorism which may even use air conditioning systems to transmit toxins, facility management security staff should be alerted to possible non-infectious toxic health hazards arising from air-conditioning systems.

Biologically Hazardous Agents at Work and Efforts to Protect Workers' Health: A Review of Recent Reports

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kyung-Taek Rim

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Because information on biological agents in the workplace is lacking, biological hazard analyses at the workplace to securely recognize the harmful factors with biological basis are desperately needed. This review concentrates on literatures published after 2010 that attempted to detect biological hazards to humans, especially workers, and the efforts to protect them against these factors. It is important to improve the current understanding of the health hazards caused by biological factors at the workplace. In addition, this review briefly describes these factors and provides some examples of their adverse health effects. It also reviews risk assessments, protection with personal protective equipment, prevention with training of workers, regulations, as well as vaccinations.

Health Literacy, Health Disparities, and Sources of Health Information in U.S. Older Adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Cutilli, Carolyn Crane; Simko, Lynn C; Colbert, Alison M; Bennett, Ian M

Low health literacy in older adults has been associated with poor health outcomes (i.e., mortality, decreased physical and cognitive functioning, and less preventive care utilization). Many factors associated with low health literacy are also associated with health disparities. Interaction with healthcare providers and sources of health information are influenced by an individual's health literacy and can impact health outcomes. This study examined the relationships between health literacy, sources of health information, and demographic/background characteristics in older adults (aged 65 years and older) related to health literacy and disparities. This descriptive, correlational study is a secondary analysis of the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy, a large-scale national assessment. Older adults with lower health literacy have less income and education, rate their health as poor or fair, have visual or auditory difficulties, need help filling out forms, reading newspaper, or writing notes, and use each source of health information less (print and nonprint). Many of these characteristics and skills are predictive of health literacy and associated with health disparities. The results expand our knowledge of characteristics associated with health literacy and sources of health information used by older adults. Interventions to improve health outcomes including health disparities can focus on recognizing and meeting the health literacy demands of older adults.

Asymmetric Information in Iranian’s Health Insurance Market: Testing of Adverse Selection and Moral Hazard

Science.gov (United States)

Lotfi, Farhad; Gorji, Hassan Abolghasem; Mahdavi, Ghadir; Hadian, Mohammad

2015-01-01

Background: Asymmetric information is one of the most important issues in insurance market which occurred due to inherent characteristics of one of the agents involved in insurance contracts; hence its management requires designing appropriate policies. This phenomenon can lead to the failure of insurance market via its two consequences, namely, adverse selection and moral hazard. Objective: This study was aimed to evaluate the status of asymmetric information in Iran’s health insurance market with respect to the demand for outpatient services. Materials/sPatients and Methods: This research is a cross sectional study conducted on households living in Iran. The data of the research was extracted from the information on household’s budget survey collected by the Statistical Center of Iran in 2012. In this study, the Generalized Method of Moment model was used and the status of adverse selection and moral hazard was evaluated through calculating the latent health status of individuals in each insurance category. To analyze the data, Excel, Eviews and stata11 software were used. Results: The estimation of parameters of the utility function of the demand for outpatient services (visit, medicine, and Para-clinical services) showed that households were more risk averse in the use of outpatient care than other goods and services. After estimating the health status of households based on their health insurance categories, the results showed that rural-insured people had the best health status and people with supplementary insurance had the worst health status. In addition, the comparison of the conditional distribution of latent health status approved the phenomenon of adverse selection in all insurance groups, with the exception of rural insurance. Moreover, calculation of the elasticity of medical expenses to reimbursement rate confirmed the existence of moral hazard phenomenon. Conclusions: Due to the existence of the phenomena of adverse selection and moral hazard

Innovative assesment of the seismic hazard from Vrancea sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Panza, Giuliano Francesco

2002-01-01

In the framework of a very fruitful, stimulating and still ongoing collaboration between the National Institute for Earth Physics - Bucharest, the Department of Earth Sciences - University of Trieste and The Abdus Salam International Center for Theoretical Physics - SAND Group, several innovative steps forwards have been made in the assessment of the seismic hazard generated by Vrancea seismicity. The limits of currently applied probabilistic approaches are partly overcome by the introduction of hazard scenarios based on the deterministic, realistic modeling of ground motion. The ongoing co-operation represents a fundamental contribution to the reliable assessment of seismic hazard, and has been recently enriched by the participation of Bulgarian scientists, who are facing, in the urban settlements close to the Romanian border, a seismic hazard similar to the one in Bucharest. (author)

Fine particulate matter in the tropical environment: monsoonal effects, source apportionment, and health risk assessment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. F. Khan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The health implications of PM2.5 in the tropical region of Southeast Asia (SEA are significant as PM2.5 can pose serious health concerns. PM2.5 concentration and sources here are strongly influenced by changes in the monsoon regime from the south-west quadrant to the north-east quadrant in the region. In this work, PM2.5 samples were collected at a semi-urban area using a high-volume air sampler at different seasons on 24 h basis. Analysis of trace elements and water-soluble ions was performed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS and ion chromatography (IC, respectively. Apportionment analysis of PM2.5 was carried out using the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA positive matrix factorization (PMF 5.0 and a mass closure model. We quantitatively characterized the health risks posed to human populations through the inhalation of selected heavy metals in PM2.5. 48 % of the samples collected exceeded the World Health Organization (WHO 24 h PM2.5 guideline but only 19 % of the samples exceeded 24 h US EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS. The PM2.5 concentration was slightly higher during the north-east monsoon compared to south-west monsoon. The main trace metals identified were As, Pb, Cd, Ni, Mn, V, and Cr while the main ions were SO42−, NO3−, NH4+, and Na. The mass closure model identified four major sources of PM2.5 that account for 55 % of total mass balance. The four sources are mineral matter (MIN (35 %, secondary inorganic aerosol (SIA (11 %, sea salt (SS (7 %, and trace elements (TE (2 %. PMF 5.0 elucidated five potential sources: motor vehicle emissions coupled with biomass burning (31 % were the most dominant, followed by marine/sulfate aerosol (20 %, coal burning (19 %, nitrate aerosol (17 %, and mineral/road dust (13 %. The hazard quotient (HQ for four selected metals (Pb, As, Cd, and Ni in PM2.5 mass was highest in PM2.5 mass from the coal burning

Source Similarity and Social Media Health Messages: Extending Construal Level Theory to Message Sources.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Rachel

2015-09-01

Social media users post messages about health goals and behaviors to online social networks. Compared with more traditional sources of health communication such as physicians or health journalists, peer sources are likely to be perceived as more socially close or similar, which influences how messages are processed. This experimental study uses construal level theory of psychological distance to predict how mediated health messages from peers influence health-related cognition and behavioral intention. Participants were exposed to source cues that identified peer sources as being either highly attitudinally and demographically similar to or different from participants. As predicted by construal level theory, participants who perceived sources of social media health messages as highly similar listed a greater proportion of beliefs about the feasibility of health behaviors and a greater proportion of negative beliefs, while participants who perceived sources as more dissimilar listed a greater proportion of positive beliefs about the health behaviors. Results of the study could be useful in determining how health messages from peers could encourage individuals to set realistic health goals.

Waste collection in developing countries – Tackling occupational safety and health hazards at their source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bleck, Daniela; Wettberg, Wieland

2012-01-01

Waste management procedures in developing countries are associated with occupational safety and health risks. Gastro-intestinal infections, respiratory and skin diseases as well as muscular-skeletal problems and cutting injuries are commonly found among waste workers around the globe. In order to find efficient, sustainable solutions to reduce occupational risks of waste workers, a methodological risk assessment has to be performed and counteractive measures have to be developed according to an internationally acknowledged hierarchy. From a case study in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia suggestions for the transferral of collected household waste into roadside containers are given. With construction of ramps to dump collected household waste straight into roadside containers and an adaptation of pushcarts and collection procedures, the risk is tackled at the source.

Health literacy and sources of health education among adolescents in Greece.

Science.gov (United States)

Vardavas, Constantine I; Kondilis, Barbara K; Patelarou, Evridiki; Akrivos, Patrick D; Falagas, Matthew E

2009-01-01

Knowledge on health and disease prevention and adolescent satisfaction from the health care system are factors that can affect the adolescent's health status. To assess the sources of health information of adolescents in a sample of teenagers from Athens and Crete, Greece. Data were obtained from a convenience sample of 369 adolescents aged 12-18 years from urban areas of Athens and Crete, Greece. Data on health care information sources and overall adolescent health literacy were collected with the use of a questionnaire exploring education on health topics over the past year, sources of health information, and interaction with their physician. More than half the study participants indicated having received information within the past year on oral health, sexually transmitted diseases, physical activity, smoking, and nutrition. The family (71.8%) and the physician (51.5%; boys vs. girls: 44.2% vs. 57.9%, p = .009) are most usually consulted for health information. Girls were found to seek out more sources of health information than boys and to receive more information from their friends (26.9% vs. 11.0%, p programming for youth in Greek schools is imperative to promote healthier lifestyles and to prevent chronic and infectious diseases.

Health hazards associated with nanomaterials.

Science.gov (United States)

Pattan, Gurulingappa; Kaul, Gautam

2014-07-01

Nanotechnology is a major scientific and economic growth area and presents a variety of hazards for human health and environment. It is widely believed that engineered nanomaterials will be increasingly used in biomedical applications (as therapeutics and as diagnostic tools). However, before these novel materials can be safely applied in a clinical setting, their toxicity needs to be carefully assessed. Nanoscale materials often behave different from the materials with a larger structure, even when the basic material is same. Many mammals get exposed to these nanomaterials, which can reach almost every cell of the mammalian body, causing the cells to respond against nanoparticles (NPs) resulting in cytotoxicity and/or genotoxicity. The important key to understand the toxicity of nanomaterials is that their minute size, smaller than cellular organelles, allows them to penetrate the basic biological structures, disrupting their normal function. There is a wealth of evidence for the noxious and harmful effects of engineered NPs as well as other nanomaterials. The rapid commercialization of nanotechnology field requires thoughtful, attentive environmental, animal and human health safety research and should be an open discussion for broader societal impacts and urgent toxicological oversight action. While 'nanotoxicity' is a relatively new concept to science, this comprehensive review focuses on the nanomaterials exposure through the skin, respiratory tract, and gastrointestinal tract and their mechanism of toxicity and effect on various organs of the body. © The Author(s) 2012.

Deterministic approach for multiple-source tsunami hazard assessment for Sines, Portugal

Science.gov (United States)

Wronna, M.; Omira, R.; Baptista, M. A.

2015-11-01

In this paper, we present a deterministic approach to tsunami hazard assessment for the city and harbour of Sines, Portugal, one of the test sites of project ASTARTE (Assessment, STrategy And Risk Reduction for Tsunamis in Europe). Sines has one of the most important deep-water ports, which has oil-bearing, petrochemical, liquid-bulk, coal, and container terminals. The port and its industrial infrastructures face the ocean southwest towards the main seismogenic sources. This work considers two different seismic zones: the Southwest Iberian Margin and the Gloria Fault. Within these two regions, we selected a total of six scenarios to assess the tsunami impact at the test site. The tsunami simulations are computed using NSWING, a Non-linear Shallow Water model wIth Nested Grids. In this study, the static effect of tides is analysed for three different tidal stages: MLLW (mean lower low water), MSL (mean sea level), and MHHW (mean higher high water). For each scenario, the tsunami hazard is described by maximum values of wave height, flow depth, drawback, maximum inundation area and run-up. Synthetic waveforms are computed at virtual tide gauges at specific locations outside and inside the harbour. The final results describe the impact at the Sines test site considering the single scenarios at mean sea level, the aggregate scenario, and the influence of the tide on the aggregate scenario. The results confirm the composite source of Horseshoe and Marques de Pombal faults as the worst-case scenario, with wave heights of over 10 m, which reach the coast approximately 22 min after the rupture. It dominates the aggregate scenario by about 60 % of the impact area at the test site, considering maximum wave height and maximum flow depth. The HSMPF scenario inundates a total area of 3.5 km2.

Occupational health hazards in veterinary medicine: Zoonoses and other biological hazards

Science.gov (United States)

Epp, Tasha; Waldner, Cheryl

2012-01-01

This study describes biological hazards reported by veterinarians working in western Canada obtained through a self-administered mailed questionnaire. The potential occupational hazards included as biological hazards were zoonotic disease events, exposure to rabies, injuries due to bites and scratches, and allergies. Only 16.7% (136/812) of responding veterinarians reported the occurrence of a zoonosis or exposure to rabies in the past 5 years; the most commonly reported event was ringworm. Most bites and scratches (86%) described by 586 veterinarians involved encounters with cats; 81% of the resulting 163 infections were due to cat bites or scratches. Approximately 38% of participants reported developing an allergy during their career, with 41% of the affected individuals altering the way they practiced in response to their allergy. PMID:22851775

Radon and its hazards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang Guilan

2002-01-01

The author describes basic physical and chemical properties of radon and the emanation, introduces methods of radon measurement, expounds the hazards of non-mine radon accumulation to the health of human being and the protection, as well as the history how the human being recognizes the hazards of radon through the specific data and examples, and finally proposes protecting measures to avoid the hazards of radon to the health of human being, and to do ecologic evaluation of environments

Comparative biological hazards of chemical pollutants and radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mukherjee, R.N.

1978-01-01

Chemical pollutants from conventional energy and industrial sources released to the environment presumably pose a hazard to man's health and environmental resources. Insufficient knowledge of their detailed mechanisms of interaction with the biological systems seems to provide the greatest drawback in current attempts for realistic assessment of the health risks of chemical pollutants in the short and long terms. Nevertheless, their detrimental health consequences are becoming more and more apparent as a result of recent epidemiological surveys of workers in conventional energy installations and of the chronically exposed general public. So far nuclear power has succeeded in achieving a remarkable health safety record. In view of its projected expansion, research on biological effects of low-level radiation and radionuclides should continue to re-evaluate the health safety consequences. However, a projection from past experiences together with continued efforts to improvements of health safety aspects seem to justify an expectation that the proposed expansions in the nuclear power programme should not have an unfavourable impact on the environment. The potential hazards and challenges from the associated radiation in man's environment have proved manageable. More attention now needs to be paid urgently to safeguard human health and environment against the chemical pollutants

Comparative biological hazards of chemical pollutants and radiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mukherjee, R N [International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna (Austria). Div. of Life Sciences

1978-06-01

Chemical pollutants from conventional energy and industrial sources released to the environment presumably pose a hazard to man's health and environmental resources. Insufficient knowledge of their detailed mechanisms of interaction with the biological systems seems to provide the greatest drawback in current attempts for realistic assessment of the health risks of chemical pollutants in the short and long terms. Nevertheless, their detrimental health consequences are becoming more and more apparent as a result of recent epidemiological surveys of workers in conventional energy installations and of the chronically exposed general public. So far nuclear power has succeeded in achieving a remarkable health safety record. In view of its projected expansion, research on biological effects of low-level radiation and radionuclides should continue to re-evaluate the health safety consequences. However, a projection from past experiences together with continued efforts to improvements of health safety aspects seem to justify an expectation that the proposed expansions in the nuclear power programme should not have an unfavourable impact on the environment. The potential hazards and challenges from the associated radiation in man's environment have proved manageable. More attention now needs to be paid urgently to safeguard human health and environment against the chemical pollutants.

Implementation of health and safety management system to reduce hazardous potential in PT.XYZ Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Widodo, L.; Adianto; Sartika, D. I.

2017-12-01

PT. XYZ is a large automotive manufacturing company that manufacture, assemble as well as a car exporter. The other products are spare parts, jig and dies. PT. XYZ has long been implementing the Occupational Safety and Health Management System (OSHMS) to reduce the potential hazards that cause work accidents. However, this does not mean that OSHMS that has been implemented does not need to be upgraded and improved. This is due to the potential danger caused by work is quite high. This research was conducted in Sunter 2 Plant where its production activities have a high level of potential hazard. Based on Hazard Identification risk assessment, Risk Assessment, and Risk Control (HIRARC) found 10 potential hazards in Plant Stamping Production, consisting of 4 very high risk potential hazards (E), 5 high risk potential hazards (H), and 1 moderate risk potential hazard (M). While in Plant Casting Production found 22 potential hazards findings consist of 7 very high risk potential hazards (E), 12 high risk potential hazards (H), and 3 medium risk potential hazards (M). Based on the result of Fault Tree Analysis (FTA), the main priority is the high risk potential hazards (H) and very high risk potential hazards (E). The proposed improvement are to make the visual display of the importance of always using the correct Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), establishing good working procedures, conducting OSH training for workers on a regular basis, and continuing to conduct safety campaigns.

Simulation Technology Laboratory Building 970 hazards assessment document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wood, C.L.; Starr, M.D.

1994-11-01

The Department of Energy Order 5500.3A requires facility-specific hazards assessments be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with the Simulation Technology Laboratory, Building 970. The entire inventory was screened according to the potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distances at which a postulated facility event will produce consequences exceeding the ERPG-2 and Early Severe Health Effects thresholds are 78 and 46 meters, respectively. The highest emergency classification is a Site Area Emergency. The Emergency Planning Zone is 100 meters

Hazard identification checklist: Occupational safety and health issues associated with green building

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Terwoert, J.; Ustailieva, E.

2013-01-01

This checklist accompanies the e-fact on the same topic and aims to help identify the potential hazards to workers’ safety and health associated with the planning and construction of green buildings, their maintenance, renovation (retrofitting), demolition, and on-site waste collection. It also

Social Hazards as Manifested Workplace Discrimination and Health (Vietnamese and Ukrainian Female and Male Migrants in Czechia)

OpenAIRE

Drbohlav, Dušan; Dzúrová, Dagmar

2017-01-01

Social hazards as one of the dimensions of workplace discrimination are a potential social determinant of health inequalities. The aim of this study was to investigate relations between self-reported health and social hazard characteristics (defined as—discrimination as such, violence or threat of violence, time pressure or work overload and risk of accident) among Vietnamese and Ukrainian migrants (males and females) in Czechia by age, education level and marital status. This study is based ...

Seismic hazard in the eastern United States

Science.gov (United States)

Mueller, Charles; Boyd, Oliver; Petersen, Mark D.; Moschetti, Morgan P.; Rezaeian, Sanaz; Shumway, Allison

2015-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey seismic hazard maps for the central and eastern United States were updated in 2014. We analyze results and changes for the eastern part of the region. Ratio maps are presented, along with tables of ground motions and deaggregations for selected cities. The Charleston fault model was revised, and a new fault source for Charlevoix was added. Background seismicity sources utilized an updated catalog, revised completeness and recurrence models, and a new adaptive smoothing procedure. Maximum-magnitude models and ground motion models were also updated. Broad, regional hazard reductions of 5%–20% are mostly attributed to new ground motion models with stronger near-source attenuation. The revised Charleston fault geometry redistributes local hazard, and the new Charlevoix source increases hazard in northern New England. Strong increases in mid- to high-frequency hazard at some locations—for example, southern New Hampshire, central Virginia, and eastern Tennessee—are attributed to updated catalogs and/or smoothing.

Assessment of human health hazard due to metal uptake via fish ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Assessment of human health hazard due to metal uptake via fish consumption from coastal area of Tanzania. ... The result shows that the concentration and THQ of As in all fish samples ranges from 1.173 – 2.325 which is > 1, hence signified that a daily exposure at this level are in risk of cancer during a person lifetime.

Sandia Administrative Micrographics Facility, Building 802: Hazards assessment document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swihart, A.

1994-12-01

The Department of Energy Order 5500.3A requires facility-specific hazards assessments be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with the Sandia Administrative Micrographics Facility, Building 802. The entire inventory was screened according to the potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance at which a postulated facility event will produce consequences exceeding the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 33 meters. The highest emergency classification is a Site Area Emergency. The Emergency Planning Zone is 75 meters

The aesthetics of hazardous waste - Distinguishing visual impacts from publicly perceived risk

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sheppard, S.

1986-01-01

The need to address the aesthetic impacts of hazardous waste projects on the environment and the public stems from two sources: government regulations which specifically require assessment of aesthetic effects; and rapidly increasing public concern for perceived impacts and risks of existing or proposed hazardous waste facilities. How aesthetic issues are handled on hazardous waste projects can potentially have significant implications on the fate of those projects. These implications range from delays in the permitting process to denial of sites or costly legal judgments in damage suits. This paper discusses strategies for evaluating the aesthetic/perceptual aspects of hazardous waste. In particular, it focuses upon ways to distinguish visual concerns from other influences on public perceptions such as perceived health and safety risks

Patterns of trust in sources of health information.

Science.gov (United States)

Lawson, Rob; Forbes, Sarah; Williams, John

2011-01-21

To understand the different patterns of trust that exist regarding different sources of information about health issues. Data from a large national health lifestyles survey of New Zealanders was examined using a factor analysis of trust toward 24 health information sources (HIS). Differences in trust are compared across a range of demographic variables. Factor analysis identified six different groupings of health information. Variations in trust in sources for health information are identified by age, employment status, level of education, income, sex and ethnic group. Systematic variations exist in the trust that people report with respect to different sources of health information. Understanding these variations may assist policymakers and other agencies which are responsible for planning the dissemination of health information.

Hazardous materials

Science.gov (United States)

... substances that could harm human health or the environment. Hazardous means dangerous, so these materials must be ... M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics and subscribes to the principles of the Health ...

Biomarkers of exposure, effect, and susceptibility of arsenic-induced health hazards in Taiwan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, C.-J.; Hsu, L.-I; Wang, C.-H.

2005-01-01

Long-term exposure to inorganic arsenic from drinking water has been documented to induce cancers and vascular diseases in a dose-response relationship. A series of molecular environmental epidemiological studies have been carried out to elucidate biomarkers of exposure, effect, and susceptibility for arsenic-related health hazards in Taiwan. Arsenic levels in urine, hair, and nail are biomarkers for short-term (<1 year) internal dose, skin hyperpigmentation and palmoplantar hyperkeratosis are for long-term (many years) internal dose, and percentage of monomethylarsonic acid in total metabolites of inorganic arsenic in urine may be considered as an exposure marker for biologically effective dose. The biomarkers of early biological effects of ingested inorganic arsenic included blood levels of reactive oxidants and anti-oxidant capacity, genetic expression of inflammatory molecules, as well as cytogenetic changes including sister chromatid exchange, micronuclei, and chromosome aberrations of peripheral lymphocytes. Both mutation type and hot spots of p53 gene were significantly different in arsenic-induced and non-arsenic-induced TCCs. The frequency of chromosomal imbalances analyzed by comparative genomic hybridization and the frequency of loss of heterozygosity were significantly higher in arsenic-induced TCC than non-arsenic-induced TCC at specific sites. Biomarkers of susceptibility to arsenic-induced health hazards included genetic polymorphisms of enzymes involved in xenobiotic metabolism, DNA repair, and oxidative stress, as well as serum level of carotenoids. Gene-gene and gene-environment interactions are involved in arsenic-induced health hazards through toxicological mechanisms including genomic instability and oxidative stress

Informing Workers of Chemical Hazards: The OSHA Hazard Communication Standard.

Science.gov (United States)

American Chemical Society, Washington, DC.

Practical information on how to implement a chemical-related safety program is outlined in this publication. Highlights of the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administrations (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard are presented and explained. These include: (1) hazard communication requirements (consisting of warning labels, material safety…

Kauai Test Facility hazards assessment document

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Swihart, A

1995-05-01

The Department of Energy Order 55003A requires facility-specific hazards assessment be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with the Kauai Test Facility, Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii. The Kauai Test Facility`s chemical and radiological inventories were screened according to potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance to the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 4.2 kilometers. The highest emergency classification is a General Emergency at the {open_quotes}Main Complex{close_quotes} and a Site Area Emergency at the Kokole Point Launch Site. The Emergency Planning Zone for the {open_quotes}Main Complex{close_quotes} is 5 kilometers. The Emergency Planning Zone for the Kokole Point Launch Site is the Pacific Missile Range Facility`s site boundary.

Kauai Test Facility hazards assessment document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swihart, A.

1995-05-01

The Department of Energy Order 55003A requires facility-specific hazards assessment be prepared, maintained, and used for emergency planning purposes. This hazards assessment document describes the chemical and radiological hazards associated with the Kauai Test Facility, Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii. The Kauai Test Facility's chemical and radiological inventories were screened according to potential airborne impact to onsite and offsite individuals. The air dispersion model, ALOHA, estimated pollutant concentrations downwind from the source of a release, taking into consideration the toxicological and physical characteristics of the release site, the atmospheric conditions, and the circumstances of the release. The greatest distance to the Early Severe Health Effects threshold is 4.2 kilometers. The highest emergency classification is a General Emergency at the open-quotes Main Complexclose quotes and a Site Area Emergency at the Kokole Point Launch Site. The Emergency Planning Zone for the open-quotes Main Complexclose quotes is 5 kilometers. The Emergency Planning Zone for the Kokole Point Launch Site is the Pacific Missile Range Facility's site boundary

Validation of an analytical method based on the high-resolution continuum source flame atomic absorption spectrometry for the fast-sequential determination of several hazardous/priority hazardous metals in soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Frentiu, Tiberiu; Ponta, Michaela; Hategan, Raluca

2013-03-01

The aim of this paper was the validation of a new analytical method based on the high-resolution continuum source flame atomic absorption spectrometry for the fast-sequential determination of several hazardous/priority hazardous metals (Ag, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) in soil after microwave assisted digestion in aqua regia. Determinations were performed on the ContrAA 300 (Analytik Jena) air-acetylene flame spectrometer equipped with xenon short-arc lamp as a continuum radiation source for all elements, double monochromator consisting of a prism pre-monocromator and an echelle grating monochromator, and charge coupled device as detector. For validation a method-performance study was conducted involving the establishment of the analytical performance of the new method (limits of detection and quantification, precision and accuracy). Moreover, the Bland and Altman statistical method was used in analyzing the agreement between the proposed assay and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry as standardized method for the multielemental determination in soil. The limits of detection in soil sample (3σ criterion) in the high-resolution continuum source flame atomic absorption spectrometry method were (mg/kg): 0.18 (Ag), 0.14 (Cd), 0.36 (Co), 0.25 (Cr), 0.09 (Cu), 1.0 (Ni), 1.4 (Pb) and 0.18 (Zn), close to those in inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry: 0.12 (Ag), 0.05 (Cd), 0.15 (Co), 1.4 (Cr), 0.15 (Cu), 2.5 (Ni), 2.5 (Pb) and 0.04 (Zn). Accuracy was checked by analyzing 4 certified reference materials and a good agreement for 95% confidence interval was found in both methods, with recoveries in the range of 94-106% in atomic absorption and 97-103% in optical emission. Repeatability found by analyzing real soil samples was in the range 1.6-5.2% in atomic absorption, similar with that of 1.9-6.1% in optical emission spectrometry. The Bland and Altman method showed no statistical significant difference between the two spectrometric

Adolescent Health Literacy: The Importance of Credible Sources for Online Health Information

Science.gov (United States)

Ghaddar, Suad F.; Valerio, Melissa A.; Garcia, Carolyn M.; Hansen, Lucy

2012-01-01

Background: Little research has examined adolescent health literacy and its relationship with online health information sources. The purpose of this study is to explore health literacy among a predominantly Hispanic adolescent population and to investigate whether exposure to a credible source of online health information, MedlinePlus[R], is…

Use of a Novel Visual Metaphor Measure (PRISM) to Evaluate School Children's Perceptions of Natural Hazards, Sources of Hazard Information, Hazard Mitigation Organizations, and the Effectiveness of Future Hazard Education Programs in Dominica, Eastern Car

Science.gov (United States)

Parham, Martin; Day, Simon; Teeuw, Richard; Solana, Carmen; Sensky, Tom

2015-04-01

This project aims to study the development of understanding of natural hazards (and of hazard mitigation) from the age of 11 to the age of 15 in secondary school children from 5 geographically and socially different schools on Dominica, through repeated interviews with the students and their teachers. These interviews will be coupled with a structured course of hazard education in the Geography syllabus; the students not taking Geography will form a control group. To avoid distortion of our results arising from the developing verbalization and literacy skills of the students over the 5 years of the project, we have adapted the PRISM tool used in clinical practice to assess patient perceptions of illness and treatment (Buchi & Sensky, 1999). This novel measure is essentially non-verbal, and uses spatial positions of moveable markers ("object" markers) on a board, relative to a fixed marker that represents the subject's "self", as a visual metaphor for the importance of the object to the subject. The subjects also explain their reasons for placing the markers as they have, to provide additional qualitative information. The PRISM method thus produces data on the perceptions measured on the board that can be subjected to statistical analysis, and also succinct qualitative data about each subject. Our study will gather data on participants' perceptions of different natural hazards, different sources of information about these, and organizations or individuals to whom they would go for help in a disaster, and investigate how these vary with geographical and social factors. To illustrate the method, which is generalisable, we present results from our initial interviews of the cohort of 11 year olds whom we will follow through their secondary school education. Büchi, S., & Sensky, T. (1999). PRISM: Pictorial Representation of Illness and Self Measure: a brief nonverbal measure of illness impact and therapeutic aid in psychosomatic medicine. Psychosomatics, 40(4), 314-320.

When probabilistic seismic hazard climbs volcanoes: the Mt. Etna case, Italy - Part 1: Model components for sources parameterization

Science.gov (United States)

Azzaro, Raffaele; Barberi, Graziella; D'Amico, Salvatore; Pace, Bruno; Peruzza, Laura; Tuvè, Tiziana

2017-11-01

The volcanic region of Mt. Etna (Sicily, Italy) represents a perfect lab for testing innovative approaches to seismic hazard assessment. This is largely due to the long record of historical and recent observations of seismic and tectonic phenomena, the high quality of various geophysical monitoring and particularly the rapid geodynamics clearly demonstrate some seismotectonic processes. We present here the model components and the procedures adopted for defining seismic sources to be used in a new generation of probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA), the first results and maps of which are presented in a companion paper, Peruzza et al. (2017). The sources include, with increasing complexity, seismic zones, individual faults and gridded point sources that are obtained by integrating geological field data with long and short earthquake datasets (the historical macroseismic catalogue, which covers about 3 centuries, and a high-quality instrumental location database for the last decades). The analysis of the frequency-magnitude distribution identifies two main fault systems within the volcanic complex featuring different seismic rates that are controlled essentially by volcano-tectonic processes. We discuss the variability of the mean occurrence times of major earthquakes along the main Etnean faults by using an historical approach and a purely geologic method. We derive a magnitude-size scaling relationship specifically for this volcanic area, which has been implemented into a recently developed software tool - FiSH (Pace et al., 2016) - that we use to calculate the characteristic magnitudes and the related mean recurrence times expected for each fault. Results suggest that for the Mt. Etna area, the traditional assumptions of uniform and Poissonian seismicity can be relaxed; a time-dependent fault-based modeling, joined with a 3-D imaging of volcano-tectonic sources depicted by the recent instrumental seismicity, can therefore be implemented in PSHA maps

Radiological hazards of alpha-contaminated waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodgers, J.C.

1982-01-01

The radiological hazards of alpha-contaminated wastes are discussed in this overview in terms of two components of hazard: radiobiological hazard, and radioecological hazard. Radiobiological hazard refers to human uptake of alpha-emitters by inhalation and ingestion, and the resultant dose to critical organs of the body. Radioecological hazard refers to the processes of release from buried wastes, transport in the environment, and translocation to man through the food chain. Besides detailing the sources and magnitude of hazards, this brief review identifies the uncertainties in their estimation, and implications for the regulatory process

Tsunami hazard maps of spanish coast at national scale from seismic sources

Science.gov (United States)

Aniel-Quiroga, Íñigo; González, Mauricio; Álvarez-Gómez, José Antonio; García, Pablo

2017-04-01

Tsunamis are a moderately frequent phenomenon in the NEAM (North East Atlantic and Mediterranean) region, and consequently in Spain, as historic and recent events have affected this area. I.e., the 1755 earthquake and tsunami affected the Spanish Atlantic coasts of Huelva and Cadiz and the 2003 Boumerdés earthquake triggered a tsunami that reached Balearic island coast in less than 45 minutes. The risk in Spain is real and, its population and tourism rate makes it vulnerable to this kind of catastrophic events. The Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 and the tsunami in Japan in 2011 launched the worldwide development and application of tsunami risk reduction measures that have been taken as a priority in this field. On November 20th 2015 the directive of the Spanish civil protection agency on planning under the emergency of tsunami was presented. As part of the Spanish National Security strategy, this document specifies the structure of the action plans at different levels: National, regional and local. In this sense, the first step is the proper evaluation of the tsunami hazard at National scale. This work deals with the assessment of the tsunami hazard in Spain, by means of numerical simulations, focused on the elaboration of tsunami hazard maps at National scale. To get this, following a deterministic approach, the seismic structures whose earthquakes could generate the worst tsunamis affecting the coast of Spain have been compiled and characterized. These worst sources have been propagated numerically along a reconstructed bathymetry, built from the best resolution available data. This high-resolution bathymetry was joined with a 25-m resolution DTM, to generate continuous offshore-onshore space, allowing the calculation of the flooded areas prompted by each selected source. The numerical model applied for the calculation of the tsunami propagations was COMCOT. The maps resulting from the numerical simulations show not only the tsunami amplitude at coastal areas but

A perverse 'net' effect? Health insurance and ex-ante moral hazard in Ghana

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Debebe, Z.Y.; Kempen, L.A.C.M. van; Hoop, T.J. de

2012-01-01

Incentive problems in insurance markets are well-established in economic theory. One of these incentive problems is related to reduced prevention efforts following insurance coverage (ex-ante moral hazard). This prediction is yet to be tested empirically with regard to health insurance, as the

Human Health Risk Assessment Applied to Rural Populations Dependent on Unregulated Drinking Water Sources: A Scoping Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, Lorelei; Bharadwaj, Lalita; McLeod, Lianne; Waldner, Cheryl

2017-07-28

Safe drinking water is a global challenge for rural populations dependent on unregulated water. A scoping review of research on human health risk assessments (HHRA) applied to this vulnerable population may be used to improve assessments applied by government and researchers. This review aims to summarize and describe the characteristics of HHRA methods, publications, and current literature gaps of HHRA studies on rural populations dependent on unregulated or unspecified drinking water. Peer-reviewed literature was systematically searched (January 2000 to May 2014) and identified at least one drinking water source as unregulated (21%) or unspecified (79%) in 100 studies. Only 7% of reviewed studies identified a rural community dependent on unregulated drinking water. Source water and hazards most frequently cited included groundwater (67%) and chemical water hazards (82%). Most HHRAs (86%) applied deterministic methods with 14% reporting probabilistic and stochastic methods. Publications increased over time with 57% set in Asia, and 47% of studies identified at least one literature gap in the areas of research, risk management, and community exposure. HHRAs applied to rural populations dependent on unregulated water are poorly represented in the literature even though almost half of the global population is rural.

Evaluation and control of radon daughter hazards in uranium mines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holaday, D.A.

1974-11-01

This monograph discusses primarily those health hazards to uranium miners which are produced by exposure to ionizing radiation. Emphasis is placed on the areas of evaluation of exposures to the radioactive gas radon-222 and its short-lived transformation products, and methods of controlling such exposures. A limited discussion of the biological effects of radon and radon daughters is undertaken, and some procedures are given for evaluating hazards created by other common contaminants of mine atmospheres. A large amount of information exists on these topics, some of which is unpublished or is not readily available. While efforts were made to obtain data from all sources, undoubtedly some valuable work was overlooked. The monograph is an endeavor to assemble pertinent information and make it available to those who are concerned with producing uranium at minimal risks. Where they were available, a variety of procedures for evaluating hazards are given, and examples of systems for controlling hazards are included. 154 references

Disposal of hazardous wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barnhart, B.J.

1978-01-01

The Fifth Life Sciences Symposium entitled Hazardous Solid Wastes and Their Disposal on October 12 through 14, 1977 was summarized. The topic was the passage of the National Resources Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 will force some type of action on all hazardous solid wastes. Some major points covered were: the formulation of a definition of a hazardous solid waste, assessment of long-term risk, list of specific materials or general criteria to specify the wastes of concern, Bioethics, sources of hazardous waste, industrial and agricultural wastes, coal wastes, radioactive wastes, and disposal of wastes

Health hazards of child labor in the leather products and surgical instrument manufacturing industries of Sialkot, Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Junaid, Muhammad; Malik, Riffat Naseem; Pei, De-Sheng

2017-07-01

Child labor is a major challenge in the developing countries and comprehensive health hazard identification studies on this issue are still lacking. Therefore, the current study is an effort to highlight the health concerns of child labor exposed in the key small scale industries of Sialkot, Pakistan. Our findings revealed jolting levels of heavy metals in the urine, blood, serum, saliva, and hair samples collected from the exposed children. For example, in the urine samples, Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb were measured at the respective concentrations of 39.17, 62.02, 11.94 and 10.53 μg/L in the surgical industries, and 2.10, 4.41, 1.04 and 5.35 μg/L in the leather industries. In addition, source apportionment revealed polishing, cutting, and welding sections in the surgical industries and surface coating, crusting, and stitching sections in the leather industries were the highest contributors of heavy metals in the bio-matrices of the exposed children, implying the dusty, unhygienic, and unhealthy indoor working conditions. Further, among all the bio-matrices, the hair samples expressed the highest bioaccumulation factor for heavy metals. In accordance with the heavy metal levels reported in the exposed children, higher oxidative stress was found in the children working in the surgical industries than those from the leather industries. Moreover, among heavy metals' exposure pathways, inhalation of industrial dust was identified as the primary route of exposure followed by the ingestion and dermal contact. Consequently, chemical daily intake (CDI), carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic hazard quotients (HQs) of heavy metals were also reported higher in the exposed children and were also alarmingly higher than the corresponding US EPA threshold limits. Taken all together, children were facing serious health implications in these industries and need immediate protective measures to remediate the current situation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hazardous material reduction initiative

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nichols, D.H.

1995-02-01

The Hazardous Material Reduction Initiative (HMRI) explores using the review of purchase requisitions to reduce both the use of hazardous materials and the generation of regulated and nonregulated wastes. Based on an 11-month program implemented at the Hanford Site, hazardous material use and waste generation was effectively reduced by using a centralized procurement control program known as HMRI. As expected, several changes to the original proposal were needed during the development/testing phase of the program to accommodate changing and actual conditions found at the Hanford Site. The current method requires a central receiving point within the Procurement Organization to review all purchase requisitions for potentially Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hazardous products. Those requisitions (approximately 4% to 6% of the total) are then forwarded to Pollution Prevention personnel for evaluation under HMRI. The first step is to determine if the requested item can be filled by existing or surplus material. The requisitions that cannot filled by existing or surplus material are then sorted into two groups based on applicability to the HMRI project. For example, laboratory requests for analytical reagents or standards are excluded and the purchase requisitions are returned to Procurement for normal processing because, although regulated, there is little opportunity for source reduction due to the strict protocols followed. Each item is then checked to determine if it is regulated or not. Regulated items are prioritized based on hazardous contents, quantity requested, and end use. Copies of these requisitions are made and the originals are returned to Procurement within 1-hr. Since changes to the requisition can be made at later stages during procurement, the HMRI fulfills one of its original premises in that it does not slow the procurement process

Ultra-violet radiation - hazard in workplaces? (part I)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohd Yusof Mohd Ali

2003-01-01

Not many workers are aware that apart from chemicals, physical agents, noise and machines which are known to be hazardous in workplaces, there exist another source of hazard which is equally important to be recognised and respected, that is hazard due to ultrviolet radiation (UV). This article presents some basics information on UV hazard and various protective measures that could be taken so that any workplace where UV source are present can be ensured safe for general public to enter and for workers to work in. (Author)

Effectuality of Cleaning Workers' Training and Cleaning Enterprises' Chemical Health Hazard Risk Profiling.

Science.gov (United States)

Suleiman, Abdulqadir M; Svendsen, Kristin V H

2015-12-01

Goal-oriented communication of risk of hazards is necessary in order to reduce risk of workers' exposure to chemicals. Adequate training of workers and enterprise priority setting are essential elements. Cleaning enterprises have many challenges and the existing paradigms influence the risk levels of these enterprises. Information on organization and enterprises' prioritization in training programs was gathered from cleaning enterprises. A measure of enterprises' conceptual level of importance of chemical health hazards and a model for working out the risk index (RI) indicating enterprises' conceptual risk level was established and used to categorize the enterprises. In 72.3% of cases, training takes place concurrently with task performances and in 67.4% experienced workers conduct the trainings. There is disparity between employers' opinion on competence level of the workers and reality. Lower conceptual level of importance was observed for cleaning enterprises of different sizes compared with regional safety delegates and occupational hygienists. Risk index values show no difference in risk level between small and large enterprises. Training of cleaning workers lacks the prerequisite for suitability and effectiveness to counter risks of chemical health hazards. There is dereliction of duty by management in the sector resulting in a lack of competence among the cleaning workers. Instituting acceptable easily attainable safety competence level for cleaners will conduce to risk reduction, and enforcement of attainment of the competence level would be a positive step.

Egyptian Environmental Activities and Regulations for Management of Hazardous Substances and Hazardous Wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

El Zarka, M.

1999-01-01

A substantial use of hazardous substances is essential to meet the social and economic goals of the community in Egypt. Agrochemicals are being used extensively to increase crop yield. The outdated agrochemicals and their empty containers represent a serious environmental problem. Industrial development in different sectors in Egypt obligates handling of huge amounts of hazardous substances and hazardous wastes. The inappropriate handling of such hazardous substances creates several health and environmental problems. Egypt faces many challenges to control safe handling of such substances and wastes. Several regulations are governing handling of hazardous substances in Egypt. The unified Environmental Law 4 for the year 1994 includes a full chapter on the Management of Hazardous Substances and Hazardous Wastes. National and international activities have been taken to manage hazardous substances and hazardous wastes in an environmental sound manner

Factors for assessment of human health risk associated with remedial action at hazardous waste sites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stephenson, D.E.; King, C.M.; Looney, B.B.; Holmes, W.G.; Gordon, D.E.

1985-01-01

A risk assessment strategy that is cost effective and minimized human health risks was developed for closure of hazardous waste sites at the Savannah River Plant. The strategy consists of (1) site characterization, (2) contaminant transport modeling, and (3) determination of relative merits of alternative remedial actions according to the degree of health protection they provide

Geotourism and volcanoes: health hazards facing tourists at volcanic and geothermal destinations.

Science.gov (United States)

Heggie, Travis W

2009-09-01

Volcano tourism and tourism to geothermal destinations is increasingly popular. If such endeavors are to be a sustainable sector of the tourism industry, tourists must be made aware of the potential health hazards facing them in volcanic environments. With the aim of creating awareness amongst the tourism industry and practitioners of travel medicine, this paper reviews the potential influences and effects of volcanic gases such as carbon dioxide (CO(2)), hydrogen sulfide (H(2)S), sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), and hydrogen chloride/hydrochloric acid (HCl). It also reviews the negative health impacts of tephra and ash, lava flows, landslides, and mudflows. Finally, future research striving to quantify the health risks facing volcano tourists is recommended.

Probabilistic seismic hazard assessment. Gentilly 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-03-01

Results of this probabilistic seismic hazard assessment were determined using a suite of conservative assumptions. The intent of this study was to perform a limited hazard assessment that incorporated a range of technically defensible input parameters. To best achieve this goal, input selected for the hazard assessment tended to be conservative with respect to selection of attenuation modes, and seismicity parameters. Seismic hazard estimates at Gentilly 2 were most affected by selection of the attenuation model. Alternative definitions of seismic source zones had a relatively small impact on seismic hazard. A St. Lawrence Rift model including a maximum magnitude of 7.2 m b in the zone containing the site had little effect on the hazard estimate relative to other seismic source zonation models. Mean annual probabilities of exceeding the design peak ground acceleration, and the design response spectrum for the Gentilly 2 site were computed to lie in the range of 0.001 to 0.0001. This hazard result falls well within the range determined to be acceptable for nuclear reactor sites located throughout the eastern United States. (author) 34 refs., 6 tabs., 28 figs

The role of the health physicist in the control of airborne radioactive hazards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basson, J.K.

1978-01-01

Health physics is based on the ease and sensitivity with which ionising radiations can be measured, as well as on the extensive medical knowledge of its long-term effects. Such studies have led to fundamental contributions to scientific health protection as well as practical occupational hygiene. The first aspect is illustrated with aerosol biophysics as example, while the practical control of airborne radioactive hazards in South Africa is described inside uranium plants as well as in the environment of nuclear installations [af

Hazardous medical waste generation rates of different categories of health-care facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Komilis, Dimitrios; Fouki, Anastassia; Papadopoulos, Dimitrios

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► We calculated hazardous medical waste generation rates (HMWGR) from 132 hospitals. ► Based on a 22-month study period, HMWGR were highly skewed to the right. ► The HMWGR varied from 0.00124 to 0.718 kg bed −1 d −1 . ► A positive correlation existed between the HMWGR and the number of hospital beds. ► We used non-parametric statistics to compare rates among hospital categories. - Abstract: Goal of this work was to calculate the hazardous medical waste unit generation rates (HMWUGR), in kg bed −1 d −1 , using data from 132 health-care facilities in Greece. The calculations were based on the weights of the hazardous medical wastes that were regularly transferred to the sole medical waste incinerator in Athens over a 22-month period during years 2009 and 2010. The 132 health-care facilities were grouped into public and private ones, and, also, into seven sub-categories, namely: birth, cancer treatment, general, military, pediatric, psychiatric and university hospitals. Results showed that there is a large variability in the HMWUGR, even among hospitals of the same category. Average total HMWUGR varied from 0.012 kg bed −1 d −1 , for the public psychiatric hospitals, to up to 0.72 kg bed −1 d −1 , for the public university hospitals. Within the private hospitals, average HMWUGR ranged from 0.0012 kg bed −1 d −1 , for the psychiatric clinics, to up to 0.49 kg bed −1 d −1 , for the birth clinics. Based on non-parametric statistics, HMWUGR were statistically similar for the birth and general hospitals, in both the public and private sector. The private birth and general hospitals generated statistically more wastes compared to the corresponding public hospitals. The infectious/toxic and toxic medical wastes appear to be 10% and 50% of the total hazardous medical wastes generated by the public cancer treatment and university hospitals, respectively.

Nuclear power and low level radiation hazards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Myers, D.K.; Newcombe, H.B.

1979-03-01

Even in the future, nuclear power is expected to contribute less than 1/10th of the present total population exposure to man-made radiation. By the best estimates available, the current health risks of nuclear power generation appear to be much less than those associated with the major alternative sources of energy, with the exception of natural gas which is about equally safe. Uncertainties concerning the radiation risks from nuclear power, from medical x-rays and from the effects of reduced ventillation to conserve heat appear to be less than those associated with estimates of risks from the use of coal and various other sources of energy. This is in part because of the large amount of effort devoted to studies of radiation effects. The benefits in terms of current life expectancy associated with any of the conventional or unconventional methods of power production appear to greatly outweigh the associated current health hazards. (author)

Source apportionment and health risk assessment of heavy metals in soil for a township in Jiangsu Province, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Yanxue; Chao, Sihong; Liu, Jianwei; Yang, Yue; Chen, Yanjiao; Zhang, Aichen; Cao, Hongbin

2017-02-01

Human activities contribute greatly to heavy metal pollution in soils. Concentrations of 15 metal elements were detected in 105 soil samples collected from a typical rural-industrial town in southern Jiangsu, China. Among them, 7 heavy metals-lead, copper, zinc, arsenic, chromium, cadmium, and nickel-were considered in the health risk assessment for residents via soil inhalation, dermal contact, and/or direct/indirect ingestion. Their potential sources were quantitatively apportioned by positive matrix factorization using the data set of all metal elements, in combination with geostatistical analysis, land use investigation, and industrial composition analysis. Furthermore, the health risks imposed by sources of heavy metal in soil were estimated for the first time. The results indicated that Cr, Cu, Cd, Pb, Ni, and Co accumulated in the soil, attaining a mild pollution level. The total hazard index values were 3.62 and 6.11, and the total cancer risks were 9.78 × 10 -4 and 4.03 × 10 -4 for adults and children, respectively. That is, both non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks posed by soil metals were above acceptable levels. Cr and As require special attention because the health risks of Cr and As individually exceeded the acceptable levels. The ingestion of homegrown produce was predominantly responsible for the high risks. The potential sources were apportioned as: a) waste incineration and textile/dyeing industries (28.3%), b) natural sources (45.4%), c) traffic emissions (5.3%), and d) electroplating industries and livestock/poultry breeding (21.0%). Health risks of four sources accounted for 23.5%, 32.7%, 7.4%, and 36.4% of the total risk, respectively. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Identification of Potential Hazard using Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Sari, R. M.; Syahputri, K.; Rizkya, I.; Siregar, I.

2017-03-01

This research was conducted in the paper production’s company. These Paper products will be used as a cigarette paper. Along in the production’s process, Company provides the machines and equipment that operated by workers. During the operations, all workers may potentially injured. It known as a potential hazard. Hazard identification and risk assessment is one part of a safety and health program in the stage of risk management. This is very important as part of efforts to prevent occupational injuries and diseases resulting from work. This research is experiencing a problem that is not the identification of potential hazards and risks that would be faced by workers during the running production process. The purpose of this study was to identify the potential hazards by using hazard identification and risk assessment methods. Risk assessment is done using severity criteria and the probability of an accident. According to the research there are 23 potential hazard that occurs with varying severity and probability. Then made the determination Risk Assessment Code (RAC) for each potential hazard, and gained 3 extreme risks, 10 high risks, 6 medium risks and 3 low risks. We have successfully identified potential hazard using RAC.

Climatic change and health. Which problems are caused by thermophile hazardous organisms? Final report. Environment and health: climatic change; Klimawandel und Gesundheit. Welche Probleme verursachen Waerme liebende Schadorganismen? Abschlussbericht. Umwelt and Gesundheit: Klimawandel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Augustin, Jobst; Muecke, Hans-Guido (comps.)

2010-03-15

Climatic changes can cause health hazards due to thermophile harmful organisms, especially those with increased allergic potentials. The meeting covered the following topics: climatic change induced health hazards and the German adaptation strategies; the complex relation between climatic change and allergies; ambrosia propagation in Germany - hazards for health and biodiversity; climatic change induced reaction of hygienically precarious organism in urban regions; monitoring and abatement of Thaumetopoea processionea in Bavarian woods; climatic change and pollen flight dynamics; Thaumetopoea processionea as cause for non-distinctive respiratory systems diseases; risk and protection factors for the development of asthma and allergies during infancy; abatement of pathogenic or invasive harmful organisms in Switzerland; health hazards in connection with Thaumetopoea processionea - examples from Bavaria; retrospective analysis of EPS diseases during 2004 and 2005 in the region Kleve.

Radiation Hazard Detector

Science.gov (United States)

1978-01-01

NASA technology has made commercially available a new, inexpensive, conveniently-carried device for protection, of people exposed to potentially dangerous levels of microwave radiation. Microwaves are radio emissions of extremely high frequency. They can be hazardous but the degree of hazard is not yet well understood. Generally, it is believed that low intensity radiation of short duration is not harmful but that exposure to high levels can induce deep internal burns, affecting the circulatory and nervous systems, and particularly the eyes. The Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has established an allowable safe threshold of exposure. However, people working near high intensity sources of microwave energy-for example, radar antennas and television transmitters-may be unknowingly exposed to radiation levels beyond the safe limit. This poses not only a personal safety problem but also a problem for employers in terms of productivity loss, workman's compensation claims and possible liability litigation. Earlier-developed monitoring devices which warn personnel of dangerous radiation levels have their shortcomings. They can be cumbersome and awkward to use while working. They also require continual visual monitoring to determine if a person is in a dangerous area of radiation, and they are relatively expensive, another deterrent to their widespread adoption. In response to the need for a cheaper and more effective warning system, Jet Propulsion Laboratory developed, under NASA auspices, a new, battery-powered Microwave Radiation Hazard Detector. To bring the product to the commercial market, California Institute Research Foundation, the patent holder, granted an exclusive license to Cicoil Corporation, Chatsworth, California, an electronic components manufacturer.

Assessment on health and energy sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Acket, C.; Yvon, M.

2013-01-01

After having recalled some issues related to the prevention of environmental health risks and mentioned in the preparation of the debate on energy transition in France, this document gathers actual objective elements for an assessment of health impact of the different energy sources. It discusses the impacts on health (mortality, sicknesses and diseases) of fossil fuels (coal and its wastes, gas), of renewable energies, of nuclear energy. For this last one, the document outlines the lack of documentation for various topics, discusses some results published on the dose impact of nuclear operation, and comment the issue of waste storage. It also recalls the main accidents (Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima) and some of the known and assessed impacts. The third part proposes comparisons between the different energy sources in terms of deadly accidents, of pollution and greenhouse effect (current and late mortality), of released radioactivity (release sources and collective dose). In conclusion, the authors outline that the impact on health of environmental risks must be one of the essential issues for the definition of energy policy, and discuss the resulting implications. Various data are provided in appendix: energy in France and in the world, origins of radioactivity

Analytical Diagnostics of Non-Optimal Use of Pesticides and Health Hazards for Vegetable Pickers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zafar, M.; Mehmood, T.; Baig, I. A.; Saboor, A.; Sadiq, S.; Mahmood, K.

2016-01-01

Economically pesticides are meant to control pests in the fields. Up to certain optimal use of a typical pesticide, it enhances the yield of crops and vegetables. But, eventually amplified use of pesticides results in contamination of environment (water, soil, and air) and increase the health cost of vegetable pickers. The purpose of this study is to estimate the excessive use of pesticides and economic cost of health hazards for the vegetable pickers in district Vehari. Data from 90 respondents were collected and analyzed. The most common health problems identified during the survey were headache, eye irritation, skin infection, cough and shortness of breath. Health cost consists of costs related to precautionary measure, medication, traveling, the opportunity cost of attended persons and productivity loss. The mean health cost of vegetable pickers in the study area was about Rs. 385 per picker per year. Health cost model was used to measure the health cost of vegetable pickers. The regression results showed that pesticides were being applied non-optimally in the study area i.e., number of pesticide applications for vegetables (7-31) were substantially higher than the recommended dose. Health cost function was significantly different from zero as indicated by F-stat (32.18) and it is also supported by R/sup 2/ that about 70 percent variation in health cost is explained by medication accompanied by productivity loss (Rs. 223), precautionary measure (Rs. 134), attended person cost (Rs. 14) and traveling expenditures (Rs. 16). Hence, strict legislation is required to overcome the availability of hazardous pesticides and to keep the vegetable pickers aware of the optimal use of pesticides through appropriate extension services. (author)

Developing regulations for occupational exposures to health hazards in Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Rampal, Krishna Gopal; Mohd Nizam, J

2006-11-01

In Malaysia exposures in the workplace are regulated under the Factories and Machinery Act (FMA), 1967 and also under the more comprehensive Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) enacted in 1994. With OSHA 1994 the philosophy of legislating safety and health in the workplace changed from one that was very prescriptive and containing detailed technical provisions under FMA, 1967 to one that is more flexible and encourages self-regulation under OSHA 1994. OSHA 1994 is supported by regulations, codes of practices and guidelines to further clarify the provisions in the Act. Under the FMA 1967 emphasis was on safety while with OSHA 1994 there has been equal emphasis on addressing health hazards in the workplace. Regulations for occupational exposures are developed by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health with tripartite and stakeholder consultation. When developing these regulations International Labor Organization Conventions, laws of other countries and occupational exposure standards adopted internationally are reviewed. The government also conducts surveys to collect information on both exposures and health effects in workplaces to have better understanding on specific occupational health problems. Effective law enforcement is crucial in ensuring compliance to safety and health law. The challenge at the moment is to ensure all employers and employees, particularly those in the small and medium enterprises, understand and comply with the provisions stipulated in the legislation.

Chemical health risk assessment for hazardous and mixed waste management units at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-09-01

The waste characterization for each treatment unit or process is based on treatment records from LLNL's computerized Hazardous Waste Management Inventory System (HWMIS). In 1990, these data were compiled into a single database comprising both hazardous waste and mixed waste data. Even though these data originate from the same source used in the previous HRA, the database was modified to set quantities and concentrations to a consistent set of units. This allowed an analysis of waste types by Hazardous Waste Management unit that was more accurate and did not rely upon many of the conservative assumptions used in the Phase II HRA waste characterization. Finally, the current waste characterizations are considered more representative of potential long-term wastes because they were developed by combining all wastes that could be treated in each unit, as opposed to the wastes treated only during 1988 to 1989. This final step more appropriately accounts for the variability in waste types likely to be seen by the Hazardous Waste Management Division. The quantities of each waste listed in the characterization tables represent the sum of all chemical quantities belonging to hazardous and mixed waste types potentially handled by each area

Occupational hazards in hospitals: accidents, radiation, exposure to noxious chemicals, drug addiction and psychic problems, and assault

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gestal, J.J.

1987-08-01

Except for infectious diseases all the main occupational hazards affecting health workers are reviewed: accidents (explosions, fires, electrical accidents, and other sources of injury); radiation (stochastic and non-stochastic effects, protective measures, and personnel most at risk); exposure to noxious chemicals, whose effects may be either local (allergic eczema) or generalised (cancer, mutations), particular attention being paid to the hazards presented by formol, ethylene oxide, cytostatics, and anaesthetic gases; drug addiction (which is more common among health workers than the general population) and psychic problems associated with promotion, shift work, and emotional stress; and assault (various types of assault suffered by health workers, its causes, and the characterisation of the most aggressive patients).

Occupational hazards in hospitals: accidents, radiation, exposure to noxious chemicals, drug addiction and psychic problems, and assault

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gestal, J.J.

1987-01-01

Except for infectious diseases all the main occupational hazards affecting health workers are reviewed: accidents (explosions, fires, electrical accidents, and other sources of injury); radiation (stochastic and non-stochastic effects, protective measures, and personnel most at risk); exposure to noxious chemicals, whose effects may be either local (allergic eczema) or generalised (cancer, mutations), particular attention being paid to the hazards presented by formol, ethylene oxide, cytostatics, and anaesthetic gases; drug addiction (which is more common among health workers than the general population) and psychic problems associated with promotion, shift work, and emotional stress; and assault (various types of assault suffered by health workers, its causes, and the characterisation of the most aggressive patients). (author)

Vaginal douching by women with vulvovaginitis and relation to reproductive health hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

Shaaban, Omar M; Youssef, Alaa Eldin A; Khodry, Mostafa M; Mostafa, Sayed A

2013-05-14

Vaginal douching (VD) is a common practice among married women all over the world specially those in the Middle East. It is used for personal hygiene or for other aesthetic reasons in many countries. The current study investigates the prevalence of VD among patients with vulvovaginitis in Egypt. It also compares the reproductive health hazards among women performing routine VD with those using external hygiene. It also investigates why, and how women practice this douching. A cross sectional observational study was conducted in a tertiary university affiliated hospital in Assiut, Egypt. An interview administered questionnaire was administered to 620 women by two trained clinic nurses. Women presented to the outpatient clinic and diagnosed to have any type of vaginal infections were approached for participation. The principle outcome was the history of preterm labor in women who routinely performed VD versus those who did not (upon which sample size was estimated). Other outcome measures were the types of vaginal infections, and reproductive implications comprising, ectopic pregnancy, abortion and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). The participants were predominantly multiparas from semi-urban background and middle socioeconomic level. Considering VD as a religious duty and a kind of personal cleanliness were the most common reasons for performing VD in 88.9% and 80.6% of the studied population, respectively. History of preterm labor was reported in 19.2% versus 11.9% (p=0.048), while history of PID in 13.2% versus 6.0% (p=0.008) in women performing VD compared to those not performing this habit, respectively. There were no significant differences between the two groups as regard the history of ectopic pregnancy or the number of previous abortions. Vaginal douching is a prevalent practice in Egypt and has traditional and religious roots within the community. There are many misbeliefs around this habit in Egypt. Vaginal douching increases certain reproductive health

Evaluating optical hazards from plasma arc cutting.

Science.gov (United States)

Glassford, Eric; Burr, Gregory

2018-01-01

The Health Hazard Evaluation Program of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health evaluated a steel building materials manufacturer. The employer requested the evaluation because of concerns about optical radiation hazards from a plasma arc cutting system and the need to clarify eye protection requirements for plasma operators, other employees, and visitors. The strength of the ultraviolet radiation, visible radiation (light), and infrared radiation generated by the plasma arc cutter was measured at various distances from the source and at different operating amperages. Investigators also observed employees performing the plasma arc cutting. Optical radiation above safe levels for the unprotected eyes in the ultraviolet-C, ultraviolet-B, and visible light ranges were found during plasma arc cutting. In contrast, infrared and ultraviolet-A radiation levels during plasma arc cutting were similar to background levels. The highest non-ionizing radiation exposures occurred when no welding curtains were used. A plasma arc welding curtain in place did not eliminate optical radiation hazards to the plasma arc operator or to nearby employees. In most instances, the measured intensities for visible light, UV-C, and UV-B resulted in welding shade lens numbers that were lower than those stipulated in the OSHA Filter Lenses for Protection Against Radiant Energy table in 29 CFR 1910.133(a)(5). [1] Investigators recommended using a welding curtain that enclosed the plasma arc, posting optical radiation warning signs in the plasma arc cutter area, installing audible or visual warning cues when the plasma arc cutter was operating, and using welding shades that covered the plasma arc cutter operator's face to protect skin from ultraviolet radiation hazards.

DOE Hazardous Waste Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eyman, L.D.; Craig, R.B.

1985-01-01

The goal of the DOE Hazardous Waste Program is to support the implementation and improvement of hazardous-chemical and mixed-radioactive-waste management such that public health, safety, and the environment are protected and DOE missions are effectively accomplished. The strategy for accomplishing this goal is to define the character and magnitude of hazardous wastes emanating from DOE facilities, determine what DOE resources are available to address these problems, define the regulatory and operational constraints, and develop programs and plans to resolve hazardous waste issues. Over the longer term the program will support the adaptation and application of technologies to meet hazardous waste management needs and to implement an integrated, DOE-wide hazardous waste management strategy. 1 reference, 1 figure

Hazard Communication Standard

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sichak, S.

1991-01-01

The current rate of technological advances has brought with it an overwhelming increase in the usage of chemicals in the workplace and in the home. Coupled to this increase has been a heightened awareness in the potential for acute and chronic injuries attributable to chemical insults. The Hazard Communication Standard has been introduced with the desired goal of reducing workplace exposures to hazardous substances and thereby achieving a corresponding reduction in adverse health effects. It was created and proclaimed by the US Department of Labor and regulated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 1 tab

Safety and Equality at Odds: OSHA and Title VII Clash over Health Hazards in the Workplace.

Science.gov (United States)

Crowell, Donald R.; Copus, David A.

1978-01-01

Discusses the legal problems presented by job health hazards which have a different effect on men and women. Where methods of eliminating or minimizing exposure, as required by the Occupational Safety and Health Act, affect only one sex, the provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act may be violated. (MF)

Environmental Health and Safety Hazards of Indigenous Small-Scale Gold Mining Using Cyanidation in the Philippines.

Science.gov (United States)

Leung, Ana Marie R; Lu, Jinky Leilanie Dp

2016-01-01

This cross-sectional study aimed at the environmental health hazards at work and cyanide exposure of small-scale gold miners engaged in gold extraction from ores in a mining area in the Philippines. Methods consisted of structured questionnaire-guided interviews, work process observation tools, physical health assessment by medical doctors, and laboratory examination and blood cyanide determination in the blood samples of 34 indigenous small-scale gold miners from Benguet, Philippines. The small-scale gold miners worked for a mean of 10.3 years, had a mean age of 36 years, with mean lifetime mining work hours of 18,564. All were involved in tunneling work (100%) while a considerable number were involved in mixing cyanide with the ore (44%). A considerable number were injured (35%) during the mining activity, and an alarming number (35%) had elevated blood cyanide level. The most prevalent hazard was exposure to chemicals, particularly to cyanide and nitric acid, which were usually handled with bare hands. The small-scale gold miners were exposed to occupational and environmental hazards at work.

Environmental Health and Safety Hazards of Indigenous Small-Scale Gold Mining Using Cyanidation in the Philippines

Science.gov (United States)

Leung, Ana Marie R.; Lu, Jinky Leilanie DP.

2016-01-01

OBJECTIVES This cross-sectional study aimed at the environmental health hazards at work and cyanide exposure of small-scale gold miners engaged in gold extraction from ores in a mining area in the Philippines. METHODS Methods consisted of structured questionnaire-guided interviews, work process observation tools, physical health assessment by medical doctors, and laboratory examination and blood cyanide determination in the blood samples of 34 indigenous small-scale gold miners from Benguet, Philippines. RESULTS The small-scale gold miners worked for a mean of 10.3 years, had a mean age of 36 years, with mean lifetime mining work hours of 18,564. All were involved in tunneling work (100%) while a considerable number were involved in mixing cyanide with the ore (44%). A considerable number were injured (35%) during the mining activity, and an alarming number (35%) had elevated blood cyanide level. The most prevalent hazard was exposure to chemicals, particularly to cyanide and nitric acid, which were usually handled with bare hands. CONCLUSION The small-scale gold miners were exposed to occupational and environmental hazards at work. PMID:27547035

Research on Value Assessment and Compensation for Health Hazards of Urban Air Pollution-A Case Study of Urumqi

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chen Yu

Full Text Available ABSTRACT With the acceleration of urbanization and industrialization, urban air pollution has become a serious threat to the health of urban residents. In this study, to investigate health hazards caused by air pollution for urban residents, concentrations of main air pollutants and annual coal consumption amounts during the period from 2000 to 2013 were analyzed. Our results showed that economic losses of Urumqi caused by air pollution amounted to 63.155 million yuan in 2013, accounting for 0.2 ‰ of its GDP and 5.7% of public utility expenditures for that year. The compensation mechanism analysis suggested that it is necessary to further improve the health care system and increase corporate environmental taxes. More environmental health protection taxes should be levied on key monitoredenterprises in Urumqi to achieve effective compensations for urban residents affected by air pollution-related health hazards.

Environmental health literacy in support of social action: an environmental justice perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

White, Brandi M; Hall, Eric S; Johnson, Cheryl

2014-01-01

Different demographic groups in the U.S. experience unequal exposures to environmental hazards, i.e., 56% of the population in neighborhoods containing commercial waste facilities are people of color, with the associated poverty rates in those communities being 50% higher than in neighborhoods without commercial waste facilities. Developing programs to educate communities about environmental hazards affecting their health and quality of life is an essential component for a community to understand their true risk. The study described in this article examined the risk of environmental hazards as perceived by public housing residents and assessed the residents' preference for educational programs on environmental hazards. Residents perceived their risk factors in a broad context and they included environmental health risks caused by pollutants along with physical safety concerns from crime and law enforcement interactions. The most trusted sources of information on environmental health include community organizations, trusted individuals in the community, and television programs. Recommendations for developing community-specific environmental health education programs include using sources of environmental health information that community members trust.

78 FR 9311 - Hazard Communication; Corrections and Technical Amendment

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-08

....1044, Appendix Reference to ``Class IIIA combustible B. liquid'' is corrected to ``Category 4 flammable..., Fire prevention, Hazard communication, Hazardous substances, Occupational safety and health. 29 CFR... Asbestos, Construction industry, Fire prevention, Hazardous substances, Occupational safety and health...

Hazard management at the workplace

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasfazilah Hassan; Azimawati Ahmad; Syed Asraf Fahlawi Wafa S M Ghazi; Hairul Nizam Idris

2005-01-01

Failure to ensure health and safety environment at workplace will cause an accident involving loss to the time, human resource, finance and for the worse case effect the moral value of an organization. If we go through to the cause of the accident, it is impossible to have a totally safety workplace. It is because every process in work activities has it own hazard elements. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the best action to prevent from the hazard with a comprehensive and effectiveness hazard management. Hazard management is the one of the pro-active hazard control. With this we manage to identify and evaluate the hazard and control the hazard risk. Therefore, hazard management should be screened constantly and continuously to make sure work hazard always in control. (Author)

Seismic hazard analysis with PSHA method in four cities in Java

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elistyawati, Y.; Palupi, I. R.; Suharsono

2016-01-01

In this study the tectonic earthquakes was observed through the peak ground acceleration through the PSHA method by dividing the area of the earthquake source. This study applied the earthquake data from 1965 - 2015 that has been analyzed the completeness of the data, location research was the entire Java with stressed in four large cities prone to earthquakes. The results were found to be a hazard map with a return period of 500 years, 2500 years return period, and the hazard curve were four major cities (Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta, and the city of Banyuwangi). Results Java PGA hazard map 500 years had a peak ground acceleration within 0 g ≥ 0.5 g, while the return period of 2500 years had a value of 0 to ≥ 0.8 g. While, the PGA hazard curves on the city's most influential source of the earthquake was from sources such as fault Cimandiri backgroud, for the city of Bandung earthquake sources that influence the seismic source fault dent background form. In other side, the city of Yogyakarta earthquake hazard curve of the most influential was the source of the earthquake background of the Opak fault, and the most influential hazard curve of Banyuwangi earthquake was the source of Java and Sumba megatruts earthquake. (paper)

New York hazardous substances emergency events surveillance: learning from hazardous substances releases to improve safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Welles, Wanda Lizak; Wilburn, Rebecca E.; Ehrlich, Jenny K.; Floridia, Christina M.

2004-01-01

Since 1993, the New York State Department of Health, funded by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, has collected data about non-petroleum hazardous substances releases through the Hazardous Substances Emergency Events Surveillance (NYHSEES) project. This study investigates risk factors for hazardous substances releases that may result in public health consequences such as injury or reported health effects. The 6428 qualifying events that occurred during the 10-year-period of 1993-2002 involved 8838 hazardous substances, 842 evacuations, more than 75,419 people evacuated, and more than 3120 people decontaminated. These events occurred both at fixed facilities (79%) and during transport (21%). The causative factors most frequently contributing to reported events were equipment failure (39%) and human error (33%). Five of the 10 chemicals most frequently associated with injuries were also among the 10 chemicals most frequently involved in reported events: sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, ammonia, sodium hypochlorite, and carbon monoxide. The chemical categories most frequently associated with events, and with events with adverse health effects were volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and solvents, and acids. Events with releases of hazardous substances were associated with injuries to 3089 people including employees (37%), responders (12%), the general public (29%) and students (22%). The most frequently reported adverse health effects were respiratory irritation, headache, and nausea or vomiting. Most of the injured were transported to the hospital, treated, and released (55%) or treated at the scene (29%). These data have been used for emergency response training, planning, and prevention activities to reduce morbidity and mortality from future events

Hazard screening application guide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-06-01

The basic purpose of hazard screening is to group precesses, facilities, and proposed modifications according to the magnitude of their hazards so as to determine the need for and extent of follow on safety analysis. A hazard is defined as a material, energy source, or operation that has the potential to cause injury or illness in human beings. The purpose of this document is to give guidance and provide standard methods for performing hazard screening. Hazard screening is applied to new and existing facilities and processes as well as to proposed modifications to existing facilities and processes. The hazard screening process evaluates an identified hazards in terms of the effects on people, both on-site and off-site. The process uses bounding analyses with no credit given for mitigation of an accident with the exception of certain containers meeting DOT specifications. The process is restricted to human safety issues only. Environmental effects are addressed by the environmental program. Interfaces with environmental organizations will be established in order to share information

Survey of potential health and safety hazards of commercial-scale ethanol production facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Watson, A.P.; Smith, J.G.; Elmore, J.L.

1982-04-01

Generic safety and health aspects of commercial-scale (60 to 600 million L/y) anhydrous ethanol production were identified. Several common feedstocks (grains, roots and fibers, and sugarcane) and fuels (coal, natural gas, wood, and bagasse) were evaluated throughout each step of generic plant operation, from initial milling and sizing through saccharification, fermentation, distillation, and stillage disposal. The fermentation, digestion, or combustion phases are not particularly hazardous, although the strong acids and bases used for hydrolysis and pH adjustment should be handled with the same precautions that every industrial solvent deserves. The most serious safety hazard is that of explosion from grain dust or ethanol fume ignition and boiler/steam line overpressurization. Inhalation of ethanol and carbon dioxide vapors may cause intoxication or asphyxiation in unventilated areas, which could be particularly hazardous near equipment controls and agitating vats. Contact with low-pressure process steam would produce scalding burns. Benzene, used in stripping water from ethanol in the final distillation column, is a suspected leukemogen. Substitution of this fluid by alternative liquids is addressed.

Human health hazard from antimicrobial-resistant enterococci in animals and food

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heuer, Ole Eske; Hammerum, Anette Marie; Collignon, P.

2006-01-01

The use of antimicrobial agents in the modern farm industry has created a reservoir of resistant bacteria in food animals. Foods of animal origin are often contaminated with enterococci that are likely to contribute resistance genes, virulence factors, or other properties to enterococci IN humans....... The potential hazard to human health from antimicrobial-resistant enterococci in animals is questioned by some scientists because of evidence of host specificity of enterococci. Similarly, the occurrences of specific nosocomial clones of enterococci in hospitals have lead to the misconception that antimicrobial-resistant...... to change the current view that antimicrobial-resistant enterococci from animals pose a threat to human health. On the contrary, antimicrobial resistance genes appear to spread freely between enterococci from different reservoirs, irrespective of their apparent host association....

Relative Hazard Calculation Methodology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DL Strenge; MK White; RD Stenner; WB Andrews

1999-01-01

The methodology presented in this document was developed to provide a means of calculating the RH ratios to use in developing useful graphic illustrations. The RH equation, as presented in this methodology, is primarily a collection of key factors relevant to understanding the hazards and risks associated with projected risk management activities. The RH equation has the potential for much broader application than generating risk profiles. For example, it can be used to compare one risk management activity with another, instead of just comparing it to a fixed baseline as was done for the risk profiles. If the appropriate source term data are available, it could be used in its non-ratio form to estimate absolute values of the associated hazards. These estimated values of hazard could then be examined to help understand which risk management activities are addressing the higher hazard conditions at a site. Graphics could be generated from these absolute hazard values to compare high-hazard conditions. If the RH equation is used in this manner, care must be taken to specifically define and qualify the estimated absolute hazard values (e.g., identify which factors were considered and which ones tended to drive the hazard estimation)

Experimental evaluation of ballistic hazards in imaging diagnostic center.

Science.gov (United States)

Karpowicz, Jolanta; Gryz, Krzysztof

2013-04-01

Serious hazards for human health and life and devices in close proximity to the magnetic resonance scanners (MRI scanners) include the effects of being hit by ferromagnetic objects attracted by static magnetic field (SMF) produced by scanner magnet - the so-called ballistic hazards classified among indirect electromagnetic hazards. International safety guidelines and technical literature specify different SMF threshold values regarding ballistic hazards - e.g. 3 mT (directive 2004/40/EC, EN 60601-2-33), and 30 mT (BMAS 2009, directive proposal 2011). Investigations presented in this article were performed in order to experimentally verify SMF threshold for ballistic hazards near MRI scanners used in Poland. Investigations were performed with the use of a laboratory source of SMF (0-30 mT) and MRI scanners of various types. The levels of SMF in which metal objects of various shapes and 0.4-500 g mass are moved by the field influence were investigated. The distance from the MRI scanners (0.2-3T) where hazards may occur were also investigated. Objects investigated under laboratory conditions were moved by SMF of 2.2-15 mT magnetic flux density when they were freely suspended, but were moved by the SMF of 5.6-22 mT when they were placed on a smooth surface. Investigated objects were moved in fields of 3.5-40 mT by MRI scanners. Distances from scanner magnet cover, where ballistic hazards might occur are: up to 0.5 m for 0.2-0.3T scanners; up to 1.3 m for 0.5T scanners; up to 2.0 m for 1.5T scanners and up to 2.5 m for 3T scanners (at the front and back of the magnet). It was shown that SMF of 3 mT magnetic flux density should be taken as the threshold for ballistic hazards. Such level is compatible with SMF limit value regarding occupational safety and health-protected areas/zones, where according to the Polish labor law the procedures of work environment inspection and prevention measures regarding indirect electromagnetic hazards should be applied. Presented results

Human hazards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Delpla, M.; Vignes, S.; Wolber, G.

1976-01-01

Among health hazards from ionizing radiations, a distinction is made of observed, likely and theoretical risks. Theoretical risks, derived from extrapolation of observations on sublethal exposures to low doses may frighten. However, they have nothing in common with reality as shown for instance, by the study of carcinogenesis risks at Nagasaki. By extrapolation to low doses, theoretical mutation risks are derived by geneticians from the observation of some characters especially deleterious in the progeny of parents exposed to sublethal doses. One cannot agree when by calculation they express a population exposure by a shift of its genetic balance with an increase of the proportion of disabled individuals. As a matter of fact, experimental exposure of successive generations of laboratory animals shows no accumulation of deleterious genes, sublethal doses excepted. Large nuclear plants should not be overwhelmed by horrible charges on sanitary grounds, whereas small sources have but too often shown they may originate mortal risks [fr

Open Source Web-Based Solutions for Disseminating and Analyzing Flood Hazard Information at the Community Level

Science.gov (United States)

Santillan, M. M.-M.; Santillan, J. R.; Morales, E. M. O.

2017-09-01

We discuss in this paper the development, including the features and functionalities, of an open source web-based flood hazard information dissemination and analytical system called "Flood EViDEns". Flood EViDEns is short for "Flood Event Visualization and Damage Estimations", an application that was developed by the Caraga State University to address the needs of local disaster managers in the Caraga Region in Mindanao, Philippines in accessing timely and relevant flood hazard information before, during and after the occurrence of flood disasters at the community (i.e., barangay and household) level. The web application made use of various free/open source web mapping and visualization technologies (GeoServer, GeoDjango, OpenLayers, Bootstrap), various geospatial datasets including LiDAR-derived elevation and information products, hydro-meteorological data, and flood simulation models to visualize various scenarios of flooding and its associated damages to infrastructures. The Flood EViDEns application facilitates the release and utilization of this flood-related information through a user-friendly front end interface consisting of web map and tables. A public version of the application can be accessed at http://121.97.192.11:8082/. The application is currently expanded to cover additional sites in Mindanao, Philippines through the "Geo-informatics for the Systematic Assessment of Flood Effects and Risks for a Resilient Mindanao" or the "Geo-SAFER Mindanao" Program.

Seismic hazard in Romania associated to Vrancea subcrustal source Deterministic evaluation

CERN Document Server

Radulian, M; Moldoveanu, C L; Panza, G F; Vaccari, F

2002-01-01

Our study presents an application of the deterministic approach to the particular case of Vrancea intermediate-depth earthquakes to show how efficient the numerical synthesis is in predicting realistic ground motion, and how some striking peculiarities of the observed intensity maps are properly reproduced. The deterministic approach proposed by Costa et al. (1993) is particularly useful to compute seismic hazard in Romania, where the most destructive effects are caused by the intermediate-depth earthquakes generated in the Vrancea region. Vrancea is unique among the seismic sources of the World because of its striking peculiarities: the extreme concentration of seismicity with a remarkable invariance of the foci distribution, the unusually high rate of strong shocks (an average frequency of 3 events with magnitude greater than 7 per century) inside an exceptionally narrow focal volume, the predominance of a reverse faulting mechanism with the T-axis almost vertical and the P-axis almost horizontal and the mo...

Decision support for risk prioritisation of environmental health hazards in a UK city.

Science.gov (United States)

Woods, Mae; Crabbe, Helen; Close, Rebecca; Studden, Mike; Milojevic, Ai; Leonardi, Giovanni; Fletcher, Tony; Chalabi, Zaid

2016-03-08

There is increasing appreciation of the proportion of the health burden that is attributed to modifiable population exposure to environmental health hazards. To manage this avoidable burden in the United Kingdom (UK), government policies and interventions are implemented. In practice, this procedure is interdisciplinary in action and multi-dimensional in context. Here, we demonstrate how Multi Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) can be used as a decision support tool to facilitate priority setting for environmental public health interventions within local authorities. We combine modelling and expert elicitation to gather evidence on the impacts and ranking of interventions. To present the methodology, we consider a hypothetical scenario in a UK city. We use MCDA to evaluate and compare the impact of interventions to reduce the health burden associated with four environmental health hazards and rank them in terms of their overall performance across several criteria. For illustrative purposes, we focus on heavy goods vehicle controls to reduce outdoor air pollution, remediation to control levels of indoor radon, carbon monoxide and fitting alarms, and encouraging cycling to target the obesogenic environment. Regional data was included as model evidence to construct a ratings matrix for the city. When MCDA is performed with uniform weights, the intervention of heavy goods vehicle controls to reduce outdoor air pollution is ranked the highest. Cycling and the obesogenic environment is ranked second. We argue that a MCDA based approach provides a framework to guide environmental public health decision makers. This is demonstrated through an online interactive MCDA tool. We conclude that MCDA is a transparent tool that can be used to compare the impact of alternative interventions on a set of pre-defined criteria. In our illustrative example, we ranked the best intervention across the equally weighted selected criteria out of the four alternatives. Further work is needed

Assessing the long-term probabilistic volcanic hazard for tephra fallout in Reykjavik, Iceland: a preliminary multi-source analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Tonini, Roberto; Barsotti, Sara; Sandri, Laura; Tumi Guðmundsson, Magnús

2015-04-01

Icelandic volcanism is largely dominated by basaltic magma. Nevertheless the presence of glaciers over many Icelandic volcanic systems results in frequent phreatomagmatic eruptions and associated tephra production, making explosive eruptions the most common type of volcanic activity. Jökulhlaups are commonly considered as major volcanic hazard in Iceland for their high frequency and potentially very devastating local impact. Tephra fallout is also frequent and can impact larger areas. It is driven by the wind direction that can change with both altitude and season, making impossible to predict a priori where the tephra will be deposited during the next eruptions. Most of the volcanic activity in Iceland occurs in the central eastern part, over 100 km to the east of the main population centre around the capital Reykjavík. Therefore, the hazard from tephra fallout in Reykjavík is expected to be smaller than for communities settled near the main volcanic systems. However, within the framework of quantitative hazard and risk analyses, less frequent and/or less intense phenomena should not be neglected, since their risk evaluation depends on the effects suffered by the selected target. This is particularly true if the target is highly vulnerable, as large urban areas or important infrastructures. In this work we present the preliminary analysis aiming to perform a Probabilistic Volcanic Hazard Assessment (PVHA) for tephra fallout focused on the target area which includes the municipality of Reykjavík and the Keflavík international airport. This approach reverts the more common perspective where the hazard analysis is focused on the source (the volcanic system) and it follows a multi-source approach: indeed, the idea is to quantify, homogeneously, the hazard due to the main hazardous volcanoes that could pose a tephra fallout threat for the municipality of Reykjavík and the Keflavík airport. PVHA for each volcanic system is calculated independently and the results

The nuclear debate from the standpoint of public health

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pellerin, Pierre

1980-01-01

After surveying the sources of exposure to ionizing radiation to which man is subjected in modern life, the author assesses the health consequences of radiation caused by the nuclear industry. Specific attention is given to the contention that nuclear energy must entail unacceptable hazards on public health by discussing the issues to cancer and leukemia, genetic hazards, radioactive 'reconcentration', plutonium, radioactive waste and nuclear accidents [fr

Regulatory control of radiation sources in Slovakia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Auxtova, L.

2001-01-01

In Slovakia, there are two regulatory authorities. Regulatory control of the utilization of nuclear energy, based on the Slovak National Council's law No. 130/1998 on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, is exercised by the Nuclear Regulatory Authority of the Slovak Republic. The second regulatory authority - the Ministry of Health - is empowered by law No. 72/1994 on the protection of human health to license radiation sources and is responsible for radiation protection supervision (there are nearly 3000 establishments with sealed sources, radiation generators and unsealed sources in Slovakia). Pursuant to a new radiation protection regulation based on international standards, radiation sources are to be categorized in six classes according to the associated exposure and contamination hazards. A national strategy for improving the safety of radiation sources over their life-cycle and for the management of disused and orphan sources is being prepared for governmental approval. (author)

Potential and Actual Health Hazards in the Dense Urban Operational Environment: Critical Gaps and Solutions for Military Occupational Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Patterson, Steven L; Dancy, Blair C R; Ippolito, Danielle L; Stallings, Jonathan D

2017-11-01

: This paper presents environmental health risks which are prevalent in dense urban environments.We review the current literature and recommendations proposed by environmental medicine experts in a 2-day symposium sponsored by the Department of Defense and supported by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.Key hazards in the dense urban operational environment include toxic industrial chemicals and materials, water pollution and sewage, and air pollution. Four critical gaps in environmental medicine were identified: prioritizing chemical and environmental concerns, developing mobile decision aids, personalized health assessments, and better real-time health biomonitoring.As populations continue to concentrate in cities, civilian and military leaders will need to meet emerging environmental health concerns by developing and delivering adequate technology and policy solutions.

Near-field hazard assessment of March 11, 2011 Japan Tsunami sources inferred from different methods

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Y.; Titov, V.V.; Newman, A.; Hayes, G.; Tang, L.; Chamberlin, C.

2011-01-01

Tsunami source is the origin of the subsequent transoceanic water waves, and thus the most critical component in modern tsunami forecast methodology. Although impractical to be quantified directly, a tsunami source can be estimated by different methods based on a variety of measurements provided by deep-ocean tsunameters, seismometers, GPS, and other advanced instruments, some in real time, some in post real-time. Here we assess these different sources of the devastating March 11, 2011 Japan tsunami by model-data comparison for generation, propagation and inundation in the near field of Japan. This study provides a comparative study to further understand the advantages and shortcomings of different methods that may be potentially used in real-time warning and forecast of tsunami hazards, especially in the near field. The model study also highlights the critical role of deep-ocean tsunami measurements for high-quality tsunami forecast, and its combination with land GPS measurements may lead to better understanding of both the earthquake mechanisms and tsunami generation process. ?? 2011 MTS.

42 CFR 84.52 - Respiratory hazards; classification.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 42 Public Health 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Respiratory hazards; classification. 84.52 Section... SAFETY AND HEALTH RESEARCH AND RELATED ACTIVITIES APPROVAL OF RESPIRATORY PROTECTIVE DEVICES Classification of Approved Respirators; Scope of Approval; Atmospheric Hazards; Service Time § 84.52 Respiratory...

Source Characterization and Seismic Hazard Considerations for Hydraulic Fracture Induced Seismicity

Science.gov (United States)

Bosman, K.; Viegas, G. F.; Baig, A. M.; Urbancic, T.

2015-12-01

Large microseismic events (M>0) have been shown to be generated during hydraulic fracture treatments relatively frequently. These events are a concern both from public safety and engineering viewpoints. Recent microseismic monitoring projects in the Horn River Basin have utilized both downhole and surface sensors to record events associated with hydraulic fracturing. The resulting hybrid monitoring system has produced a large dataset with two distinct groups of events: large events recorded by the surface network (0structures; small events are concentrated at reservoir depth. Differences in behavior have been observed between these two datasets, leading to conclusions of different underlying processes responsible for the recorded activity. Both datasets show very low seismic efficiency, implying slip weakening and possibly the presence of fluids in the source region. Reservoir events have shear-tensile source mechanisms ranging between tensile opening and tensile closing, and fracture orientations dominated by the rock fabric which are not always optimally oriented to the regional stress field. The observed source characteristics are expected for events driven by increased pore pressure and reduced friction due to lubrication. On average, deep events show higher stress drop, apparent stress, and rupture velocity than reservoir events. This reflects higher confining stresses with depth, and possibly the release of stored energy in the existing zone of weakness. Deep events are dominated by shear failures, but source characteristics are smaller than for naturally occurring tectonic earthquakes of similar magnitude. Most importantly from a seismic hazard perspective, large earthquakes associated with hydrofracing have lower stress drops than tectonic earthquakes, and thus produce smaller peak ground acceleration and less damage on surface. The largest event recorded in this dataset has a moment magnitude of +2.9 and was felt by field crews in the area. The response

Safety in Serbian animal source food industry and the impact of hazard analysis and critical control points: A review

Science.gov (United States)

Tomašević, I.; Đekić, I.

2017-09-01

There is a significant lack of HACCP-educated and/or HACCP-highly trained personnel within the Serbian animal source food workforces and veterinary inspectors, and this can present problems, particularly in hazard identification and assessment activities. However, despite obvious difficulties, HACCP benefits to the Serbian dairy industry are widespread and significant. Improving prerequisite programmes on the farms, mainly through infrastructural investments in milk collectors and transportation vehicles on one hand, and increasing hygiene awareness of farmers through training on the other hand has improved the safety of milk. The decline in bacterial numbers on meat contact surfaces, meat handlers’ hands and cooling facilities presents strong evidence of improved process hygiene and justifies the adoption of HACCP in Serbian meat establishments. Apart from the absence of national food poisoning statistics or national foodborne disease databases, the main obstacle to fully recognising the impact of HACCP on the safety of animal source food in Serbia is the lack of research regarding the occurrence of chemical and/or physical hazards interrelated with its production.

[Synthetic cannabinoids: spread, addiction biology & current perspective of personal health hazard].

Science.gov (United States)

Bonnet, U; Mahler, H

2015-04-01

Among the new psychoactive substances (NPS), most frequently synthetic cannabinoids (SCBs) have been found in Europe. These are sold as active compounds in e. g. so-called "herbal blends". When inhaled or ingested, besides intoxication symptoms, as they occur with heavy cannabis use (e. g., tachycardia, myocardial infarction, confusion, hallucinations, panic attacks, and paranoia), harmful effects (severe agitation, coma, catatonic stupor, hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia, dyspnoea, seizures, myoclonus, rhabdomyolysis, hyperthermia, diaphoresis, acute kidney injury, vomiting, headache, and hypokalemia) arise, which are mostly unusual about cannabis use. In addition, the first cases of addiction and death related to SCBs have been reported. Taking into account the newest literature and using an algorithm with two main criteria (addiction potential, toxicity), the authors made a first attempt to rank the personal health hazard of SCBs in comparison to that of other psychoactive drugs. Accordingly, the relative health hazard of SCBs is found to be somewhat higher than that of cannabis and lower than that of synthetic cathinones ("bath salts"). However, the toxicity of SCBs, is significantly greater than the toxicity of cannabis, thus being similar to that of synthetic cathinones and benzodiazepines. The addiction potential appears to be lower than that of synthetic cathinones, benzodiazepines, or cannabis. Due to the fluctuation of substances and the availability in internet resources, legislation is facing a serious "hare-hedgehog" problem to control the manufacture, trade and possession of SCBs. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

The Influence of eHealth Literacy on Perceived Trust in Online Health Communication Channels and Sources.

Science.gov (United States)

Paige, Samantha R; Krieger, Janice L; Stellefson, Michael L

2017-01-01

Disparities in online health information accessibility are partially due to varying levels of eHealth literacy and perceived trust. This study examined the relationship between eHealth literacy and perceived trust in online health communication channels and sources among diverse sociodemographic groups. A stratified sample of Black/African Americans (n = 402) and Caucasians (n = 409) completed a Web-based survey that measured eHealth literacy and perceived trustworthiness of online health communication channels and information sources. eHealth literacy positively predicted perceived trust in online health communication channels and sources, but disparities existed by sociodemographic factors. Segmenting audiences according to eHealth literacy level provides a detailed understanding of how perceived trust in discrete online health communication channels and information sources varies among diverse audiences. Black/African Americans with low eHealth literacy had high perceived trust in YouTube and Twitter, whereas Black/African Americans with high eHealth literacy had high perceived trust in online government and religious organizations. Older adults with low eHealth literacy had high perceived trust in Facebook but low perceived trust in online support groups. Researchers and practitioners should consider the sociodemographics and eHealth literacy level of an intended audience when tailoring information through trustworthy online health communication channels and information sources.

EFSA BIOHAZ Panel (EFSA Panel on Biological Hazards, 2013. Scientific Opinion on the public health hazards to be covered by inspection of meat from sheep and goats

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hald, Tine; Baggesen, Dorte Lau

A risk ranking process identified Toxoplasma gondii and pathogenic verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) as the most relevant biological hazards for meat inspection of sheep and goats. As these are not detected by traditional meat inspection, a meat safety assurance system using risk......-based interventions was proposed. Further studies are required on T. gondii and pathogenic VTEC. If new information confirms these hazards as a high risk to public health from meat from sheep or goats, setting targets at carcass level should be considered. Other elements of the system are risk...... the extensive production systems used, and the ranking of chemical substances, which should be regularly updated and include new hazards. Control programmes across the food chain, national residue control plans, feed control and monitoring of environmental contaminants should be better integrated. Meat...

Chemical process hazards analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-02-01

The Office of Worker Health and Safety (EH-5) under the Assistant Secretary for the Environment, Safety and Health of the US Department (DOE) has published two handbooks for use by DOE contractors managing facilities and processes covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Rule for Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals (29 CFR 1910.119), herein referred to as the PSM Rule. The PSM Rule contains an integrated set of chemical process safety management elements designed to prevent chemical releases that can lead to catastrophic fires, explosions, or toxic exposures. The purpose of the two handbooks, ``Process Safety Management for Highly Hazardous Chemicals`` and ``Chemical Process Hazards Analysis,`` is to facilitate implementation of the provisions of the PSM Rule within the DOE. The purpose of this handbook ``Chemical Process Hazards Analysis,`` is to facilitate, within the DOE, the performance of chemical process hazards analyses (PrHAs) as required under the PSM Rule. It provides basic information for the performance of PrHAs, and should not be considered a complete resource on PrHA methods. Likewise, to determine if a facility is covered by the PSM rule, the reader should refer to the handbook, ``Process Safety Management for Highly Hazardous Chemicals`` (DOE- HDBK-1101-96). Promulgation of the PSM Rule has heightened the awareness of chemical safety management issues within the DOE. This handbook is intended for use by DOE facilities and processes covered by the PSM rule to facilitate contractor implementation of the PrHA element of the PSM Rule. However, contractors whose facilities and processes not covered by the PSM Rule may also use this handbook as a basis for conducting process hazards analyses as part of their good management practices. This handbook explains the minimum requirements for PrHAs outlined in the PSM Rule. Nowhere have requirements been added beyond what is specifically required by the rule.

Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Thio, H. K.; Ichinose, G. A.; Somerville, P. G.; Polet, J.

2006-12-01

thousands of earthquake scenarios. We have carried out preliminary tsunami hazard calculations for different return periods for western North America and Hawaii based on thousands of earthquake scenarios around the Pacific rim and along the coast of North America. We will present tsunami hazard maps for several return periods and also discuss how to use these results for probabilistic inundation and runup mapping. Our knowledge of certain types of tsunami sources is very limited (e.g. submarine landslides), but a probabilistic framework for tsunami hazard evaluation can include even such sources and their uncertainties and present the overall hazard in a meaningful and consistent way.

Evaluation of Levels, Sources and Health Hazards of Road-Dust Associated Toxic Metals in Jalalabad and Kabul Cities, Afghanistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Jadoon, Waqar Azeem; Khpalwak, Wahdatullah; Chidya, Russel Chrispine Garven; Abdel-Dayem, Sherif Mohamed Mohamed Ali; Takeda, Kazuhiko; Makhdoom, Masood Arshad; Sakugawa, Hiroshi

2018-01-01

This study was designed to investigate selected road-dust associated heavy metals, their relations with natural and anthropogenic sources, and potential human and environmental health risks. For this purpose, 42 and 36 road-dusts samples were collected from Jalalabad and Kabul cities (Afghanistan), respectively. The following elements were found in descending concentrations: Mn, Zn, Pb, Ni, Cu, Cr, Co, and Cd in Jalalabad; and Mn, Zn, Ni, Cu, Cr, Pb, Co, and Cd in Kabul. Except for Ni, all the elemental contents were less than the Canadian permissible limits in residential/parkland soils. Principle Component Analysis and enrichment of Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn pointed to anthropogenic sources, whereas Co, Cr, and Mn indicated crustal inputs. Broadly, Cd monomial risk index ([Formula: see text]) was considerable; however, one site each in both cities showed high risk ([Formula: see text] ≥ 350). The potential ecological risk (RI) is mostly low; however, at some sites, the risk was considerable. Ingestion appeared to be the main exposure route (99%) for heavy metals and contributed > 90% to noncancerous (all residents), as well as 92% (children) and 75-89% (adults) cancerous risks. The noncancerous risks of all metals and their integrated risks for all residents were within acceptable levels. Moreover, potential cancer risks in children from Ni and Cr were slightly higher than the US-EPA safe levels but were within acceptable levels for adults. This study found higher risks to children and therefore recommends proper management and ways to control metals pollution load in these areas to decrease human health and RIs.

Hazards of radiation exposure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solomon, S.B.

1982-01-01

Radiation induced carcinogenesis and mutagenesis form the main risks to health from exposure to low levels of radiation. There is scant data on somatic and genetic risks at environmental and occupational levels of radiation exposure. The available data on radiation induced carcinogenesis and mutagenesis are for high doses and high dose rates of radiation. Risk assessments for low level radiation are obtained using these data, assuming a linear dose-response relationship. During uranium mining the chief source of radiation hazard is inhalation of radon daughters. The correlation between radon daughter exposure and the increased incidence of lung cancer has been well documented. For radiation exposures at and below occupational limits, the associated risk of radiation induced cancers and genetic abnormalities is small and should not lead to a detectable increase over naturally occurring rates

Prospects and pitfalls of occupational hazard mapping: 'between these lines there be dragons'.

Science.gov (United States)

Koehler, Kirsten A; Volckens, John

2011-10-01

Hazard data mapping is a promising new technique that can enhance the process of occupational exposure assessment and risk communication. Hazard maps have the potential to improve worker health by providing key input for the design of hazard intervention and control strategies. Hazard maps are developed with aid from direct-reading instruments, which can collect highly spatially and temporally resolved data in a relatively short period of time. However, quantifying spatial-temporal variability in the occupational environment is not a straightforward process, and our lack of understanding of how to ascertain and model spatial and temporal variability is a limiting factor in the use and interpretation of workplace hazard maps. We provide an example of how sources of and exposures to workplace hazards may be mischaracterized in a hazard map due to a lack of completeness and representativeness of collected measurement data. Based on this example, we believe that a major priority for research in this emerging area should focus on the development of a statistical framework to quantify uncertainty in spatially and temporally varying data. In conjunction with this need is one for the development of guidelines and procedures for the proper sampling, generation, and evaluation of workplace hazard maps.

21 CFR 120.7 - Hazard analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Hazard analysis. 120.7 Section 120.7 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) FOOD FOR HUMAN... hazards. The written hazard analysis shall consist of at least the following: (1) Identification of food...

Predicting Consequences of Technological Disasters from Natural Hazard Events: Challenges and Opportunities Associated with Industrial Accident Data Sources

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, M.

2009-04-01

The increased focus on the possibility of technological accidents caused by natural events (Natech) is foreseen to continue for years to come. In this case, experts in prevention, mitigation and preparation activities associated with natural events will increasingly need to borrow data and expertise traditionally associated with the technological fields to carry out the work. An important question is how useful is the data for understanding consequences from such natech events. Data and case studies provided on major industrial accidents tend to focus on lessons learned for re-engineering the process. While consequence data are reported at least nominally in most reports, their precision, quality and completeness is often lacking. Consequences that are often or sometimes available but not provided can include severity and type of injuries, distance of victims from the source, exposure measurements, volume of the release, population in potentially affected zones, and weather conditions. Yet these are precisely the type of data that will aid natural hazard experts in land-use planning and emergency response activities when a Natech event may be foreseen. This work discusses the results of a study of consequence data from accidents involving toxic releases reported in the EU's MARS accident database. The study analysed the precision, quality and completeness of three categories of consequence data reported: the description of health effects, consequence assessment and chemical risk assessment factors, and emergency response information. This work reports on the findings from this study and discusses how natural hazards experts might interact with industrial accident experts to promote more consistent and accurate reporting of the data that will be useful in consequence-based activities.

EDCs Mixtures: A Stealthy Hazard for Human Health?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edna Ribeiro

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs are exogenous chemicals that may occur naturally (e.g., phytoestrogens, while others are industrial substances and plasticizers commonly utilized worldwide to which human exposure, particularly at low-doses, is omnipresent, persistent and occurs in complex mixtures. EDCs can interfere with/or mimic estrogenic hormones and, consequently, can simultaneously trigger diverse signaling pathways which result in diverse and divergent biological responses. Additionally, EDCs can also bioaccumulate in lipid compartments of the organism forming a mixed “body burden” of contaminants. Although the independent action of chemicals has been considered the main principle in EDCs mixture toxicity, recent studies have demonstrated that numerous effects cannot be predicted when analyzing single compounds independently. Co-exposure to these agents, particularly in critical windows of exposure, may induce hazardous health effects potentially associated with a complex “body burden” of different origins. Here, we performed an exhaustive review of the available literature regarding EDCs mixtures exposure, toxicity mechanisms and effects, particularly at the most vulnerable human life stages. Although the assessment of potential risks to human health due to exposure to EDCs mixtures is a major topic for consumer safety, information regarding effective mixtures effects is still scarce.

Effectuality of Cleaning Workers' Training and Cleaning Enterprises' Chemical Health Hazard Risk Profiling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdulqadir M. Suleiman

2015-12-01

Conclusion: Training of cleaning workers lacks the prerequisite for suitability and effectiveness to counter risks of chemical health hazards. There is dereliction of duty by management in the sector resulting in a lack of competence among the cleaning workers. Instituting acceptable easily attainable safety competence level for cleaners will conduce to risk reduction, and enforcement of attainment of the competence level would be a positive step.

Hazardous Chemicals

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2007-04-10

Chemicals are a part of our daily lives, providing many products and modern conveniences. With more than three decades of experience, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been in the forefront of efforts to protect and assess people's exposure to environmental and hazardous chemicals. This report provides information about hazardous chemicals and useful tips on how to protect you and your family from harmful exposure.  Created: 4/10/2007 by CDC National Center for Environmental Health.   Date Released: 4/13/2007.

Seismic hazard assessment in the Ibero-Maghreb region

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jimenez, M.J.; Garcia fernandez, M. [Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientifcas, Barcelona (Spain). Inst. of Earth Sciences; GSAHP Ibero-Maghreb Working Group

1999-12-01

The paper illustrates the contribution of the Ibero-Maghreb region to the global GSHAP (Global Seismic Hazard Assessment Program) map: for the first time, a map of regional hazard source zones is presented and agreement on a common procedure for hazard computation in the region has been achieved.

Epidemiology, public health, and health surveillance around point sources of pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stebbings, J.H. Jr.

1981-01-01

In industrial society a large number of point sources of pollution exist, such as chemical plants, smelters, and nuclear power plants. Public concern has forced the practising epidemiologist to undertake health surveillance of the usually small populations living around point sources. Although not justifiable as research, such epidemiologic surveillance activities are becoming a routine part of public health practice, and this trend will continue. This introduction reviews concepts of epidemiologic surveillance, and institutional problems relating to the quality of such applied research

A novel integrated approach for the hazardous radioactive dust source terms estimation in future nuclear fusion power plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Poggi, L A; Malizia, A; Ciparisse, J F; Gaudio, P

2016-10-01

An open issue still under investigation by several international entities working on the safety and security field for the foreseen nuclear fusion reactors is the estimation of source terms that are a hazard for the operators and public, and for the machine itself in terms of efficiency and integrity in case of severe accident scenarios. Source term estimation is a crucial key safety issue to be addressed in the future reactors safety assessments, and the estimates available at the time are not sufficiently satisfactory. The lack of neutronic data along with the insufficiently accurate methodologies used until now, calls for an integrated methodology for source term estimation that can provide predictions with an adequate accuracy. This work proposes a complete methodology to estimate dust source terms starting from a broad information gathering. The wide number of parameters that can influence dust source term production is reduced with statistical tools using a combination of screening, sensitivity analysis, and uncertainty analysis. Finally, a preliminary and simplified methodology for dust source term production prediction for future devices is presented.

Radioactive hazards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gill, J.R.

1980-01-01

The use of radioactive substances in hospital laboratories is discussed and the attendant hazards and necessary precautions examined. The new legislation under the Health and Safety at Work Act which, it is proposed, will replace existing legal requirements in the field of health and safety at work by a system of regulations and approved codes of practice designed to maintain or improve the standards of health, safety and welfare already established, is considered with particular reference to protection against ionising radiations. (UK)

Hazard sign comprehension among illiterate adults

African Journals Online (AJOL)

KATEVG

Hazard signs have been considered an effective mode of transferring safety .... United Kingdom and the United States of America, indicating that hazard ..... primary providers of these programmes (Occupational Health and Safety Act 1993).

EFSA BIOHAZ Panel (EFSA Panel on Biological Hazards), 2013. Scientific Opinion on the public health hazards to be covered by inspection of meat from farmed game

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hald, Tine; Baggesen, Dorte Lau

ranked as medium or lower potential concern. More effective control of biological hazards could be achieved using an integrated farm to chilled carcass approach, including improved food chain information (FCI) and risk-based controls. Further studies are required on Salmonella spp. in farmed wild boar...... and T. gondii in farmed wild boar and farmed deer. If new information confirms a high risk to public health from meat from these species, setting targets at carcass level should be considered. Palpation and incision should be omitted, as it will not detect biological hazards considered to be a high......Salmonella spp. in farmed wild boar and Toxoplasma gondii in farmed deer and farmed wild boar were ranked as a high priority for meat inspection. Trichinella spp. in wild boar was ranked as low priority due to current controls, which should be continued. For chemical hazards, all substances were...

Comparison of the health benefits and health risks of energy development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Myers, D.K.; Gentner, N.E.; Werner, M.M.

1984-01-01

Health risks associated with the production of energy from various sources tend towards 1-10 potential premature deaths per GW.a. Technological development has increased average life expectancy by about 35 years. Cheap and safe supplies of energy support the social infrastructure and prosperity that make this possible. About 3.5 years increased life expectancy may be attributed to energy development. In contrast, for a societal risk of one premature death/GW.a and utilization of 10 GW.a per million persons, the average loss of life expectancy is 0.02 years. Under these conditions, the average health benefit would thus exceed the average health cost by at least two orders of magnitude. The risk, however, is disproportionately borne by relatively small, occupational sub-groups in the population, e.g. uranium and coal miners. The expected average loss of life expectancy in 50 years at work in one of these occupations in North America is currently about 1-2 years. Occupational hazards in most other portions of the energy supply industries are closer to those anticipated in a safe industry, where average loss of life expectancy due to occupational hazards would not exceed 0.15 years. The shared societal health benefit of increased life span associated with technological development outweighs average health hazards associated with occupation in both the more hazardous and the safer stages of energy production. (author)

Guiding health promotion efforts with urban Inuit: a community-specific perspective on health information sources and dissemination strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

McShane, Kelly E; Smylie, Janet K; Hastings, Paul D; Martin, Carmel M

2006-01-01

To develop a community-specific perspective of health information sources and dissemination strategies of urban Inuit to better guide health promotion efforts. Through a collaborative partnership with the Tungasuvvingat Inuit Family Resource Centre, a series of key informant interviews and focus groups were conducted to gather information on specific sources of health information, strategies of health information dissemination, and overall themes in health information processes. Distinct patterns of health information sources and dissemination strategies emerged from the data. Major themes included: the importance of visual learning, community Elders, and cultural interpreters; community cohesion; and the Inuit and non-Inuit distinction. The core sources of health information are family members and sources from within the Inuit community. The principal dissemination strategy for health information was direct communication, either through one-on-one interactions or in groups. This community-specific perspective of health information sources and dissemination strategies shows substantial differences from current mainstream models of health promotion and knowledge translation. Health promotion efforts need to acknowledge the distinct health information processes of this community, and should strive to integrate existing health information sources and strategies of dissemination with those of the community.

14 CFR 417.413 - Hazard areas.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... public has access to the associated hazard area. (5) Do not allow sources of ionizing or non-ionizing radiation, such as, x-rays, nuclear power sources, high-energy radio transmitters, radar, and lasers to be...

ORNL necessary and sufficient standards for environment, safety, and health. Final report of the Identification Team for other industrial, radiological, and non-radiological hazard facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-07-01

This Necessary and Sufficient (N and S) set of standards is for Other Industrial, Radiological, and Non-Radiological Hazard Facilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). These facility classifications are based on a laboratory-wide approach to classify facilities by hazard category. An analysis of the hazards associated with the facilities at ORNL was conducted in 1993. To identify standards appropriate for these Other Industrial, Radiological, and Non-Radiological Hazard Facilities, the activities conducted in these facilities were assessed, and the hazards associated with the activities were identified. A preliminary hazards list was distributed to all ORNL organizations. The hazards identified in prior hazard analyses are contained in the list, and a category of other was provided in each general hazard area. A workshop to assist organizations in properly completing the list was held. Completed hazard screening lists were compiled for each ORNL division, and a master list was compiled for all Other Industrial, Radiological Hazard, and Non-Radiological facilities and activities. The master list was compared against the results of prior hazard analyses by research and development and environment, safety, and health personnel to ensure completeness. This list, which served as a basis for identifying applicable environment, safety, and health standards, appears in Appendix A.

ORNL necessary and sufficient standards for environment, safety, and health. Final report of the Identification Team for other industrial, radiological, and non-radiological hazard facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-07-01

This Necessary and Sufficient (N and S) set of standards is for Other Industrial, Radiological, and Non-Radiological Hazard Facilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). These facility classifications are based on a laboratory-wide approach to classify facilities by hazard category. An analysis of the hazards associated with the facilities at ORNL was conducted in 1993. To identify standards appropriate for these Other Industrial, Radiological, and Non-Radiological Hazard Facilities, the activities conducted in these facilities were assessed, and the hazards associated with the activities were identified. A preliminary hazards list was distributed to all ORNL organizations. The hazards identified in prior hazard analyses are contained in the list, and a category of other was provided in each general hazard area. A workshop to assist organizations in properly completing the list was held. Completed hazard screening lists were compiled for each ORNL division, and a master list was compiled for all Other Industrial, Radiological Hazard, and Non-Radiological facilities and activities. The master list was compared against the results of prior hazard analyses by research and development and environment, safety, and health personnel to ensure completeness. This list, which served as a basis for identifying applicable environment, safety, and health standards, appears in Appendix A

The costs of hazardous alcohol consumption in Germany.

Science.gov (United States)

Effertz, Tobias; Verheyen, Frank; Linder, Roland

2017-07-01

Hazardous alcohol consumption in Germany is a main threat to health. By using insurance claim data from the German Statutory Health Insurance and a classification strategy based on ICD10 diagnoses-codes we analyzed a sample of 146,000 subjects with more than 19,000 hazardous alcohol consumers. Employing different regression models with a control function approach, we calculate life years lost due to alcohol consumption, annual direct and indirect health costs, and the burden of pain and suffering measured by the Charlson-Index and assessed pain diagnoses. Additionally, we simulate the net accumulated premium payments over expenses in the German Statutory Health Insurance and the Statutory Pension Fund for hazardous alcohol consumers from a lifecycle perspective. In total, €39.3 billion each year result from hazardous alcohol consumption with an average loss of 7 years in life expectancy. Hazardous alcohol consumers clearly do not "pay their way" in the two main German social security systems and also display a higher intangible burden according to our definitions of pain and suffering.

Earthquake Hazard and Risk in New Zealand

Science.gov (United States)

Apel, E. V.; Nyst, M.; Fitzenz, D. D.; Molas, G.

2014-12-01

To quantify risk in New Zealand we examine the impact of updating the seismic hazard model. The previous RMS New Zealand hazard model is based on the 2002 probabilistic seismic hazard maps for New Zealand (Stirling et al., 2002). The 2015 RMS model, based on Stirling et al., (2012) will update several key source parameters. These updates include: implementation a new set of crustal faults including multi-segment ruptures, updating the subduction zone geometry and reccurrence rate and implementing new background rates and a robust methodology for modeling background earthquake sources. The number of crustal faults has increased by over 200 from the 2002 model, to the 2012 model which now includes over 500 individual fault sources. This includes the additions of many offshore faults in northern, east-central, and southwest regions. We also use the recent data to update the source geometry of the Hikurangi subduction zone (Wallace, 2009; Williams et al., 2013). We compare hazard changes in our updated model with those from the previous version. Changes between the two maps are discussed as well as the drivers for these changes. We examine the impact the hazard model changes have on New Zealand earthquake risk. Considered risk metrics include average annual loss, an annualized expected loss level used by insurers to determine the costs of earthquake insurance (and premium levels), and the loss exceedance probability curve used by insurers to address their solvency and manage their portfolio risk. We analyze risk profile changes in areas with large population density and for structures of economic and financial importance. New Zealand is interesting in that the city with the majority of the risk exposure in the country (Auckland) lies in the region of lowest hazard, where we don't have a lot of information about the location of faults and distributed seismicity is modeled by averaged Mw-frequency relationships on area sources. Thus small changes to the background rates

Oral health literacy and information sources among adults in Tehran, Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Sistani, M M Naghibi; Yazdani, R; Virtanen, J; Pakdaman, A; Murtomaa, H

2013-09-01

To assess oral health literacy level and oral health information of Iranian adults in Tehran, and to determine the factors related to oral health literacy. A cross-sectional population study. A random sample of 1,031 adults in Tehran, Iran. Oral health literacy was measured using an oral health adult literacy questionnaire (OHL-AQ). Variation in use of information sources by socio-economic and demographic background was estimated by odds ratios. A multiple linear regression model served to determine predictor factors of OHL-AQ scores controlling for characteristics of the subjects and number of information sources. The mean OHL-AQ score was 10.5 (sd 3.0). Women (p information were dentists (52.6%), and TV/Radio (49.5%). According to the regression model, females (p = 0.001), high educational level (p information sources (two sources p = 0.01, three sources or more p = 0.002) were the main predictor factors of OHL-AQ scores. The average oral health literacy level of Iranian adults was low. Disseminating evidence-based oral health care information from multiple sources including TV/radio, dentists, and other health professionals in different settings should improve public oral health literacy.

Age-Related Health Hazards in Old Patients with First-Time Referral to a Rheumatologist: A Descriptive Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

W. van Lankveld

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. To study the prevalence of generic age-related health hazards in elderly patient referred to a rheumatologist. Methods. Patients aged 75 or older referred to a specialized gerontorheumatological outpatient service over a period of 2 years were studied prospectively to determine the prevalence of comorbidities, a history of falls, inactivity, cognitive dysfunction, loneliness, and depression in this patient group. Results. A group of 154 patients were included in the study. Comorbidities were observed in 88% of the patients. At least one fall was reported in the last year by 44% of the patients; 44% of the patients reported low levels of health-enhancing physical activity. Depressed mood and loneliness were elevated in 30% and 31% of the patients, respectively. Mild or moderate cognitive impairment was observed in 13% of the patients. Conclusion. Patients in this study were characterized by poor physical ability, high levels of pain, and high prevalence of age-related health hazards.

Marine and land active-source seismic investigation of geothermal potential, tectonic structure, and earthquake hazards in Pyramid Lake, Nevada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eisses, A.; Kell, A.; Kent, G. [UNR; Driscoll, N. [UCSD; Karlin, R.; Baskin, R. [USGS; Louie, J. [UNR; Pullammanappallil, S. [Optim

2016-08-01

Amy Eisses, Annie M. Kell, Graham Kent, Neal W. Driscoll, Robert E. Karlin, Robert L. Baskin, John N. Louie, Kenneth D. Smith, Sathish Pullammanappallil, 2011, Marine and land active-source seismic investigation of geothermal potential, tectonic structure, and earthquake hazards in Pyramid Lake, Nevada: presented at American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, San Francisco, Dec. 5-9, abstract NS14A-08.

Insured without moral hazard in the health care reform of China.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Chack-Kie; Cheung, Chau-Kiu; Tang, Kwong-Leung

2012-01-01

Public insurance possibly increases the use of health care because of the insured person's interest in maximizing benefits without incurring out-of-pocket costs. A newly reformed public insurance scheme in China that builds on personal responsibility is thus likely to provide insurance without causing moral hazard. This possibility is the focus of this study, which surveyed 303 employees in a large city in China. The results show that the coverage and use of the public insurance scheme did not show a significant positive effect on the average employee's frequency of physician consultation. In contrast, the employee who endorsed public responsibility for health care visited physicians more frequently in response to some insurance factors. On balance, public insurance did not tempt the average employee to consult physicians frequently, presumably due to personal responsibility requirements in the insurance scheme.

The impact measure of solid waste management on health: the hazard index

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Loredana Musmeci

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The risk associated with waste exposure depends on the level of emissions arising from waste disposal and from the effects of these emissions on human health (dose-reponse. In 2007 an epidemiological study was conducted in two Italian provinces of the Campania Region, namely Naples and Caserta, with the aim of assessing the health effects deriving from exposure to waste. In these studies, the important aspect is the population exposure assessment, in relation to the different types of waste disposal. The Regional Agency for Environmental Protection (ARPA Campania has identified and characterized the various authorized/unauthorized dumping sites in the provinces of Naples and Caserta. Most of the waste disposals used are illegal and invisible (sunken or buried; thus, the toxic substances therein contained are unknown and difficult to identify. In order to locate the possible areas exposed to a higher waste-related health risk, a synthetical "hazard index" (at the municipality level was designed. By means of GIS, the number of waste impact areas was identified for each of the 196 municipalities in the two provinces; then, Census data (ISTAT 2001 was used to estimate the proportion of the population living in the impact areas. The synthetical hazard index at municipality level accounts for three elements: a the intrinsic characterization of the waste disposal, determining the way in which the pollutant is released; b the impact area of the dumping site (within 1 km radius, same areas are influenced by more than one site; c the density of the population living in the "impact area" surrounding the waste disposal site.

Possible health hazards for cardiac pacemaker wearers from exposure to electromagnetic fields

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1988-03-01

Cardiac pacemakers are used to provide electrical stimulation to the heart when the heart's natural rhythm is interrupted. This study shows that they can be susceptible to electromagnetic fields. Pacemakers are well protected against common electromagnetic fields, such as those from household appliances. But intense electomagnetic fields, such as those found in some industrial settings, could affect the functioning of the pacemaker. Such interference may cause the pacemaker wearer to feel dizzy or experience an accelerated heartbeat. While this is not fatal, the pacemaker wearer should try to move away from the source of the interfering field and avoid situations in which interference could arise. After experiencing any of these symptoms, the pacemaker wearer should contact a physician. Potential sources of electromagnetic interference should be identified and characterized to determine if there could be an interference hazard. Exposure to interfering electomagnetic fields should be minimized. 7 refs., 1 fig.

Experimental evaluation of ballistic hazards in imaging diagnostic center

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karpowicz, Jolanta; Gryz, Krzysztof

2013-01-01

Serious hazards for human health and life and devices in close proximity to the magnetic resonance scanners (MRI scanners) include the effects of being hit by ferromagnetic objects attracted by static magnetic field (SMF) produced by scanner magnet – the so-called ballistic hazards classified among indirect electromagnetic hazards. International safety guidelines and technical literature specify different SMF threshold values regarding ballistic hazards – e.g. 3 mT (directive 2004/40/EC, EN 60601-2-33), and 30 mT (BMAS 2009, directive proposal 2011). Investigations presented in this article were performed in order to experimentally verify SMF threshold for ballistic hazards near MRI scanners used in Poland. Investigations were performed with the use of a laboratory source of SMF (0–30 mT) and MRI scanners of various types. The levels of SMF in which metal objects of various shapes and 0.4–500 g mass are moved by the field influence were investigated. The distance from the MRI scanners (0.2–3T) where hazards may occur were also investigated. Objects investigated under laboratory conditions were moved by SMF of 2.2–15 mT magnetic flux density when they were freely suspended, but were moved by the SMF of 5.6–22 mT when they were placed on a smooth surface. Investigated objects were moved in fields of 3.5–40 mT by MRI scanners. Distances from scanner magnet cover, where ballistic hazards might occur are: up to 0.5 m for 0.2–0.3T scanners; up to 1.3 m for 0.5T scanners; up to 2.0 m for 1.5T scanners and up to 2.5 m for 3T scanners (at the front and back of the magnet). It was shown that SMF of 3 mT magnetic flux density should be taken as the threshold for ballistic hazards. Such level is compatible with SMF limit value regarding occupational safety and health-protected areas/zones, where according to the Polish labor law the procedures of work environment inspection and prevention measures regarding indirect electromagnetic hazards should be applied

Parents' preferred child health information sources: implications for nursing practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Keatinge, Diane

2006-01-01

To ascertain parents' preferences in sources of health information concerning their children's general health care needs, and caring for their children when they are sick. Exploratory/descriptive design. A telephone survey secured data for the study and qualitative content analysis and descriptive statistics were used for analysis. Part 2 of a larger study in which Part I evaluated parents' satisfaction with a paediatric telephone triage service. One hundred of the 101 parents who were recruited for Part 1 of the study participated in Part 2, an examination of parents' preferences in information sources relating to their child's health. Parents' preferences in child health information sources varied according to the perceived severity of their child's illness. Parents frequently selected more than one item on a list of health information sources provided. In a non-urgent situation when children were sick a total of 170 selections were made by parents, with 'telephone advice line' the source most frequently selected (58, 34%), followed by general practitioner (27, 15.8%). In an emergency situation the most frequently selected information source was again 'telephone advice line' (74, n=129, 57.4%), followed by 'other' (31, n=129, 24.3%) often identified as relating to dialing '000' (Australia's emergency services number). Finally, when parents required information about the general health care needs of their child, 'other' (most frequently identified as books) was selected on 40 (n=185, 21.6%) occasions, followed by child health clinic (35, n= 185, 18.9%). Parents prefer to receive information about the health care needs of their child from another person rather than a printed or audio-visual source.

Hazardous waste management in the Pacific basin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cirillo, R.R.; Chiu, S.; Chun, K.C.; Conzelmann, G. [Argonne National Lab., IL (United States); Carpenter, R.A.; Indriyanto, S.H. [East-West Center, Honolulu, HI (United States)

1994-11-01

Hazardous waste control activities in Asia and the Pacific have been reviewed. The review includes China (mainland, Hong Kong, and Taiwan), Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. It covers the sources of hazardous waste, the government structure for dealing with hazardous waste, and current hazardous waste control activities in each country. In addition, the hazardous waste program activities of US government agencies, US private-sector organizations, and international organizations are reviewed. The objective of these reviews is to provide a comprehensive picture of the current hazardous waste problems and the waste management approaches being used to address them so that new program activities can be designed more efficiently.

Health information systems in Africa: descriptive analysis of data sources, information products and health statistics.

Science.gov (United States)

Mbondji, Peter Ebongue; Kebede, Derege; Soumbey-Alley, Edoh William; Zielinski, Chris; Kouvividila, Wenceslas; Lusamba-Dikassa, Paul-Samson

2014-05-01

To identify key data sources of health information and describe their availability in countries of the World Health Organization (WHO) African Region. An analytical review on the availability and quality of health information data sources in countries; from experience, observations, literature and contributions from countries. Forty-six Member States of the WHO African Region. No participants. The state of data sources, including censuses, surveys, vital registration and health care facility-based sources. In almost all countries of the Region, there is a heavy reliance on household surveys for most indicators, with more than 121 household surveys having been conducted in the Region since 2000. Few countries have civil registration systems that permit adequate and regular tracking of mortality and causes of death. Demographic surveillance sites function in several countries, but the data generated are not integrated into the national health information system because of concerns about representativeness. Health management information systems generate considerable data, but the information is rarely used because of concerns about bias, quality and timeliness. To date, 43 countries in the Region have initiated Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response. A multitude of data sources are used to track progress towards health-related goals in the Region, with heavy reliance on household surveys for most indicators. Countries need to develop comprehensive national plans for health information that address the full range of data needs and data sources and that include provision for building national capacities for data generation, analysis, dissemination and use. © The Royal Society of Medicine.

Making "social" safer: are Facebook and other online networks becoming less hazardous for health professionals?

Science.gov (United States)

George, Daniel R

2012-01-01

Major concerns about privacy have limited health professionals' usage of popular social networking sites such as Facebook. However, the landscape of social media is changing in favor of more sophisticated privacy controls that enable users to more carefully manage public and private information. This evolution in technology makes it potentially less hazardous for health professionals to consider accepting colleagues and patients into their online networks, and invites medicine to think constructively about how social media may add value to contemporary healthcare.

Investigation of the present management status of calibration source based on the law concerning prevention of radiation hazards due to radioisotopes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahashi, Yasuyuki; Igarashi, Hiroshi; Hirano, Kunihiro; Kawaharada, Yasuhiro; Igarashi, Hitoshi; Murase, Ken-ya; Mochizuki, Teruhito

2007-01-01

An amendment concerning the enforcement of the law on the prevention of radiation hazards due to radioisotopes, etc., and the medical service law enforcement regulations were promulgated on June 1, 2005. This amendment concerned international basic safety standards and the sealing of radiation sources. Sealed radiation sources ≤3.7 MBq, which had been excluded from regulation, were newly included as an object of regulation. Investigation of the single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) system instituted in hospitals indicated that almost all institutions adhere to the new amendment, and the calibration source, the checking source, etc., corresponding to this amendment were maintained appropriately. Any institutions planning to return sealed radioisotopes should refer to this report. (author)

Barrow hazards survey

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-06-01

Following a series of public meetings at which PERG presented the results of a literature review and site specific accident study of the hazards of the maritime transport of spent nuclear reactor fuel to Barrow (en route to the Windscale reprocessing works), PERG was requested by the Planning Committee of Barrow Town Council to prepare an assessment of the interaction of the hazards arising from the concentration of nuclear activities in the area with those of a proposed gas-terminal. This report presents a preliminary review of the Environmental Impact Assessments prepared by the Borough Surveyor and a critical appraisal of the hazard analyses undertaken by the Health and Safety Executive, and the consultants to Cumbria County Council on this matter, the Safety and Reliability Directorate of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority. After a general and historical introduction, the document continues under the following headings: a description of the hazards (BNFL spent fuel shipments; the gas terminal; gas condensate storage; the Vickers shipyard (involving nuclear powered submarines)); the interaction of hazards; planning implications and democratic decisions; recommendations. (U.K.)

A Golden Ticket to Future Occupational and Environmental Health Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

2015-10-01

a health risk assessment (HRA) of the exposure by considering multiple factors including: threat source, route of exposure ( inhalation , ingestion...contaminants for chemical and particulate inhalational exposures. Measurements of physical exposures are also monitored to include noise, temperature, and...hazards are. Some hazards are always present in very common Air Force 12 processes (i.e. jet fuel in a refueling process), while other hazards are

Hazards from aircraft

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grund, J.E.; Hornyik, K.

1975-01-01

The siting of nuclear power plants has created innumerable environmental concerns. Among the effects of the ''man-made environment'' one of increasing importance in recent nuclear plant siting hazards analysis has been the concern about aircraft hazards to the nuclear plant. These hazards are of concern because of the possibility that an aircraft may have a malfunction and crash either near the plant or directly into it. Such a crash could be postulated to result, because of missile and/or fire effects, in radioactive releases which would endanger the public health and safety. The majority of studies related to hazards from air traffic have been concerned with the determination of the probability associated with an aircraft striking vulnerable portions of a given plant. Other studies have focused on the structural response to such a strike. This work focuses on the problem of strike probability. 13 references

Cobalt toxicity in humans-A review of the potential sources and systemic health effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Leyssens, Laura; Vinck, Bart; Van Der Straeten, Catherine; Wuyts, Floris; Maes, Leen

2017-07-15

Cobalt (Co) and its compounds are widely distributed in nature and are part of numerous anthropogenic activities. Although cobalt has a biologically necessary role as metal constituent of vitamin B 12 , excessive exposure has been shown to induce various adverse health effects. This review provides an extended overview of the possible Co sources and related intake routes, the detection and quantification methods for Co intake and the interpretation thereof, and the reported health effects. The Co sources were allocated to four exposure settings: occupational, environmental, dietary and medical exposure. Oral intake of Co supplements and internal exposure through metal-on-metal (MoM) hip implants deliver the highest systemic Co concentrations. The systemic health effects are characterized by a complex clinical syndrome, mainly including neurological (e.g. hearing and visual impairment), cardiovascular and endocrine deficits. Recently, a biokinetic model has been proposed to characterize the dose-response relationship and effects of chronic exposure. According to the model, health effects are unlikely to occur at blood Co concentrations under 300μg/l (100μg/l respecting a safety factor of 3) in healthy individuals, hematological and endocrine dysfunctions are the primary health endpoints, and chronic exposure to acceptable doses is not expected to pose considerable health hazards. However, toxic reactions at lower doses have been described in several cases of malfunctioning MoM hip implants, which may be explained by certain underlying pathologies that increase the individual susceptibility for Co-induced systemic toxicity. This may be associated with a decrease in Co bound to serum proteins and an increase in free ionic Co 2+ . As the latter is believed to be the primary toxic form, monitoring of the free fraction of Co 2+ might be advisable for future risk assessment. Furthermore, future research should focus on longitudinal studies in the clinical setting of Mo

Atmospheric dispersion prediction and source estimation of hazardous gas using artificial neural network, particle swarm optimization and expectation maximization

Science.gov (United States)

Qiu, Sihang; Chen, Bin; Wang, Rongxiao; Zhu, Zhengqiu; Wang, Yuan; Qiu, Xiaogang

2018-04-01

Hazardous gas leak accident has posed a potential threat to human beings. Predicting atmospheric dispersion and estimating its source become increasingly important in emergency management. Current dispersion prediction and source estimation models cannot satisfy the requirement of emergency management because they are not equipped with high efficiency and accuracy at the same time. In this paper, we develop a fast and accurate dispersion prediction and source estimation method based on artificial neural network (ANN), particle swarm optimization (PSO) and expectation maximization (EM). The novel method uses a large amount of pre-determined scenarios to train the ANN for dispersion prediction, so that the ANN can predict concentration distribution accurately and efficiently. PSO and EM are applied for estimating the source parameters, which can effectively accelerate the process of convergence. The method is verified by the Indianapolis field study with a SF6 release source. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the method.

Hazardous solvent substitution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Twitchell, K.E.

1995-01-01

Eliminating hazardous solvents is good for the environment, worker safety, and the bottom line. However, even though we are motivated to find replacements, the big question is 'What can we use as replacements for hazardous solvents?'You, too, can find replacements for your hazardous solvents. All you have to do is search for them. Search through the vendor literature of hundreds of companies with thousands of products. Ponder the associated material safety data sheets, assuming of course that you can obtain them and, having obtained them, that you can read them. You will want to search the trade magazines and other sources for product reviews. You will want to talk to users about how well the product actually works. You may also want to check US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other government reports for toxicity and other safety information. And, of course, you will want to compare the product's constituent chemicals with the many hazardous constituency lists to ensure the safe and legal use of the product in your workplace

Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis for Yemen

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rakesh Mohindra

2012-01-01

Full Text Available A stochastic-event probabilistic seismic hazard model, which can be used further for estimates of seismic loss and seismic risk analysis, has been developed for the territory of Yemen. An updated composite earthquake catalogue has been compiled using the databases from two basic sources and several research publications. The spatial distribution of earthquakes from the catalogue was used to define and characterize the regional earthquake source zones for Yemen. To capture all possible scenarios in the seismic hazard model, a stochastic event set has been created consisting of 15,986 events generated from 1,583 fault segments in the delineated seismic source zones. Distribution of horizontal peak ground acceleration (PGA was calculated for all stochastic events considering epistemic uncertainty in ground-motion modeling using three suitable ground motion-prediction relationships, which were applied with equal weight. The probabilistic seismic hazard maps were created showing PGA and MSK seismic intensity at 10% and 50% probability of exceedance in 50 years, considering local soil site conditions. The resulting PGA for 10% probability of exceedance in 50 years (return period 475 years ranges from 0.2 g to 0.3 g in western Yemen and generally is less than 0.05 g across central and eastern Yemen. The largest contributors to Yemen’s seismic hazard are the events from the West Arabian Shield seismic zone.

Source apportionment and health risk assessment of PM10 in a naturally ventilated school in a tropical environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohamad, Noorlin; Latif, Mohd Talib; Khan, Md Firoz

2016-02-01

This study aimed to investigate the chemical composition and potential sources of PM10 as well as assess the potential health hazards it posed to school children. PM10 samples were taken from classrooms at a school in Kuala Lumpur's city centre (S1) and one in the suburban city of Putrajaya (S2) over a period of eight hours using a low volume sampler (LVS). The composition of the major ions and trace metals in PM10 were then analysed using ion chromatography (IC) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), respectively. The results showed that the average PM10 concentration inside the classroom at the city centre school (82µg/m(3)) was higher than that from the suburban school (77µg/m(3)). Principal component analysis-absolute principal component scores (PCA-APCS) revealed that road dust was the major source of indoor PM10 at both school in the city centre (36%) and the suburban location (55%). The total hazard quotient (HQ) calculated, based on the formula suggested by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), was found to be slightly higher than the acceptable level of 1, indicating that inhalation exposure to particle-bound non-carcinogenic metals of PM10, particularly Cr exposure by children and adults occupying the school environment, was far from negligible. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An approach for balancing health and ecological risks at hazardous waste sites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suter, G.W. II; Hull, R.N.; Stack, M.; Cornaby, B.W.; Hadden, C.T.; Zafran, F.A.

1995-01-01

Human health and ecological risks must be balanced at hazardous waste sites in order to ensure that remedial actions prevent unacceptable risks of either type. Actions that are designed to protect humans may fail to protect nonhuman populations and ecosystems or may damage ecosystems. However, there is no common scale of health and ecological risk that would allow comparisons to be performed. This paper presents an approach to addressing this problem based on classifying all risks (i.e., health and ecological risks due contaminants and remediation) as insignificant (de minimis), highly significant (de manifestis), or intermediate. For health risks the classification is based on standard criteria. However, in the absence of national guidance concerning the acceptability of ecological risks, new ecological criteria are proposed based on an analysis of regulatory precedents. Matrices and flow charts are presented to guide the use of these risk categories in remedial decision making. The assessment of mercury contamination of the East Fork Poplar Creek is presented as an example of the implementation of the approach. 15 refs., 3 figs., 3 tabs

Health and safety training for hazardous waste site activities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory: Implementation of OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120(e)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

White, D.A.

1988-01-01

Among the requirements set forth by the interim final rule, 29 CFR Part 1910.120, promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in response to the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA), are specific provisions for health and safety training of employees involved in hazardous waste operations. These training provisions require a minimum of 40 hours of initial instruction off the site for employees involved in corrective operations and cleanup activities at hazardous waste sites. A less detailed training requirement of 24 hours is specified for employees working in more routine treatment, storage, and disposal activities. Managers and supervisors who are directly responsible for or who supervise employees engaged in hazardous waste operations must complete 8 additional hours of training related to management of hazardous waste site activities. Consistent with the intent of 29 CFR 1910.120, a training program has been developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to comply with the need to protect the safety and health of hazardous waste workers. All hourly requirements specified in the interim final rule are met by a comprehensive program structure involving three stages of training. This paper will outline and discuss the content of each of these stages of the program. The involvement of various ORNL organizations in facilitating the training will be highlighted. Implementation strategies will be discussed as well as progress made to date

UV radiation hazards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henderson, A.R.

1987-01-01

Exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is, for most people, a daily occurrence. Significant quantities of ultraviolet are present in sunlight, and this environmental exposure usually greatly exceeds that necessary for vitamin D production, the only certain benefit of UVR. In addition, occupational exposure to artificial sources of UVR is commonly encountered in commerce, industry and medicine. Exposure to UVR can present a hazard, principally to the eyes and exposed areas of the skin. The potential for any given source of UVR to cause photobiological damage depends on the spectral composition of the incident radiation, the geometry of optical coupling into the tissues at risk, the spectral sensitivity to damage of the irradiated tissue, the total accumulated exposure, and the action of any biological repair processes. In the ultraviolet region the photobiological interactions of concern are mainly photochemical. Hazard analysis and radiation protection require an appropriate framework of radiation measurement for the quantitative assessment of exposure and for the specification of safe exposure limits

Seismic hazard assessment of Iran

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Ghafory-Ashtiany

1999-06-01

Full Text Available The development of the new seismic hazard map of Iran is based on probabilistic seismic hazard computation using the historical earthquakes data, geology, tectonics, fault activity and seismic source models in Iran. These maps have been prepared to indicate the earthquake hazard of Iran in the form of iso-acceleration contour lines, and seismic hazard zoning, by using current probabilistic procedures. They display the probabilistic estimates of Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA for the return periods of 75 and 475 years. The maps have been divided into intervals of 0.25 degrees in both latitudinal and longitudinal directions to calculate the peak ground acceleration values at each grid point and draw the seismic hazard curves. The results presented in this study will provide the basis for the preparation of seismic risk maps, the estimation of earthquake insurance premiums, and the preliminary site evaluation of critical facilities.

SRL process hazards review manual

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-08-01

The principal objective of the Process Hazards Management Program is to provide a regular, systematic review of each process at the Savannah River Laboratory (SRL) to eliminate injuries and to minimize property damage resulting from process hazards of catastrophic potential. Management effort is directed, through the Du Pont Safety Program, toward those controls and practices that ensure this objective. The Process Hazards Management Program provides an additional dimension to further ensure the health and safety of employees and the public. Du Pont has concluded that an organized approach is essential to obtain an effective and efficient process hazards review. The intent of this manual is to provide guidance in creating such an organized approach to performing process hazards reviews on a continuing basis

Development of seismic hazard analysis in Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Itoh, T.; Ishii, K.; Ishikawa, Y.; Okumura, T.

1987-01-01

In recent years, seismic risk assessment of the nuclear power plant have been conducted increasingly in various countries, particularly in the United States to evaluate probabilistically the safety of existing plants under earthquake loading. The first step of the seismic risk assessment is the seismic hazard analysis, in which the relationship between the maximum earthquake ground motions at the plant site and their annual probability of exceedance, i.e. the seismic hazard curve, is estimated. In this paper, seismic hazard curves are evaluated and examined based on historical earthquake records model, in which seismic sources are modeled with area-sources, for several different sites in Japan. A new evaluation method is also proposed to compute the response spectra of the earthquake ground motions in connection with estimating the probabilistic structural response. Finally the numerical result of probabilistic risk assessment for a base-isolated three story RC structure, in which the frequency of seismic induced structural failure is evaluated combining the seismic hazard analysis, is described briefly

Informal processing of electronic waste at Agbogbloshie, Ghana: workers' knowledge about associated health hazards and alternative livelihoods.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Emily A; Akormedi, Matthew; Asampong, Emmanuel; Meyer, Christian G; Fobil, Julius N

2017-12-01

This study was conducted to investigate the electronic waste workers' knowledge about the potential health hazards associated with their work as well as the livelihood alternatives that they would prefer if they were given the opportunity. A qualitative cross-sectional study was conducted to gather empirical information on e-waste workers' knowledge about the potential hazards associated with their work and the livelihood alternatives to e-waste recycling with a sample consisting of twenty all-male electronic waste workers at the Agbogbloshie scrap metal yard in Accra, Ghana. Electronic waste workers at Agbogbloshie were found to be exposed to a variety of injuries and illnesses. The workers' knowledge of the association between their health status and their work was generally poor. Apart from the physical injuries, they did not believe their work played any negative role in their health conditions. They preferred occupations such as farming or professional driving located in the northern region of Ghana to be closer to their families. The study concludes that the low knowledge level of the workers on the hazards that are associated with their work has implications for them accepting technologies to protect them and the natural environment from contamination. It is therefore imperative for any intervention to consider the current low level of knowledge and actively educate the workers to raise their awareness level, taking into account the provision of opportunities for workers to acquire applicable skills for future employment in other fields.

CalEnviroScreen 1.0 (CES) Group, California, 2013, California EPA and Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — Developed jointly by the Agency and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), the tool uses data about 11 types of pollution and environmental...

One-eyed science: scientists, workplace reproductive hazards, and the right to work.

Science.gov (United States)

Messing, K

1999-01-01

Although most occupational health research has been done with male subjects and on jobs traditionally done by men, research on reproductive hazards is an exception. Researchers were late to realize that men were exposed to reproductive hazards. However, women's health problems have been excluded from the large scientific literature on reproductive hazards, which has concentrated on hazards to fetuses. This is true even of much feminist-oriented research. This neglect is attributable to a reluctance to emphasize health hazards for women at work, since identifying those specific to women may militate against women's employment. Union action is in fact necessary to protect access to employment and health at the same time.

Occupational Health Hazards of Women Working in Brick Kiln and Construction Industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. G Vaidya

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: In brick kiln and construction industry the exposure to carbon monoxide and silica dust is the most common occupational hazard to the workers in these industries. A study on occupational health hazards of working women in these two unorganized sectors was undertaken by Lokmanya Medical Research Centre. Objectives: To study the effect of work site environment on the health of the women working in brick kiln and construction industry. An attempt was also made to study the seasonal changes in the concentration of carbon monoxide and dust at the worksite. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among the working women (age 18-40 years at brick kilns and construction sites during summer and winter season. They were examined primarily to assess the effect of working environment on health. Gasteck Detector Pump of model 800 and air sampling instrument (SKC Air Check–52 were used to measure concentration of carbon monoxide and dust in the air respectively. Results: There were 66% of women who were in the age group of 18-40 years and most of them (94% were married. At brick kiln sites, average CO exposure was 62.8 ppm and 55.5 ppm and average dust exposure was 3 3 146.1 mg/m and 91.4 mg/m in summer and winter season respectively.At construction sites, average dust exposure was 41.5 ppm and 90.8 ppm in summer and winter. Conclusion: Both exposure to CO and dust were more in summer than in winter in brick kiln industry whereas in construction industry the exposure to dust was more in winter season. A high level of morbidity in the form of headache, bodyache, problems with vision, cough and breathlessness were observed in both industries. It is strongly recommended to take pollution control measures.

Seismic hazard in the Nation's breadbasket

Science.gov (United States)

Boyd, Oliver; Haller, Kathleen; Luco, Nicolas; Moschetti, Morgan P.; Mueller, Charles; Petersen, Mark D.; Rezaeian, Sanaz; Rubinstein, Justin L.

2015-01-01

The USGS National Seismic Hazard Maps were updated in 2014 and included several important changes for the central United States (CUS). Background seismicity sources were improved using a new moment-magnitude-based catalog; a new adaptive, nearest-neighbor smoothing kernel was implemented; and maximum magnitudes for background sources were updated. Areal source zones developed by the Central and Eastern United States Seismic Source Characterization for Nuclear Facilities project were simplified and adopted. The weighting scheme for ground motion models was updated, giving more weight to models with a faster attenuation with distance compared to the previous maps. Overall, hazard changes (2% probability of exceedance in 50 years, across a range of ground-motion frequencies) were smaller than 10% in most of the CUS relative to the 2008 USGS maps despite new ground motion models and their assigned logic tree weights that reduced the probabilistic ground motions by 5–20%.

When probabilistic seismic hazard climbs volcanoes: the Mt. Etna case, Italy – Part 1: Model components for sources parameterization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Azzaro

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The volcanic region of Mt. Etna (Sicily, Italy represents a perfect lab for testing innovative approaches to seismic hazard assessment. This is largely due to the long record of historical and recent observations of seismic and tectonic phenomena, the high quality of various geophysical monitoring and particularly the rapid geodynamics clearly demonstrate some seismotectonic processes. We present here the model components and the procedures adopted for defining seismic sources to be used in a new generation of probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA, the first results and maps of which are presented in a companion paper, Peruzza et al. (2017. The sources include, with increasing complexity, seismic zones, individual faults and gridded point sources that are obtained by integrating geological field data with long and short earthquake datasets (the historical macroseismic catalogue, which covers about 3 centuries, and a high-quality instrumental location database for the last decades. The analysis of the frequency–magnitude distribution identifies two main fault systems within the volcanic complex featuring different seismic rates that are controlled essentially by volcano-tectonic processes. We discuss the variability of the mean occurrence times of major earthquakes along the main Etnean faults by using an historical approach and a purely geologic method. We derive a magnitude–size scaling relationship specifically for this volcanic area, which has been implemented into a recently developed software tool – FiSH (Pace et al., 2016 – that we use to calculate the characteristic magnitudes and the related mean recurrence times expected for each fault. Results suggest that for the Mt. Etna area, the traditional assumptions of uniform and Poissonian seismicity can be relaxed; a time-dependent fault-based modeling, joined with a 3-D imaging of volcano-tectonic sources depicted by the recent instrumental seismicity, can therefore be

Chemical health risk assessment for hazardous and mixed waste management units at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-09-01

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) operates three Hazardous Waste Management Facilities with 24 associated waste management units for the treatment and storage of hazardous and mixed wastes. These wastes are generated by research programs and support operations. The storage and treatment units are presently operated under interim status in accordance with the requirements of the US Envirorunental Protection Agency (US EPA) and the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), a division of the California Envirorunental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA). As required by the California Hazardous Waste Control Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), LLNL ha s applied for a Part B permit to continue operating the storage and waste treatment facilities. As part of this permitting process, LLNL is required to conduct a health risk assessment (HRA) to examine the potential health impacts to the surrounding community from continued storage and treatment of hazardous and mixed wastes. analysis document presents the results of this risk assessment. An analysis of maximum credible chemical accidents is also included in Section 7.0. This HRA was prepared in accordance with procedures set forth by the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association (CAPCOA) ''Air Toxics Assessment Manual,'' CAPCOA guidelines for preparing risk assessments under the Air Toxic ''Hot Spots'' Act (AB 2588) and requirements of the US EPA. By following these procedures, this risk assessment presents a conservative analysis of a hypothetical Maximally Exposed Individual (MEI) using many worst-case assumptions that will not apply to an actual individual. As such, the risk estimates presented should be regarded as a worst-case estimate of any actual risk that may be present

Household hazardous waste in municipal landfills: contaminants in leachate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slack, R.J.; Gronow, J.R.; Voulvoulis, N.

2005-01-01

Household hazardous waste (HHW) includes waste from a number of household products such as paint, garden pesticides, pharmaceuticals, photographic chemicals, certain detergents, personal care products, fluorescent tubes, waste oil, heavy metal-containing batteries, wood treated with dangerous substances, waste electronic and electrical equipment and discarded CFC-containing equipment. Data on the amounts of HHW discarded are very limited and are hampered by insufficient definitions of what constitutes HHW. Consequently, the risks associated with the disposal of HHW to landfill have not been fully elucidated. This work has focused on the assessment of data concerning the presence of hazardous chemicals in leachates as evidence of the disposal of HHW in municipal landfills. Evidence is sought from a number of sources on the occurrence in landfill leachates of hazardous components (heavy metals and xenobiotic organic compounds [XOC]) from household products and the possible disposal-to-emissions pathways occurring within landfills. This review demonstrates that a broad range of xenobiotic compounds occurring in leachate can be linked to HHW but further work is required to assess whether such compounds pose a risk to the environment and human health as a result of leakage/seepage or through treatment and discharge

An agriculture and health inter-sectorial research process to reduce hazardous pesticide health impacts among smallholder farmers in the Andes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chacon Aura

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The use of highly hazardous pesticides by smallholder farmers constitutes a classic trans-sectoral ‘wicked problem’. We share our program of research in potato and vegetable farming communities in the Andean highlands, working with partners from multiple sectors to confront this problem over several projects. Methods We engaged in iterative cycles of mixed methods research around particular questions, actions relevant to stakeholders, new proposal formulation and implementation followed by evaluation of impacts. Capacity building occurred among farmers, technical personnel, and students from multiple disciplines. Involvement of research users occurred throughout: women and men farmers, non-governmental development organizations, Ministries of Health and Agriculture, and, in Ecuador, the National Council on Social Participation. Results Pesticide poisonings were more widespread than existing passive surveillance systems would suggest. More diversified, moderately developed agricultural systems had lower pesticide use and better child nutrition. Greater understanding among women of crop management options and more equal household gender relations were associated with reduced farm pesticide use and household pesticide exposure. Involvement in more organic agriculture was associated with greater household food security and food sovereignty. Markets for safer produce supported efforts by smallholder farmers to reduce hazardous pesticide use. Participatory interventions included: promoting greater access to alternative methods and inputs in a store co-sponsored by the municipality; producing less harmful inputs such as compost by women farmers; strengthening farmer organizations around healthier and more sustainable agriculture; marketing safer produce among social sectors; empowering farmers to act as social monitors; and using social monitoring results to inform decision makers. Uptake by policy makers has included: the

An agriculture and health inter-sectorial research process to reduce hazardous pesticide health impacts among smallholder farmers in the Andes.

Science.gov (United States)

Cole, Donald C; Orozco T, Fadya; Pradel, Willy; Suquillo, Jovanny; Mera, Xavier; Chacon, Aura; Prain, Gordon; Wanigaratne, Susitha; Leah, Jessica

2011-11-08

The use of highly hazardous pesticides by smallholder farmers constitutes a classic trans-sectoral 'wicked problem'. We share our program of research in potato and vegetable farming communities in the Andean highlands, working with partners from multiple sectors to confront this problem over several projects. We engaged in iterative cycles of mixed methods research around particular questions, actions relevant to stakeholders, new proposal formulation and implementation followed by evaluation of impacts. Capacity building occurred among farmers, technical personnel, and students from multiple disciplines. Involvement of research users occurred throughout: women and men farmers, non-governmental development organizations, Ministries of Health and Agriculture, and, in Ecuador, the National Council on Social Participation. Pesticide poisonings were more widespread than existing passive surveillance systems would suggest. More diversified, moderately developed agricultural systems had lower pesticide use and better child nutrition. Greater understanding among women of crop management options and more equal household gender relations were associated with reduced farm pesticide use and household pesticide exposure. Involvement in more organic agriculture was associated with greater household food security and food sovereignty. Markets for safer produce supported efforts by smallholder farmers to reduce hazardous pesticide use.Participatory interventions included: promoting greater access to alternative methods and inputs in a store co-sponsored by the municipality; producing less harmful inputs such as compost by women farmers; strengthening farmer organizations around healthier and more sustainable agriculture; marketing safer produce among social sectors; empowering farmers to act as social monitors; and using social monitoring results to inform decision makers. Uptake by policy makers has included: the Ecuadorian Ministry of Health rolling out pesticide poisoning

Health risk assessment for chemical exposures of military interest

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Langenberg, J.P.; Polhuijs, M.; Sijbranda, T.

2016-01-01

Participation in military operations is accompanied by health hazards resulting from exposure to chemical substances from natural and anthropogenic sources. Historically, focus on toxicological risks has been on the health effects of exposure to chemical warfare agents (CW A). In recent years the

Awareness and Self-Reported Health Hazards of Electromagnetic Waves from Mobile Phone Towers in Dhaka, Bangladesh: A Pilot Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sheikh Mohammed Shariful Islam

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Over the last few years there have been concerns regarding the health effects of electromagnetic waves (EMW produced by mobile phone base transmitter stations (BTS. Data on possible health effects of EMW in developing countries are rare. This study was conducted to determine the awareness and self-reported health hazards of EMW from the mobile phone BTS in Dhaka city. Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 220 respondents living around BTS in Dhaka city. Data was collected on sociodemographic characteristics, mobile phone use, BTS and EMW awareness, and self-reported health problems. Results. The majority of respondents (92.7% reported to have seen a BTS but only 29.5% knows how it works and 74.5% had no knowledge about the EMW. 49% respondents experienced sleeping disturbances while recent episodes of headache or dizziness were reported by 47% and mood change or anxiety or depression by 41%. About 22% complained about other physical or mental symptoms. Conclusion. Awareness about the possible health hazards from EMW of BTS is low among the inhabitants of Dhaka city. A number of respondents mentioned recent health effects but the association with BTS could not be established.

Tsunami hazard assessment in El Salvador, Central America, from seismic sources through flooding numerical models.

Science.gov (United States)

Álvarez-Gómez, J. A.; Aniel-Quiroga, Í.; Gutiérrez-Gutiérrez, O. Q.; Larreynaga, J.; González, M.; Castro, M.; Gavidia, F.; Aguirre-Ayerbe, I.; González-Riancho, P.; Carreño, E.

2013-11-01

El Salvador is the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America; its coast has an approximate length of 320 km, 29 municipalities and more than 700 000 inhabitants. In El Salvador there were 15 recorded tsunamis between 1859 and 2012, 3 of them causing damages and resulting in hundreds of victims. Hazard assessment is commonly based on propagation numerical models for earthquake-generated tsunamis and can be approached through both probabilistic and deterministic methods. A deterministic approximation has been applied in this study as it provides essential information for coastal planning and management. The objective of the research was twofold: on the one hand the characterization of the threat over the entire coast of El Salvador, and on the other the computation of flooding maps for the three main localities of the Salvadorian coast. For the latter we developed high-resolution flooding models. For the former, due to the extension of the coastal area, we computed maximum elevation maps, and from the elevation in the near shore we computed an estimation of the run-up and the flooded area using empirical relations. We have considered local sources located in the Middle America Trench, characterized seismotectonically, and distant sources in the rest of Pacific Basin, using historical and recent earthquakes and tsunamis. We used a hybrid finite differences-finite volumes numerical model in this work, based on the linear and non-linear shallow water equations, to simulate a total of 24 earthquake-generated tsunami scenarios. Our results show that at the western Salvadorian coast, run-up values higher than 5 m are common, while in the eastern area, approximately from La Libertad to the Gulf of Fonseca, the run-up values are lower. The more exposed areas to flooding are the lowlands in the Lempa River delta and the Barra de Santiago Western Plains. The results of the empirical approximation used for the whole country are similar to the results

Health risk assessment of drinking arsenic-containing groundwater in Hasilpur, Pakistan: effect of sampling area, depth, and source.

Science.gov (United States)

Tabassum, Riaz Ahmad; Shahid, Muhammad; Dumat, Camille; Niazi, Nabeel Khan; Khalid, Sana; Shah, Noor Samad; Imran, Muhammad; Khalid, Samina

2018-02-10

Currently, several news channels and research publications have highlighted the dilemma of arsenic (As)-contaminated groundwater in Pakistan. However, there is lack of data regarding groundwater As content of various areas in Pakistan. The present study evaluated As contamination and associated health risks in previously unexplored groundwater of Hasilpur-Pakistan. Total of 61 groundwater samples were collected from different areas (rural and urban), sources (electric pump, hand pump, and tubewell) and depths (35-430 ft or 11-131 m). The water samples were analyzed for As level and other parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, cations, and anions. It was found that 41% (25 out of 61) water samples contained As (≥ 5 μg/L). Out of 25 As-contaminated water samples, 13 water samples exceeded the permissible level of WHO (10 μg/L). High As contents have been found in tubewell samples and at high sampling depths (> 300 ft). The major As-contaminated groundwater in Hasilpur is found in urban areas. Furthermore, health risk and cancer risk due to As contamination were also assessed with respect to average daily dose (ADD), hazard quotient (HQ), and carcinogenic risk (CR). The values of HQ and CR of As in Hasilpur were up to 58 and 0.00231, respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed a positive correlation between groundwater As contents, pH, and depth in Hasilpur. The current study proposed the proper monitoring and management of well water in Hasilpur to minimize the As-associated health hazards.

College Students' Health Information Activities on Facebook: Investigating the Impacts of Health Topic Sensitivity, Information Sources, and Demographics.

Science.gov (United States)

Syn, Sue Yeon; Kim, Sung Un

2016-07-01

College students tend to lack access to health information. Because social networking sites (SNSs) are popularly adopted by college students, SNSs are considered to be good media channels for college students to obtain health-related information. This study examines the factors that influence college students' health information-seeking and -sharing activities on Facebook. An online survey was distributed to college students between the ages of 18 and 29 to determine intentions pertaining to health information activities according to the factors identified for the study. The factors included both contextual factors (such as health topic sensitivity and health information sources) as well as user factors (such as demographics). Our findings showed that college students are willing to read and post health-related information on Facebook when the health topic is not sensitive. In addition, there are clear differences in preferences between professional sources and personal sources as health information sources. It was found that most user factors, except gender, have no influence on health information activities. The impacts of SNS contexts, awareness of information sources, types of interlocutors, and privacy concerns are further discussed.

Security and health protection during the transport of hazardous substances

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benkovic, Z.; Bobic, V.

2009-01-01

The introduction of this work describes the legal regulations which regulate the conditions and method of the transport of hazardous substances, necessary documentation for storage, forwarding and transport. Hazardous substances are defined and classified according to the ADR. The necessary security measures which are taken for the transport of particular types of hazardous substances are mentioned. Marking and labeling of vehicles for the transport of hazardous substances (plates and lists of hazards), packing and marking of packaging is important. The safety measures which are taken at the filling stations of combustible liquids as well as places specially organized for filling, prohibitions and limitations and necessary transport documentation are mentioned. It is visible from the above mentioned that the activity of the whole security chain is necessary and depends on the good knowledge of basic characteristics and features of substances. All the participants in the security chain have to be familiar with and consistently obey the legal regulations. The manufacturer must know the features of the hazardous substance, supervisory services must be acquainted with the threat and potential danger. The hauler and intervention forces must, in case of accidents and damage, be familiar with the emergency procedures in case of accidents and act properly regarding the threatening dangerous substance.(author)

The Multimedia Environmental Pollutant Assessment System (MEPAS)reg-sign: Source-term release formulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Streile, G.P.; Shields, K.D.; Stroh, J.L.; Bagaasen, L.M.; Whelan, G.; McDonald, J.P.; Droppo, J.G.; Buck, J.W.

1996-11-01

This report is one of a series of reports that document the mathematical models in the Multimedia Environmental Pollutant Assessment System (MEPAS). Developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory for the US Department of Energy, MEPAS is an integrated impact assessment software implementation of physics-based fate and transport models in air, soil, and water media. Outputs are estimates of exposures and health risk assessments for radioactive and hazardous pollutants. Each of the MEPAS formulation documents covers a major MEPAS component such as source-term, atmospheric, vadose zone/groundwater, surface water, and health exposure/health impact assessment. Other MEPAS documentation reports cover the sensitivity/uncertainty formulations and the database parameter constituent property estimation methods. The pollutant source-term release component is documented in this report. MEPAS simulates the release of contaminants from a source, transport through the air, groundwater, surface water, or overland pathways, and transfer through food chains and exposure pathways to the exposed individual or population. For human health impacts, risks are computed for carcinogens and hazard quotients for noncarcinogens. MEPAS is implemented on a desktop computer with a user-friendly interface that allows the user to define the problem, input the required data, and execute the appropriate models for both deterministic and probabilistic analyses

Source reliability in auditory health persuasion : Its antecedents and consequences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Elbert, Sarah P.; Dijkstra, Arie

2015-01-01

Persuasive health messages can be presented through an auditory channel, thereby enhancing the salience of the source, making it fundamentally different from written or pictorial information. We focused on the determinants of perceived source reliability in auditory health persuasion by

Seismic hazard assessment of the Hanford region, Eastern Washington State

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Youngs, R.R.; Coppersmith, K.J.; Power, M.S.; Swan, F.H. III

1985-01-01

A probabilistic seismic hazard assessment was made for a site within the Hanford region of eastern Washington state, which is characterized as an intraplate region having a relatively low rate of seismic activity. Probabilistic procedures, such as logic trees, were utilized to account for the uncertainties in identifying and characterizing the potential seismic sources in the region. Logic trees provide a convenient, flexible means of assessing the values and relative likelihoods of input parameters to the hazard model that may be dependent upon each other. Uncertainties accounted for in this way include the tectonic model, segmentation, capability, fault geometry, maximum earthquake magnitude, and earthquake recurrence rate. The computed hazard results are expressed as a distribution from which confidence levels are assessed. Analysis of the results show the contributions to the total hazard from various seismic sources and due to various earthquake magnitudes. In addition, the contributions of uncertainties in the various source parameters to the uncertainty in the computed hazard are assessed. For this study, the major contribution to uncertainty in the computed hazard are due to uncertainties in the applicable tectonic model and the earthquake recurrence rate. This analysis serves to illustrate some of the probabilistic tools that are available for conducting seismic hazard assessments and for analyzing the results of these studies. 5 references, 7 figures

30 CFR 56.16004 - Containers for hazardous materials.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Containers for hazardous materials. 56.16004 Section 56.16004 Mineral Resources MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR METAL AND... Storage and Handling § 56.16004 Containers for hazardous materials. Containers holding hazardous materials...

30 CFR 57.16004 - Containers for hazardous materials.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Containers for hazardous materials. 57.16004 Section 57.16004 Mineral Resources MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR METAL AND... Storage and Handling § 57.16004 Containers for hazardous materials. Containers holding hazardous materials...

Technology assessment of solar-energy systems. Materials resource and hazardous materials impacts of solar deployment

Science.gov (United States)

Schiffman, Y. M.; Tahami, J. E.

1982-04-01

The materials-resource and hazardous-materials impacts were determined by examining the type and quantity of materials used in the manufacture, construction, installation, operation and maintenance of solar systems. The materials requirements were compared with US materials supply and demand data to determine if potential problems exist in terms of future availability of domestic supply and increased dependence on foreign sources of supply. Hazardous materials were evaluated in terms of public and occupational health hazards and explosive and fire hazards. It is concluded that: although large amounts of materials would be required, the US had sufficient industrial capacity to produce those materials; (2) postulated growth in solar technology deployment during the period 1995-2000 could cause some production shortfalls in the steel and copper industry; the U.S. could increase its import reliance for certain materials such as silver, iron ore, and copper; however, shifts to other materials such as aluminum and polyvinylchloride could alleviate some of these problems.

Dominant seismic sources for the cities in South Sumatra

Science.gov (United States)

Sunardi, Bambang; Sakya, Andi Eka; Masturyono, Murjaya, Jaya; Rohadi, Supriyanto; Sulastri, Putra, Ade Surya

2017-07-01

Subduction zone along west of Sumatra and Sumatran fault zone are active seismic sources. Seismotectonically, South Sumatra could be affected by earthquakes triggered by these seismic sources. This paper discussed contribution of each seismic source to earthquake hazards for cities of Palembang, Prabumulih, Banyuasin, OganIlir, Ogan Komering Ilir, South Oku, Musi Rawas and Empat Lawang. These hazards are presented in form of seismic hazard curves. The study was conducted by using Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis (PSHA) of 2% probability of exceedance in 50 years. Seismic sources used in analysis included megathrust zone M2 of Sumatra and South Sumatra, background seismic sources and shallow crustal seismic sources consist of Ketaun, Musi, Manna and Kumering faults. The results of the study showed that for cities relatively far from the seismic sources, subduction / megathrust seismic source with a depth ≤ 50 km greatly contributed to the seismic hazard and the other areas showed deep background seismic sources with a depth of more than 100 km dominate to seismic hazard respectively.

The occupational health status of African-American women health care workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, C W

1996-01-01

Race, ethnicity, and gender are significant indicators of occupational status, general health status, and thus, occupational health status. Although African-American women constitute only 6.8% of the total U.S. labor force, they hold 20% of the jobs in the health care industry and are disproportionately represented in those jobs that have the highest levels of workplace exposure to hazards. As a result, they are therefore more likely to be at greater exposure and risk to the spectrum of occupational health problems. In order to gain insight into the effects of race and gender on the occupational health status of African-American women health care workers, this article uses three data sources that provide different but complementary sources of information on the demographic characteristics of workers, location of categories of occupations, working conditions of jobs, and other job and worker characteristics. Given the concentration of African-American women in health care positions where there exists a greater likelihood of being exposed to occupational hazards, it is therefore both logical and appropriate for primary care physicians, especially those engaged in office-based practices, to identify this target population for special services and to be more aware of the type of health issues with which these patients are more likely to present and to experience during their working lives. Health care providers have a responsibility to assess occupational factors related to a patient's health problems and to incorporate this information into their treatment protocols and into the design and explanation of each patient's care plan.

A hazard to health? Fine particles arouse worldwide interest

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karas, J; Oesch, P

1998-07-01

The most recent studies show that particles contained in the air that we breathe may have harmful effects on the health of asthmatics, children and old people in particular. Particle material found in ambient air is formed by emissions resulting from traffic, industry and other use of fuels. Nature`s own sources also have a significant effect on particle concentrations. The mechanisms by which fine particles may produce negative health effects are so far unknown. At present it is therefore impossible to assess the effects of emissions of fine particles resulting, for instance, from the use of fossil fuels

[Environmental Hazards Assessment Program annual report, June 1992--June 1993

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-06-01

This report contains the script from a videotaped dialogue concerning a hypothetical hazardous waste/community health risk scenario presented as a Round Table Forum. Various issues are explored, ranging from the scientific and technical aspects of environmental studies and remedial action, to public information and community involvement, to the economic impact on local communities. The roles of the media, local government and federal and state agencies are examined as well as sources for funding. In an attempt to gauge audience response and reaction, evaluation cards were distributed, and the comments and recommendations are included here

Hazard classification of environmental restoration activities at the INEL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peatross, R.G.

1996-04-01

The following documents require that a hazard classification be prepared for all activities for which US Department of Energy (DOE) has assumed environmental, safety, and health responsibility: the DOE Order 5481.1B, Safety Analysis and Review System and DOE Order 5480.23, Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports. A hazard classification defines the level of hazard posed by an operation or activity, assuming an unmitigated release of radioactive and nonradioactive hazardous material. For environmental restoration activities, the release threshold criteria presented in Hazard Baseline Documentation (DOE-EM-STD-5502-94) are used to determine classifications, such as Radiological, Nonnuclear, and Other Industrial facilities. Based upon DOE-EM-STD-5502-94, environmental restoration activities in all but one of the sites addressed by the scope of this classification (see Section 2) can be classified as ''Other Industrial Facility''. DOE-EM-STD-5502-94 states that a Health and Safety Plan and compliance with the applicable Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards are sufficient safety controls for this classification

Developing regional workplace health and hazard surveillance in the Americas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Choi Bernard C. K.

2001-01-01

Full Text Available An objective of the Workers' Health Program at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO is to strengthen surveillance in workers' health in the Region of the Americas in order to implement prevention and control strategies. To date, four phases of projects have been organized to develop multinational workplace health and hazard surveillance in the Region. Phase 1 was a workshop held in 1999 in Washington, D.C., for the purpose of developing a methodology for identifying and prioritizing the top three occupational sentinel health events to be incorporated into the surveillance systems in the Region. Three surveillance protocols were developed, one each for fatal occupational injuries, pesticide poisoning,4 and low back pain, which were identified in the workshop as the most important occupational health problems. Phase 2 comprised projects to disseminate the findings and recommendations of the Washington Workshop, including publications, pilot projects, software development, electronic communication, and meetings. Phase 3 was a sub-regional meeting in 2000 in Rosario, Argentina, to follow up on the progress in carrying out the recommendations of the Washington workshop and to create a Virtual Regional Center for Latin America that could coordinate the efforts of member countries. Currently phase 4 includes a number of projects to achieve the objectives of this Center, such as pilot projects, capacity building, editing a compact disk, analyzing legal systems and intervention strategies, software training, and developing an internet course on surveillance. By documenting the joint efforts made to initiate and develop Regional multinational surveillance of occupational injuries and diseases in the Americas, this paper aims to provide experience and guidance for others wishing to initiate and develop regional multinational surveillance for other diseases or in other regions.

Recent developments in health risks modeling techniques applied to hazardous waste site assessment and remediation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mendez, W.M. Jr.

1990-01-01

Remediation of hazardous an mixed waste sites is often driven by assessments of human health risks posed by the exposures to hazardous substances released from these sites. The methods used to assess potential health risk involve, either implicitly or explicitly, models for pollutant releases, transport, human exposure and intake, and for characterizing health effects. Because knowledge about pollutant fate transport processes at most waste sites is quite limited, and data cost are quite high, most of the models currently used to assess risk, and endorsed by regulatory agencies, are quite simple. The models employ many simplifying assumptions about pollutant fate and distribution in the environment about human pollutant intake, and toxicologic responses to pollutant exposures. An important consequence of data scarcity and model simplification is that risk estimates are quite uncertain and estimates of the magnitude uncertainty associated with risk assessment has been very difficult. A number of methods have been developed to address the issue of uncertainty in risk assessments in a manner that realistically reflects uncertainty in model specification and data limitations. These methods include definition of multiple exposure scenarios, sensitivity analyses, and explicit probabilistic modeling of uncertainty. Recent developments in this area will be discussed, along with their possible impacts on remediation programs, and remaining obstacles to their wider use and acceptance by the scientific and regulatory communities

A probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment for Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Horspool, N.; Pranantyo, I.; Griffin, J.; Latief, H.; Natawidjaja, D. H.; Kongko, W.; Cipta, A.; Bustaman, B.; Anugrah, S. D.; Thio, H. K.

2014-11-01

Probabilistic hazard assessments are a fundamental tool for assessing the threats posed by hazards to communities and are important for underpinning evidence-based decision-making regarding risk mitigation activities. Indonesia has been the focus of intense tsunami risk mitigation efforts following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, but this has been largely concentrated on the Sunda Arc with little attention to other tsunami prone areas of the country such as eastern Indonesia. We present the first nationally consistent probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment (PTHA) for Indonesia. This assessment produces time-independent forecasts of tsunami hazards at the coast using data from tsunami generated by local, regional and distant earthquake sources. The methodology is based on the established monte carlo approach to probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA) and has been adapted to tsunami. We account for sources of epistemic and aleatory uncertainty in the analysis through the use of logic trees and sampling probability density functions. For short return periods (100 years) the highest tsunami hazard is the west coast of Sumatra, south coast of Java and the north coast of Papua. For longer return periods (500-2500 years), the tsunami hazard is highest along the Sunda Arc, reflecting the larger maximum magnitudes. The annual probability of experiencing a tsunami with a height of > 0.5 m at the coast is greater than 10% for Sumatra, Java, the Sunda islands (Bali, Lombok, Flores, Sumba) and north Papua. The annual probability of experiencing a tsunami with a height of > 3.0 m, which would cause significant inundation and fatalities, is 1-10% in Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok and north Papua, and 0.1-1% for north Sulawesi, Seram and Flores. The results of this national-scale hazard assessment provide evidence for disaster managers to prioritise regions for risk mitigation activities and/or more detailed hazard or risk assessment.

A~probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment for Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Horspool, N.; Pranantyo, I.; Griffin, J.; Latief, H.; Natawidjaja, D. H.; Kongko, W.; Cipta, A.; Bustaman, B.; Anugrah, S. D.; Thio, H. K.

2014-05-01

Probabilistic hazard assessments are a fundamental tool for assessing the threats posed by hazards to communities and are important for underpinning evidence based decision making on risk mitigation activities. Indonesia has been the focus of intense tsunami risk mitigation efforts following the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, but this has been largely concentrated on the Sunda Arc, with little attention to other tsunami prone areas of the country such as eastern Indonesia. We present the first nationally consistent Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Assessment (PTHA) for Indonesia. This assessment produces time independent forecasts of tsunami hazard at the coast from tsunami generated by local, regional and distant earthquake sources. The methodology is based on the established monte-carlo approach to probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA) and has been adapted to tsunami. We account for sources of epistemic and aleatory uncertainty in the analysis through the use of logic trees and through sampling probability density functions. For short return periods (100 years) the highest tsunami hazard is the west coast of Sumatra, south coast of Java and the north coast of Papua. For longer return periods (500-2500 years), the tsunami hazard is highest along the Sunda Arc, reflecting larger maximum magnitudes along the Sunda Arc. The annual probability of experiencing a tsunami with a height at the coast of > 0.5 m is greater than 10% for Sumatra, Java, the Sunda Islands (Bali, Lombok, Flores, Sumba) and north Papua. The annual probability of experiencing a tsunami with a height of >3.0 m, which would cause significant inundation and fatalities, is 1-10% in Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok and north Papua, and 0.1-1% for north Sulawesi, Seram and Flores. The results of this national scale hazard assessment provide evidence for disaster managers to prioritise regions for risk mitigation activities and/or more detailed hazard or risk assessment.

Development of District-Based Mineral-Hazards Maps for Highways in California

Science.gov (United States)

Higgins, C. T.; Churchill, R. K.; Fonseca, M. C.

2011-12-01

The California Geological Survey (CGS) currently is developing a series of unpublished maps for the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) that shows potential for mineral hazards within each of the twelve highway districts administered by that agency. Where present along or near highway corridors, such hazards may pose problems for human health and safety or the environment. Prepared at a scale of 1:250,000, the maps are designed as initial screening tools for Caltrans staff to use to improve planning of activities that involve new construction projects, routine maintenance of highways, and emergency removal of debris deposited on roads by natural processes. Although the basic presentation of each type of thematic map in the series is the same, some customization and focus are allowed for each district because each has unique issues concerning potential for mineral hazards. The maps display many natural and man-made features that may be potential sources of mineral hazards within each district. Features compiled and evaluated under our definition of "mineral hazards" are: 1) naturally-occurring asbestos (NOA); 2) natural occurrences of various regulated metals (Ag, Ba, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb, Tl, V, Zn) and metalloids (As, Sb, Se) as well as other pertinent metals, such as Mn and U; 3) faults, which can be sites of increased potential for certain types of mineralization, such as NOA; 4) mines and prospects, which can be sources of anomalous concentrations of metals as well as ore-processing chemicals; 5) natural petroleum features, such as oil and natural-gas seeps; 6) natural geothermal features, such as thermal springs and fumaroles; and 7) oil, natural-gas, and geothermal wells. Because of their greater potential as sources of mineral hazards, localities designated on the maps as "areas of potential mineralogical concern" are of particular interest to Caltrans. Examples include significant mining districts, such as New Almaden (Hg) near

Reducing hazardous cleaning product use: a collaborative effort.

Science.gov (United States)

Pechter, Elise; Azaroff, Lenore S; López, Isabel; Goldstein-Gelb, Marcy

2009-01-01

Workplace hazards affecting vulnerable populations of low-wage and immigrant workers present a special challenge to the practice of occupational health. Unions, Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health (COSH) groups, and other organizations have developed worker-led approaches to promoting safety. Public health practitioners can provide support for these efforts. This article describes a successful multiyear project led by immigrant cleaning workers with their union, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 615, and with support from the Massachusetts COSH (MassCOSH) to address exposure to hazardous chemicals. After the union had identified key issues and built a strategy, the union and MassCOSH invited staff from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health's Occupational Health Surveillance Program (OHSP) to provide technical information about health effects and preventive measures. Results included eliminating the most hazardous chemicals, reducing the number of products used, banning mixing products, and improving safety training. OHSP's history of public health practice regarding cleaning products enabled staff to respond promptly. MassCOSH's staff expertise and commitment to immigrant workers allowed it to play a vital role.

Hazardous Air Pollutants

Science.gov (United States)

... Search Main menu Environmental Topics Air Bed Bugs Chemicals and Toxics Environmental Information by Location Greener Living Health Land, ... regulate toxic air pollutants, also known as air toxics, from categories of industrial facilities in two phases . About Hazardous Air Pollutants ...

Open Source, Open Standards, and Health Care Information Systems

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Recognition of the improvements in patient safety, quality of patient care, and efficiency that health care information systems have the potential to bring has led to significant investment. Globally the sale of health care information systems now represents a multibillion dollar industry. As policy makers, health care professionals, and patients, we have a responsibility to maximize the return on this investment. To this end we analyze alternative licensing and software development models, as well as the role of standards. We describe how licensing affects development. We argue for the superiority of open source licensing to promote safer, more effective health care information systems. We claim that open source licensing in health care information systems is essential to rational procurement strategy. PMID:21447469

Chernobyl - an evaluation of health hazards. 3. Enl. and Rev. Ed. Tschernobyl - eine Einschaetzung der gesundheitlichen Schaeden

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huber, E E; Dersee, T; Iwert, B

1986-01-01

The pamphlet abstracted contains some general information about the radiation hazards and health risks of nuclear power plants. The consequences of the Chernobyl reactor accident are dealt with by way of summarizing the events and by evaluating the health risks and damage the public should be prepared for. This topical report is completed by a popular presentation of the risks of nuclear power and by definitions of the major terms and measuring units.

Ultra-violet radiation: hazard in workplaces? (part II)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohd Yusof Mohd Ali

2003-01-01

Not many workers are aware that apart from chemicals, physical agents, noise and machines which are known to be hazardous in workplaces, there exist another source of hazard which is equally important to be recognised and respected, that is hazard due to ultrviolet radiation (UV). This is the continuation of part I, which was discussed in the later issue. In this part, hazard of ultraviolet radiation were briefly discused i.e. effects on the skin and the eyes. Other subjects discussed are exposure limits, how to assess the radiation, protection against ultraviolet radiation

75 FR 32005 - National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Major Sources: Industrial...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-06-04

... Manufacturers of motor vehicle parts and accessories. 221 Electric, gas, and sanitary services. 622 Health...)) vacating and remanding CAA section 112(d) MACT standards for the Brick and Structural Clay Ceramics source...

Distribution, source identification and health risk assessment of soil heavy metals in urban areas of Isfahan province, Iran

Science.gov (United States)

Rastegari Mehr, Meisam; Keshavarzi, Behnam; Moore, Farid; Sharifi, Reza; Lahijanzadeh, Ahmadreza; Kermani, Maryam

2017-08-01

The present study examines some heavy metals (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) contents in urban soils of 23 cities in Isfahan province, central Iran. For this purpose, 83 topsoil samples were collected and analyzed by ICP-MS. Results showed that the concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn are higher than background values, while Co, Cr and Ni concentrations are close to the background. Compared with heavy metal concentrations in selected cities around the world, As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn concentrations in urban soils of Isfahan are relatively enriched. Moreover, natural background concentrations of Co, Cr and Ni in Isfahan province soil are high and the apparent enrichment relative to other major cities of the world is due to this high background contents. Calculated contamination factor (CF) confirmed that As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn are extremely enriched in the urban soils. Furthermore, pollution load index (PLI) and Geoaccumulation index (Igeo) highlighted that highly contaminated cities are mostly affected by pollution from traffic, industries and Shahkuh Pb-Zn mine. Based on hazard quotients (HQ), hazard index (HI) and cancer risk (CR) calculated in this study, human health risk (particularly for Pb and Cd) have reached alarming scales. Results from principle component analysis (PCA) and positive matrix factorization (PMF) introduces three sources for soils heavy metals including mine and industries (mainly for Pb, Zn, Cd and As); urban activities (particularly for Cu, Pb and Zn); and geogenic source (Ni, Co and Cr).

Musculoskeletal disorders and mental health-related issues as occupational hazards among dental practitioners in Salem city: A cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vanita D Revankar

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Like in any other profession, dental surgeons are also afflicted by many occupational health hazards such as Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD and mental health related issues. Aims: To assess the distribution of MSD and mental health related issues amidst dentists in Salem City according to age, sex and number of working hours per week. Objectives: A survey was organized to check the rate of occurrence of these occupational health hazards among dental practitioners in Salem city. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted among one hundred and fifty dentists practicing in Salem City in the form of questionnaire. Dentists were asked about any occupational disease that they suffered related to a musculo–skeletal pain and its location whether in the back, upper limbs or lower limbs. In addition to this,dentists were asked about mental stress that they had experienced. Results: MSD showed higher rate of prevalence compared to mental health related issues. Conclusion: The application of preventive measures is necessary, in view of the high rate of these disorders in the society of dental practitioners.

Modified hazard ranking system for sites with mixed radioactive and hazardous wastes. User manual

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hawley, K.A.; Peloquin, R.A.; Stenner, R.D.

1986-04-01

This document describes both the original Hazard Ranking System and the modified Hazard Ranking System as they are to be used in evaluating the relative potential for uncontrolled hazardous substance facilities to cause human health or safety problems or ecological or environmental damage. Detailed instructions for using the mHRS/HRS computer code are provided, along with instructions for performing the calculations by hand. Uniform application of the ranking system will permit the DOE to identify those releases of hazardous substances that pose the greatest hazard to humans or the environment. However, the mHRS/HRS by itself cannot establish priorities for the allocation of funds for remedial action. The mHRS/HRS is a means for applying uniform technical judgment regarding the potential hazards presented by a facility relative to other facilities. It does not address the feasibility, desirability, or degree of cleanup required. Neither does it deal with the readiness or ability of a state to carry out such remedial action, as may be indicated, or to meet other conditions prescribed in CERCLA. 13 refs., 13 figs., 27 tabs

Modified hazard ranking system for sites with mixed radioactive and hazardous wastes. User manual.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hawley, K.A.; Peloquin, R.A.; Stenner, R.D.

1986-04-01

This document describes both the original Hazard Ranking System and the modified Hazard Ranking System as they are to be used in evaluating the relative potential for uncontrolled hazardous substance facilities to cause human health or safety problems or ecological or environmental damage. Detailed instructions for using the mHRS/HRS computer code are provided, along with instructions for performing the calculations by hand. Uniform application of the ranking system will permit the DOE to identify those releases of hazardous substances that pose the greatest hazard to humans or the environment. However, the mHRS/HRS by itself cannot establish priorities for the allocation of funds for remedial action. The mHRS/HRS is a means for applying uniform technical judgment regarding the potential hazards presented by a facility relative to other facilities. It does not address the feasibility, desirability, or degree of cleanup required. Neither does it deal with the readiness or ability of a state to carry out such remedial action, as may be indicated, or to meet other conditions prescribed in CERCLA. 13 refs., 13 figs., 27 tabs.

Stop radiation hazards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1981-01-01

Brief general advice is presented for the employer unused to handling radioactive materials or using x-ray techniques. Topics mentioned are the definition of radiation and its hazards, measuring and monitoring the working environment, how to decide on and obtain equipment, standards and regulations, codes of practice, records, training, and useful sources of information. (U.K.)

Environmental health and hazardous waste issues related to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Science.gov (United States)

Carter, D E; Peña, C; Varady, R; Suk, W A

1996-06-01

Environmental health and environmental quality issues along the U.S.-Mexico border have been of concern for several years. The enactment of the North American Free Trade Agreement and the presence of the maquiladoras (foreign-owned industries using imported raw materials) have intensified those concerns recently. Efforts to assess these issues are complicated by the fact that many of the issues affecting the border region are within federal jurisdiction, but the problems are regional and local in nature. Thus, state and local governments become involved with public concerns about real and potential problems. One major problem is that environmental health data from this region are lacking, particularly from Mexico. Some new agencies such as the Border Environment Cooperation Commission, the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission, and the North American Commission on Environmental Cooperation have joined several existing agencies at the federal and state level to address environmental quality and health. Several studies have been initiated to determine air and water quality, but little is being done in the areas of hazardous waste and health assessment. Several problems are anticipated in the generation of such data, such as its format and accessibility. Data gaps and research needs are discussed.

INEL storage facility for sealed sources from the commercial sector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kingsford, C.O.; Satterthwaite, B.C.

1994-08-01

Commercially owned sealed radiation sources determine by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission to be a public health or safety hazard are accepted by the US Department of Energy, under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as material for reuse of recycle. To implement this policy, the sealed sources must be stored until proper disposition is determined. This report documents the investigation and selection process undertaken to locate a suitable storage facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

The Internet as a source of health information among Singaporeans: prevalence, patterns of health surfing and impact on health behaviour.

Science.gov (United States)

Siow, T R; Soh, I P; Sreedharan, S; Das De, S; Tan, P P; Seow, A; Lun, K C

2003-11-01

The Internet is an increasingly popular source of healthcare information. This study describes the prevalence of health surfers in Singapore and their health-surfing patterns. It also assesses their confidence in online health information and the impact the Internet has on health-seeking behaviour. A cross-sectional survey using a standardised questionnaire was carried out among residents aged 13 to 55 years in 1852 units in Bishan North. These units were selected by single-stage simple random cluster sampling method. The household response rate was 51% (n = 950) and the individual response rate was 69% (n = 1646). Responding and non-responding households were similar in terms of ethnicity and housing type. Of the responders, 62.9% surfed the Internet and 37.7% have surfed for health information. Health surfers tended to be younger (20 to 39 years) and have higher education status. Indians were also more likely than other ethnic groups to surf for health. Professional health-related sites comprised the majority (68%) of sites visited, and the most common search keywords concern chronic degenerative diseases, e.g. hypertension. The top preferred sources of health information were doctors (25.9%), the Internet (25.3%) and the traditional mass media (20.5%). Almost half (45.1%) considered online health information trustworthy if it was from a professional source or if the website displayed the source, while 10.6% trusted the information if it concurred with the doctors' advice. The vast majority (91.7%) had taken some action in response to the information. The Internet is being used as an accessible source of health information by a substantial proportion of the lay public. While this can facilitate greater partnership in healthcare, it underlines the need for doctors to be pro-active in the practice of evidence-based medicine, and for guidelines to enable patients to use this tool in a discerning manner.

Physical Exposure to Seismic Hazards of Health Facilities in Mexico City, Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez, S. M.; Novelo Casanova, D.

2010-12-01

Although health facilities are essential infrastructure during disasters and emergencies, they are also usually highly vulnerable installations in the case of the occurrence of large and major earthquakes. Hospitals are one of the most complex critical facilities in modern cities and they are used as first response in emergency situations. The operability of a hospital must be maintained after the occurrence of a local strong earthquake in order to satisfy the need for medical care of the affected population. If a health facility is seriously damaged, it cannot fulfill its function when most is needed. In this case, hospitals become a casualty of the disaster. To identify the level of physical exposure of hospitals to seismic hazards in Mexico City, we analyzed their geographic location with respect to the seismic response of the different type of soils of the city from past earthquakes, mainly from the events that occurred on September 1985 (Ms= 8.0) and April 1989 (Ms= 6.9). Seismic wave amplification in this city is the result of the interaction of the incoming seismic waves with the soft and water saturated clay soils, on which a large part of Mexico City is built. The clay soils are remnants of the lake that existed in the Valley of Mexico and which has been drained gradually to accommodate the growing urban sprawl. Hospital facilities were converted from a simple database of names and locations into a map layer of resources. This resource layer was combined with other map layers showing areas of seismic microzonation in Mexico City. This overlay was then used to identify those hospitals that may be threatened by the occurrence of a large or major seismic event. We analyzed the public and private hospitals considered as main health facilities. Our results indicate that more than 50% of the hospitals are highly exposed to seismic hazards. Besides, in most of these health facilities we identified the lack of preventive measures and preparedness to reduce their

Projections of air toxic emissions from coal-fired utility combustion: Input for hazardous air pollutant regulators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szpunar, C.B.

1993-01-01

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required by the 1990 CAAA to promulgate rules for all ''major'' sources of any of these HAPs. According to the HAPs section of the new Title III, any stationary source emitting 10 tons per year (TPY) of one HAP or 25 TPY of a combination of HAPs will be considered and designated a major source. In contrast to the original National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP), which were designed to protect public health to ''an ample margin of safety,'' the new Title III, in its first phase, will regulate by industrial category those sources emitting HAPs in excess of the 10/25-TPY threshold levels, regardless of health risks. The trace elements normally associated with coal mineral matter and the various compounds formed during coal combustion have the potential to produce hazardous air toxic emissions from coal-fired electric utilities. Under Title III, the EPA is required to perform certain studies, prior to any regulation of electric utilities; these studies are currently underway. Also, the US Department of Energy (DOE) maintains a vested interest in addressing those energy policy questions affecting electric utility generation, coal mining, and steel producing critical to this country's economic well-being, where balancing the costs to the producers and users of energy with the benefits of environmental protection to the workers and the general populace remains of significant concern

1992 Tier Two emergency and hazardous chemical inventory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-03-01

This report is a compilation of data on emergency and hazardous chemicals stored at the Hanford Reservation. The report lists name or chemical description, physical and health hazards, inventories and storage location

Development of a technical guide for the identification of radiological sources of potential exposure and/or contamination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reyes, R.; Scott, A.; Falo, G.; Collins, J.; Szrom, F.; Collins, D.

1999-01-01

Radiological assessment of sites with radioactive residues starts with the identification of potential sources. The US Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (USACHPPM) has developed a technical guide that summarizes sources of potential radiological exposures of both civilian and military origin. These sources include those found in the natural environment, in the nuclear fuel cycle, in medical and industrial settings, in the transportation of radioactive materials, in US Army commodities and foreign materiel, and in the use and storage of nuclear weapons. This technical guide is intended to foster awareness of radiological hazards and to provide the reader with the knowledge necessary to take the first step in radiological health risk assessment: recognition of the hazard. Furthermore, this guide can be used in conjunction with other technical guides for performing radiological surveys and field dose assessments in war or peacetime operations. (author)

Cleaning up eastern Europe: Proposals for a coordinated European hazardous waste management regime

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cassidy, B.E.

1993-01-01

In the past century, technological development has stimulated tremendous advances in manufacturing productivity and raised living standards throughout the many industrialized nations of the modern world. Only in the last quarter century, however, has the global community begun to recognize the environmental costs of this technological progress. Of principal concern is the large-scale generation by virtually all commercial and industrial sources of waste by-products posing substantial risks to human health or the environment. Methods of the appropriate management of these hazardous or toxic waste streams have received considerable attention in most developed states during the past two decades. More recently, the international community has recognized that hazardous waste management practices adopted by individual nations may pose significant transboundary environmental concerns. Extra-territorial impacts may arise directly, from the exportation of hazardous waste from one state to another, or indirectly, from the contamination of open-quotes migratory mediaclose quotes like air resources and water supplies. Recognition in the scientific community of hazardous waste's contribution to global pollution has progressed at the same time that a new sense of responsibility for the global environment has evolved in the international legal community. Accordingly, the international community has recently initiated several efforts to address the transboundary nature of hazardous waste management practices

30 CFR 56.9310 - Chute hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Resources MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR METAL AND NONMETAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARDS-SURFACE METAL AND NONMETAL MINES Loading, Hauling, and Dumping Safety... hangups shall be experienced and familiar with the task, know the hazards involved, and use the proper...

30 CFR 57.9310 - Chute hazards.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Resources MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR METAL AND NONMETAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARDS-UNDERGROUND METAL AND NONMETAL MINES Loading, Hauling, and Dumping... free chute hangups shall be experienced and familiar with the task, know the hazards involved, and use...

Reflections on the role of open source in health information system interoperability.

Science.gov (United States)

Sfakianakis, S; Chronaki, C E; Chiarugi, F; Conforti, F; Katehakis, D G

2007-01-01

This paper reflects on the role of open source in health information system interoperability. Open source is a driving force in computer science research and the development of information systems. It facilitates the sharing of information and ideas, enables evolutionary development and open collaborative testing of code, and broadens the adoption of interoperability standards. In health care, information systems have been developed largely ad hoc following proprietary specifications and customized design. However, the wide deployment of integrated services such as Electronic Health Records (EHRs) over regional health information networks (RHINs) relies on interoperability of the underlying information systems and medical devices. This reflection is built on the experiences of the PICNIC project that developed shared software infrastructure components in open source for RHINs and the OpenECG network that offers open source components to lower the implementation cost of interoperability standards such as SCP-ECG, in electrocardiography. Open source components implementing standards and a community providing feedback from real-world use are key enablers of health care information system interoperability. Investing in open source is investing in interoperability and a vital aspect of a long term strategy towards comprehensive health services and clinical research.

Baltic Sea hazardous substances management: results and challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Selin, Henrik; VanDeveer, Stacy D

2004-05-01

The introduction into the Baltic Sea of hazardous substances that are persistent, bioaccumulate, and are toxic is an important environmental and human health problem. Multilateral efforts to address this problem have primarily been taken under the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM). This article examines past HELCOM efforts on hazardous substances, and discusses future challenges regarding their management. The article finds that past actions on hazardous substances have had a positive effect on improving Baltic environmental quality and reducing human health risks, although there are remaining issues and difficulties that need to be addressed. In particular, four related future challenges for HELCOM management of hazardous substances are identified and discussed: i) the need to engender further implementation and building public and private sector capacities; ii) the need to improve data availability, quality and comparability across the region and international fora; iii) the need to strengthen existing regulations and incorporate new issues; and iv) the need to effectively coordinate HELCOM activities with efforts on hazardous substances in other international fora.

Hazard Assessment of Chemical Air Contaminants Measured in Residences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Logue, J.M.; McKone, T.E.; Sherman, M. H.; Singer, B.C.

2010-05-10

Identifying air pollutants that pose a potential hazard indoors can facilitate exposure mitigation. In this study, we compiled summary results from 77 published studies reporting measurements of chemical pollutants in residences in the United States and in countries with similar lifestyles. These data were used to calculate representative mid-range and upper bound concentrations relevant to chronic exposures for 267 pollutants and representative peak concentrations relevant to acute exposures for 5 activity-associated pollutants. Representative concentrations are compared to available chronic and acute health standards for 97 pollutants. Fifteen pollutants appear to exceed chronic health standards in a large fraction of homes. Nine other pollutants are identified as potential chronic health hazards in a substantial minority of homes and an additional nine are identified as potential hazards in a very small percentage of homes. Nine pollutants are identified as priority hazards based on the robustness of measured concentration data and the fraction of residences that appear to be impacted: acetaldehyde; acrolein; benzene; 1,3-butadiene; 1,4-dichlorobenzene; formaldehyde; naphthalene; nitrogen dioxide; and PM{sub 2.5}. Activity-based emissions are shown to pose potential acute health hazards for PM{sub 2.5}, formaldehyde, CO, chloroform, and NO{sub 2}.

Seismic hazard in the Intermountain West

Science.gov (United States)

Haller, Kathleen; Moschetti, Morgan P.; Mueller, Charles; Rezaeian, Sanaz; Petersen, Mark D.; Zeng, Yuehua

2015-01-01

The 2014 national seismic-hazard model for the conterminous United States incorporates new scientific results and important model adjustments. The current model includes updates to the historical catalog, which is spatially smoothed using both fixed-length and adaptive-length smoothing kernels. Fault-source characterization improved by adding faults, revising rates of activity, and incorporating new results from combined inversions of geologic and geodetic data. The update also includes a new suite of published ground motion models. Changes in probabilistic ground motion are generally less than 10% in most of the Intermountain West compared to the prior assessment, and ground-motion hazard in four Intermountain West cities illustrates the range and magnitude of change in the region. Seismic hazard at reference sites in Boise and Reno increased as much as 10%, whereas hazard in Salt Lake City decreased 5–6%. The largest change was in Las Vegas, where hazard increased 32–35%.

Final Report: Seismic Hazard Assessment at the PGDP

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Zhinmeng [KY Geological Survey, Univ of KY

2007-06-01

Selecting a level of seismic hazard at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant for policy considerations and engineering design is not an easy task because it not only depends on seismic hazard, but also on seismic risk and other related environmental, social, and economic issues. Seismic hazard is the main focus. There is no question that there are seismic hazards at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant because of its proximity to several known seismic zones, particularly the New Madrid Seismic Zone. The issues in estimating seismic hazard are (1) the methods being used and (2) difficulty in characterizing the uncertainties of seismic sources, earthquake occurrence frequencies, and ground-motion attenuation relationships. This report summarizes how input data were derived, which methodologies were used, and what the hazard estimates at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant are.

LAV@HAZARD: a web-GIS interface for volcanic hazard assessment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giovanni Gallo

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Satellite data, radiative power of hot spots as measured with remote sensing, historical records, on site geological surveys, digital elevation model data, and simulation results together provide a massive data source to investigate the behavior of active volcanoes like Mount Etna (Sicily, Italy over recent times. The integration of these heterogeneous data into a coherent visualization framework is important for their practical exploitation. It is crucial to fill in the gap between experimental and numerical data, and the direct human perception of their meaning. Indeed, the people in charge of safety planning of an area need to be able to quickly assess hazards and other relevant issues even during critical situations. With this in mind, we developed LAV@HAZARD, a web-based geographic information system that provides an interface for the collection of all of the products coming from the LAVA project research activities. LAV@HAZARD is based on Google Maps application programming interface, a choice motivated by its ease of use and the user-friendly interactive environment it provides. In particular, the web structure consists of four modules for satellite applications (time-space evolution of hot spots, radiant flux and effusion rate, hazard map visualization, a database of ca. 30,000 lava-flow simulations, and real-time scenario forecasting by MAGFLOW on Compute Unified Device Architecture.

Volcanic hazards to airports

Science.gov (United States)

Guffanti, M.; Mayberry, G.C.; Casadevall, T.J.; Wunderman, R.

2009-01-01

Volcanic activity has caused significant hazards to numerous airports worldwide, with local to far-ranging effects on travelers and commerce. Analysis of a new compilation of incidents of airports impacted by volcanic activity from 1944 through 2006 reveals that, at a minimum, 101 airports in 28 countries were affected on 171 occasions by eruptions at 46 volcanoes. Since 1980, five airports per year on average have been affected by volcanic activity, which indicates that volcanic hazards to airports are not rare on a worldwide basis. The main hazard to airports is ashfall, with accumulations of only a few millimeters sufficient to force temporary closures of some airports. A substantial portion of incidents has been caused by ash in airspace in the vicinity of airports, without accumulation of ash on the ground. On a few occasions, airports have been impacted by hazards other than ash (pyroclastic flow, lava flow, gas emission, and phreatic explosion). Several airports have been affected repeatedly by volcanic hazards. Four airports have been affected the most often and likely will continue to be among the most vulnerable owing to continued nearby volcanic activity: Fontanarossa International Airport in Catania, Italy; Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in Alaska, USA; Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito, Ecuador; and Tokua Airport in Kokopo, Papua New Guinea. The USA has the most airports affected by volcanic activity (17) on the most occasions (33) and hosts the second highest number of volcanoes that have caused the disruptions (5, after Indonesia with 7). One-fifth of the affected airports are within 30 km of the source volcanoes, approximately half are located within 150 km of the source volcanoes, and about three-quarters are within 300 km; nearly one-fifth are located more than 500 km away from the source volcanoes. The volcanoes that have caused the most impacts are Soufriere Hills on the island of Montserrat in the British West Indies

Hazardous fluid leak detector

Science.gov (United States)

Gray, Harold E.; McLaurin, Felder M.; Ortiz, Monico; Huth, William A.

1996-01-01

A device or system for monitoring for the presence of leaks from a hazardous fluid is disclosed which uses two electrodes immersed in deionized water. A gas is passed through an enclosed space in which a hazardous fluid is contained. Any fumes, vapors, etc. escaping from the containment of the hazardous fluid in the enclosed space are entrained in the gas passing through the enclosed space and transported to a closed vessel containing deionized water and two electrodes partially immersed in the deionized water. The electrodes are connected in series with a power source and a signal, whereby when a sufficient number of ions enter the water from the gas being bubbled through it (indicative of a leak), the water will begin to conduct, thereby allowing current to flow through the water from one electrode to the other electrode to complete the circuit and activate the signal.

Social internet sites as a source of public health information.

Science.gov (United States)

Vance, Karl; Howe, William; Dellavalle, Robert P

2009-04-01

Social media websites, such as YouTube, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and Second Life are rapidly emerging as popular sources of health information especially for teens and young adults. Social media marketing carries the advantages of low cost, rapid transmission through a wide community, and user interaction. Disadvantages include blind authorship, lack of source citation, and presentation of opinion as fact. Dermatologists and other health care providers should recognize the importance of social media websites and their potential usefulness for disseminating health information.

Deaf Adolescents’ Learning of Cardiovascular Health Information: Sources and Access Challenges

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Scott R.; Kushalnagar, Poorna; Hauser, Peter C.

2015-01-01

Deaf individuals have more cardiovascular risks than the general population that are believed to be related to their cardiovascular health knowledge disparities. This phenomenological study describes where 20 deaf sign language-using adolescents from Rochester, New York, many who possess many positive characteristics to support their health literacy, learn cardiovascular health information and their lived experiences accessing health information. The goal is to ultimately use this information to improve the delivery of cardiovascular health education to this population and other deaf adolescents at a higher risk for weak health literacy. Deaf bilingual researchers interviewed deaf adolescents, transcribed and coded the data, and described the findings. Five major sources of cardiovascular health information were identified including family, health education teachers, healthcare providers, printed materials, and informal sources. Despite possessing advantageous characteristics contributing to stronger health literacy, study participants described significant challenges with accessing health information from each source. They also demonstrated inconsistencies in their cardiovascular health knowledge, especially regarding heart attack, stroke, and cholesterol. These findings suggest a great need for additional public funding to research deaf adolescents’ informal health-related learning, develop accessible and culturally appropriate health surveys and health education programming, improve interpreter education, and disseminate information through social media. PMID:26048900

Geologic Maps as the Foundation of Mineral-Hazards Maps in California

Science.gov (United States)

Higgins, C. T.; Churchill, R. K.; Downey, C. I.; Clinkenbeard, J. P.; Fonseca, M. C.

2010-12-01

The basic geologic map is essential to the development of products that help planners, engineers, government officials, and the general public make decisions concerning natural hazards. Such maps are the primary foundation that the California Geological Survey (CGS) uses to prepare maps that show potential for mineral-hazards. Examples of clients that request these maps are the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and California Department of Public Health (CDPH). Largely because of their non-catastrophic nature, mineral hazards have received much less public attention compared to earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, and floods. Nonetheless, mineral hazards can be a major concern locally when considering human health and safety and potential contamination of the environment by human activities such as disposal of earth materials. To address some of these concerns, the CGS has focused its mineral-hazards maps on naturally occurring asbestos (NOA), radon, and various potentially toxic metals as well as certain artificial features such as mines and oil and gas wells. The maps range in scope from statewide to counties and Caltrans districts to segments of selected highways. To develop the hazard maps, the CGS begins with traditional paper and digital versions of basic geologic maps, which are obtained from many sources such as its own files, the USGS, USDA Forest Service, California Department of Water Resources, and counties. For each study area, these maps present many challenges of compilation related to vintage, scale, definition of units, and edge-matching across map boundaries. The result of each CGS compilation is a digital geologic layer that is subsequently reinterpreted and transformed into new digital layers (e.g., lithologic) that focus on the geochemical and mineralogical properties of the area’s earth materials and structures. These intermediate layers are then integrated with other technical data to derive final digital layers

Concentrations, sources and human health risk of inhalation exposure to air toxics in Edmonton, Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Bari, Md Aynul; Kindzierski, Warren B

2017-04-01

With concern about levels of air pollutants in recent years in the Capital Region of Alberta, an investigation of ambient concentrations, sources and potential human health risk of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) or air toxics was undertaken in the City of Edmonton over a 5-year period (2009-2013). Mean concentrations of individual HAPs in ambient air including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and trace metals ranged from 0.04 to 1.73 μg/m 3 , 0.01-0.54 ng/m 3 , and 0.05-3.58 ng/m 3 , respectively. Concentrations of benzene, naphthalene, benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), arsenic, manganese and nickel were far below respective annual Alberta Ambient Air Quality Objectives. Carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk of air toxics were also compared with risk levels recommended by regulatory agencies. Positive matrix factorization identified six air toxics sources with traffic as the dominant contributor to total HAPs (4.33 μg/m 3 , 42%), followed by background/secondary organic aerosol (SOA) (1.92 μg/m 3 , 25%), fossil fuel combustion (0.92 μg/m 3 , 11%). On high particulate air pollution event days, local traffic was identified as the major contributor to total HAPs compared to background/SOA and fossil fuel combustion. Carcinogenic risk values of traffic, background/SOA and metals industry emissions were above the USEPA acceptable level (1 × 10 -6 ), but below a tolerable risk (1 × 10 -4 ) and Alberta benchmark (1 × 10 -5 ). These findings offer useful preliminary information about current ambient air toxics levels, dominant sources and their potential risk to public health; and this information can support policy makers in the development of appropriate control strategies if required. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Public health genetic counselors: activities, skills, and sources of learning.

Science.gov (United States)

McWalter, Kirsty M; Sdano, Mallory R; Dave, Gaurav; Powell, Karen P; Callanan, Nancy

2015-06-01

Specialization within genetic counseling is apparent, with 29 primary specialties listed in the National Society of Genetic Counselors' 2012 Professional Status Survey (PSS). PSS results show a steady proportion of genetic counselors primarily involved in public health, yet do not identify all those performing public health activities. Little is known about the skills needed to perform activities outside of "traditional" genetic counselor roles and the expertise needed to execute those skills. This study aimed to identify genetic counselors engaging in public health activities, the skills used, and the most influential sources of learning for those skills. Participants (N = 155) reported involvement in several public health categories: (a) Education of Public and/or Health Care Providers (n = 80, 52 %), (b) Population-Based Screening Programs (n = 70, 45 %), (c) Lobbying/Public Policy (n = 62, 40 %), (d) Public Health Related Research (n = 47, 30 %), and (e) State Chronic Disease Programs (n = 12, 8 %). Regardless of category, "on the job" was the most common primary source of learning. Genetic counseling training program was the most common secondary source of learning. Results indicate that the number of genetic counselors performing public health activities is likely higher than PSS reports, and that those who may not consider themselves "public health genetic counselors" do participate in public health activities. Genetic counselors learn a diverse skill set in their training programs; some skills are directly applicable to public health genetics, while other public health skills require additional training and/or knowledge.

Hazardous waste disposal sites: Report 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-12-01

Arkansas, like virtually every other state, is faced with a deluge of hazardous waste. There is a critical need for increased hazardous waste disposal capacity to insure continued industrial development. Additionally, perpetual maintenance of closed hazardous waste disposal sites is essential for the protection of the environment and human health. Brief descriptions of legislative and regulatory action in six other states are provided in this report. A report prepared for the New York State Environmental Facilities Corp. outlines three broad approaches states may take in dealing with their hazardous waste disposal problems. These are described. State assistance in siting and post-closure maintenance, with private ownership of site and facility, appears to be the most advantageous option

Updating the USGS seismic hazard maps for Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Mueller, Charles; Briggs, Richard; Wesson, Robert L.; Petersen, Mark D.

2015-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey makes probabilistic seismic hazard maps and engineering design maps for building codes, emergency planning, risk management, and many other applications. The methodology considers all known earthquake sources with their associated magnitude and rate distributions. Specific faults can be modeled if slip-rate or recurrence information is available. Otherwise, areal sources are developed from earthquake catalogs or GPS data. Sources are combined with ground-motion estimates to compute the hazard. The current maps for Alaska were developed in 2007, and included modeled sources for the Alaska-Aleutian megathrust, a few crustal faults, and areal seismicity sources. The megathrust was modeled as a segmented dipping plane with segmentation largely derived from the slip patches of past earthquakes. Some megathrust deformation is aseismic, so recurrence was estimated from seismic history rather than plate rates. Crustal faults included the Fairweather-Queen Charlotte system, the Denali–Totschunda system, the Castle Mountain fault, two faults on Kodiak Island, and the Transition fault, with recurrence estimated from geologic data. Areal seismicity sources were developed for Benioff-zone earthquakes and for crustal earthquakes not associated with modeled faults. We review the current state of knowledge in Alaska from a seismic-hazard perspective, in anticipation of future updates of the maps. Updated source models will consider revised seismicity catalogs, new information on crustal faults, new GPS data, and new thinking on megathrust recurrence, segmentation, and geometry. Revised ground-motion models will provide up-to-date shaking estimates for crustal earthquakes and subduction earthquakes in Alaska.

Open source electronic health records and chronic disease management.

Science.gov (United States)

Goldwater, Jason C; Kwon, Nancy J; Nathanson, Ashley; Muckle, Alison E; Brown, Alexa; Cornejo, Kerri

2014-02-01

To study and report on the use of open source electronic health records (EHR) to assist with chronic care management within safety net medical settings, such as community health centers (CHC). The study was conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago from April to September 2010. The NORC team undertook a comprehensive environmental scan, including a literature review, a dozen key informant interviews using a semistructured protocol, and a series of site visits to CHC that currently use an open source EHR. Two of the sites chosen by NORC were actively using an open source EHR to assist in the redesign of their care delivery system to support more effective chronic disease management. This included incorporating the chronic care model into an CHC and using the EHR to help facilitate its elements, such as care teams for patients, in addition to maintaining health records on indigent populations, such as tuberculosis status on homeless patients. The ability to modify the open-source EHR to adapt to the CHC environment and leverage the ecosystem of providers and users to assist in this process provided significant advantages in chronic care management. Improvements in diabetes management, controlled hypertension and increases in tuberculosis vaccinations were assisted through the use of these open source systems. The flexibility and adaptability of open source EHR demonstrated its utility and viability in the provision of necessary and needed chronic disease care among populations served by CHC.

Risk perceptions of public health and food safety hazards in poultry husbandry by citizens, poultry farmers and poultry veterinarians

Science.gov (United States)

Poortvliet, P M; Ekkel, E D; Kemp, B; Stassen, E N

2018-01-01

Abstract Differences in risk perceptions of public health and food safety hazards in various poultry husbandry systems by various stakeholder groups, may affect the acceptability of those husbandry systems. Therefore, the objective was to gain insight into risk perceptions of citizens, poultry farmers, and poultry veterinarians regarding food safety and public health hazards in poultry husbandry systems, and into factors explaining these risk perceptions. We surveyed risk perceptions of Campylobacter contamination of broiler meat, avian influenza introduction in laying hens, and altered dioxin levels in eggs for the most commonly used broiler and laying hen husbandry systems in Dutch citizens (n = 2,259), poultry farmers (n = 100), and poultry veterinarians (n = 41). Citizens perceived the risks of the three hazards in the indoor systems higher and in the outdoor systems lower than did the professionals. Citizens reported higher concerns regarding aspects reflecting underlying psychological factors of risk perception compared to professionals. Professionals indicated a relatively low level of personal control, which might imply risk denial. Of the socio-demographic characteristics, gender and childhood residence were associated with risk perceptions. The influence of other factors of risks perception are discussed. It is suggested that risk perceptions of all stakeholder groups are influenced by affect, stigma, and underlying values. To adapt current or new husbandry systems that can count on societal support, views of key stakeholders and multiple aspects such as animal welfare, public health, food safety, and underlying values should be considered integrally. When trade-offs, such as between animal welfare and public health have to be made, insight into underlying values might help to find consensus among stakeholders. PMID:29161444

77 FR 37361 - National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Reciprocating Internal Combustion...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-21

... National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engines; New Source Performance Standards for Stationary Internal Combustion Engines AGENCY: Environmental Protection... Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engines; New Source Performance...

Hazardous Waste Management by healthcare Institutions, Addis ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The finding of the study shows that except Zewditu hospital, the rest use proper management to the hazardous waste. Lack of awareness about health hazards of healthcare waste, inadequate training, absence of waste management and disposal systems, insufficient financial and human resources, low priority given to the ...

Job Hazards Analysis Among A Group Of Surgeons At Zagazig ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... 75% respectively. Conclusion: Job hazards analysis model was effective in assessment, evaluation and management of occupational hazards concerning surgeons and should considered as part of hospital wide quality and safety program. Key Words: Job Hazard Analysis, Risk Management, occupational Health Safety.

Source-to-sink sediment transfers, environmental engineering and hazard mitigation in the steep Var River catchment, French Riviera, southeastern France

Science.gov (United States)

Anthony, Edward J.; Julian, Maurice

1999-12-01

Steep coastal margins are potentially subject to mass wasting processes involving notable landslide activity and sediment evacuation downstream by steep-gradient streams. Sediment transfer from short source-to-sink segments, coupled with mountain hydrological regimes, regulate patterns of river channel aggradation and coastal sediment supply in such geomorphic settings. On the steep French Riviera margin, sediment transfers from existing landslides or from various minor mass wasting processes to stream channels may result following bursts of heavy, concentrated rainfall. High-magnitude flooding and massive sediment transport downstream are generally related to unpredictable extreme rainfalls. Both mass movements and channel sediment storage pose serious hazards to downvalley settlements and infrastructure. A consideration of channel sediment storage patterns in the Var River catchment, the most important catchment in this area, highlights two important shortcomings relative to environmental engineering and hazard mitigation practices. In the first place, the appreciation of geomorphic processes is rather poor. This is illustrated by the undersized nature of engineering works constructed to mitigate hazards in the upstream bedload-dominated channels, and by the unforeseen effects that ten rock dams, constructed in the early 1970s, have had on downstream and coastal sediment storage and on sediment dispersal patterns and, consequently, valley flooding. Secondly, planners and environmental engineers have lacked foresight in valley and coastal management issues on this steep setting, notably as regards the reclaimed areas of the lower Var channel and delta liable to flooding. Urbanization and transport and environmental engineering works have progressively affected patterns of storage and transport of fine-grained sediments in the lower Var channel and delta. Meanwhile the problems raised by these changes have not been adequately addressed in terms of scientific

Report 6: Guidance document. Man-made hazards and Accidental Aircraft Crash hazards modelling and implementation in extended PSA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kahia, S.; Brinkman, H.; Bareith, A.; Siklossy, T.; Vinot, T.; Mateescu, T.; Espargilliere, J.; Burgazzi, L.; Ivanov, I.; Bogdanov, D.; Groudev, P.; Ostapchuk, S.; Zhabin, O.; Stojka, T.; Alzbutas, R.; Kumar, M.; Nitoi, M.; Farcasiu, M.; Borysiewicz, M.; Kowal, K.; Potempski, S.

2016-01-01