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6 Conclusions
Pages 164-173

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From page 164...
... . Atmospheric lead concentrations collected by the US Army, US Air Force, and US Navy during the last few years showed that mean air lead concentrations on military firing ranges were often above OSHA's current permissible exposure limit (PEL)
From page 165...
... The committee used additional considerations to narrow its work. Healtheffects data on BLLs below 40 µg/dL were primarily considered because the current OSHA standard aims to maintain BLLs below that concentration.
From page 166...
... The committee concludes that the current OSHA standard of a BLL of under 40 µg/dL is not sufficiently protective of personnel who have repeated lead exposures on firing ranges. The committee concludes that the evidence is sufficient to infer causal relationships between BLLs under 40 µg/dL and impaired neurologic, hematopoietic, renal, reproductive, and cardiovascular function.
From page 167...
... Because the current OSHA standard does not address CBLI or bone lead concentrations directly, the committee considered data on this measurement to be supportive evidence for its conclusions. Such data included the following:  Neuronal loss and myelin alterations of brain measured with magnetic resonance spectroscopy (mean bone lead = 7 µg/g)
From page 168...
... IS THE CURRENT OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION PERMISSIBLE EXPOSURE LIMIT ADEQUATELY PROTECTIVE OF DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FIRING-RANGE PERSONNEL? The ability to predict BLLs on the basis of air lead concentrations is central to the development of the OSHA standard's PEL.
From page 169...
... Such information could be used to estimate the bioavailability of the lead particles found in firing-range air.  The CPA model used in the OSHA standard to predict BLLs from air lead concentrations may not be appropriate for direct application to firing-range personnel, so physiologically based pharmacokinetic or other dosimetry models may need to be developed for this purpose.
From page 170...
... ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS It was unclear to the committee what the potential health risks to DOD firing-range personnel might be, because BLL data specifically on DOD firingrange workers were limited. However, data on airborne concentrations of lead on DOD firing ranges indicate that the current OSHA PEL is exceeded in the performance of some job duties -- in some cases by several orders of magnitude.
From page 171...
... Even on ranges that have good ventilation and that use ammunition with leadfree primers, poor housekeeping or failing to decontaminate a range thoroughly before switching primers may adversely affect lead exposures. The Navy Environmental Health Center notes, in its Indoor Firing Ranges Industrial Hygiene Technical Guide (NEHC 2002)
From page 172...
... 2006. The association between lead contamination on the hand and blood lead concentration: A workplace application of the sodium sulphide (Na2S)
From page 173...
... 2012. Impact of housekeeping on lead expo sure in indoor law enforcement shooting ranges.


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