Public Health Linkages with Sustainability Workshop Summary (2013) / Chapter Skim
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5 SUSTAINABILITY LINKS TO OCCUPATIONAL AND CHILDHOOD HEALTH
5 SUSTAINABILITY LINKS TO OCCUPATIONAL AND CHILDHOOD HEALTH
Pages 89-104
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From page 89... ...
The second presentation provides a broader view of the connections between sustainability and global worker protection and outlines challenges that exist with regard to safety hazards and toxic chemicals in the workplace. The third presentation looks at exposures during child development that contribute to risk of disease, and outlines an indicator approach to address this problem area.
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From page 90... ...
For example, while the Food, Agriculture, and Conservation Trade Act of 19902 states that a goal of sustainable agriculture is to "enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole," it does not discuss health and safety specifically, and worker health remains unaddressed. He added that in the 1991 National Research Council report Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education in the Field, there is no mention of occupational health and safety (NRC, 1991)
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From page 91... ...
Similarly, while training is an important component of ensuring worker safety and health, he said, the transient nature of the workforce requires frequent training and retraining, which can end up being impractical. In looking specifically at the tree fruit industry, high pesticide exposures exist because of the use of airblast applications, the absence of cabs on tractors, and the open loading systems, which can result in chemical spills and splashes.
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From page 92... ...
Fenske explained that researchers at the University of Washington School of Public Health are piloting another approach to developing practical and cost-effective solutions to reduce pesticide exposures. He stated that an expert working group, which included the field workers themselves, was assembled to discuss these agricultural workplace safety 3 The Washington State Cholinesterase Monitoring rule "requires agricultural employers to provide medical monitoring for workers who handle toxicity Category I or II organophosphate or N-methyl-carbamate cholinesteraseinhibiting pesticides…workers who handle cholinesterase-inhibiting pesticides for 30 or more hours in any consecutive 30-day period are covered by the medical monitoring requirements of the rule" (http://www.lni.wa.gov/Safety/ Topics/AtoZ/Cholinesterase/Providers.asp [accessed May 17, 2013]
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From page 93... ...
To help communicate this, he said, fluorescent tracers were incorporated into the pesticides and air-blast applicators in the field and the field workers were later photographed under ultraviolet light. He noted this can be effective in showing people the patterns of skin exposure that occur, even underneath protective clothing.
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From page 94... ...
. When compared to the Washington State exposure rates in tree fruit workers, metabolic pesticide levels among cotton pesticide 4 "Each field station has a team of employees in three job categories with potential pesticide exposure: (1)
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From page 95... ...
He noted that this could include developing an inventory of international pesticide use, developing surveillance programs for agricultural workers, and supporting integrated pest management practices. He stated that these programs and practices would better inform the future of a sustainable agricultural workplace throughout the world.
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From page 96... ...
He noted that these workplace hazards are seen in the United States and other countries. Michaels explained that much of the discussion and advocacy on issues of toxic chemicals fails to recognize that workers are often akin to "canaries in the coal mine" as their chemical exposure levels are far higher than those which occur in communities.
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From page 97... ...
He pointed out that the American Industrial Hygiene Association, the American Society of Safety Engineers, and the Global Reporting Initiative have also formed an alliance to develop ways in which the participating corporations report on worker injury and illness rates. Michaels noted the need to consider our larger role in global worker protection and determine the responsibility we have to workers who are clearly exposed to safety hazards and toxic chemicals at levels that would not be permitted in the general populations of our countries.
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From page 98... ...
However, she said, numerous environmental chemical stressors are likely not covered. She stated that the overall impact of environmental chemicals on a child's well-being can be worsened by poor access to health care and psychosocial stressors.
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From page 99... ...
She added that the decision-making processes that provide for protections from environmental chemicals and pesticides in air, drinking water, and food all rely on risk assessment methods. She noted that changes in risk assessment methodology require adequate scientific evidence to better address early life sensitivity.
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From page 100... ...
. She noted that it is widely recognized that the current risk assessment/risk management paradigm -- that relies on data that are costly and time intensive to generate -- is unable to address a large array of environmental chemicals (GAO, 2005; NRC, 2007, 2009)
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From page 101... ...
DISCUSSION A discussion followed the presentations and the remarks are summarized in this section. Lynn Goldman questioned whether the personal protective equipment for the cotton field workers described by Fenske in the Egypt example goes far enough, given that the protective clothing only covers the legs, still leaving the arms and front and back of the upper body exposed.
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From page 102... ...
Michaels noted that with the Global Reporting Initiative there is an attempt to integrate at least basic injury illness rates into the voluntary reporting of the multinational companies involved, but as Spengler noted, it can be difficult to track contractor employees. Michaels explained that when workers are hired by subcontractors, the workers are often transferred for short periods of time to different facilities, which benefits the subcontractor in terms of avoiding paying taxes or health benefits, but makes collecting health and safety data and assessing responsibility quite challenging.
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From page 103... ...
Fenske then emphasized that the problem of the worker being moved from place to place and the lack of responsibility to track exposure data for that worker still appears to remain with this model, which may be remedied by having the contractor take a role in protecting worker health and safety. REFERENCES Farahat, F
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From page 104... ...
2011. Environmental chemicals in pregnant women in the United States: NHANES 2003–2004.
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