Lead in the modern workplace
| Autor: | R. M. Pfeffer, Ellen K. Silbergeld, Philip J. Landrigan, J. R. Froines |
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| Rok vydání: | 1990 |
| Předmět: | |
| Zdroj: | American Journal of Public Health. 80:907-908 |
| ISSN: | 1541-0048 0090-0036 |
| DOI: | 10.2105/ajph.80.8.907 |
| Popis: | Attempts to limit occupational exposure to lead culminated in the adoption of a comprehensive lead standard by OSHA in 1978. In the past decade what was considered to be safe levels were shown to result in subclinical toxicity. Another problem is that certain classes of workers are not covered by the OSHA standard. Inadequate enforcement of the standards due to insufficient inspectors has led to excessive exposure to lead. Fetal protection policies exclude women of child-bearing ages from industries that utilize lead. It is recommended that OSHA lower the permissible exposure limit (PEL) from 50 {mu}g/cubic meter to 20 {mu}g/cubic meter. Further, the biological limit value for lead in blood should be lowered from 2.42 {mu}mol/l to 0.97 {mu}mol/l. A worker should not be allowed to return to the workplace until his or her blood level has fallen to 0.48 {mu}mol/l. In some instances, respirators will be necessary to achieve the lower exposure levels. Additional recommendations would eliminate exclusionary practices from the workplace, implement vigorous enforcement of standards, and discourage non-essential use of lead. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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