[Healthandsafety] News April 8-08

["Barry Doyle" <bdoyle@cupe.ca>]

News from Australia . . . 

Brain cancer fears over heavy mobile phone use
Asher Moses 
March 31, 2008 - 12:07PM 
Sydney Morning Herald, Australia

A top Australian neurosurgeon says the world's heavy reliance on mobile phones could be a greater threat to human health than smoking and even asbestos.

Vini Khurana, who conducted a 15-month "critical review" of the link between mobile phones and malignant brain tumours, said using mobiles for more than 10 years could more than double the risk of brain cancer.

He has called for "immediate and decisive steps" by industry and governments to reduce people's exposure to invisible electromagnetic radiation emitted by handsets.

Dr Khurana also called for a "solid scientific study" observing heavy mobile phone users for a period of at least 10-15 years.

"It is anticipated that this danger has far broader public health ramifications than asbestos and smoking, and directly concerns all of us, particularly the younger generation, including very young children," Dr Khurana said in a research paper published on the website brain-surgery.us.

In a phone interview Khurana clarified the statement, saying he was not implying smoking was better for people than using mobile phones, but mobile-phone related health issues affected a far greater number of people.

He said there were currently 3 billion mobile phone users worldwide, a number that is growing daily, and people started using them as young as three.

He said mobile phone radiation could heat the side of the head or potentially thermoelectrically interact with the brain, while Bluetooth devices and "unshielded" headsets could "convert the user's head into an effective, potentially self-harming antenna".

Dr Khurana, who is a staff specialist neurosurgeon at the Canberra Hospital and an associate professor of neurosurgery at the Australian National University, said there had been increased reports of brain tumours associated with heavy and prolonged mobile phone use, particularly on the same side as the person's "preferred ear" for making calls.

Chris Althaus, chief executive of the industry body, the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association, rejected Dr Khurana's conclusions, saying handsets were designed, built and tested to comply with strict science-based guidelines.

Mr Althaus pointed to various research papers including a World Health Organisation fact sheet on the issue, published in 2000, which said no recent reviews had concluded that exposure to the radiofrequency fields from mobile phones and their base stations caused any adverse health consequences.

But the WHO said there were "gaps in knowledge" that required further research to better assess health risks, which would take several years to complete.

Further, Khurana said the WHO fact sheet was irrelevant in this instance because "most of the worrisome data has been surfacing in the last 12-24 months".


A fact sheet on the NSW Cancer Council's website said there was no reason for concern over harmful effects from using mobile phones but relatively little was known on the long-term effects of electromagnetic field exposure, so more research was needed.

Dr Khurana, who since 1994 has received 14 awards, said the time between the commencement of regular mobile phone usage to the diagnosis of a malignant solid brain tumour might be in the order of 10-20 years.

He said the link between mobile phones and brain tumours had not yet been "definitively proven" because widespread mobile phone usage commenced in the mid-1980s and solid tumours might take several years to form.

"In the years 2008-2012, we will have reached the appropriate length of follow-up time to begin to definitively observe the impact of this global technology on brain tumour incidence rates," Dr Khurana said.

But he said there was already enough evidence to warrant industry and governments taking immediate action to reduce mobile phone users' exposure to electromagnetic radiation and inform them of potential dangers.

"Worldwide availability and use of appropriately shielded cell phones and hands-free devices including headsets, increased use of landlines and pagers instead of current mobile and cell phones, and restricted use of cellular and cordless phones among children and adults alike are likely to limit the effects of this physically 'invisible' danger," Dr Khurana said.


This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/03/31/1206850768836.html 



Air quality in plane cabins . . . 

Fumes 'leaking into plane cabins' 
Thousands of air passengers are at risk from toxic fumes leaking into aircraft cabins, according to the Global Cabin Air Quality Executive pressure group. 
Some cabin air is drawn from the main engine and filtered - but oil vapours sometimes leak into the airstream. 

The UK government says one in 2,000 flights is affected. Unions say it happens daily, causing nausea. 

The group wants a public inquiry into why more has not been done to protect people and inform them of health risks. 

In addition to nausea, the pressure group and pilots unions claim the leaks cause dizziness and lethargy. 

They say passengers can also experience health problems but are not informed about the issue. 

Extra filters 

Their concerns stem from a process in which some of the cabin air that passengers and crew members breathe on a flight is drawn from the main engine and cooled. 

The air is then mixed with re-circulated air. During the process filters remove bacteria but not oil vapours that could leak into the airstream if there are faulty seals in the engine. 

The frequency of these leaks has been disputed. 

The call for an inquiry has the support of transport workers union T&G, the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Green Party. 

The T&G want all airlines to install onboard detectors and extra filters to protect passengers and crew. 

The Department for Transport is now gathering samples from aircraft to establish what chemicals are present during flights. 

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/7315842.stm

Published: 2008/03/27 04:05:41 GMT

© BBC MMVIII



>From the U.S. . . . 

Pesticide Parkinson's link strong 
There is strong evidence that exposure to pesticides significantly increases the risk of Parkinson's disease, experts believe. 

It comes as another study, published in the BMC Neurology journal, has made the link to the neurological disease. 

The US researchers found those exposed to pesticides had a 1.6 times higher risk after studying 600 people. 

Experts said it was now highly likely pesticides played a key role - albeit in combination with other factors. 

The disorder, which normally develops later in life and can affect movement and talking, is also influenced by genetic factors. 

Several gene defects have been identified, but these are thought to be rare and only account for a small proportion of the 120,000 people affected by the disease in the UK. 

The US team, which involved scientists from Duke University, Miami University and the Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Center of Excellence, quizzed 319 patients about their pesticide use. 

The answers were compared to over 200 family members and other controls who did not have the disease. 

Related individuals were chosen as they would share many environmental and genetic backgrounds in a bid to isolate the impact of the pesticides. 

They found those exposed to pesticides had a 1.6 times greater risk of developing the disease. 

Heavy use, classed as over 200 days exposure over a lifetime, carried over double the risk. 

And the study also revealed herbicides and insecticides were the pesticides most likely to increase risk. 

Key role 

Lead researcher Dana Hancock said: "I think there is very strong evidence now linking the two. What we need to find out how - the biological process. 

"What we noticed in our research was that recreational pesticide use in the home and garden was more of a source of exposure than occupational use." 

Kieran Breen, director of research at the Parkinson's Disease Society, said the link had been recognised by earlier studies, but this study "strengthened the fact that pesticides play a key role". 

However, he added: "We still don't know exactly what causes Parkinson's. It's most likely to be a combination of genetic susceptibility and environmental factors." 

He pointed out a survey of 10,000 patients by the charity had revealed only one in 10 had had long-term exposure to pesticides. 


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/7318188.stm

Published: 2008/03/28 13:10:53 GMT

© BBC MMVIII



Press release from South African government re: banning asbestos . . . 

Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, announces a prohibition on the use, processing or manufacturing of asbestos or asbestos containing products at the launch of the Asbestos Regulations, Pretoria
27 March 2008 

The Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism today announced a prohibition on the use, processing or manufacturing, of any asbestos or asbestos containing products. 

South Africa (SA) mined crocidolite, amosite and chrysotile asbestos extensively from the late 1800s until 2001. As a major supplier of asbestos to the world, SA produced 97% of the world's crocidolite, 100% of the amosite and was the fifth largest producer of chrysotile. At its peak asbestos accounted for 3% of the value of South Africa's mineral exports. 

Mining occurred in the Northern Cape, North West, Limpopo and Mpumalanga. The health implications of exposure to airborne asbestos fibres were highlighted in the 1930s and specific links to certain cancers were first made in South Africa in the early 1960s. Due to the extent and severity of asbestos related problems affecting the communities in these provinces, a multi-stakeholder National Asbestos Summit was convened by the Environmental Portfolio Committee in 1998. 

The recommendations from the national asbestos summit brought about the development of a national strategy to address asbestos pollution in the country. The objective was to phase out the remaining mining activities and to prevent new uses of products containing asbestos. 

A socio-economic impact study was undertaken to understand the possible implications of this objective. The conclusion of the study was that the phasing out of asbestos and asbestos containing products would be beneficial to the country. Based on these findings, Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT) received a mandate from Cabinet to draft regulations to enforce this objective. 

The first draft of these regulations was published for comment in November 2005. Extensive comments were received from many parties. Having considered all the inputs made, significant amendments were made to the regulations and the regulations were re-gazetted in September 2007 for further comment. The comments were again considered and now the final regulations will be gazetted for implementation on Friday 28 March 2008. 

The main objectives of the regulations are as follows: 
* To prohibit the use, processing or manufacturing, of any asbestos or asbestos containing product unless it can be proven that no suitable alternative exists, in which case a phase out plan may be approved.
* To prohibit the import or export of any asbestos or asbestos containing product provided that the importation is purely for transit through the country. Any person transporting asbestos or asbestos containing material through the country will be required to register with the Department and provide certain information on an annual basis.
* To prohibit the import of any asbestos or asbestos containing waste material other than from a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) for the sole purpose of safe disposal locally, subject to the submission of certain information annually.
* The use of asbestos or asbestos containing material for research purposes will be allowed if the research is not being undertaken to produce another asbestos containing product. The researcher will need to notify the department of their research and will have to provide a report on the amount of asbestos used and the outcome of the research on an annual basis. The Minister may review the permission on an annual basis. 

A grace period of 120 days will be allowed to allow any person or merchant who is currently dealing in asbestos or asbestos containing materials to clear their stocks. 

Should a manufacturer or merchant who currently sells one of a limited range of "identified products" which are asbestos containing products for which there is no immediate alternative, wish to continue making or selling the product beyond the grace period, they will be required to register with the department within 120 days. 

They will then be required to submit a phase out plan for approval by the minister within one year of the promulgation of the regulations. This plan must identify the reason for continuing to use the product and must identify a timeframe and activities for the phase out of the "identified products." 

These regulations do not prohibit the continued use of asbestos containing materials (such as asbestos cement roof sheets or ceilings) that are already in place as the department is satisfied that there is no undue risk to the occupants of houses that are fitted with these materials. Over time, however, they should be replaced with asbestos-free materials. 

It is important to remember that exposure to asbestos in the workplace, including, mining, industrial, commercial, retail and public workplaces, including maintenance of building materials is still controlled by the Asbestos Regulations 2001 published by the Department of Labour. These require employers to draw up a register of all asbestos containing materials, conducts a risk assessment, educate and inform employees, protect employees from exposure to asbestos and conduct regular dust and health surveillance. 

In publishing these regulations, South Africa joins more than 50 other countries that have put the health of its people first. 

Background information 

The term "asbestos" is applied to a group of naturally occurring fibrous metal silicate materials. In general the term applies to six minerals specifically: crocidolite, amosite, chrysotile, anthophyllite, tremolite and actinolite. "Asbestos" means any mixture containing any of these materials and "asbestos containing material" means any mixture, product, component or material to which asbestos has been added. 

To view Regulations and other documents, go to http://www.environment.gov.za/HotIssues/2007/asbestos/asbestos.html. 

Media enquiries: 
Mava Scott 
Cell: 082 411 9821 
E-mail: mscott@deat.gov.za 

Issued by: Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
27 March 2008 
Source: Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, (http://www.environment.gov.za/) 

Barry Doyle
Senior Officer, Health and Safety
Canadian Union of Public Employees
1375 St. Laurent Blvd.
Ottawa, ON  K1G 0Z7
o.613-237-1590 x289
c.613-294-9424
f. 613-237-5508
bdoyle@cupe.ca
www.cupe.ca