Chemical companies worldwide are not doing enough to make their products and practices safer and more sustainable, an investment rating agency has concluded. Oekom Research’s evaluation of 101 chemical companies from 25 countries found the industry brings large numbers of new chemical compounds and products into the market every year, but only a small proportion have been comprehensively analysed to determine the risks associated with them.
Working in a “toxic soup” of chemicals can double a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer, a multiple award-winning scientific paper has concluded. High risk jobs included those in agriculture, plastics, food packaging, metal manufacture and the bar and gambling industry, according to the University of Stirling study. The research led to prevention initiatives and calls worldwide, including a campaign by the North American steelworkers’ union USW.
The children of US farmworkers are facing deadly health risks from exposure to pesticides. An analysis by the Pesticide Action Network North America (PAN) has found while public concerns have centred on pesticides in food, it is the children in farmworker communities that are facing the greatest risk. The report reviews empirical research linking agricultural chemicals to birth defects, neurological disorders, childhood cancers andreproductive problems.
Workers at a now closed smokeless fuel plant in Wales did develop potentially deadly illnesses caused by their work, the High Court ruled in October 2012. The men said making the fuel briquettes at the Phurnacite plant at Abercwmboi, Rhondda Cynon Taf, left them with cancer and respiratory diseases. The ruling concluded there was convincing evidence that diseases of the lung could be caused by the processes at the plant, with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) including emphysema and chronic bronchitis as well as lung cancer qualifying for payouts. One type of skin cancer, squamous cell carcinoma, was also found to be related to the work.
Workers at a now closed smokeless fuel plant in Wales did develop potentially deadly illnesses caused by their work, the High Court ruled in October 2012. The men said making the fuel briquettes at the Phurnacite plant at Abercwmboi, Rhondda Cynon Taf, left them with cancer and respiratory diseases. The ruling concluded there was convincing evidence that diseases of the lung could be caused by the processes at the plant, with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) including emphysema and chronic bronchitis as well as lung cancer qualifying for payouts. One type of skin cancer, squamous cell carcinoma, was also found to be related to the work.
European companies are failing to produce the legally required information on the chemicals they use and the watchdog that should be making them comply is not doing so, according to a study. A report from the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) and ClientEarth says the chemical industry has largely failed to provide the necessary data to make the REACH chemical safety law work, adding the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has allowed them to get away with it. The report says ECHA is shrouded in a culture of secrecy and is under pressure from the chemicals industry which cites ‘business confidentiality’ as a means to prevent important information being released.
As the body of research investigating the carcinogenic properties of individual substances increases, the need to an overview of the whole literature will increase in importance, this paper indicates. While the authors recognise the value of these “meta-analyses” in occupational cancer studies, they emphasise the continued importance of critical narrative reviews of all data by expert researchers at groups such as the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Lead author Kurt Straif is employed by IARC.
Kurt Straif, Leslie Stayner, Paul Demers, and Philip Landrigan. Use of meta-analyses by IARC Working Groups, Environmental Health Perspectives, volume 120.9, A342-A343, September 2012.
The Hazards Campaign has criticised an HSE intervention strategy on occupational cancer saying it ‘fails to acknowledge the actual scale of cancer caused by work’. The paper, which was discussed by the HSE board on 22 August 2012, outlined a detailed plan of activities that the HSE was undertaking to prevent further exposure to carcinogens, including asbestos, diesel fumes and silica. The Hazards Campaign said: ‘The paper is based on a fairy tale unrealistic view of the world of work today, ignores many known carcinogens, shows little interest in finding unknown exposures, underestimates the numbers of workers exposed and shows no sense of urgency to tackle this massive but preventable workplace epidemic. Because of the lack of action now, more people will develop occupational cancers and die from them in the future.’
Occupational cancer – priorities for intervention, an HSE occupational cancer policy paper considered at its 22 August 2012 board meeting, has been criticised by Hazards for omitting any mention of prevention. Prevention was also absent from the action points in the minutes of the discussion.
Safety reps should demand action to protect workers from shift patterns linked to cancer and other health problems, public sector union UNISON has said. The union was speaking out after a series of reports linked shiftwork with an increased risk of breast cancer, heart disease and other health problems.
A continually-updated, annotated bibliography of occupational cancer research produced by Hazards magazine, the Alliance for Cancer Prevention and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).
