Ship

By: Alain Flores

& Matt Wilson

Breaking…in Bangladesh

Ship breaking is…

The dismantling of vessels for scrap recycling.

How it All Began… In 1965, a cyclone hit the

coastline of Bangladesh, beaching a cargo ship on to the shores.

Business men noticed impoverished locals dismantling the ship and saw a great business opportunity.

Ships were purchased from other countries to be scrapped in Bangladesh making a great profit from recycled steel.

The Benefits?

Contributes to more than 80% of Bangladesh’s steel

Creates job opportunities

“Green Industry”- 97% of ship is recycled, including oil

Costs…Worker Rights Violations

Paid less than minimum wage Less than $1 (US) a day

Use of child labor 10.94% of workforce

NO job security- no work, no pay

NO right to join/form trade union

NO clean drinking water, healthy food, hygienic toilets or living conditions

Costs…Hazardous working

conditions Lack of safety equipment &

knowledge have led to: Serious physical injury/

death Explosions Falling debris Falling off ship Electrical shock

Exposure to hazardous materials

A Comparison in Asbestos Removal

Bangladesh

China

Netherlands

Costs…

Environmental ConsequencesShips not cleansed of

hazardous material Contain POP’s Heavy metals (chromium,

mercury, lead, arsenic) Oil Asbestos

Why it’s still operating

Stabilizes countries economyWithout ship breaking

Nearly 30,000 jobs will be lost

Lose out on majority of steel needs

Hazard Identification

Asbestos-A fibrous material that was used in old ships as a heat insulator

- It has the ability to be woven, is resistant to heat and other chemicals, and is strong

-Besides ships it can be found in ceiling and floor tiles, textiles, coatings, and roofing shingles

Routes of ExposureInhalation – The most important route of

exposure because it does the most damage

Ingestion – A minor pathway of exposure

Skin Contact – Fibers can be lodged in the skin, but not common with protective gear

Health EffectsInhalation can cause Asbestosis, Lung cancer, and

Mesothelioma

Classified as an A1 Confirmed Human Carcinogen

Almost all cases of Mesothelioma are linked to asbestos exposure

In general, the greater the exposure to asbestos, the greater the chance of developing adverse health effects

Exposure Population

Shipyard workers in Bangladesh

Males (Health Effects would be the same in females)

All ages (children work in these shipyards)

> 15,000 pounds of asbestos in every ship

Precautionary Assessment

Parameter Score

Goal 3

Need 2

Future Generations 3

Democratic Community Based Process

3

Alternatives 3

Total 14/15

Community/Social Issues

Very Unsupportive of Health and Community

Precautionary Assessment

Parameter Score

Exposure 3

Multiple Exposures 3

Children Exposed 5

Consumer Products 2

Occupational Exposure 3

Food Exposure 2

Total 18/20

Significant Exposure and High Concern

Exposure Issues

Precautionary Assessment

Parameters Score

Hazard 10

Individual Sensitivity 3

Ecological Hazard 3

Volume 5

Persistent 2

Bioaccumulate 3

Uncertainty 3

Total 29/30

Hazard/Toxicity

Significant Hazards and Serious Concern

Standards and RegulationsAgency Level Comments

American Conference of Government al Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH)

0.1 fiber/cc

For all forms of asbestos

TLV-TWA

Not enough data for STEL

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health(NIOSH)

0.1 fiber/cc

For fibers > 5 micrometers

REL, Based on an 8 to 10 hour work day

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

0.1 fiber/cc

For fibers > 5 micrometers

PEL, Based on an 8 to 10 hour work day

Environmental Protection Agency(EPA)

0.000004 fibers/cc Cancer Risk level (1 in a million excess lifetime risk)

How we ended up on 0.1 fibers/ccAsbestos known to cause problems since 1907, but

this wasn’t firmly established by several studies until 1955

Different types of asbestosCrocidolite known to be the most dangerous to

human health, usually causes mesothelioma

1968 proposed standard of 4 fibers/ccStudy done by Lane et al. from a population

of asbestos textile workers in England

Felt that this standard was safe because this amount of exposure caused asbestosis in <1% of the workers

Caused conversion from mppcf (dust) to fibers/cc

Gillam et al. disputed 4 fibers/ccStudy of 440 hard rock gold miners who were

exposed to asbestiform material

Findings : 10 respiratory deaths (2.74), 5 non-malignant respiratory deaths (1.85)

Ambient air contained a total average of 4.82 fibers/cc, of which fibers >5 um averaged 0.36 fibers/cc

1978 McDonald et al. StudyFollowed up the Gillam et al. study, but

investigated 1321 men with 21 years work experience

By the end of the study 657 had died : Pneumoconiosis 39 (0), Respiratory tuberculosis 39 (3.6), Heart disease 264 (232.5), Respiratory cancer 17 (16.5), Abdominal cancer 39 (35.1)

Was this a result of asbestos exposure of from the mining work?

1977 Peto et al. Study on Lane et al.Evidence that 4 fibers/cc was not safe

Study done 10 years after Lane et al. study on same workers

Findings: 31 lung cancer deaths (19.3), non-malignant respiratory disease caused 35 (25), 5 pleural mesothelioma deaths

Development of cancer can have a 15 or more year delay after initial exposure, so Lane et al. study was probably done too early to account for this

Uncertainty Factors

Factor Value

Absence of NOAEL 10

Children 10

-Only looked at human studies-Most likely no human variability (1995 research paper makes this claim)-No NOAEL available because no evidence for a threshold or “safe” exposure level has been obtained-Start with the 4 fibers/cc standard proposed by Lane et al.

Uncertainty: 10 x 10 = 100

RfC (fibers/cc) = Proposed value (fibers/cc) / Uncertainty

Lane et al. proposed value = 4 fibers/cc

RfC: (4 fibers/cc) / 100 = 0.04 fiber/cc

In comparison to 0.1 fiber/cc for the agencies

ConclusionsOur value of 0.04 fiber/cc is not far off from

the current values of 0.1 fiber/cc

We are satisfied with the current standards

0.1 fiber/cc should provide a significant margin of safety in terms of asbestosis prevention, which with previous research shows that prevention of asbestosis should also minimize the risk of lung cancer

Risk ManagementMonitor the asbestos fibers in the ambient air

More studies on the human variability and individual susceptibility

This would change the uncertainty factor

Risk CommunicationEducate workers about exposure to Asbestos

Inform the owners of the dangers of their workers handling this material without proper safety equipment

Start a program in Bangladesh to monitor the amount of asbestos exposure that the workers are being exposed to

Media Coverage