Environmental Risk of Exposure to Vibration - Assignment Example

Name: Course: Tutor: Date: Environment Risk Assessment Section A: Health and Safety Exposure to Vibration Can Cause Adverse Health Effects in Workers a). Nature of Occupational Vibration Exposure Vibration occurs in an object when it undergoes continuous cycles of movements known as oscillations. When an object oscillates either regularly or randomly about an equilibrium point, it is believed to be vibrating and the whole process is what is termed as vibration. Various objects used at the places of work have the ability to vibrate in the course of operation when handled by workers. The extent to which an object vibrates depends on what it is being used for, the maintenance standards, size, shape, weight and quality. Vibration therefore has certain elements that are significant in measuring vibration exposure. The elements of vibration that can be used to measure vibration exposure include vibration frequency. This is the sum of rounds a vibrating object finishes in one second and it is estimated in hertz. A whole sequence of pulsation takes place when the object traffics from one extreme position to the other end and back again. Another element is the amplitude which is the distance from a static position to the furthest position on either side and is measured in meters. The intensity by which a vibration is felt during vibration exposure mainly depends on its amplitude. Acceleration is the measure of vibration intensity and it is the speed through which a vibration travels and thus felt by the contact object. It is expressed in meters per second. Every vibrating object does so at a particular frequency called the natural frequency. Natural frequency is estimated depending on the vibrating object, its load, configuration, figure and size. A resonance condition is achieved when a vibrating force is applied with frequency similar to the natural one. All these four elements of vibration are used to describe the degree and health effects of vibration exposure. Workers are exposed to vibrations severally in their work places. In most cases, they are unaware of the health problems such vibrations might cause. Occupations involving outdoor works such as construction, forestry, farming and transportation among many others expose workers to vibration in their attempt to perform their daily activities. Individuals may be exposed to vibration in two main ways with the classification based on the exposed body parts namely; whole-body vibration and hand and arm vibration. Whole body vibration refers to vibration transmitted to the whole body when an individual is seated or standing or both when one is either driving or riding. On the other hand, hand and arm vibration results from the use of power hand tools and the vibration is mainly focused on the hands and arms. Hand and arm vibration exposure is also termed as segmental vibration exposure. This is because it affects a particular segment of the body which is the hand. From the explanations above, it is evident that these two types of vibration exposures have different sources of vibration and are directed towards different parts of the body. As such they are expected to produce different health effects and symptoms in the particular areas affected. When a person gets in contact with any vibrating equipment, vibration energy is transferred to the specific organ or any body part that is in direct contact with the vibrating equipment. The health effect of vibration exposure is known to depend on the frequency of the vibration where frequency here means the number of cycles the vibrating object completes in one second. Each body organ has its own frequency through which vibration occurs depending on its size, shape and weight and this is what determines the extent of vibration effect. Examples of occupations resulting into whole body vibration exposure include tractors in the agriculture and forestry industries, heavy equipment vehicles in construction, transportation and mining industries. Some of the occupations causing hand-arm vibrations exposure include jackhammers in construction industry, vibrating hand tools in diamond cutting and iron and steel industries, chain saws in forestry and lumbering industries , vibrating cleavers in foundries industry, chisels in furniture manufacturing industry, sewing machines in textile industry, stamping equipment in sheet metal industry and rock drills in mining industry. b). Health Effects of Exposure to Vibration The health effects resulting from both whole body and hand-arm exposures are of different magnitude in different individuals. Factors that affect the health effects are; the exposure degree leading to no severe health impacts or the threshold value, latent period from the first exposure to appearance of symptoms and the dose-response relationship. They also largely rely on the duration of exposure of either the complete body or the hand and arm to the vibration. This referred to as the average daily exposure. The effect may either be chronic, developing disease symptoms after several days of exposure or acute, developing disease symptoms on first time exposure. Back pain is the most possible health effect in whole-body exposure. Some of the possible health effects in hand and arm vibration are decreased sensitivity in the hands, whitening of fingers and decreased grip strength. Vibrations can easily be felt but it is not possible to determine whether the vibrations felt are harmful or not. To understand the level of harm that vibrations can bring, it is important that vibration exposures are measured. Proper insight on the severity of health effects caused by vibration requires that the waves accompanying such vibrations and that are generated by the vibrating equipment are measured. This takes into account, the intensity and frequency of vibration, the duration of exposure and the affected part of the victim’s body. The distance moved by the vibration and the speed by which it moves helps to determine its characteristics and destination of health effects. The vibrations exposed to the hands and arms cause damage to both the blood vessels and nervous system of the fingers resulting into whitening of the fingers, a condition called Raynaud’s phenomenon or hand-arm vibration syndrome. The main symptoms in this condition are the visible white fingers which become more prominent when exposed to cold. The main health effect caused in this case is reduced sensitivity to touch as a result of damage of the nerves. There is also loss of grip force due to lack of blood flow to the fingers as a result of damage of the blood vessels. Pain is the first health condition noticed following hand and arm vibration exposure and should be addressed as fast as possible to stop more serious effects. Several other factors contribute to the hand and arm vibration syndrome such as personal history of an individual, the characteristics of vibration exposure, the nature of work done and a person’s life style. Some factors include the rate at which the machine is operating, smoking and use of drugs, exposure to other physical and chemical agents, prior injury of the finger and the level of skills and expertise possessed by an individual. Whole body effects of vibration are not specific but cases of circulatory, neurological or even bowel disorders have been reported. Other health effects include bone damage, varicose veins and motion sickness. However, these disorders may not result from whole-body exposure to vibration but linked to other working conditions or life style factors experienced by such people. The health problems associated with whole body vibration exposure are; extreme fatigue, insomnia, headache and body instability. These effects become more severe when combined with other factors such as body posture, dietary habits and intensity of the vibration. Research has shown that increased heart rate, respiratory rate, and oxygen uptake can also result from whole body radiation exposure. There is also decrease in performance since such individuals also become weak. Treating diseases caused by vibration exposure has not been easy for most doctors. One of the main challenges facing treatment of vibration related diseases is the difficulty in diagnosis of such conditions. Most individuals also find it difficult to accept the vibration conditions as industrial disease mainly because no clinical tests to measure the conditions are available, it takes too long before appearance of symptoms and very few physicians are trained to handle vibration related diseases. The health effects of exposure to vibration have been witnessed in Australia in 2008. In this year, the National Hazard Exposure Worker Surveillance (NHEWS) conducted a research on exposure of Australia employees to pulsation and their health effects. According to the study, 24% of the workers mostly in forestry, agriculture, construction and transport industry were reported to have the symptoms associated with hand and arm type, 38% of the workers from these industries had symptoms associated with whole body type while only 17% had symptoms associated with both types. These are clear indications that workers in most Australian industries are subjected to both forms vibration exposure. Vibration exposure incidence was widespread in young workers than among older workers. In these Australian industries, cases of health effects from these exposures are on the increase due to lack of related control measures. c). Critical Evaluation of the Control Measures Used to Manage Exposure to Vibrations Due to the serious health problems caused by vibration, there is need for identifying ways in which they can be avoided. Since no clear legal standards are in place that limits exposure to vibration, it is upon the employer and his employees to initiate ways that can help reduce exposure of workers to both forms of vibration. It is possible to reduce whole-body radiation exposure through installation of suspension systems and vibration barriers between the source of vibration and the operator. Proper selection of power hand held tools can help reduce the effect of hand an arm vibration exposure because the levels of vibration associated with hand held tools depend on the properties of the tool such as method of propulsion, weight, drive mechanism, size and location of the handle. Adverse health effects can also be eliminated by reducing the period of exposure to the vibration from its source which can be achieved through job rotation or providing a period of rest for the workers. In addition, workers should be informed about the effects of prolonged exposure to vibration for them to take the necessary precautions. Proper training should also be provided to the workers concerning how they should handle the tools to minimize the potential health effects. To help prevent the occurrence of vibration health effects, on time monitoring of the work place is necessary in order to identify any sources of vibration available and proper action taken to eliminate or reduce exposure. This also helps in identifying initial signs and symptoms of vibration exposure that can be managed early enough before chronic health effects can occur. The measures applied to safeguard workers from the effects of hand and arm type of exposure comprise a blend of suitable selection, the use of apposite vibration-riveting materials, good work practices and educational programs aimed at training workers on the risks of vibration and how they can be avoided. Using anti-vibration tools can help reduce the levels of vibrations reaching workers who handle them. These tools should be well maintained with the shock absorbers periodically replaced. Using anti- vibration gloves made of elastic material can also help reduce vibration. Safe work practices also need to be developed and applied by al workers and their employers. Together with anti-vibration tools and glove, the following practices would help in plummeting the danger of hand-arm pulsation syndrome in industries; avoid using faulty tools, avoid using blunt cutting tools rather they should be properly sharpened, keeping warm in a cold weather is very important, read the tool operator manuals carefully before starting to use the tool to avoid operational errors that may increase the risk of vibration exposure, take rest periods more often to limit direct exposure, consult a physician when a vibration disease occurs and inquire whether there is a possibility of changing a job to one with less vibration exposure. There is also the need educating the employees to create awareness of the hand and arm vibration syndrome in the working environment. They should be properly trained on how to handle the tools they use properly and on how proper maintenance of these tools can be achieved to avoid unnecessary exposure to vibration. Since most vibrating machines also produce a lot of noise, it is important that these employees are also trained on how to control such noise. Vibration control measures aimed at controlling whole body vibration exposure involves several precautions namely; mechanically isolating the source or surface of vibration in order to reduce exposure, making sure that all vibrating equipment are properly maintained to avoid excessive vibration, the seat of trucks and vehicles should be incorporated with vibration absorbers and limiting the time spent by workers seated on vibrating surfaces When choosing the type of vibration isolation material to use in reducing vibration and the methods to fix such machines, the specific individual work station must be put into consideration. This will help in fixing the right type and size of machine as well as the best isolation method. Consequently, most countries lack regulations or guidelines for vibration exposure of whichever type. However, it is a common belief of most nations that it is wise to reduce the level of exposure to vibration as much as possible since the health effects caused by exposure to vibration are not pleasing at all. Much of this control is therefore possible by engineering controls, safe work practices and us of protective equipment. The most effective means of controlling vibration exposure are believed to be proper design of vibration-damped equipment and engine mountings as they have proved highly effective in most vibration producing industries. Some nations also use the Threshold Limit Values based on the recommendations of the International Organization for Standardization and guidelines. Section B: Environment a). Environmental Risks The environments in which human beings live have got several factors that are harmful to health. Those factors found in the surrounding, the household, places of work and outdoor that greatly and negatively affect health are what are collectively known as environmental risks. These range from the poor quality of air that most people breathe to the potentially harmful hazards faced as a result of climate change. Health and safety risks on the other hand are those factors posing danger to human health in the work or employment environment. These two types of risks share some similarities which might make them difficult to distinguish. At the same time, several differences exist between them that can be used to distinguish between the two. Environmental risks and health and safety risks share some correspondences in common; both produce negative impacts on human health. Both of them are health hazards that negatively impact the health of humans. Both environmental risks and fitness and well-being risks can be abridged when proper management policies and strategies are implemented early enough before serious damages are caused. Human beings have a hand in contributing to both environmental and health and safety risks either directly or indirectly. In both cases human involvement and commitment plays a big role in solving the problem at hand. However, environmental risks and health and safety risks have some differences that can be used to distinguishing them. Environmental risks are concerned with the environment which is common to all while health and safety risks are only concerned with the work environment. In addition, environmental risks may have global effects, affecting the lives of all human beings and living things worldwide such as climate change while health and safety risks can only harm individuals within the surrounding of the working organization. Most of the environmental risks are not easily noticeable; instead it is their effects that can be felt by human beings after they have occurred. On the other hand, most of health and safety risks are easily noticeable like waste materials not properly disposed where a sharp object is left in an open place within an organization. Health effects resulting from environmental risks occur slowly, i.e. they are felt following a prolonged and repeated exposure to the hazards like the harmful effects of drinking contaminated water might only be noticeable following a long duration of bacterial growth and survival in the human body. Health effects from health and safety risks on the other hand are acute, i.e. they are felt immediately a person comes in direct contact with the hazard like touching a naked electric wire in an office results into immediate electrocution. With proper management procedures and policies in place, health and safety risks may take a shorter time to be eliminated as compared to some environmental risks that will take a very long time to eliminate. Environmental risk factors are varied and it can take centuries to go through the whole list and exhaust it. Precarious water, sanitation, urban air contamination, smoke from solid fuels, exposure to heavy metals, climate change and industrial and vehicle fumes are some of the examples of environmental risks. Ingestion of dirty water, inadequate or poor sanitation, contact with contaminated water and improper management of water resources and systems cause adverse effects to human health. Individuals may have health effects such as diarrhea and vomiting because of the contaminants in the ingested water. Skin infections in body parts directly in contact with the contaminated water may also be experienced. If the health effects such as diarrhea are not treated quickly, more severe effects such as dehydration might ensue which if not managed faster can lead to death especially in cases of diarrhea caused by the bacteria Vibrio cholera, a common water contaminant. Helminth infections like schistosomiasis and trichuriasis are fully attributed to hazardous water and hygiene. When one is exposed to elevated degrees of air contamination, he/she is prone to several negative impacts on human health. Air pollution mostly results from combustion of fossil fuels mainly in transport, generation of power and other human activities. Primary emissions like diesel soot and lead particles, sulphate particles from combustion of sulphur containing compounds are all air pollutants that are suspended in the atmosphere most of the time and can possibly be inhaled by humans. These air pollutants contribute to a wide range of short and long term impacts on human health depending on their constituents. Effects from air pollutants are possible and highly accelerated by the fact that these pollutants are small in size and are easily inhaled through the nose into the respiratory system, especially into the lungs. These result into serious health effects such as lung cancer which is the uncontrolled proliferation of lung cells and death of lung respiratory cells. Some constituents of air pollutants such as lead particles are also associated with the serious diseases resulting from air pollution. Lead fumes get deposited in the atmosphere from the painted walls and vehicles using lead petrol. In as much as environmental risks causing serious health problems to humans originate from the external environment, human beings are still exposed to environmental risks while inside their houses like when they inhale smoke from burning cooking fuels. Burning cooking fuels such as coal and dung release harmful gases some within the house premises and others into the atmosphere thereby polluting the external environment. Using paraffin as a source of fuel in cooking leads to emission of particles that are easily inhaled by human beings bearing in mind that paraffin is an organic compound that releases harmful gases on combustion. Some of the pollutants like oxides of carbon, sulphur and nitrogen are also injurious substances generated following indoor combustion of fuels. Inhalation of indoor produced gases is linked to lower respiratory infections, blockage of the trachea and blockage of bronchi. More serious infections such as tuberculosis, cataracts and asthma may also occur from inhalation of indoor produced gases. Research has shown that more females than males suffer from the indoor sources of air pollution mainly because they are involved in cooking more often than men. Lead is a heavy metal obtained from lead compounds such as lead paints and fuels used in vehicles and industries like lead petrol. Due to several uses of these compounds, the chances of lead getting to the atmosphere are greatly increased. With its presence in the atmosphere and some other places in the environment, human beings get exposed to lead through ingestion and inhalation. Children are more likely to get exposed trough ingestion than adults. Some kitchenware ceramics and water pipes also contain lead which is very difficult to control when it comes to human exposure. Lead has negative effects to human health by affecting almost all systems, organs and issues of the body. The effects might be acute or chronic where chronic levels cause serious brain damage, hypertension and strange behavioral effects. Lead is highly toxic to children causing alimentary canal infections, anemia and serious impairments to the kidney. These effects might be so serious that without proper medical attention with qualified and experienced physician, they might result to death of the affected persons. Human beings are negatively affected by the environmental risks yet at the same time, they contribute to occurrence of some of the environmental hazards. Human activities have resulted into climate change that is currently witnessed worldwide. Increased rates of de-forestation as humans struggle to create more settlements for the ever growing population and due to development of urbanization has greatly affected rainfall patterns worldwide since trees contribute a lot in attracting rainfall. Global warming has been observed across all continents with the greatest temperature changes occurring in the northern hemisphere. Human activities release greenhouse gases from fossil fuels which have great contributed to climate change. Climate change causes health risks to humans such as human exposure to very high temperatures resulting from global warming. Exposure to very high temperatures affects both the lungs and the heart of the exposed individuals. Very high volumes and unpredictable cases of rainfall witnessed in most countries of the world cause death resulting from floods. Disease vectors such as mosquito causing malaria always multiply during rainy seasons and the changes in climate mainly associated with rainfall has resulted in the increase in malaria cases and malaria associated deaths globally. Unsafe construction is another environmental risk causing health effects to human beings. Several buildings have been constructed in areas where they are likely to fall and cause death of human beings. Rapidly urbanizing developing countries with high rates of population increase also have public health impacts like creation of slums where access to basic needs is compromised. Houses constructed on sleepy hillsides have always been swept away with landslides during rainy seasons killing quite a big number of human beings. Schools constructed near traffic roads negatively affect students’ learning in such schools as their concentrations are interrupted and the noise may also affect their ears. (b) Significance of Environmental Risks Lidcombe 51 explains that environmental risks have different levels of significance. These levels of significance are based on the potential impacts caused by the environmental risks with consideration of management measures and the potential community concern on the effects. It is these levels of significance that are used to prioritize which environmental risk to be eliminated or managed first to reduce their effects as compared to the rest. Three levels of environmental significance have been identified namely; high environmental significance, moderate environmental significance and low environmental significance. High environmental significance is where a likelihood of adverse environmental impact or the potential environmental impact is of a severe nature. These environmental risks require detailed investigation to adequately characterize the nature of the environmental impact. They must therefore be mitigated first to bring about a significant residual impact. Moderate environmental significance is where there is some likelihood of adverse environmental impact and the potential impact is perceived to be of a manageable nature. They thus rarely require investigations prior to management thus require standard management measures to be applied. Finally, low environmental significance is where the environmental risk has low likelihood of adverse environmental impact and the potential environmental impact can be neglected. These risks are unlikely to require investigations and standard management measures can be applied in dealing with them. The higher the level of environmental significance, the faster it should be managed and eliminated to prevent more adverse effects from being caused. Priority is given to the environmental risk that is potentially risky when it comes to management. (c). Management Measures of Environmental Risks With the negative impacts that environmental risks cause to human health, there is need for management of these risks in order reduce their impacts on humans. The conditions of the environment and the populations exposed to the environmental risks are the two main factors determining the type of management measures to be applied against an environmental risk. The main aim and objective of management of environmental risks is to protect and maintain human and the environment. Management of environmental risks is best achieves by removal of the source of the environmental hazard of replacing the existing one with a less one. To avoid health effects associated with consumption of contaminated water, people should embark on water treatment and boiling to help kill germs. In those regions where water is inadequate, dams should be built to help conserve rain water during rainy seasons for use during the dry seasons. This water will therefore be available for cleaning and other household activities to ensure maximum sanitation and hygiene thereby preventing diseases associated with bad sanitation. Man can shift to usage of environmentally friendly sources of energy such as wind energy to replace the fossil fuels that repeatedly cause urban pollution. Doing this will contribute highly to reduction of human health problems associated with urban air pollution as little or no harmful gases will be inhaled from the atmosphere. Smoke produced from indoor combustion of solid fuels can be avoided by using less smoke-producing fuels like the natural gas to help reduce the health problems caused by inhalation of smoke from solid fuels. To avoid emission of heavy metals into the atmosphere, lead-free petrol should be used in vehicles and lead-free paints on buildings. Human exposure will be reduced thereby eliminating the health effects associated with lead exposure by humans. A management program focusing on performing educational campaigns should be conducted to create public awareness of the importance of environmental conservation and the role played by trees in environmental conservation. The rate of tree cutting will be reduced and climate change plus its effects will have been avoided greatly. Before putting up a building, one needs to consult an experienced and professionally skilled architect to give the right location for a building based on the size and availability of space. Deaths caused as a result of fallen buildings will highly be reduced together with the effects on a student’s education caused by wrong location of an academic institution. It can therefore be concluded that environmental risks pose great health effects to human beings. To come up with management measures, the level of significance of the environmental risks need to be considered as they help a great deal in prioritizing how different risks can be approached. References Lidcombe, Toohey, B. “Environmental Risk Analysis,” Environmental Assessment and Mangement 4.5 (2007): 51-58. Read More