Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-88-108-2146: ASARCO New Market/Young Mines; Mascot, Tennessee

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-88-108-2146: ASARCO New Market/Young Mines, Mascot, Tennessee
• Personal Author:
  Ferguson, Rick P. ; Knutti, Elizabeth B.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In response to a request from the International Chemical Workers Union, Akron, Ohio, an investigation was made into possible hazardous working conditions at two American Smelting and Refining Company (SIC-1031) zinc mines (New Market and Young) in Mascot, Tennessee. Specifically, exposures to asbestos (1332214), silica (14808607), and diesel emissions were determined. At both mines overexposures were found to nitrogen-dioxide (10102440) (NO2) and coal-tar pitch volatiles. Twenty four percent of the NO2 measurements taken were above the NIOSH recommended ceiling of 1 part per million (ppm), but none exceeded the Mine Safety and Health Administration's (MSHA) ceiling of 5ppm. Exposure to diesel particulates ranged from 0.24 to 1.06mg/m3. None of the 52 respirable dust samples collected exceeded the calculated MSHA limits for free silica exposure. A medical evaluation was offered and 83 of the 400 current employees and one retired employee participated. Seven underground employees were found with small opacity readings of greater than 1/0. Pulmonary function tests indicated that four employees had moderate airway obstruction, 17 had mild obstruction and two had mild restriction of lung volume. Three with obstructive lung disease pattern also had positive radiographs for pneumoconiosis. The authors conclude that workers were overexposed to coal-tar pitch volatiles and NO2
  
  radiographic and pulmonary function test results suggest that a chronic respiratory health effect may be related to cumulative workplace exposures. The authors recommend measures for lowering the exposures and the development of a medical surveillance program.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Hazardous Substances Lung Lung Diseases Mining Nitrogen Oxides Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Silicon Dioxide

  More +
• Keywords:
  Coal Tar Pitch Volatiles Combustion-products Diesel Exhaust Hazard-Confirmed HETA-88-108-2146 Lead And Zinc Ores Lung-disease Miners Mining-industry NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report Occupational-exposure OSHA Region 4 Oxides Of Nitrogen Respiratory-system-disorders Silica Toxic-gases Underground-mining

  More +
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA881082146
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Tennessee ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  50 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Kinsley, Kathleen B.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00204370
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB92-145820
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, Ohio: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 88-108-2146, 1991 Oct ; :1-54
• CAS Registry Number:
  Asbestos (CAS RN 1332-21-4) ; Silica, Crystalline (CAS RN 14808-60-7) ; Nitrogen dioxide (CAS RN 10102-44-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1992
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  1031 - Lead and zinc ores - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:88c20a60eaa823979b71154f4cd7ed52d380b27e090e2dab7fb86da3da38121b5f92a34275c933f945ee8e9811f3cefe0d4a2de92a5f5ec48b0fd9d3a66fbc5a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/171627/cdc_171627_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 351.11 KB ]