Industrial hygiene study of the Gouverneur Talc Company, Number One Mine and Mill in Balmat, New York.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dement, John M. ; Zumwalde, Ralph D.
• Description:
  Worker exposures to respirable dust, free silica (7631869) and asbestos (1332214) were surveyed at the R. T. Vanderbilt Gouverneur Talc Company (SIC-1496) number One Mine and Mill in Balmat, New York, from November 3 to 7, 1975. Bulk samples of talc (14807966) were collected and personal air sampling was conducted in the mine and the mill. X-ray diffraction and optical or electron microscope analysis was conducted by NIOSH and two independent laboratories. All laboratories confirmed the presence of asbestiform tremolite (1332214) and anthophyllite (1332214) in the bulk talc samples at concentrations of 67 to 88 and 4 to 12 percent, respectively. Time weighted average (TWA) values for fiber and dust personal exposures for almost 30 job categories ranged from 1.7 to 9.8 fibers greater than 5 microns per cubic centimeter, and 0.25 to 2.96 milligrams per cubic meter, respectively. Free silica exposures were very low. Analysis of the impinger samples revealed excessive exposure to asbestos at almost every mine and mill operation. The authors conclude that excessive exposures to airborne fibers exist in both mine and mill. Recommendations include improved ventilation, upgraded equipment maintenance, and provision of respiratory protection to employees.
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Aerosols Chemistry Mass Spectrometry Metals Metal Workers Occupational Health Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety Skin Skin Diseases

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• Keywords:
  Air-sampling Asbestos-dust Dust-analysis Dust-exposure Field-Study Health-survey Mine-workers Mining-industry NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Survey Region-2 Silicates

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• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Studies ; Industry Wide
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 2 ; OSHA Region 5
• 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:
  1-116
• Volume:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00106054
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, IWS 36-12-1, 1977 Jun; :1-116
• CAS Registry Number:
  Silica (CAS RN 7631-86-9) ; Asbestos (CAS RN 1332-21-4) ; Talc (Mg3H2(SiO3)4) (CAS RN 14807-96-6)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1977
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  1496 - Talc, Soapstone, and Pyrophyllite - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0dc07a37253dcb5b5b9fa734a4f2062ae6461523efe599c8808d423412c804809e43d44f5223c737e7d51cd6c336528aae84547724c80a93a278ad69577cfbc1
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/179027/cdc_179027_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.33 MB ]