Notes From the Field: Lead and Cadmium Exposure in Electronic Recyclers — Two States, 2015 and 2017

Details

• Journal Article:
  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
• Personal Author:
  Grimes, Reed ; Beaucham, Catherine C. ; Ramsey, Jessica G.
• Description:
  In 2012, CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) became aware of the potential for occupational and take-home exposures to lead and cadmium in the electronics recycling industry and contacted electronics industry stakeholders to discuss these exposures and provide information about NIOSH's ability to investigate workplace hazards. NIOSH subsequently received requests for health hazard evaluations to estimate employee exposures and to assess the potential for take-home contamination from lead and cadmium at facilities A and B, in two states. Both facilities refurbished electronics for resale, removed electronic components for reuse and resale, and recycled electronics for waste management. Facility A employees received and inventoried electronics for either recycling or refurbishment and resale. Recycled materials were disassembled by hand or shredded using an industrial shredder. Employees at facility B performed similar job tasks as did those at facility A, but did not shred electronic parts. ... Employees at both facilities reported wearing cloth, nitrile, and cut-resistant gloves. More facility B employees reported wearing gloves all or most of the time while at work than did facility A employees. All employees who wore gloves reused them. Employees were permitted to wear their work clothes and shoes home, and neither facility had capability for onsite laundering of work clothing. Employees at both facilities performed dry sweeping of surfaces, which can reaersolize metal-containing dust. The findings of these health hazard evaluations confirm workplace exposures to lead and cadmium at these facilities and suggest that employees in shredding facilities might be at higher risk for exposure than are those at nonshredding facilities. The presence of lead and cadmium on the hands of employees at both facilities after end-of-shift handwashing highlights the potential for take-home contamination. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Cadmium Electrical Equipment And Supplies Hazardous Substances Hazardous Waste Lead Lead Poisoning Metals Notes From The Field Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Recycling Safety

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• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: HHE-2015-0050-3308; HHE-2016-0242-3315 Lead; Lead Compounds; Lead Dust; Cadmium; Cadmium Compounds; Cadmium Dust; Recycling; Metals; Take-home Toxins; Electronic Components; Electronic Devices; Electronic Equipment; Blood Lead Levels; Electronics Industry; Health Hazard Evaluations; Health Hazards; Occupational Exposure; Employee Exposure; Exposure Assessment; Waste Treatment; Hazardous Waste;
• Source:
  MMWR 2019 Feb; 68(7):181-182
• Series:
  Weekly Report: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• DOI:
  http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6807a4
• ISSN:
  0149-2195
• Pubmed ID:
  30789881
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC6385710
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; 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:
  2 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Page, Elena H. ; Ceballos, Diana M. ; Robertson, Shirley ; Sammons, Deborah ; Glassford, Eric ; Gibbins, John D. ; Brueck, Scott E. ; Slone, Jonathan
• Volume:
  68
• Issue:
  7
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20054790
• Contact Point Address:
  Reed Grimes, Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, CDC
• Email:
  ggrimes@cdc.gov
• CAS Registry Number:
  Cadmium (CAS RN 7440-43-9) ; Lead (CAS RN 7439-92-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2019
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a20d8e034114fcad1d3dd1d555965d9dc02a66c68e445ba5f61b3246dd88767e1f84a270232ebb6b6543784c1708307dd4efcf51144b1601197be0fb52874970
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/76395/cdc_76395_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 126.40 KB ]