Lead poisoning from gold mining in Nigeria reflects worldwide health hazard. In the past two years more than 400 children have died from lead exposure in the northwest Nigerian region of Zamfara, and thousands more continue to be severely poisoned by pervasive lead dust stemming from gold mining. Although the crisis is unparalleled, small-scale mining and other industrial activities create lead contamination that afflicts children in such places as Peru, Kosovo, Zambia, China, Australia, Brazil, India, and Mexico. Yale Environment 360
Canada’s asbestos industry seeks government help to contest global death estimates.The industry contends that the World Health Organization’s assessment that more than 100,000 people die annually from asbestos-related diseases is inflated. A leading executive in the nation’s asbestos industry, which until hitting hard times recently was one of the world’s leading exporters of the substance, said he will ask the Canadian government to step in and challenge the Geneva-based WHO to provide scientific proof behind the statistic. “This bad publicity hurts us enormously as a corporation,” said Bernard Coulombe, president of Jeffrey Mine, which suspended production several months ago due to financial problems. The WHO said it stands by its estimate, and Canadian government officials did not indicate if they would take up the issue with the organization. The Canadian Press
Security chief who obstructed probe into Upper Big Branch mine disaster gets three-year prison sentence. A federal judge also gave Hughie Elbert Stover, 60, a former Massey Energy Co. security chief, two years of probation and a $20,000 fine. He was convicted in October of two felonies, making a false statement and obstructing a government probe of the 2010 West Virginia explosion that killed 29 workers, the nation’s worst mine disaster in four decades. The federal jury concluded that Stover lied to investigators about Massey’s practice of warning underground workers when government safety inspectors arrive at its mines and that he tried to have a guard get rid of company documents about security procedures at Upper Big Branch. The Charleston Gazette
Federal judge blocks government plan for graphic warning labels on cigarette packs. The intent was to shock consumers and deter them from smoking, but the judge concluded that compelling tobacco companies to use the graphic images would violate their free speech rights under the First Amendment. The ruling, which was in line with a previously issued preliminary injunction, is expected to be appealed by the Obama administration. The warnings were to include such images as a bare-chested cadaver and a man exhaling cigarette smoke through a tracheotomy hole. The New York Times, The Washington Post
Nicotine patches don’t help pregnant women quit smoking, study finds. Researchers from the United Kingdom drew their conclusion after tracking more than 1,000 pregnant smokers who used a nicotine patch or a placebo patch for two months. One explanation for the outcome may be that pregnant women are more likely to give up on the nicotine patch because their bodies process the nicotine more quickly, making the therapy less effective at reducing cravings and withdrawal symptoms. In one positive note, the nicotine-replacement therapy didn’t seem to increase the risk of a miscarriage or affect the body weight of babies. Reuters
Georgia trucking company ordered to reinstate driver who filed whistleblower complaint. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration found “reasonable cause to believe” that Interline Logistics Group, a national trucking company based in Kennesaw, Ga., fired the driver as an act of retaliation. The agency said the employee, based in suburban Chicago, was dismissed after reporting brake problems and refusing to violate federal regulations limiting driving hours. Along with the reinstatement, OSHA also ordered the company to pay $190,000 in back wages, damages and attorney’s fees. OSHA, Chicago Sun-Times
Five elevator mechanics fired after fatal New York accident. City investigators have said that a key safety system was disabled during the December accident, which crushed an advertising executive who was trying to get on an elevator in her office building when it started moving. The maintenance company that was working on the elevator, Transel Elevator, said it fired the five “to further ensure that the highest level of safety is followed by its mechanics.” New York’s Department of Buildings, however, suspended the license of one of the company’s co-owners. The department said the company’s mechanics failed to take such simple precautions as strapping caution tape across the elevator door. The Associated Press
Compiled by Stuart Silverstein
