Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2)

Remediation Of Hazardous Wastes In Central And Eastern Europe: Technology and health effects

Carpenter D.O., Bláha K., Buekens A., Cikrt M., Damstra T., Dellinger B., Sarofim A., Suk W.A., Wyes H., Zejda J.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):77-78  

Chemical aspects of combustion of hazardous wastes

Dellinger B., Taylor P.H.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):79-87

As a treatment option for hazardous wastes, incineration or thermal treatment is efficient and cost effective. However, there has been a long-standing concern over emissions of undestroyed waste and toxic combustion by-products. Much of this concern is a result of lack of understanding of the types of by-products that can be formed and their origin. This manuscript presents a zone model of incineration that can be used as a context in which to describe pollutant formation pathways. Five zones are identifies: the pre-flame zone, the post-flame thermal zone, the gas-phase quench zone, and the surface catalysis cool zone. It is shown that most combustion...

Management of healthcare waste in Romania

Dumitrescu A., Qaramah A., Vacarel M., Moroianu A.M., Georgescu O., Petrescu M.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):88-91

The existing situation in Romania regarding healthcare waste (HCW) management can be defined as uncontrolled. Knowing the situation is the first step in assessing risks associated with current practice, assessing alternative waste management options for the hospitals and defining the future hospital waste management needs. HCW management, as described in a study in 1995, is not based on a coherent strategy and deficiencies are identified at every stage of the system, from the collection to the disposal: no separate collection of hazardous waste, inappropriate methods of disposal, creating risks for the environment and human health. The main causes...

Some data on the health aspects of hazardous waste incineration in Hungary

Horváth A.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):92-95

The results indicate that even with careful operation, in the environment of waste incinerators one has to count with pollution. The authorities and the representatives of the populations check the operation of the incinerator regularly. The existing landfill basins are practically full, a new landfill site is planned. Inhabitants have a definite dislike of the incinerator manifested by protests against the settling of the new landfill site (though this would influence favourably the process of groundwater contamination). It is not out of the question that the landfill of solid wastes should be removed to a far away site, which will raise further the...

Risk for healthy zones for municipal decision-making strategy in Kaunas City

Kameneckas J., Rasteniene J.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):96-102

The Geographical Information System was developed for the city's environmental and health assessment and management. In this information system data on health, social and physical environment, living conditions are collected. The structure and possibilities of the information system are discussed, as well as some practical problems during the creation of such system. On the basis of ecological monitoring data environmental and health maps were created. Using the different suitability maps the ecological Kaunas map was created. The main risk for health in Kaunas regions was established - Palemonas, Šančiai, Centras, Petrašiunai.

The impact of social and ecological factors on biological fitness of adults

Kołodziej H.E.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):103-107

The mortality rate is one of the best indicators of well being on the human population. The Institute of Anthropology of the Polish Academy of Sciences carried out an examination of mortality rates among adults in three Polish cities: Katowice, Wroclaw and Bialystok. These cities represent three regions of Poland with a different level of air pollution (Katowice - high, Wroclaw - medium and Bialystok - low). The goal of the study was assessment of the following factors on the mortality rates: 1. social class differences expressed in terms of education and marital status, and 2. the degree of industrial pollution of the environment. It was found that:...

Results of ten years monitoring health effects among Chernobyl child victims

Korol N.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):108-110

The observations in this study indicate a deterioration of health status among the child victim of the Chernobyl disaster. The prevalence of all diseases had increased, especially diseases of the digestive tract, cardiovascular diseases and diseases of the nervous system. The manifestation of somatic diseases cannot be connected biologically with exposure to ionising radiation. Somatization of non-radiation hazards of the Chernobyl disaster has a more significant population impact than radiation-induced cancer outcomes. Cancer outcomes have a dramatic individual impact with very small population impact and with the possibility for population risk management....

Management of industrial and domestic solid wastes in the Republic of Armenia

Mkrtchian A., Aslanian H., Bakunts N.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):111-112

In Armenia we have a highly developed industry, chemistry, building industry based on local materials, metallurgy, engineering industry, contemporary technologies, food and textile industries. Armenia has also a good energy system, including an atomic power station, two great thermoelectric power stations, and hydroelectric stations. Our agriculture is also developed in different branches and in the republic there is a great number of hazardous industrial wastes. Domestic and specific quantity of wastes per person if greater than in other countries, because in our industry we have insufficient resource-saving technologies, and practically secondary...

Health effects and risk assessment of halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons

Safe S., Wilson C.L.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):113-116

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), and dibenzofurans (PCDFs) are industrial chemicals or by-products of industrial processes and combustion. These compounds are highly stable and lipophilic and have been identified as contaminants in almost every component of the global ecosystem including air, water, sediments, fish, wildlife, diverse food products, and human adipose tissue, serum and milk. Human exposure to relatively high levels of these compounds has been associated with multiple adverse health effects including chloracne, hepatic dysfunction, and porphyria and there is evidence in some studies of an increased risk...

Pyrolysis of organic waste - a rational alternative of incineration

Sokolov E.M., Kachurin N.M., Volodin N.I., Ivanitzky M.A.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):117-118

Active development of science and engineering involves a wide introduction of artificial organic materials including rubber. A vast amount of waste accumulated as a result of the use of various rubber items puts before mankind a task of their use with a maximum profit without inflicting harm upon the environment. Among the ones that attract our interest is the processing of worn out automobile tyres the accumulation of which just as other organic waste assumes a threatening scale in the world. Incineration of the outer covers is one the widely spread methods of their liquidation. Inspite of its obvious drawbacks incineration as a method of waste processing,...

Clinical analysis of children living in a lead polluted environment

Stawarski A., Iwańczak F., Gasiński J., Horbaczyńska-Szelachowska D., Andrzejak R.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):119-122

The aim of the study was to evaluate the blood lead levels (BLL) in children aged 3-9 years living in Wroclaw (619 children) and Olawa (153 children). Next we analysed the health status of all children with increased BLL exceeding 10 µg/dl. In all of those children detailed health and environmental date were collected, detailed physical examinations were made and analysed. All children were also examined psychologically and neurologically, a peripheral blood cell count and other tests such as erythrocyte count, protoporphyrin (FEP), δ-aminolaevulinic acid dehydratase activity (ALAD), δ-aminolaevulinic acid excretion (ALA) in urine...

Risk assessment/communication in a lead contaminated area of Romania

Surdu S., Gurzau A., Gurzau E.S., Curseu D., Faraian D., Bereczki A., Criotea C., Bodor E., Zeic A.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):123-126

One of the areas in Romania most polluted with too high levels of lead as a result of non-ferrous metallurgic industry, is the region of Copsa-Mica. The purpose of the present study is how to reduce lead absorption in children. The main objectives are environmental health assessment of lead in the Copsa-Mica area, and communication and risk management strategies. The study population comprised 197 children aged 7 to 11 years living in two localities, Copsa-Mica and Axente-Sever. Exposure assessment was mainly based on blood lead, as the most specific biomarker of exposure. Lead contamination of the subjects proved a really serious situation, all of...

Detection of mutagenic activity of irrigated soils and plants in the Ames test

Täublová E., Riegrová M.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):127-132

Goal of the study was to ascertain the influence of various types of watering on mutagenicity of irrigated plants and soils. Mutagenicity of plant (carrot, mustard, maize and cabbage) and soils extracts irrigated with river water, with two kinds of waste water and artificial contaminated water (prepared from well water supplemented with a mixture of chemicals) was recognized in the Ames test. The extraction was performed by acetone in a one step procedure using a Soxhlet apparatus. Two bacterial strains - TA 98 and TA 100 - with ability to detect various types of mutations were used for the gene mutations assay. Only slight mutagenicity in TA 98 was...

Emission and propagation in the atmosphere of dioxins and absorption capability of the human body

Wandrasz J.W., Pikoń K.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):133-135

Emission of dioxins and furanes (PCDDs/PCDFs) is often treated as the most dangerous phenomena for human health. Sometimes we face real social panic created on this basis mainly in countries where proper quality of measurements is difficult to achieve and presence of compounds of that type is suspected also in combustion processes where chlorine is absent. In the paper, on the basis of analyze of creation of compounds PCDDs/PCDFs their influence on human health is presented taking into consideration their propagation in atmosphere and capability of their absorption by human being. According to a legal and international scientific data analysis showing...

Metals food intake in population living in a non-ferrous metallurgical area from Transylvania

Zapartan H., Vlad M.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):136-139

This paper reports the levels of lead, cadmium and copper in common foods ingested by the population in Zlatna, Alba district, a non-ferrous metallurgical area of Transylvania. Metal levels were analysed in food samples obtained from individual members of households, by atomic absorption spectroscopy with flame atomisation. Dietary metal intake was assessed by evaluating the composition of the food intake using the mean values from each flood analysed. Evaluation was carried out in six zones with different soil pollution previously established. The mean lead levels exceeded the maximum admissible level of the Romanian health protection law in the following...

Health effects of hazardous wastes

Zejda J.E.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):140-143

This paper reviews the published evidence concerning the impact of hazardous waste on the health of the population. Specifically, the paper discusses the place of the topic among other public health priorities, highlights the major problems related to the sources of information, and summarizes the evidence concerning health disorders provided by human studies, mostly by environmental epidemiology observations. The list of potential health disorders that are important in the context of hazardous waste exposures has been put forward by the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease and includes the following conditions: birth defects and reproductive...

Current practice of health risk assessment of soil pollution in Hungary

Pintér A., Horváth A., Szabó Z., Dura G., Horváth V.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):144-147

Soil pollution represents one of the major environmental and health risks all over the world. Countries of the Central and Eastern European region are facing enormous problems in this area, since the extent and severity of the pollution has only become evident recently. Hungary is in the process to develop a system and institutional frame for risk assessment of soil pollution and contaminated land sites. Current practice of hazard and risk assessment in Hungary concerns contaminated arable land and food products, contaminated small farms and gardens around industrial settings and most extensively highly polluted areas of industrial origin. Hazard assessment...

Removal of volatile organic contaminants from soil and groundwater

Udell K.S.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):148-151

Reduction of health risks associated with the exposure to volatile toxic chemicals found in the soils and groundwater can be reduced by in situ cleanup of the compounds. In this paper, the removal of volatile and semi-volatile contaminants from the heterogeneous domain of the subsurface by in situ technologies is described. For soils contaminated by volatile liquids that are less dense than water, soil vapor extraction from the unsaturated zone above the watertable is recommended since vaporization processes are relatively effective. For dense; volatile non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) such as perchloroethene and trichloroethene, vaporization processes...

Estimation of risks of health effects, particularly cancer, from air pollutants

Törnqvist M., Helleberg H., Ehrenberg L.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):152-156

Air pollution in the general environment originates to a large extent from incomplete combustion (energy conversion, waste incineration). At the mostly low pollutant levels in the environment two groups of compounds are of major interest with regard to health impairment, viz., mutagens and stable, bioaccumulating compounds. Because of linear dose-response relationships exposure to mutagens leads to increased cancer risk already at doses close to zero. Stable, bioaccumulating compounds, which usually show a non-linear dose-response relationship with a no-effect threshold, may accumulate in organisms to toxic levels. For both groups of compounds risk...

Strategies for risk assessment and risk reduction in the Czech Republic

Bláha K.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):157-159

State Environment Policy, the basic document approved by the Government of the Czech Republic in 1995, states that the goals of environmental policy on the instruments for their attainment must be formulated to maximize the potential for an optimal system. This process should proceed from finding a socially and economically acceptable level of environmental and human health risks. The recognition of current levels of risk obviously requires the unified methodology of both human health and environmental risk assessment, while the achievement of socially and economically acceptable levels needs the system of risk management. Brief history and the current...

Health effect of metals

Carpenter D.O.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):160-163

Many metals are essential to biological life, but some are only toxic. Others are beneficial at low doses, but toxic at higher levels. This paper briefly reviews the major patterns of metal toxicity, while recognizing that some individual metals have specific toxic actions that are not addressed. Many of the toxic effects of metals are a result of interference with normal functions of elements like calcium, generation of reactive oxygen species or relatively non-specific binding to protein constituents such as sulfhydryl groups. Some metals are mutagenic as a direct or indirect result of altered genes, and as a result cause either cancer of birth defects....

Children as a particularly vulnerable population to exposure to hazardous environmental contamination

Suk W.A.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):164-167

Many environmental chemicals are known to affect children's growth, developmental and potential. Currently most of the health effects data on children are based on adults and animals; these data are neither adequate nor appropriate for evaluating health risks in children. The risk of exposure of developing embryos, neonates, infants, young children and adolescents all need to be evaluated. Children's risk may differ qualitatively and quantitatively from those of adults for a number of reasons, such as metabolism, pharmacokinetics, physiology factors, development, diet, and physical environment. Today's and future generations of children are being exposed...

Health effects of lead coming from mining wastes

Šmerhovský Z., Cikrt M., Vavřínová J.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):168-171

The purpose of the paper is to contribute to a discussion on the significance of the mining wastes as a potential source of child exposure to lead. The complexity of the problem is demonstrated on the examples of the recent and earlier epidemiological studies and stress is put on the limitations of the epidemiological research in that field of environmental epidemiology.

The implication of nitrites and organochlorine pesticides in goitre etiopathology

Neagu C., Rusea D., Negru M., Simescu M., Nicolaescu E., Vijiiala I.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):172-174

In recent years the reassessment of goitre prevalence in Romania (thyroid palpation and urinary iodine levels) revealed two aspects: excessive goitre distribution in mountainous regions and hilly areas with geochemical iodine deficiency but also in plains and high goitre prevalence even if the concentration of urinary iodine is normal. These facts made us seek a possible interaction of some pollutants (nitrites, organochlorine pesticides) and iodine metabolism. We examined a group of 408 subjects: 100 children aged 6-16 years and 308 women 18-35 years of age; all living in Bucharest city. The examination revealed 94 goitre cases (23.0 %); only 10.0...

Home exposure to some indoor air pollutants

Moldoveanu A.M., Decusara M.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):175-176

The indoor air pollution of houses is very important because a lot of people spend inside about 70 % of the time a day. For women working in the household, children, elderly people, ill people and convalescents the time spent inside can be about 90 % of the day time. In this study we tried to investigate the indoor levels of the nitrogen dioxide and formaldehyde in 34 flats situated in block of flats of a residential area in Bucharest. The main source of pollutants was the use of gas in the kitchen. All flats had central heating. We investigated also 34 flats without gas in the kitchen, with electric cooker. All measurements were made after one hour...

Report on the hazardous waste management in Republic of Latvia

Liepinš V.

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):177  

LIST OF PARTICIPANTS

Cent Eur J Public Health 1998, 6(2):178-180