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Relationship Between Distance of Schools from the Nearest Municipal Waste Incineration Plant and Child Health in Japan
Abstract and Figures
In Japan, the main source of dioxins is incinerators. This study examined the relationship between the distance of schools from municipal waste incineration plants and the prevalence of allergic disorders and general symptoms in Japanese children. Study subjects were 450,807 elementary school children aged 6-12 years who attended 996 public elementary schools in Osaka Prefecture in Japan. Parents of school children completed a questionnaire that included items about illnesses and symptoms in the study child. Distance of each of the public elementary schools from all of the 37 municipal waste incineration plants in Osaka Prefecture was measured using geographical information systems packages. Adjustment was made for grade, socioeconomic status and access to health care per municipality. Decreases in the distance of schools from the nearest municipal waste incineration plant were independently associated with an increased prevalence of wheeze, headache, stomach ache, and fatigue (adjusted odds ratios [95% confidence intervals] for shortest vs. longest distance categories =1.08 [1.01-1.15], 1.05 [1.00-1.11], 1.06 [1.01-1.11], and 1.12 [1.08-1.17], respectively). A positive association with fatigue was pronounced in schools within 4 km of the second nearest municipal waste incineration plant. There was no evident relationship between the distance of schools from such a plant and the prevalence of atopic dermatitis or allergic rhinitis. The findings suggest that proximity of schools to municipal waste incineration plants may be associated with an increased prevalence of wheeze, headache, stomach ache, and fatigue in Japanese children.
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... 7 A study on children found no relation between incinerator operation and the incidence of allergic rhinitis or atopic dermatitis within populations in the surrounding area. 8 However, a study reported increased blood polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans concentrations in residents living near incinerators and incinerator workers. 9 Also, emissions of carcinogenic substances (chromium, arsenic, cadmium, and nickel) by incinerators in a new city exceeded the levels permitted by the Ministry of Environment. ...
... There was no correlation between proximity to incinerators and asthma, allergic rhinitis, or atopy in children. 8 Further studies are needed to address these differences in children and adults. ...
... In a similar study conducted in young adult in Japan, there was no evident relationship between the distance from incinerator and the prevalence of allergic rhinitis. 8 Depending on the size, combustion type and the actual emission of hazardous substances, the impact on the prevalence of environmental diseases in the surrounding area of incinerator may be different. However, there are insufficient studies on the relationship among the residential area, period of residence and the prevalence of environmental diseases. ...
Background:
This study investigated the risk perceptions, prevalence of environmental diseases (EDs) and associated factors with the prevalence of environmental disease among the population living near an incinerator.
Methods:
Study area were divided into 3 local areas near the incinerator by distance (A, B, C) and control area (D) by distance and geographic isolation. A Questionnaire was conducted with 1,380 in local residents (A, B, C) and 390 in control area (D), gathered information of demographic characteristics, lifestyle, perception of damage by incinerators, experience of EDs (atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, asthma) diagnosed by physician. Analysis of variance, χ2 test, and Kruskal Wallis test was applied to determine the difference by area. Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with the prevalence of allergic rhinitis.
Results:
Residents residing closer to the incinerator had negative perception in most items in questionnaire compared with control. The prevalence of allergic rhinitis was higher as they lived nearby the incinerator (p = 0.008). The associated factors with the prevalence of allergic rhinitis were carpet (odds ratio [OR]: 1.79, p = 0.001), residential area (marginally significant), duration of residence (OR: 1.09, p < 0.001). The perception of environmental pollution around the residential area was inversely associated with the prevalence of allergic rhinitis: perceived as very dissatisfied (OR: 4.21, p = 0.02) compared with very satisfied.
Conclusions:
As closer to the incinerator, the risk perception tend to negative and prevalence of EDs were increased. Carpet, residential area, duration of residence and perception of environmental air pollution around the residential area were associated with prevalence of allergic rhinitis. These results may be useful for the communication with residents to discuss the environmental problems caused by the incinerator.
... 1. Pulmonary and skin ailments or symptoms -Decrease in the distance of schools from the nearest MSW incinerator plant were independently associated with an amplified pervasiveness of wheezing, headache and stomach ache. Miyake et al. (2005) captured landfill methane substituting fossil energy (CO 2 ) and from carbon stored for a long term in the landfill (United Nations Environment Programme, 2010). ...
... It was observed that there are no variations in the individuals' pulmonary health between an incineration community and its comparative community. Miyake et al. (2005) included 450,807 primary school students aged 6À12 in a cross-sectional research. This included distances between all 37 municipal trash incineration facilities and each of the 996 public elementary schools. ...
In many cases, waste is dumped in an illegitimate way or in unmanaged landfills. These abhorrent practices exhibit a slew of environmental and health issues, including groundwater pollution, land deterioration, persistent cancer growth frequency, infant death and birth oddities. Residences near garbage sites have been associated with an amplified prevalence of premature infants, as it has the prevalence of numerous congenital abnormalities. There is scant evidence of a link between the vicinity of incinerators and reproduction or developmental impacts. Cancer prevalence and mortality studies in communities adjacent to landfills or incinerator plants have indeed been ambiguous, with differing results at different cancer sites. Most of these reports lack adequate individual or participant exposure records, as well as information on possible confounders such as socioeconomic status. The intrinsic latency of illnesses and population mobility are frequently overlooked. The probable health impacts of newer regimes in waste control/management and increased recycling and composting also necessitate more scientific evaluation and monitoring for their ecological vulnerabilities.
... 1. Pulmonary and skin ailments or symptoms -Decrease in the distance of schools from the nearest MSW incinerator plant were independently associated with an amplified pervasiveness of wheezing, headache and stomach ache. Miyake et al. (2005) captured landfill methane substituting fossil energy (CO 2 ) and from carbon stored for a long term in the landfill (United Nations Environment Programme, 2010 shipyard, iron foundry, incinerator and city centre. Lung cancer risk was correlated with the incinerator, with a disproportionately high risk at the site and a sharp decline distant from the incinerator. ...
... It was observed that there are no variations in the individuals' pulmonary health between an incineration community and its comparative community. Miyake et al. (2005) included 450,807 primary school students aged 6À12 in a cross-sectional research. This included distances between all 37 municipal trash incineration facilities and each of the 996 public elementary schools. ...
... V Itálii zjistili, že byl nárůst PM10 ze spalovny komunálního odpadu spojen se zvýšeným rizikem potratů (Candela et al., 2015). V Japonsku došli k závěru, že blízkost spalovny komunálních odpadů ke školám může být spojena s výskytem chrapotu, bolestí hlavy, bolestí žaludku a únavy u dětí školního věku (Miyake et al., 2005). ...
English summary: In this study, we gradually went through the individual areas of the effects of waste incinerators on the environment, human health and the economy. One of the biggest problems associated with waste incineration is dioxins, which have serious negative effects on human health, including cancer, damage to the immune system, reproductive problems and developmental defects (Chapter 5.1.1). Although there are strict emission limits for them, waste incinerators are responsible for almost one fifth of all dioxins released into the air in the European Union (Chapter 5.1.1.1). It is evident that pyrolysis and plasma gasification of waste, as well as technologies now summarized under the name "chemical recycling" of plastic waste, do not represent functional substitutes for waste incineration and are similarly problematic in terms of environmental impacts or have different negative effects than "classical" waste incinerators (chapters 2 and 8). The most suitable alternatives in the field of waste management therefore appear to us to be waste prevention, sorting and recycling, which primarily includes bio-waste composting (Chapters 9.1.3 and 8). For municipal waste, the most appropriate solution is to set up systems called "zero waste" (see chapter 8.1), although it is clear that even in these systems some waste still remains. However, there is no need to build new waste incinerators for them, because the Czech Republic already has sufficiently large capacities for the energy recovery of waste. With their further growth, we are in danger of having to import waste, as in other countries, because cities will become dependent on W-t-E as heat sources (Chapter 10). Medical waste does not have to be incinerated to decontaminate infectious waste, there are a number of proven non-incineration technologies. Even in the healthcare sector, it makes sense to sort waste, not all of it is infectious (chapter 8.3). POPs in hazardous waste can be destroyed and decontaminated far more effectively by so-called non-incineration technologies (chapter 8.2.3), including ashes from incinerators containing high concentrations of dioxins (chapter 3.3.1). It is absolutely necessary to avoid incineration of waste containing mercury, which easily escapes even at normal (room) temperatures. Among other things, it is completely contrary to the Minamata Convention on mercury, which the Czech Republic ratified (chapter 8.2.2). Despite the claims of waste incineration plant operators that they have everything under control, the fact is that the most dangerous substances (such as dioxins or mercury) that are produced during combustion are monitored in emissions only twice a year, and many of them are not monitored at all (Chapters 3.1 and 5.1 .1.1). Due to emission limits, incinerators must clean the flue gas. However, it creates another flow of toxic waste in the form of ash and air pollution control (APC) residues, which must be dealt with somehow (chapters 3.3 and 5.1.1.3). Strict enough limits are not set for fly ash, and therefore, for example, a significant part of toxic substances, especially dioxins, escapes controlled disposal and thus significantly contributes to exceeding the planetary limits of chemical pollution (chapter 4.2). The amount of dioxins in fly ash out of control corresponds to the maximum tolerable intake of these substances for the population of up to 133 planets of the Earth. In addition to dioxins, other toxic substances such as brominated dioxins, PFASs, polychlorinated biphenyls and other organic substances are also released during waste incineration (Chapters 5.1 and 5.2). Brominated dioxins have similar toxicity to dioxins and similar effects on human health, yet they are not yet measured in flue gas from incinerators (this obligation is new), not to mention their concentration in solid waste incineration residues (chapter 5.1.2). Waste incinerators also release significant amounts of mercury and other toxic metals into the environment with negative effects on health (chapter 5.3). These metals are released into the air to a lesser extent but end up mainly in solid residues such as fly ash and APC residues and bottom ash. Unburnt plastic particles, known as microplastics, also remain in the ash (chapter 4.2). There are also many other potentially hazardous substances that are unknown or have no limits set for waste incinerators effluents (Chapter 5). This is problematic when considering the further use of residues from waste incinerators. In connection with exceeding the planetary limits for chemical pollution, there is no room for further pollution of the planet Earth. Despite the whole range of toxic substances that waste incinerators leave in emissions into the air and water, but above all in waste, slag, bottom ash and fly ash, the assessment of their impact on the health of residents living in the vicinity remains a controversial topic (Chapter 6). Although there have been a number of studies demonstrating their negative impact on human health, there are also a number of studies that have not proven this impact. Chapter 6 provides a rough cross-section of the issue of assessing the impact of incinerators on human health. However, it also concerns the assessment of local food contamination (chapters 3.4., 5.1.1.3.3 and 5.1.4.1). Waste incinerators do not only process materials that cannot be recycled, but they also compete for the same funds and materials with recycling facilities. At the same time, waste incineration means the loss of valuable raw materials, which must be extracted, produced and transported again. They thereby discourage the conservation of resources and their maintenance in a circular economy. Incinerators waste energy that was invested in the production of products that ended up in waste and in their collection. For these reasons, waste incineration was removed from the EU Taxonomy and from the list of financing sustainable activities. The construction of ZEVO and waste incinerators is heavily dependent on the financial support of the public sector (Chapters 9 and 10.1.1). He often paid extra for their construction or is paying extra. W-t-E receives support from EU funds in a hidden way. In addition to the initial investment costs, incinerators (W-t-E) swallow a lot of repair and maintenance funds, not counting the expenses related to the effects of incinerators on human health and the environment (Chapters 9.3, 9.4 and 9.5). Other financial costs are related to accidents, mostly fires, which occur quite often in waste incinerators, and which often destroy a large part of the equipment and threaten the health of residents living in the vicinity (Chapter 7). In the vicinity of the waste incinerators, soil contamination with toxic substances (primarily dioxins) and the related contamination of domestic poultry and/or livestock were also observed. Their research alone represented additional costs (chapters 3.4 and 9.5). Although some of their effects on the environment can still be debated because they have not been clearly proven, waste incinerators represent an outdated, unsustainable, and expensive way of managing waste that has negative effects on the environment, human health, and even the entire planetary ecosystem. Modern incinerators are trying to be included in the circular economy system and are therefore looking for ways to use the ash, which remains up to one third of its original weight from the incinerated waste (chapter 3.3.3). In this regard, too, for example, the oversized Dutch incinerators have already hit an imaginary ceiling, and the Nobel Prize winner Ernst Worrell therefore described the Dutch roads built from incinerator ash as "linear landfills" (chapter 3.3.3.1). Incinerating waste, while producing the energy that powers our modern, energy-intensive lives, also actively contributes to the cycle of climate change. Emissions of carbon dioxide, created by the combustion process, are one of the driving forces behind the greenhouse effect, which has serious consequences in the form of global warming and climate change. By 2050, the conversion of plastic waste to energy (including incineration in W-t-E) will lead to greater emissions of carbon dioxide than the burning of fossil fuels. Energy utilization of waste therefore does not help solve global climate change but contributes to it and thus represents a dead end in replacing coal (Chapter 4.1). While waste seems to magically disappear, the reality is that by burning waste we destroy valuable raw materials that we no longer can reuse, recycle or compost, while an unusable third of the original weight of waste remains enriched with toxic substances. By operating incinerators, we support linear waste management, which requires a constant supply of waste. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx V této studii jsme postupně prošli jednotlivé oblasti vlivů spaloven na životní prostředí, lidské zdraví i ekonomiku. Jedním z největších problémů spojených se spalováním odpadů jsou dioxiny, které mají vážné negativní účinky na lidské zdraví, včetně rakoviny, poškozování imunitního systému, reprodukčních problémů a vzniku vývojových vad (kapitola 5.1.1). Přestože pro ně existují přísné emisní limity, spalovny odpadů jsou zodpovědné za téměř jednu pětinu všech dioxinů vypouštěných do ovzduší v Evropské unii (kapitola 5.1.1.1). Je patrné, že pyrolýza a plazmové zplyňování odpadů stejně jako technologie nyní shrnované pod název „chemická recyklace“ plastových odpadů nepředstavují funkční náhrady za spalování a jsou z hlediska dopadů na životní prostředí podobně problematické anebo mají jiné negativní dopady než „klasické“ spalovny odpadů (kapitoly 2 a 8). Jako nejvhodnější alternativy v oblasti nakládání s odpady se nám proto jeví na prvním místě předcházení vzniku odpadů, jejich třídění a recyklace, které na prvním místě zahrnuje kompostování bioodpadů (kapitoly 9.1.3 a 8). Pro komunální odpady je nejvhodnějším řešením nastavení systémů zvaných „zero waste“ (nulový odpad, viz kapitolu 8.1), byť je jasné, že i v těchto systémech zatím nějaké odpady zbývají. Pro ty však není třeba stavět nové spalovny odpadů, protože Česká republika má již dostatečně velké kapacity pro energetické zhodnocení odpadů. Při jejich dalším růstu nám hrozí, že stejně jako v jiných zemích budeme muset odpady dovážet, protože města se stanou závislá na ZEVO jako zdrojích tepla (kapitola 10). Zdravotnické odpady se kvůli zbavení infekčnosti nemusejí spalovat, existuje řada osvědčených nespalovacích technologií. I ve zdravotnickém sektoru se vyplatí odpady třídit, ne všechny jsou infekční (kapitola 8.3). POPs lze v nebezpečných odpadech daleko účinněji rozložit a dekontaminovat tzv. nespalovacími technologiemi (kapitola 8.2.3), a to včetně popílků ze spaloven obsahujících vysoké koncentrace dioxinů (kapitola 3.3.1). Rozhodně je nutné se vyhnout spalování odpadů obsahujících rtuť, která snadno vytěkává už za normální (pokojové) teploty. Mimo jiné je to zcela v rozporu s Minamatskou úmluvou o rtuti, kterou Česká republika ratifikovala (kapitola 8.2.2). Navzdory tvrzením provozovatelů spaloven, že mají všechno pod kontrolou, je skutečnost taková, že ty nejnebezpečnější látky (například dioxiny nebo rtuť), které vznikají při spalování, jsou v emisích sledovány jen dvakrát ročně a mnoho z nich se nemonitoruje vůbec (kapitoly 3.1 a 5.1.1.1). Vzhledem k emisním limitům musí spalovny čistit spaliny. Tak však vytváří další tok toxického odpadu v podobě popílku a zbytků z čištění spalin, se kterým musí být nějak naloženo (kapitoly 3.3 a 5.1.1.3). Pro popílek nejsou nastaveny dostatečně přísné limity, a proto například značná část toxických látek, především dioxinů, uniká kontrolovanému nakládání a významně tak přispívá k překročení planetárních mezí chemického znečištění (kapitola 4.2). Množství dioxinů v popílcích mimo kontrolu odpovídá maximálnímu tolerovatelnému příjmu těchto látek pro populaci až 133 planet Zemí. Kromě dioxinů se při spalování odpadů uvolňují také další toxické látky, jako jsou bromované dioxiny, PFAS, polychlorované bifenyly a další organické látky (kapitoly 5.1 a 5.2). Bromované dioxiny mají podobnou toxicitu jako dioxiny a podobné účinky na lidské zdraví, přesto se ve spalinách ze spaloven zatím neměří (tato povinnost je nová), o jejich koncentraci v pevných zbytcích nemluvě (kapitola 5.1.2). Spalovny odpadů rovněž do prostředí uvolňují značné množství rtuti a jiných toxických kovů s negativními dopady na zdraví (kapitola 5.3). Tyto kovy jsou v menší míře uvolňovány do ovzduší, ale končí především v pevných zbytcích, jako je popílek a zbytky z čištění spalin a v popelu. V popelu dále zůstávají nespálené částečky plastů, známé jako mikroplasty (kapitola 4.2). Existuje také mnoho dalších potenciálně nebezpečných látek, o kterých se ve výstupech ze spaloven neví nebo pro ně neexistují limity (kapitola 5). To je problematické při úvahách o dalším využití zbytků ze spaloven odpadů. V souvislosti s překročením planetárních mezí pro chemické znečištění není prostor pro další znečišťování planety. I přes celou škálu toxických látek, které spalovny odpadů opouštějí v emisích do ovzduší a vody, ale především v odpadech, popelu a popílku, zůstává hodnocení jejich dopadů na zdraví obyvatel žijících v okolí kontroverzním tématem (kapitola 6). Vznikla sice řada studií prokazujících jejich negativní dopad i na lidské zdraví, ale je tu i řada studií, které tento dopad neprokázaly. Kapitola 6 podává hrubý průřez problematikou hodnocení dopadů spaloven na lidské zdraví. Týká se ho však i hodnocení kontaminace lokálních potravin (kapitoly 3.4., 5.1.1.3.3 a 5.1.4.1). Spalovny odpadů nezpracovávají pouze materiály, které nelze recyklovat, soutěží totiž o stejné finanční prostředky a suroviny s recyklačními zařízeními. Přitom znamená spalování odpadů ztrátu cenných surovin, které musí být znovu vytěženy, vyrobeny a dopraveny. Odrazují tím od zachování zdrojů a jejich udržení v cirkulárním hospodářství. Spalovny plýtvají energií, jež byla investována do produkce výrobků, které skončily v odpadu, a do jejich sběru. Z těchto důvodů bylo spalování odpadů vyřazeno z EU Taxonomy a ze seznamu financování udržitelných aktivit. Výstavba ZEVO a spaloven odpadů je silně závislá na finanční podpoře veřejného sektoru (kapitoly 9 a 10.1.1). Ten na jejich výstavbu často doplácel anebo doplácí. ZEVO dostávají skrytou cestou podporu z fondů EU. Kromě vstupních investičních nákladů spolykají spalovny (ZEVO) spoustu fondů na opravy a údržbu, nepočítaje výdaje související s dopady spaloven na lidské zdraví a životní prostředí (kapitoly 9.3, 9.4 a 9.5). Další finanční náklady souvisejí s haváriemi, většinou požáry, k nimž ve spalovnách dochází poměrně často, a které nezřídka zničí větší část zařízení a ohrozí zdraví obyvatel žijících v okolí (kapitola 7). V okolí spaloven byla rovněž pozorována kontaminace půdy toxickými látkami (především dioxiny) a s ní související kontaminace domácích chovů slepic anebo dobytka. Už jen jejich výzkum představoval další vyvolané náklady (kapitoly 3.4 a 9.5). Byť o některých jejich vlivech na životní prostředí můžeme stále diskutovat, protože nebyly jednoznačně prokázány, spalovny odpadů představují zastaralý, neudržitelný a drahý způsob nakládání s odpady, který má negativní dopady na životní prostředí, lidské zdraví, a dokonce celý planetární ekosystém. Moderní spalovny se snaží zařadit do systému cirkulární ekonomiky, a proto hledají cesty využití popela, kterého ze spáleného odpadu zbývá až jedna třetina z jeho původní hmotnosti (kapitola 3.3.3). I v tomto ohledu už například předimenzované nizozemské spalovny narazily na pomyslný strop a nositel Nobelovy ceny Ernst Worrell proto označil nizozemské silnice budované ze spalovnového popela za „lineární skládky“ (kapitola 3.3.3.1). Spalování odpadů, i když produkuje energii, která pohání náš moderní, energeticky náročný život, také aktivně přispívá k cyklu změny klimatu. Emise oxidu uhličitého, vzniklého procesem spalování, jsou považovány za jednu z hnacích sil skleníkového efektu, který má vážné důsledky ve formě globálního oteplování a změny klimatu. Do roku 2050 povede přeměna plastového odpadu na energii (včetně spalování v ZEVO) k větším emisím oxidu uhličitého než spalování fosilních paliv. Energetické využití odpadu tedy nepomáhá řešit globální změnu klimatu, ale přispívá k ní a představuje tak slepou uličku v nahrazování uhlí (kapitola 4.1). Zatímco se zdá, že odpad kouzelně mizí, skutečnost je taková, že spalováním odpadu ničíme cenné suroviny, které už nemáme možnost znovu využít, recyklovat nebo kompostovat, zatímco nepoužitelná třetina původní hmotnosti odpadů zůstává obohacena o toxické látky. Provozem spaloven podporujeme lineární odpadové hospodářství, které vyžaduje neustálý přísun odpadu.
... The previous studies have found that living within 3 kilometers from an incinerator plant indicates an increased risk of lymphoma and soft tissue sarcoma cancer up to 3.5% . More evidence is shown that living close to an incinerator has relation to respiratory disease [3][4]. In particular the incinerator related workers were exposed to particulates and heavy metals 10 to 100 folds greater than that of general population [5]. ...
This study aimed to assess the health risk associated with the inhalation of air pollutants including VOCs and heavy metals for workers at waste incinerator site in the South of Thailand. Air samples were collected and analyzed followed by NIOSH standard method, air samples were collected for 8 hours continuously. The concentration of heavy metal; Hg, Cd, Pb, Mn, Ni were very low while mean concentrations of VOCs; benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes, and styrene were determined as 0.080, <0.001, 0.031, 0.043, and <0.001 mg/m 3 respectively. Health risk assessment was employed to evaluate the carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic effects. The cancer risk for benzene exposure was estimated to be 1.26 x 10-5 that is higher than the acceptable risk level of 1 x 10-6. Non-carcinogenic risk (Hazard Quotients; HQ) for toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes and styrene was at acceptable level. Thus, workers in this plant were at risk to health effects associated with benzene via inhalation exposure. Health promotion and risk communication should be given to them in appropriated way.
... 13 This study is also slightly similar to a referenced research done in Japan which focuses on the relationship between the prevalence of allergic disorders and the distance of schools from the incineration plant. 14 The research found that schools closer to the nearest municipal waste incineration plants were found to have increased prevalence of respiratory disorders but there was no evident relationship between distance of schools from incineration plants and prevalence of atopic dermatitis. 14 It is somewhat surprising that only 45% of Igando respondents reported common cold as a symptom of a respiratory disorder whilst 50% of Badagry respondents reported it. ...
Background: Solid waste dump sites have proven to have potentially high risk to human health as it serves as a source of air, soil and underground water pollution.
Aim: This study aimed to assess and compare the knowledge, respiratory disorders and skin disorders between residents living close to and far from landfill sites in Lagos State, Nigeria.
Setting: Igando (a community within 5 km close to) and Badagry (a community beyond 5 km from) Solous Landfill sites in Lagos state, Nigeria.
Methods: A comparative cross-sectional study amongst 103 respondents recruited from each of the two study sites by multistage sampling method was carried out. Data were collected using pretested, structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire, and analysed using Microsoft Excel 2007, EPI Info 7 and WinPepi statistical software packages. Student t-test, Fisher’s exact and Chi-square tests were carried out. The p ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: The mean age of Igando and Badagry respondents was 34.18 ± 10.21 years and 32.62 ± 9.84 years, respectively. The two communities differed significantly (p 0.0001) with respect to distance of workplace from landfill site and duration of stay in the residential location. The mean knowledge score of respondents on respiratory and skin disorders associated with solid waste dump site close to landfill sites (82.53 ± 20.60) was statistically significantly higher than those of respondents far from landfill sites (71.84 ± 20.57) (p = 0.0003). Respiratory and skin disorders experiences of respondents close to landfill sites were statistically significantly (p 0.0001) higher than those of residents far from landfill sites with respect to wheezing, frequent sneezing, unpleasant odour, fever and skin rashes.
Conclusion: Respiratory and skin disorders experienced by respondents close to landfill sites are higher than those of residents far from landfill sites. Landfill sites should not be located close to human settlements.
... Porta et al. [8], meanwhile, concluded that the association between incinerators and respiratory symptoms was inconclusive considering the uncertainty and residual confounding. Unlike the authors of other studies, Miyake et al. [30] suggested that the proximity of schools to municipal waste incinerators may be associated with an increased prevalence of wheezing, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.08 (95% CI: 1.01-1.15). From the literature review, the association between the proximity to incinerators and respiratory symptoms was inconclusive. ...
While incineration is among the most commonly used technologies for waste disposal, there is ongoing public concern regarding the adverse health impact. The aim of this study is thus to use health statistics to assess the relative risk of asthma-related hospitalization for those living in close proximity to incineration facilities. We also examine differences in asthma risk related to age demographics. The spatial relationship between incineration facilities and asthma-related hospital admissions in Seoul is analyzed for the period of 2009–2011 using the Rapid Inquiry Facility (RIF) and SaTScan software. The relative risk of asthma-related hospitalization decreased with increasing distance from incinerators, but increased among those living within a 2-km radius. The relative risks of asthma-related hospitalization were 1.13 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.10–1.17), 1.12 (95% CI: 1.08–1.17), and 1.18 (95% CI: 1.10–1.27) for all ages, those aged below 15 years, and those aged 65 years and older, respectively. This study is the first to observe an increased risk of asthma-related hospitalization in relation to a person’s distance from an incinerator in Seoul, Korea. It is clear that asthma should be considered an adverse health outcome during health impact assessments of incineration plants.
The universal solid waste management and its hazardous effects on ecology, ecosystem to global human health index are some of the major issues that are currently frightening our future. The over production of solid waste materials is mainly the consequences of explosion in human population, extraordinary increase in global economy along with global productivity. Due to rapid growth in global population and related demands, the productions of solid waste materials are increasing day by day. In order to have a better solution of solid waste management, the best ethical way is to convert solid waste materials into valuable carbon-based nanomaterials (CNMs) like CNT, graphene, carbon quantum dots (CQDs) etc., which can further work as the precursors in energy storage devices. This critical review summarizes recent progress in the structural forms and current situational analysis of universal solid waste based CNMs. It also includes broadly discussed issues, initiating with current waste situation analysis of global energy crisis and the production of graphene including its counterparts, as the precursor for supercapcitor applications. A paradigm, study of various solid waste derived CNMs with their significance as, in particular, depends upon the types of CNMs and the classification of solid waste derived CNMs on the basis different type of pore size, pore distribution, etc. The various structural modifications and their effects on electrochemical properties have been discussed thoroughly for supercapacitors application including their future possibilities and scope. The review outlines crucial mechanism followed during of charge storage of different kind of supercapacitors and various electrochemical calculations involved during the performance testing of fabricated device. We hope that target audience, belonging to energy or material science field, may acquire relevant information from this review, which may further help them to design futuristic studies in the field.
Huge reductions in incinerators' emissions occurred over time, and results of older studies cannot be directly generalized to modern plants. We conducted a systematic review of the epidemiologic evidence of the health effects of incinerators, classifying plants in three generations, according to emissions.
A systematic search identified 63 epidemiologic studies, published in English, investigating health effects of incinerators on humans. We focused on cancer, cardio-cerebrovascular diseases (CVD) and respiratory diseases, pregnancy outcomes and congenital anomalies. Only six studies in the general population were on third generation incinerators providing data on pregnancy outcomes and congenital anomalies. Given the heterogeneity of methods, the abundance of ecological/semi-ecological studies and the lack of reliable quantitative measures of exposure in several studies we did not perform any meta-analysis.
No excesses emerged concerning all cancers and lung cancer. An excess of non-Hodgkin lymphoma was reported in some earlier studies, but not for second generation plants. Possible excesses of soft tissue sarcomas were confined to earlier incinerators and the areas closer to the plants. No clear association emerged for CVD and diseases of the respiratory system. Several different pregnancy outcomes were considered, and no consistent association emerged, in spite of a few positive results. Studies were negative for congenital anomalies as a whole. Sporadic excesses were reported in a few studies for specific types of anomalies, but no consistent pattern emerged. Evaluation of the evidence was hindered by heterogeneity in reporting and classification of outcomes across studies.
Direct evidence from third generation plants is scarce. Methodological issues in study design (mainly related to exposure assessment, confounding and ecological design) and analysis make interpretation of results complex. In spite of this, the overall evidence suggests that, if there were any excesses at all for older incinerators, they were modest at most. Additional monitoring of third generation plants needs to overcome methodological weaknesses.
To take an insight into the long-term accumulation of chromium (Cr) and cadmium (Cd) in school-age children living near an MWI and to assess their early renal impairment, we conducted a cross-sectional study in 2015. A total of 116 children from the exposure area and 122 from the control area were recruited. We measured the urinary levels of Cr (U-Cr) and Cd (U-Cd) by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and detected three classic renal tubule indicators, including N-acetyl-β-d-glucosaminidase (NAG), β2-microglobulin (BMG), and retinol binding protein (RBP). The U-Cd and U-Cr levels in children living near the MWI were 0.11 and 1.57 μg/g creatinine, respectively. Both the U-Cd and U-Cr levels in the exposure group were lower than those in the control group, although only U-Cd showed a statistical difference (p < 0.01). The U-NAG and U-RBP levels in the exposure group were also statistically lower than those in the control group (0.80 vs. 1.74 IU/g creatinine, 0.26 vs. 0.48 mg/g creatinine, respectively). The U-Cd level in this study was positively correlated with the U-NAG level (r = 0.26, p < 0.01), as the U-Cr level was also positively correlated with the levels of U-NAG, U-RBP, and U-BMG (r = 0.21, 0.33, 0.18, p < 0.01, respectively). This study indicates that children living close to this particular MWI may not suffer considerable long-term accumulation of Cd or Cr, nor early renal impairment.
By use of the postcoded database held by the Small Area Health Statistic Unit, cancer incidence of over 14 million people living near 72 municipal solid waste incinerators in Great Britain was examined from 1974-86 (England), 1974-84 (Wales) and 1975-87 (Scotland). Numbers of observed cases were compared with expected numbers calculated from national rates (regionally adjusted) after stratification by a deprivation index based on 1981 census small area statistics. Observed-expected ratios were tested for decline in risk with distance up to 7.5 km. The study was conducted in two stages: the first involved a stratified random sample of 20 incinerators; the second the remaining 52 incinerators. Over the two stages of the study was a statistically significant (P<0.05) decline in risk with distance from incinerators for all cancers combined, stomach, colorectal, liver and lung cancer. Among these cancers in the second stage, the excess from 0 to 1 km ranged from 37% for liver cancer (0.95) excess cases 10(-5) per year to 5% for colorectal cancer. There was evidence of residual confounding near the incinerators, which seems to be a likely explanation of the finding for all cancers, stomach and lung, and also to explain at least part of the excess of liver cancer. For this reason and because of a substantial level of misdiagnosis (mainly secondary tumours) found among registrations and death certificates for liver cancer, further investigation, including histological review of the cases, is to be done to help determine whether or not there is an increase in primary liver cancer in the vicinity of incinerators.
We reported previously a 37% excess risk of liver cancer within 1 km of municipal incinerators. Of 119/235 (51%) cases reviewed, primary liver cancer was confirmed in 66 (55%) with 21 (18%) definite secondary cancers. The proportions of true primaries ranging between 55% and 82% (i.e. excluding secondary cancers) give revised estimates of between 0.53 and 0.78 excess cases per 10(5) per year within 1 km.
Background In all, 70 municipal incinerators, 307 hospital incinerators and 460 toxic-waste landfill sites in Great Britain were examined for evidence of effluents causing childhood cancers. Municipal incinerators had previously shown significant excesses of adult cancers within 7.5 and 3.0 km. The relative risks for adults had been marginal and an analysis of childhood cancers seemed to offer a more sensitive approach.
Methods A newly developed technique of analysis compares distances from suspect sources to the birth addresses and to the death addresses of cancer-children who had moved house. A localized hazard, effective at only one of these times, must be preferentially associated with the corresponding address. This creates an asymmetry of migrations towards or away from age-restricted effective sources.
Results The child-cancer/leukaemia data showed no systematic migration-asymmetries around toxic-waste landfill sites; but showed highly significant excesses of migrations away from birthplaces close to municipal incinerators. Relative risks within 5.0 km of these sites were about 2:1. Hospital incinerators gave analogous results. The ratios greatly exceed findings around ‘non-combustion’ urban sites.
Conclusions Because of their locations, the specific effects of the municipal incinerators could not be separated clearly from those of adjacent industrial sources of combustion-effluents. Both were probably carcinogenic. Landfill waste sites showed no such effect.
There have been few studies of the population prevalence of allergic rhinitis and atopic eczema, and although hundreds of asthma-prevalence studies have been done in various parts of the world, they have seldom used standard approaches. An exception is the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS), 1–3 which involved surveys of asthma and allergic-rhinitis prevalence in adults aged 20–44 years in 48 centres in 22 countries, although only nine centres in six countries were outside of western Europe. The ECRHS suggested that there were regional risk factors for asthma and allergic rhinitis in western Europe, but it did not comprehensively assess the global patterns. For children, the largest standard studies of the prevalences of asthma, allergic rhinitis, or atopic eczema have involved at most four countries. 4–6 Thus, in some respects, the epidemiology of asthma and other allergic disorders is currently similar to that of cancer epidemiology in the 1950s and 1960s, when the international patterns of the incidence of cancer were studied. 7 These studies revealed striking international differences that gave rise to many new hypotheses, tested in further epidemiological studies that identified previously unknown risk factors for cancer. These risk factors may not have been in the hypotheses investigated if the initial international comparisons had been confined to few western countries. More specifically, Rose 8,9 has noted that whole populations may be exposed to risk factors for disease (eg, high exposure to house-dust-mite allergen) and the patterns may be apparent only when comparisons are made between, rather than within, populations. Therefore, we carried out systematic, standardised, international comparisons of the prevalence of asthma and allergies to generate new hypotheses and to investigate existing hypotheses in the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). The detailed findings for the prevalence and severity of the symptoms of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic eczema in children aged 6–7 years and 13–14 years will be reported elsewhere. Here, we give an overview of the findings for children aged 13–14 years (the age-group that was studied by all participating centres), assess the relationship between the findings for the three disorders, and discuss the potential for future ecological and case-control studies. Methods Phase one of the ISAAC programme 10 used a simple standard approach at minimum cost in as wide a range of centres and countries as possible, based on school populations to ensure Summary Background Systematic international comparisons of the prevalences of asthma and other allergic disorders in children are needed for better understanding of their global epidemiology, to generate new hypotheses, and to assess existing hypotheses of possible causes. We investigated worldwide prevalence of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic.
Background
Systematic international comparisons of the prevalences of asthma and other allergic disorders in children are needed for better understanding of their global epidemiology, to generate new hypotheses, and to assess existing hypotheses of possible causes. We investigated worldwide prevalence of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic.
Methods
We studied 463 801 children aged 13–14 years in 155 collaborating centres in 56 countries. Children self-reported, through one-page questionnaires, symptoms of these three atopic disorders. In 99 centres in 42 countries, a video asthma questionnaire was also used for 304 796 children.
Findings
We found differences of between 20-fold and 60-fold between centres in the prevalence of symptoms of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic eczema, with four-fold to 12-fold variations between the 10th and 90th percentiles for the different disorders. For asthma symptoms, the highest 12-month prevalences were from centres in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Republic of Ireland, followed by most centres in North, Central, and South America; the lowest prevalences were from centres in several Eastern European countries, Indonesia, Greece, China, Taiwan, Uzbekistan, India, and Ethiopia. For allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, the centres with the highest prevalences were scattered across the world. The centres with the lowest prevalences were similar to those for asthma symptoms. For atopic eczema, the highest prevalences came from scattered centres, including some from Scandinavia and Africa that were not among centres with the highest asthma prevalences; the lowest prevalence rates of atopic eczema were similar in centres, as for asthma symptoms.
Interpretation
The variation in the prevalences of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic-eczema symptoms is striking between different centres throughout the world. These findings will form the basis of further studies to investigate factors that potentially lead to these international patterns.
The public health impacts associated with stack emissions from hazardous waste incinerators have become a major concern in recent years. Most evaluations of incinerator stack emissions have focused on three classes of compounds: metals, semivolatile, and volatile compounds. These investigations have been complicated by the difficulty and expense of analyzing the emissions and the limited amount of toxicity information for many of the compounds that have been detected. The results of over 20 trial burns at hazardous waste incinerators were assembled in an attempt to determine which compounds may pose a significant threat to the public health. The risks associated with semivolatile emissions were found to be inconsequential, although further study of dioxins and dibenzofurans emissions appears to be warranted. The risk associated with the emission of cadmium and perhaps chromium (VI) may pose a significant risk to public health at certain facilities. Controls on waste feed or air pollution control devices should be employed to reduce the emission of these metals. Any monitoring of metal emissions from hazardous waste incinerators should focus on cadmium and chromium (VI).
In two regions of Sydney where sewage treatment facilities with high temperature sludge burning incinerators are installed, there was concern that the resultant emissions were causing a local increase in symptoms of asthma and other allergic diseases.
To investigate whether living in a region with high temperature sludge burning incinerators was associated with an increased prevalence of childhood asthma or allergy.
We studied 713 children aged eight-12 years in two regions close to incinerators and 626 children in a control region with no sludge burning incinerator. We measured respiratory illness in the previous year by questionnaire, airway hyper-responsiveness (AHR) by histamine inhalation test, and atopy by skin prick tests. 'Current asthma' was defined as AHR and recent wheeze.
Recordings of oxides of nitrogen and sulphur, hydrogen sulphide, ozone and particulates during the study period showed that the level of pollutants did not vary in any major way between the study regions and the control region. The prevalence of current asthma, atopy, symptom frequency or any category of severity of asthma illness was not significantly different between the control and study regions.
This suggests that factors other than intermittent or industrial air pollutants are responsible for the high prevalence of asthma symptoms, asthma medication use, asthma morbidity and AHR in the study of children.
Toxic emissions from municipal solid waste (MSW) and hazardous waste incineration are discussed, with reference to recent reviews and to government standards and controls. Studies of known effects of aromatic hydrocarbons, other organics, dioxins, metals, and gases, on fish, soils, plants, and particularly humans are briefly reviewed. A summary of potential problems with existing and proposed incineration is developed, including: (1) lack of toxicity data on unidentified organic emissions; (2) unavoidability of hazardous metal emissions as particles and volatiles; (3) inefficient stack operation resulting in unknown amounts of increased emissions; (4) formation in the stack of highly toxic dioxins and furans, especially under inefficient conditions, and their build-up in the environment and in human tissue; (5) the lack of adequate disposal techniques for incinerator fly ash and wash-water; (6) the contribution of emitted gases such as NO2, SO2 and HCL to smog, acid rain, and the formation of ozone, and the deleterious effects of these on human respiratory systems; (7) the effects and build-up in human tissue of other emitted organics such as benzene, toluene, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), alkanes, alcohols, and phenols; (8) lack of pollution-control and real-time efficiency-monitoring equipment in existing installations. The inability of regulatory bodies historically to ensure compliance with emission standards is discussed, and a concluding opinion is offered that it is inadvisable to engage in new incinerator construction with present knowledge and conditions.
In all, 70 municipal incinerators, 307 hospital incinerators and 460 toxic-waste landfill sites in Great Britain were examined for evidence of effluents causing childhood cancers. Municipal incinerators had previously shown significant excesses of adult cancers within 7.5 and 3.0 km. The relative risks for adults had been marginal and an analysis of childhood cancers seemed to offer a more sensitive approach.
A newly developed technique of analysis compares distances from suspect sources to the birth addresses and to the death addresses of cancer-children who had moved house. A localized hazard, effective at only one of these times, must be preferentially associated with the corresponding address. This creates an asymmetry of migrations towards or away from age-restricted effective sources.
The child-cancer/leukaemia data showed no systematic migration-asymmetries around toxic-waste landfill sites; but showed highly significant excesses of migrations away from birthplaces close to municipal incinerators. Relative risks within 5.0 km of these sites were about 2:1. Hospital incinerators gave analogous results. The ratios greatly exceed findings around 'non-combustion' urban sites.
Because of their locations, the specific effects of the municipal incinerators could not be separated clearly from those of adjacent industrial sources of combustion-effluents. Both were probably carcinogenic. Landfill waste sites showed no such effect.
In order to evaluate the characteristics of fatigue symptoms and their association with the life style and the health status, we examined using data accumulated by the longitudinal surveys from 1992 to 1998, in 118 six-year primary school children and 129 second-year junior high school children. The complaints of "drowsiness and dullness", such as "become drowsy" (71%), "give a yawn" (59%) and "want to lie down" (51%), respectively, were most frequently observed. The proportion of these complaints was high before the first morning class, but decreased when the children leave school. Notably, the complaints of "difficulty in concentration" annually have increased. Children with undesirable eating habits, particularly those who often eat salty foods, or poor life style, such as staying up late at night tended to have more complaints of fatigue symptoms. By correlation analysis, these complaints were significantly related to the obesity degree, blood pressure, HDL cholesterol and atherogenic index. These results support the hypothesis that fatigue symptoms increase or are associated with life style and health status. Consequently, it is necessary to improve the life style such as dietary habits and rhythm of life for the reduction of fatigue symptom.