Ed Weber’s research while affiliated with University of California, Berkeley and other places

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Publications (9)


Smaller loads reduce risk of back injuries during wine grape harvest
  • Article
  • Full-text available

January 2006

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140 Reads

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11 Citations

California Agriculture

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Ed A. Weber

Hand-harvest work in wine grape vineyards is physically demanding and exposes workers to a variety of ergonomics risk factors. Analysis of these exposures together with data on reported work-related injuries points to the risk of back injury as a prevention priority, in particular the lifting and carrying of tubs of cut grapes (weighing up to 80 pounds) during harvest. Our study evaluated the effectiveness of an intervention — the use of a smaller picking tub — on the incidence of musculoskeletal symptoms among workers during two harvest seasons. Reducing the weight of the picking tub by about one-fifth to below 50 pounds resulted in a five-fold reduction in workers' postseason musculoskeletal symptom scores, without significant reductions in productivity.

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Priority risk factors for back injury in agricultural field work: Vineyard ergonomics

January 2004

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558 Reads

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56 Citations

Journal of Agromedicine

With support of a NIOSH Community Partners grant, the authors reviewed data from three cooperating vineyard companies in Napa and Sonoma Counties, finding both high rates of evidence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and identifying priority MSD hazards for intervention. Data from OSHA 200 injury report logs identified 29 reported MSDs and 435 lost workdays in a working population of 194 in a 30-month period. The majority of these (20) involved backstrain. High risk job tasks were identified, including: employer-identified tasks, analysis of injury reports, and ergonomics risk factor checklist survey of task work. Triangulating across these three data groups resulted in identification of high priority tasks, including: hand harvest work, hand pruning, and weeding using shovels. Priority risk factors for back injury in these jobs were: repetitive lifting of heavy loads, repetitive exertion of force by the trunk and upper extremities, and repetitive or sustained awkward postures of the trunk (including full stoop and twisting with loads).


Priority Risk Factors for Back Injury in Agricultural Field Work

April 2002

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436 Reads

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29 Citations

Journal of Agromedicine

With support of a NIOSH Community Partners grant, the authors reviewed data from three cooperating vineyard companies in Napa and Sonoma Counties, finding both high rates of evidence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and identifying priority MSD hazards for intervention. Data from OSHA 200 injury report logs identified 29 reported MSDs and 435 lost workdays in a working population of 194 in a 30-month period. The majority of these (20) involved backstrain.High risk job tasks were identified, including: employer-identified tasks, analysis of injury reports, and ergonomics risk factor checklist survey of task work. Triangulating across these three data groups resulted in identification of high priority tasks, including: hand harvest work, hand pruning, and weeding using shovels. Priority risk factors for back injury in these jobs were: repetitive lifting of heavy loads, repetitive exertion of force by the trunk and upper extremities, and repetitive or sustained awkward postures of the trunk (including full stoop and twisting with loads).


High Risk Tasks for Musculoskeletal Disorders in Agricultural Field Work

July 2000

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299 Reads

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44 Citations

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting

Agricultural work involves heavy physical exertion and is characterized by evidence of high rates of musculoskeletal disorders. Currently ergonomics is a low priority for injury and illness prevention in agriculture. However, based on costs and incidence rates ergonomics risk factors should rank among the highest farm safety priorities. Analysis of field work jobs by the University of California with support from NIOSH yield an industry generalizable set of high risk tasks which should have high intervention priority. These are: repetitive and awkward forward flexion, repetitive lifting and carrying heavy loads, and highly repetitive hand work.


Fig 1. Map of 12-acre study site, showing position of nine study plots, 40 vines each. At the time the plots were established in May 1993, visual assessments of vine roots determined that plots 1-3 were severely infested, plots 4-6 were lightly to moderately infested and plots 7-9 were not infested.  
Fig 2. Mean per-vine pruning weight in each study plot, 1993 and 1994. For 1994 vs. 1993, weights were lower in plots 1-6 due mostly to continued phylloxera-induced decline, and higher in less affected plots 7-9 due to pruning practices described in the text.  
Airborne imaging for vineyard canopy evaluation

July 1996

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94 Reads

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64 Citations

California Agriculture

During the 1993 and 1994 growing seasons, airborne digital sensors were used to collect visible and near-infrared images of phylloxera-infested vineyards near Oakville in Napa County. Computerized processing enhanced the information content of the images with respect to leaf area of the canopy. Processed image values were strongly related to ground measurements of vine pruning weight and leaf area made within a 12-acre study site. The images were useful for mapping patterns of leaf area throughout the site and in surrounding vineyards, and for assessing year-to-year changes in canopy. The vineyard manager found the imagery valuable in planning for replacement of phylloxera-infested fields, managing for crop uniformity and segregating grapes of differing quality during harvest. This tool was particularly useful in evaluating and managing newly acquired property.


Enzone does little to improve health of phylloxera-infested vineyards

July 1996

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21 Reads

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9 Citations

California Agriculture

Enzone was applied to phylloxera-infested vineyards in four trials in Napa and Sonoma counties from 1989 through 1994. Improvements in growth or yield were occasionally seen, but most occurred only after the vines had been severely affected by phylloxera and yields had plummeted.


Fig. 2. Agarose gel electrophoresis of RAPD products from paired comparisons of biotype A vs. biotype B from Rutherford using 9 Operon primers. The lane on the far left is a 123 bp DNA molecular ladder; Lanes 1 and 2 = OPG3, Lanes 3 and 4 = OPG4, Lanes 5 and 6 = OPGl 0, Lanes 7 and 8 = OPA4, Lanes 9 and 10 = OPA9, Lanes 11 and 12 = OPAl 0, Lanes 13 and 14 = OPAl1, Lanes 15 and 16 = OPA12 and Lanes 17 and 18 = OPBl. Differences between the two biotypes are indicated with arrows.  
Fig. 1. Yearly total of AxR#l vineyard acreage removed due to biotype B phylloxera infestation, Napa and Sonoma counties.  
California grape phylloxera more variable than expected

July 1996

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244 Reads

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45 Citations

California Agriculture

Many strains of grape phylloxera now have been identified in California vineyards. This variability may be the result of multiple introductions of this pest or of evolution of new strains on susceptible or weakly resistant rootstocks. Thus own-rooted vines, weakly resistant rootstocks and those with V. vinifera parentage should not be used in phylloxerated areas. In addition, because of the observed variability, quarantines are ineffective in preventing the occurrence of biotype B phylloxera, as it appears to evolve independently in different areas.



Assessment of Leaf Area, Vine Vigor, and Grape Yield and Quality of Phylloxera-Infested and Non-Infested Grapevines in Napa County and Their Relationship to Leaf Reflectance, Chlorophyll, and Mineral Content

April 1996

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13 Reads

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2 Citations

Grape Phylloxera will cause the California wine industry to lose over one billion dollars by the year 2000. Grape growers with grape phylloxera- infested soils graft scion varieties onto what are popularly termed 'resistant rootstocks.' Rootstocks, however, differ in their suppression of phylloxera: some do not support the insect at all, while other support low populations. In addition, phylloxera biotypes vary in their growth on different rootstocks. In California's Napa and Sonoma county vineyards, about 75% of the vines have AXR#1 rootstock that tolerates phylloxera biotype A. In the early 1980's biotype B emerged there. It so devastates AXR#1 that the vineyards must be replanted with rootstocks resistant to biotypes A and B. Timing replanting is difficult because vineyards do not decline uniformly. A patchwork of uninfested vines, infested but asymptomatic vines, declining but productive vines', and unproductive vines typifies most vineyards. The grower must determine the proportion of vines in each category and estimate the yield loss the stressed vines will suffer. During 1993, 1994 and 1995 the NASA-Ames GRAPES study used remotely sensed leaf reflectance, temperature, and canopy size data and geographic information system (GIS) technology to study infestations in Napa County vineyards. As part of this study a vineyard with a range of phylloxera induced stress and accompanying symptoms -- reduced growth, less chlorophyll, and lower reflectance of near infrared:red light -- was investigated to determine the degree to which stress measurements predict the current and following season's yields from stressed vines relative to healthy vines. Such yield estimates could enable a grower -- before obtaining actual yields -- to calculate the economics of replanting. A grower who decided to replant would have 2-14 months additional lead time to plan and prepare.

Citations (7)


... Daktulosphaira vitifoliae, a small insect in the Order Hemiptera, originally from North America, was agreed to be of highest concern from the perspective of economic impacts in the context of Cyprus, and is regulated in Plant Health Regulation (EE) 2016/2031. Cyprus is one of the few countries that uses traditional European vine root stock for growing grapes (Myrianthousis, 1980), whereas in most parts of Europe, due to the presence and subsequent damage caused by D. vitifoliae in the late 19th century, American root stock is used (Granett et al., 1996). If this IAS arrived into Cyprus, there would be devastating effects, both culturally and economically to the wine production of the country. ...

Reference:

Horizon Scanning to Predict and Prioritize Invasive Alien Species With the Potential to Threaten Human Health and Economies on Cyprus
California grape phylloxera more variable than expected

California Agriculture

... The findings of our study were in lieu with several www.ccsenet.org/gjhs Global Journal of Health Science Vol. 4, No. 1; January 2012 studies that conclude repetitive and monotonous work tasks, awkward posture and neck extension were main risk factors for NP (Meyers et al., 2000; MOA and MPIC, 2005; Ohlsson et al., 1995). Multivariate analysis found neck flexion or rotation, awkward and static postures were the main risk factors for NP where repetitive motion showed no significant association. ...

High Risk Tasks for Musculoskeletal Disorders in Agricultural Field Work

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting

... Where phylloxera damage occurs, vine losses are high. No other generally applicable control tactics are consistently effective (e.g., Weber et al. 1996). Alternative management tactics for grape phylloxera and phylloxera-related damage would be useful for preventing or slowing losses and for delaying the need to replace declining vineyards with vines grafted to resistant rootstocks. ...

Enzone does little to improve health of phylloxera-infested vineyards

California Agriculture

... Nevertheless, the prevalent importance of NDVI also backs the hypothesis that VI variability can be linked to the variability of yield [52]. The well-established stability of vigour variability in the medium term when no major vine management changes or other exogenous factors induce changes ( [18,53], suggests that some form of within-block vigour zoning can be used together with vine size variability to map VRB, particularly since this has been demonstrated with the use of NDVI to predict winter pruning mass [40,54,55], a wellestablished proxy for VRB. ...

Airborne imaging for vineyard canopy evaluation

California Agriculture

... Scientific literature depicts that the effects of WMSDs could be observed on regions such as the neck, shoulders, upper/lower back, hands/wrists, elbows, hips/thighs, knees, and feet/ankles, which can be identified by human anatomy, as shown in Figure 2. These WMSDs can be caused by a range of factors, including repetitive motions, awkward postures, prolonged work duration, handling heavy physical loads (lifting), bending, climbing, reaching, and twisting [1,2,7,11,12,14,46,[50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59]. ...

Priority Risk Factors for Back Injury in Agricultural Field Work

Journal of Agromedicine

... Compared with the arrangement of 3 points contact, 2 points contact can contain more fruit in a single box. Meyers et al. (2006) have found that, in order to avoid human muscle damage, the total weight of the fruit package box should be <20 kg. Based on the above discussion, in a single pineapple packaging box, 2 points contact arrangement was used, the ideal quantity 20, and the packaging dimensions of the box at 350 × 300 × 500 mm (length × width × height, Fig. 14). ...

Smaller loads reduce risk of back injuries during wine grape harvest

California Agriculture

... While the fruit and tree nut farming industry (NAICS code: 1113), encompassing operations such as orange groves, apple orchards, grape vineyards, and tree nut farming, serves as a major economic driver in many countries, fruit tree farmers are at risk of developing MSDs (Benos et al., 2020;Rosecrance et al., 2006). Specifically, workers in vineyards and apple orchards exhibit the highest MSD rates, with 80 per 1000 workers in vineyards and 22 per 1000 workers in apple orchards (Meyers et al., 2002), particularly in the back and shoulder areas (Fulmer et al., 2002;Howard et al., 2016). In a recent survey conducted by the Rural Development Administration (RDA) in Korea on occupational diseases among Korean farmers, MSDs emerged as the most prevalent health concern, comprising an overwhelming 84.6% of reported cases (RDA, 2021). ...

Priority risk factors for back injury in agricultural field work: Vineyard ergonomics

Journal of Agromedicine