Re: We are killing nuclear workers!

[Susan Gawarecki <loc@icx.net>]

Having followed this issue in great depth as it has played out in Oak
Ridge, I'll add some comments here.

I've met many former workers with illnesses that they blame on DOE
operations on the Oak Ridge Reservation.  Many of them have depleted
their financial resources attempting to find a cure for their health
problems.  They attribute their illnesses to a variety of
exposures--suprisingly not so much to radiation but more commonly
exposures to other substances--PCBs, dioxins (from the TSCA
Incinerator), fluoride, heavy metals, transuranics, unspecified
classified substances, and molds (from work in damp vaults with poor
ventilation).  The diseases of concern are not generally cancers, but
syndromes such as chronic fatigue, memory loss, pain in bones or
muscles, neurological symptoms, cardiac symptoms, multiple chemical
sensitivities, etc.  As such, most of these workers will not be eligible
for compensation.

Are there sick workers?  Yes.  Can a cause be determined?  Generally not
(excepting beryllium disease).  Three occupational physicians spent a
couple of years trying to get to the bottom of the allegations, with a
concentrated study of about 50 workers who felt that they had been
harmed by their work for DOE. Their conclusions were that some workers
had been affected, probably by exposure to substances (metals? molds?)
that caused neurological damage, and other workers in poor health were
not made ill by their employment. 

Some of the ES&H audits have uncovered issues such as poor
recordkeeping, including dosimetry records.  There is plentiful evidence
of poor industrial hygiene practices and lack of personal protective
equipment availability.  There have been many allegations of retaliation
against workers who complained about working conditions or attempted to
report health problems.

I think there are a variety of factors at work here.  Most of the
complainants are blue collar workers, many have other issues regarding
DOE as well.  Many feel they were never properly informed about
potential hazards in their workplace and were not properly protected by
their employers.  DOE and its contractors have for years stonewalled and
denied responsibility, instead of having a good look at their H&S
practices and properly investigating health claims.

Trying to sort all this out and be fair to those who indeed suffered
from chemical or other exposures in the workplace is a difficult task,
to put it lightly.  It is complicated by lack of trust and hard
feelings.  Science--cause and effect--is just a small piece of the
issue, and unfortunately not the most significant.

Although I don't necessarily agree with all the conclusions of the
study, I think the result will ultimately benefit DOE by forcing it to
meet modern workplace standards of industrial hygiene, as well as
address the hazards of aging contaminated facilities.  This is long
overdue, and it will be expensive.

Certainly the above perspective is a personal opinion only.

Regards,
Susan
-- 
.....................................................
Susan L. Gawarecki, Ph.D., Executive Director
Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee
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The LOC newsletter "Insights" is posted on our Web site
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