A quick review of pending and past mesothelioma claims makes clear that ships and shipyards have always been dangerous, asbestos-contaminated places. The vast majority of those seeking compensation for previous exposure are Navy veterans or others who worked in or around maritime vessels. As much as we may think of this as a risk from the past, a recent occupational study reveals that those who work on ships continue to face significant danger.
Study Shows OSHA Regulations Don’t Protect Sailors from Mesothelioma
Though OSHA regulations purportedly protect workers from occupational hazards, the report titled “Sailors and the Risk of Asbestos-Related Cancer” documents the impact of asbestos that continues to contaminate ships, and the risk of diseases like malignant mesothelioma that it poses. The study is the work of public health researchers Richard Lemen and Philip Landrigan.
Reviewing epidemiologic studies of sailors, Lemen and Landrigan found that many sailors suffered from mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases that OSHA guidelines attempt to protect them from. Unfortunately, the limits that are established by the agency do not take into account the fact that “permissible exposure limits” are based on 8-hour work days, and do not address the needs of those who live in their workplace 24 hours a day, as is the case for sailors.
Sailors at High Risk of Asbestos Exposure and Mesothelioma
In their report published in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, the authors write, “Sailors are at high risk of exposure to shipboard asbestos, because unlike shipyard workers and other occupationally exposed groups, sailors both work and live at their worksite, making asbestos standards and permissible exposure limits (PELs) based on an 8-hour workday inadequate.”
Even with growing evidence of asbestos’ dangers, sailors continue to work in the presence of asbestos that was installed years earlier. “Chrysotile and amphibole asbestos were used extensively in ship construction,” they write, “for insulation, joiner bulkhead systems, pipe coverings, boilers, machinery parts, bulkhead panels, and many other uses, and asbestos-containing ships are still in service.” The scientists encourage those in maritime professions to learn the symptoms of asbestos-related diseases and to advise their physicians of their increased risk.
If you or someone you love has been exposed to asbestos, you may be at risk for malignant mesothelioma. For more information, contact the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net today at 1-800-692-8608.
