California looks to a greener future: Transportation plans look promising

Cities like San Francisco will
benefit from cleaner air in the years to come
Image: FreeDigitalPhotos

California has been stereotyped as a health-crazed, fresh food-eating, bikini-wearing destination, but ironically, it is also one of the most polluted states in the country.

In last year’s State of the Air report, Californian cities were featured, overall, six times in the top 10 most polluted cities in the United States. 

But the Golden state is looking to change that… eventually.

Since $3.3 billion were freed up this year, plans to build a high-speed railway system were approved. Groundbreaking starts in 2013 and there is a lot buzz around this project as experts look forward to what this will mean for the state’s environmental status.

A study published in the journal, Environmental Research Letters, determined this project would be the greenest public transportation yet: greener anyway than automobiles and airplanes. This conclusion was based on greenhouse gas emissions as well as energy consumption for all three forms of transportation. 

The new high-speed railway system will serve several cities by linking them together. Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego will one day be connected by something other than a highway. 

But don’t hold your breath just now. It may take up to 30 years for California to start to reap environmental benefits from this project: around the time the railway system will become fully operational.

What do you think of this project? Is it too little too late? Share your thoughts with us!

Source: ScienceDaily

While we're waiting...

 

In the meantime, it is up to companies and individuals to do their part in reducing emissions, through carpooling, reducing energy use within companies and taking care of each others’ health and well-being while indoors.

Electrocorp's I-6500 series is just
one of many units that can clean
indoor air pollution in the workplace

Environmental experts specialize in helping individuals and businesses develop more eco-conscious solutions to both indoor and outdoor air pollution. 

For companies looking to improve indoor air quality, there are many different air cleaners available at Electrocorp that can make work spaces healthier for employees. 

Our air cleaners include activated carbon filters to adsorb chemicals and gases that enter offices from the outdoors, and HEPA filters to extract particulates from the air.

For more information on Electrocorp’s units, contact us.

Show your support for greener and healthier working environments by becoming a follower of this blog.

Dangerous chemicals abound when working with cars

Auto body shops and garages often expose workers to toxic chemicals

Working with cars -
an occupational risk?

For those who love cars, repairing them sounds like a great job -- but the occupational health risks can be substantial.

For one former mechanic turned musical activist, more than three decades of working in the auto repair business have opened his eyes to the dangers of chemicals.

Randy Bigness blames his cancer on his long-time exposure to chemicals such as benzene, a common ingredient in fuel, oils and other petroleum-based products.

He also developed chemical sensitivities and allergic reactions to substances such as dust.

The former mechanic has dedicated his life to music and to raising awareness about chemical dangers in his industry, talking to auto shop workers everywhere he goes.

Slow to recognize health effects

Working in his auto repair shop, Bigness thought he was simply tired and says he didn’t realize his immune system was compromised. Only after multiple health issues that wouldn’t respond to antibiotics and an extreme sinus infection did he allow the possibility of a more serious problem.

Tests revealed he suffered from chronic myelogeneous leukemia (CML), a cancer caused by a genetic mutation acquired later in life.

The former mechanic says he worked with benzene all the time when he had to clean parts, breathing in the fumes and getting splashed with the solvent. Benzene is one of the most widely used solvents in the United States.

According to OSHA, benzene is a carcinogen. "With exposures from less than five years to more than 30 years, individuals have developed, and died from, leukemia," the OSHA website states.

"Long-term exposure may affect bone marrow and blood production. Short-term exposure to high levels of benzene can cause drowsiness, dizziness, unconsciousness, and death."

Are you, or someone you know, a car enthusiast? Tell us what you think about these health hazards.

Source: Popono Record

Activated carbon air cleaners for benzene fumes

The AirRhino can accommodate
a 100 lb. activated carbon filter
to remove VOCs such as benzene.

Benzene vapors as well as diesel and fuel emissions and other volatile organic compounds found in auto repair shops and garages can be mitigated effectively with the right air filters.

Along with adequate ventilation and other protective measures, Electrocorp’s air cleaners for auto repair shops and garages offers deep-bed activated carbon filters to provide cleaner and healthier air.

The activated carbon removes those gaseous pollutants, odors and fumes in the ambient air that can affect the workers over time.

Contact Electrocorp for more information.

Follow this blog to show your support for green and healthy working environments.

Toxic fumes affect unlikely companies

Chemical fumes exposure can lead
to headaches, nausea and shortness of breath

Indoor air quality has become increasingly important in the workplace as companies have come to understand how poor indoor ventilation can affect work performance.

Over the past two weeks, three American companies have been hit with various chemical scares leading to several employees falling sick. 

A contractor for the Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico cleaned the handrails in the caves one night.  When employees arrived at work the next day, the product’s fumes were still so powerful that employees fell ill, leading to the closure of the caves for two days. 

In Florida, a mortgage company had to evacuate its 12 employees from the offices after people started complaining of headaches and scratchy throats. The culprit? Cleaning products. A Tampa HAZMAT team determined that the chemicals for the cleaning products were mixed at too concentrated a level.

In Hawaii, a United States Postal Service employee was sent to the hospital after experiencing shortness of breath and nausea. He had handled a parcel which contained a chemical that had leaked through the box. Tests indicated the chemical is often used to make cleaning products. 

Source: The Associated Press, Fox 13, HawaiiNewsNow

Protecting your employees

Even companies that do not produce chemicals use them for regular cleaning. When dealing with closed spaces, it is particularly important to have good ventilation.  Putting your employees at risk leads to more work-related absenteeism and possible serious injury.

The first thing companies should invest in is a different selection of cleaning agents. Cleaning products are made with various chemicals, such as xylene, toluene and phenol and side effects can range from headaches to death. Using more green products will help avoid workplace chemical exposure.

Having an air cleaner in areas where chemicals are mixed or used is strongly suggested. For situations such as in the Carlsbad Caverns, an air cleaner should be left on overnight after chemical application. Office kitchens, where chemicals might be mixed, should also have an air cleaner to help mitigate chemical fumes as well as kitchen odors.  

The 5000 series is ideal for office spaces

Electrocorp’s 5000 series contains an 18 pound carbon filter, a medical-grade HEPA filter and its wheels make it easily maneuverable. Check out our air cleaners for offices for more details.

Would you like to speak to one of our IAQ experts? Call us toll free at 1-866-667-0297 or write us on our website.

Have you had a chemical scare at work? Share your stories with us!

Show your support for greener and healthier working environments by becoming a follower of this blog.

Survey to examine healthcare workers’ risk of asthma

Healthcare workers are exposed to
many occupational risks, incl. asthma.

Healthcare is North America’s largest industry, but it can expose workers to a multitude of work-related risks, including

• Work-related asthma
• Harsh cleaning products
• Latex
• Indoor air pollution
• Pathogens

More information is needed to protect workers accurately from asthma risks, so the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) wants to assess the situation with a comprehensive survey of hospital- and nursing home-based healthcare workers.

The goal is to identify modifiable occupational risk factors for asthma that can help authorities formulate and implement prevention strategies.

The proposed survey would include several thousand healthcare workers from New York City, who can participate online or by phone.

The participating workers will include certified nursing assistants, central supply, environmental services, licensed practical nurses, lab techs, operating room techs, registered nurses, respiratory therapists, and dental assistants.

The survey can also help make healthcare workers more aware of the asthma risks at their workplace, so that they can help identify risk factors and solutions.

Do you think this survey will help the healthcare industry? Share your thoughts with us.

Source: Risk and Insurance

Air cleaners for healthcare settings

In order to reduce asthmagens (pollutants that can cause or aggravate asthma symptoms), indoor air needs to be controlled, ventilated and cleaned.

Electrocorp has developed portable and powerful air cleaners for hospitals and healthcare, which feature a complete filtration system to remove fine particles, dust, chemicals, VOCs, odors, fumes, mold, bacteria and viruses from the ambient air.

Electrocorp's RAP series combines
carbon and HEPA filters for best results.

The filtration system contains

• Deep-bed activated carbon filter for gaseous pollutants and odors
• HEPA filter for particles
• Easy-clean pre-filters
• UV germicidal filtration for pathogens and mold (optional)

Highly recommended air cleaners for healthcare settings include the RAP series, which come in different sizes and filter configurations to provide the most efficient IAQ solution, the AirMedic+ series, a small and portable air purifier for individual rooms that offers supreme particle filtration and the I-6500 series, a top-rated air cleaner for larger spaces or in rooms that require strict air quality control.

Electrocorp also offers air cleaners for dental labs as well as other types of laboratories.

For more information, contact Electrocorp today.

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