Ann. occup. Hyg., Vol. 46, No. 5, pp. 507, 2002
© 2002 British Occupational Hygiene Society
Published by Oxford University Press
Book Review |
Controlling Exposure to Stonemasonry Dust: Guidance for Employers
Institute of Occupational Medicine Roxburgh Place Edinburgh EH8 9SU, UK
Controlling Exposure to Stonemasonry Dust: Guidance for Employers, HSE Books, London, 2001, ISBN 0 7176 1760 2, Price: £10.95
This book has been produced in order to help employers assess the hazards associated with exposure to masonry dust and implement appropriate control measures. Specifically, the book aims to help employers address the following questions.
Is the type of dust important?
How much dust is too much dust?
What controls will reduce the stonemason’s exposure enough?
How do I know whether the controls are working?
How do I keep the controls working?
The book is attractively laid out and each chapter contains a number of study questions to enable the reader to assess whether they have correctly understood the chapter content. The illustrations of activities that create stone dust and the effectiveness of different control measures are superb.
The introductory part of the book describes the hazards associated with exposure to excessive quantities of airborne dust and the law in relation to exposure to airborne dust. The main text describes the sources of dust exposure associated with stone masonry work. A scheme is outlined for calculating the approximate exposure concentrations of stone dust associated with different tasks undertaken by masons and to estimate their total exposure over a shift. Graphs are provided from which the approximate ranges of dust concentrations associated with different tasks and different stone types can be read off. These estimates can then be entered into a spreadsheet and a serious of simple arithmetical operations undertaken to estimate exposure over a full shift. This is likely to be very useful for those required to undertake risk assessments for stone dust arising from masonry activities. There is, however, a limitation in that stone types such as sandstone have extremely variable respirable silica contents. A range of dust control measures, including ventilation and vacuuming off stone debris, are described in detail. The relative effectiveness of these and other control measures under different conditions are discussed. Some estimated exposure reduction factors for different control measures are provided. The final chapters of the book address the monitoring, checking and maintenance required to ensure that control measures continue to work and also the requirements for occupational health surveillance. The text throughout is clearly written. The suggested methods for estimating potential exposures to dust are straightforward, although perhaps daunting for those without a science background. My main criticism of this book is the low billing given to actually making measurements of airborne dust concentrations. Measurements are invaluable in assessing the validity of any assessment based on estimates. Contrary to the impression given in the text, it is not particularly expensive or difficult to measure personal exposure concentrations of airborne dust and crystalline silica. Given the variability of respirable silica content of different masonry materials, measurement data is important in the selection of appropriate and cost-effective control measures.
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