POISNOUS EMISSION AND HEALTH RISKS OF RESIDENTS OF A COMMUNITY IN OGUN STATE

I was again stunned this morning to see a report on the risk posed by yet another Indian company operating within a community in Ogun State. You will recall we published a story on people living on a diet of cement in the same State. I did promise i was going to get in touch with Ogun State Government on that report, i must tell you we have met with The Occupational Health Unit of Ogun State Ministry of Health on that issue. We were rightly informed they have visited the company to see things for themselves and they are currently working on a relocation program as a way of combating the exposure. We will follow up on this and let you know what happens next.

 

Another company is reportedly inflicting residents of a community within the same State with so much smoke and carborn emission that they can barely have fresh breath, we see this as industrially murderous. We need to know the health risks associated with such harmful inhalation and the impact on the residents.

 

One of such critical health risk is asphyxiation (when the body fails to get sufficient supplies of oxygen to the tissues. Inhaling smoke blocks the intake of oxygen in the lungs, and boosts levels of the gas carbon monoxide which interferes with the ability of the blood to carry oxygen).

 

Another very critical risk inhalation of smoke particles and chemicals such as carbon monoxide and cyanide can cause is direct irritation of the lung tissues.

Visible symptoms includes but not limited to:

·Cough

·Shortness of breath

·Sore throat

·Headache

·Confusion

Serious smoke inhalation can lead to damage to the smaller airways deeper down in the respiratory system. These airways may become blocked by damaged material. The minute hairs, or cilia, that line these airways and help to ferry contaminants out the respiratory system may also be damaged. In this case, the patient may find breathing more and more difficult, as asphyxia sets in. They may become blue or cyanosed, especially around the lips and mucus membranes or noticeable on the fingertips (as oxygen levels in the blood drop), and start breathing faster to try to get more oxygen in.

 

As oxygen levels drop they may become confused and even lose consciousness. There is also a risk of developing pneumonia, or even complete respiratory failure. Alternatively their lips may appear unusually bright ‘cherry red’ which is the effect of carbon monoxide in the blood and which can disguise the cyanosis of low oxygen levels.

In addition to interfering with oxygen carriage by the blood, carbon monoxide is poisonous and causes headache, nausea and vomiting. Sometimes the person appears well, with no obvious symptoms, until the effects of carbon monoxide become apparent.

 

As well as direct tissue damage, smoke inhalation may provoke dangerous chemical reactions within the body. Pollutants contained in smoke can trigger the immune system to react, resulting in damage to the tissues. The immune system produces a cellular response and also chemicals called cytokines which seek out and helps neutralise inhaled contaminants.

 

Too much of a specific cytokine called tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF) can stimulate a chain reaction that leads to the death of cells and general irritation in the lung, called a pneumonitis, which further interferes with the process of taking oxygen in to the body.

 

Having reviewed the possible risks and symptoms, you will realize the presence of these companies and their activities have nothing good to offer the health of the people residing in this community. The questions are:

 

·         Should Government fold her hands at such acts that are inimical to the health of the citizens whose electoral votes brought them into power?

·         Are we going to wait to till people die enmasse before reactions from Government which is mostly the case?

·         Is not this one case too many?

·         Does Occupational Health and Safety not encourage the "Law of reward and consequence"?

·         I am lost, my heart bleed and yet there is no solution in sight.

·         How did we get here?

·         How do we develop like this when our ineptitude destroys generation next?

·          

Only hope remains the answer. Even if tomorrow never comes, let us be sure we did the right thing within the day we have as ours.

 

Kindly read through the story as published by Ignatius Igwe of Punch Newspapers of 12th April, 2013.

 

Residents of Ajose community, Ogijo in Sagamu area of Ogun State have sent a distress call to the state government to save them from being choked to death by smoke coming from a company in the area. Chairman, Ajose Community Development Association, Mr. Akanni Jamiu, told PUNCH Metrothat a steel company within the community owned by Indians, African Founderies Ltd, had caused the people sickness as they continued to breathe in the “dangerous smoke’ everyday. He said, “The smoke from the chimney of the company always blows across the community and it is affecting our health.

 

“The tunnel meant for leading the smoke out into the air is faulty, so the smoke blows directly into our homes.”He said the pollution had been going on for about four years of the company’s inception and had caused health challenges to the residents.

Another community leader, Alhaji Fatai Shekoni, said,“People in Ogijo are really bothered about the smoke because this is a serious health concern for us all. “If you come here as early as 7am, you will see things for yourself. As I speak to you now, I have serous cough arising from the company’s smoke. “I had to send my wife and children to Lagos so they will not be victims of Asthma and Tuberculosis. I really want the government to look into this.”Shekoni said after they complained to the company, the officials organized medical test for the residents. He added that the company had refused to give them the result months after the test. He said, “They took our blood sample after a series of health complaints about two years ago and they have refused to show us the results “by the time we went to another hospital, we discovered that many of us had developed asthma, chronic cough and other forms of diseases”.

 

A resident, who gave her name simply as Mrs. Yusuf, said, “The smoke in the factory was supposed to go through the chimney but it does not, it blows directly into the atmosphere enveloping the whole town in complete darkness during the day. “A visitor to the community might think it is a total eclipse of the sun, but to us residents of Ajose, it is an everyday thing”.

 

But the head of company’s administration, Mr. Michael Aderemi, said the company was committed to finding a lasting solution to the menace. He said, “Of all the 26 steel companies in Ogijo, we are the only company that has installed a shredding machine that is fully functional to control pollution. “Also installed is air pollution machine which controls all the air pollutants by removing them. “You see, everyone cannot be satisfied and that is the major challenge we have now. In line with our Corporate Social Responsibility, we have presented to the community a functional borehole and a cheque of N350, 000 to assist the community repair its transformer.  “At present, 70 per cent of our workers are from the community.”

 

I am more confused and bothered by the statement of Michael Aderemi, the Head Administration of the company. In his work "we are the only company that has installed a shredding machine that is fully functional to control pollution". I am wondering if this is not part of what is expected as an operational safe processes in line with best practice, what they have cannot even been classified as being enough until the extent of their pollution is assessed and a very requisite equipment in line with their emission is recommended.

 

The community did not complain about your inability to dig a borehole for them; they are bothered about the health risk they suffer due to your unhealthy operational presence within their community. You gave the N350, 000 is not the issue and if i may ask, what was the fund meant for? It is very natural you employ people from the community; this is the general conduct of most companies to employ mostly artisans from host communities. How many of such community people were employed into management capacity?

 

I also think the Government has a role here. As reported, the company has spent about 2 years operating in that community which connotes it was obviously a residential area before the sudden emergence of the company unlike the case of Lafarge.

I think the Government should not place investment and revenue as a priority over the health and overall life of the people. If we really indeed want to create investment opportunity which of course is also for the people, I think there is need for due consideration of the people and the host environment. Two documents that are at the forefront of this are:

·         The Environmental Impact Assessment Document

·         The Health Impact Assessment Document

If we properly give attention to what these document advice if properly done, there will be no need for such health risk issues in the first place and even if there would be, they would have been properly captured in these documents and ways to mitigate duly implemented.

We also need to understand Government does not exist in isolation, let us properly engage the people in our projects and direct investment which have great impact on their well being. We can together create a better environment our children will be proud to inherit but the way it is now, our children will not be proud of us if this is what we want to leave for them. I am sure they will wonder if we really have them in mind when we were taking the decision that we made. The future is not about us, it is about our children, let us decide wisely and we must start it today.

“If one can touch one, we all can touch all”.

Please read and leave a comment.

ehi@ohsm.com.ng

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CONCERNS AND LEGISLATIONS

The need to be productive with minimal exposure to Occupational Health risk has become an integral issue in the front burner within the International Labour Organisation and World Health Organisation. As much as this has raised so much concern, i am particularly worried over the lack of zeal and interest of most countries in paying attention to the global outcry and giving full participation in supporting a healthy and risk free work environment.

Come 28th April 2013, countries across the world will be pitching tents at different geographical locations to celebrate an ILO initiative called “World Day for Safety and Health at Work”. This program is celebrated every year on April 28 using different themes based on risk prevalence or disease trends as communicated by ILO. The theme for this year’s celebration is “The Prevention of Occupational Diseases”.

You will agree with me that this year’s theme could not have come in a better time than this taking into consideration the disregard that Occupational Diseases have suffered across many sectors of the world because of perhaps the desire to post huge profit with high compromise to the safety and health of employees or in some cases complete irresponsibility displayed by business owners and managers towards the Occupational Health plight of workers. Of late, there have been some controversies from different quarters on where to draw the line or balance the difference between working safely and working productively bearing the mind that profit is the primary reason why businesses exist.

In my opinion, in as much as every business goal is to remain profitable to the owners, we should also understand we can also remain profitable without necessarily killing and maiming people at the altar of profits. We remain even more profitable by embracing the concept of health and safety in our workplaces; it is more expensive to manage accidents than working safely. One cardinal regrets on the long term impact of the work we do on our overall health is that the eventual outcome of the effects of what we have been exposed to takes a long time to manifest and sometimes this is even after we have retired fully from work. He that works unsafely today should bear in mind there are deposits you have made which your health must draw from in time to come. Should we then continue in this manner? Will this guaranty a sustainable future? Should not we rather preserve the lives of these experienced and aged employees who are potential victims of Occupational diseases? Wouldn’t it have been better if they remain reservoir of knowledge and experience to the younger ones? Wouldn’t this contribute to Nation’s building? These and many more are questions begging for answers. Remember, the death of an elder is as good as a library burnt down, that is how history puts it.

I also feel effective organisational policies will help to forestall this ugly trends that impacts negatively on the lives of employees in their work places. But my big question is, are there enabling Occupational Health and Safety legislations in most countries to support the policies?  Perhaps the west that has reasonably good enabling legislations but why is Africa left out in this global movement that advocates sustainable development? Isn’t this an integral part of the MDG program?

If Africa is really the future global market as predicted by virtually all the renowned and respected Economists and Investment Analysts, shouldn’t Africa be at this point be at the forefront in advocating for global best practices knowing our environment, our workplaces have become the spotlight of most investors across many continents even as have been evident, Asia. This is again an indication that Africa is a reactive continent and perhaps this sums up the reason why we have not been able to embrace the concept of Occupational Health and Safety which hinges not on REACTIVE but PROACTIVE dispositions. We cannot pretend not to know the impact of these incoming investments on our environment and the health of the African people. There are a number of global economic alliances happening across Africa with the BRICS economic initiative comprising of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, there are also other happening between Nigeria and other countries. These are all investment machineries focusing on boosting trade in Africa and with Africans; good as it sounds we need to think the processes through and mitigate possible short and long term effects of these business environments for the good of all.

Let us quickly ask ourselves the following questions:

Is Occupational Health and Safety legislation process different from other bill passage processes?

If no, why the reluctance in passing this most wanted bill?

Every retired parent has a child that is gainfully employed somewhere and every child has a parent that works in some workplace, it is the way this Occupational Health and Safety issue connects us all. If we keep quiet because we have retired from active service what about our children who just got in? If we cannot speak out because we are still young and in school yet to join the labour workplace, what of our working parents? This issue concerns us all, keep not quiet but speak out where ever and whenever you have the opportunity. The safety of everyone should be everyone’s concern.

If each one can touch each one then everyone can touch every one, what a safe place the word will be. Let’s do what we can today, for the night cometh when no man can work.

Salus Populi Suprama Lex  “The safety of the people is the supreme law”.

Please read and leave a comment.

ehi@ohsm.com.ng