Signs of Changes Taking Hold in Electronics Factories in China - NYTimes.com

“The days of easy globalization are done,” said an Apple executive who, like many people interviewed for this article, requested anonymity because of confidentiality agreements. “We know that we have to get into the muck now.” Read More:

A.M. Best revises estimate for U.S. asbestos insurance losses to $85 billion

 A.M. Best Company Inc. recently released a revised estimate of $85 billion, net of reinsurance, in losses due to asbestos claims to the United States property and casualty insurance industry. Read More:

Asbestos factory demolished in Vaishali, 55 countries have banned asbestos

 Bitter resistance against the cancer causing asbestos based plant of West Bengal based company Utkal Asbestos Limited (UAL) and the insensitivity of the government towards the fatal threat of asbestos fibers to villagers resulted in the blockade of 12 km stretch of Mahuwa-Hazipur Road in Bihar from 6 O’ clock in the morning to 3 O’ clock in the afternoon. Read More:

Bangladesh Fire Exposes Safety Gap in Supply Chain

In all, 112 workers were killed in a blaze last month that has exposed a glaring disconnect among global clothing brands, the monitoring system used to protect workers and the factories actually filling the orders. After the fire, Walmart, Sears and other retailers made the same startling admission: They say they did not know that Tazreen Fashions was making their clothing. Read More:

Occupational health a neglected area in India - Times Of India

 In India, where labour is cheap and industrial workers aplenty, it should not come as a surprise to know that occupational health is a neglected field in which no comprehensive data or surveys are available. Read More:

Tokyo court orders state to pay 1 billion to compensate asbestos victims | The Japan Times Online

The Tokyo District Court ordered the central government Wednesday to pay 1.06 billion in redress on behalf of workers who contracted asbestos-related diseases such as lung cancer at construction sites due to insufficient official countermeasures, but it let the makers of materials using the mineral off the hook. Read More:

More than 112 killed in Bangladesh clothing factory fire - Telegraph

At least 112 people were killed in a fire that raced through a multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday. Read More:

Mining Accident in Guizhou Kills 18

After one of the deadliest mine accidents in almost three years and another mining accident in Gansu resulting in 20 deaths, the Voice of America reports at least 18 people have died and 5 are missing in China’s most recent mining accident: Read More:

Dangers of work-induced hearing loss - Zimbabwe

Jack hammers, punch presses, weaving machines, most woodworking machinery, grinders, heavy diesel engines, compressors, disc cutters, riveting machines, crushers, blasting equipment, forges and ball mills are just some of the many noise producers that can endanger workers’ hearing. Read More:

IMPACT: Federal inspectors step up enforcement of rules to prevent black lung | The Center for Public Integrity

In the late 1990s, however, the downward trend in disease rates reversed, and government researchers are documenting with alarm the return of black lung, which was supposed to have been eradicated years ago. Even more disturbing: Rates of the most severe form of the disease have tripled since the 1980s. Read More:

Mine encroaches on learning space at Sonus - Times Of India

Mine encroaches on learning space at Sonus - Times Of India: The government primary school at Sonus stands encircled by now silent mines, and a few trees wilting in the blazing sun and sting of the mining dust. Inside the concrete box structure, the lone teacher switches between students of Classes I to IV.

'Khambhat agate workers living in bitter conditions' - The Times of India

VADODARA: A first of its kind survey done by People's Training and Research Centre (PTRC) - an NGO -among the agate workers of Khambhat has thrown up some shocking facts, which adds to the troubles of policy makers who haven't even found a solution to early deaths due to silicosis among these workers. Read More

Mining legacy: Almost 93 gaping pits - The Times of India

 PANAJI: Deep scars of half-a-century of mining activity are likely to haunt the state for a long time, as the prospects of restoring the degraded environment appear remote and near-impossible. Goa, feel environmentalists and activists, could well be staring at a legacy of 93 massive mining pits, likely to be left gaping open for posterity. Read More:

Electronics manufacturer Foxconn says underage interns found working at factory in China

 BEIJING — Electronics manufacturer Foxconn said Tuesday it found underage interns as young as 14 working at one of its factories in China.Read More

Fukushima: Asbestos high in quake zone / Excessive levels of hazardous material found at demolition sites

As of last month, asbestos levels exceeding the World Health Organization’s safety limit were detected in 14 cases at sites where buildings damaged by last year’s Great East Japan Earthquake were being demolished, according to a government study. Read More:

Canadian decision brings global asbestos ban nearer | Equal Times

 “A global ban on asbestos is closer now than ever before”, announced yesterday Fiona Murie, the leading health and safety campaigner for the Building and Woodworkers International. Read More:

Asbestos products still being imported to Ontario

Despite recent announcements in Ottawa and Quebec that suggest asbestos will soon be a thing of the past, products made of the cancer-causing mineral are still being imported and used in Ontario today. While the carcinogenic insulation is now being removed from buildings across the province, two new products that contain asbestos — brake pads and cement pipes — are being brought in. Read More:

WORLD SIKH ORGANIZATION AND OTHER SOUTH ASIAN BODIES MUST PRESSURE BALJIT CHADHA TO STOP TRYING TO EXPORT CANCER-CAUSING ASBESTOS TO INDIA!

 AS reported in this newspaper last week, the federal government was forced to reverse its position on supporting export of the cancer-causing asbestos. Federal Industry Minister Christian Paradis said the government will no longer oppose the listing of chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous substance under the Rotterdam Convention and that Ottawa would fork out $50 million to enable asbestos mine workers to retrain in other fields of work. Asian Journal:

The insanity of coal mining

National Public Radio (NPR) and the Center for Public Integrity (CPI) teamed up to produce a special investigative report on the increased incidence of black lung disease in coal miners. The results of their combined investigations were released on the NPR’s radio stations on July 9–10, 2012 and broadcast on Public Broadcasting Systems (PBS) television on July 9, 2012. Read More

Hazardous "bidi" cigarette factories in Bangladesh pose serious health risks to workers and families

“With the rising food prices, I struggle to feed my family with this income. My health pays the price,” said Begum who lives in Tangail District in the country’s northeast. Read More

Ottawa does U-turn on asbestos mining

Canada is ending its much-maligned practice of defending asbestos mining on the world stage, a reversal of a stand that made it a pariah in some international circles.Read More

Canada won't oppose asbestos limits

 Canada's dying asbestos industry was dealt another blow Friday from one of its former friends, with Industry Minister Christian Paradis announcing that the federal government will no longer oppose global rules that restrict use and shipment of the substance. Read More

Fears that asbestos used in chimneys drifting into environment

 High concentrations of asbestos fibers were detected at the top of chimneys in recent surveys, indicating the possibility that asbestos used as insulators in depleted chimneys is prone to break apart, according to researchers. Read More

Rising chemicals output a hazard, clean-up needed by 2020: U.N.

 Production and use of chemicals - from plastics to pesticides - is shifting to developing nations where safeguards are often weaker, the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) said. Unsafe disposal and recycling adds to risks, it said. Read More

The Union for the International Control of Cancer calls for a global ban on asbestos

The Union for the International Control of Cancer (UICC) has called for a global ban on the mining, use and export of asbestos. Read More

The Deadly Tin Inside Your Smartphone - Horrors of Mining in Indonesia

On May 29, in the bottom of a tin-mining pit on Bangka Island in Indonesia, a wall about 16 feet high collapsed, sending a wave of earth crashing down on a 40-year-old father of two. Read More:

Confusing Verdict by India's Supreme Court

 Disregarding orders it had previously issued regarding the import of toxic end-of-life ships (May 3, 2012) and shipbreaking (July 6, 2012), on July 30, 2012, India's Supreme Court allowed a notorious 213,000-tonne tanker, once called the Exxon Valdez, into the country for dismantling at the Alang ship-breaking yard. Read More:

Pakistan Supreme Court Reviews Asbestos Case

 A case being adjudicated by the Supreme Court of Pakistan has highlighted the use of asbestos in a country which has consumed more than 35,000 tonnes since 2009 Read More:

Escalation of Ban Asbestos Mobilization in India

After a week-long blockade of the Visaka asbestos plant at Parmanpur, production has ground to a halt as lorry-loads of raw material remain parked outside the factory. Read More:

Prevent Cancer Now - Time to end the Corruption of Public Health Policy by the asbestos industry

The Joint Policy Committee of Societies of Epidemiology, comprising 13 national and international epidemiology organisations, specifically called on Canada and the three other asbestos exporting countries – Brazil, Kazakhstan, and Russia – to respect the right to health of all citizen of the planet and to stop exporting a known deadly substance that has already caused hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths. Read More:

Consumer board requires stricter asbestos labelling

The Consumer Protection Board (CPB) will now require stricter labelling of products containing asbestos. Read More:

Top researcher snubs French honour over 'industrial crimes'

A top researcher and campaigner on industrial health issues has refused France's highest honour in protest at official inaction over what she described as "industrial crimes" in this sector. Read More:

Ban asbestos exports to India: Aus Senator to Canada

Australia, which has banned the use of asbestos, should step in and ask Canada to halt the exports of the silicate minerals to India where it is widely used, a Labor Senator has said. Read More:

Asbestos opposition growing in Thailand, warns advocate

 An anti-asbestos advocate warns that one of the countries that consumes the most asbestos in the world is seeing a growing resistance to the use of the mineral and that it could mean big problems for the Jeffrey Mine. Read More:

What ails our healers? - Nation

THIRTEEN years into his medical career, Dr Zakaria (not his real name) has gone through the mill and made it as an ear, nose and throat surgeon. Throughout the years, he has had his fair share of stress at work, especially in the earlier days as a houseman and medical officer in addition to studying for his speciality, getting married and having three children. Read More:

Calls for Canada to ban asbestos exports to India

 The decision of the Canadian Quebec government was like a slap on our face Read More:

Asbestos roofs pose a health threat to kids in 60 schools

KOZHIKODE: For the children of many schools in the district, the asbestos roofs over their head are posing a serious health hazard. Oblivious to the fact that the asbestos is carcinogenic (cancer-causing), they continue to attend classes. Though the State Human Rights Commission prohibited the use of asbestos as roofs in state schools in January 2009, nearly 60 schools, both private and government-run, in the district are yet to implement the order. Read More:

Rights panel notice to Jharkhand over 22 workers' deaths

"We have asked Jharkhand's chief secretary to respond in eight weeks time and submit a report on the action taken regarding medical treatment and rehabilitation of workers who are suffering from silicosis," said an NHRC official in a statement. Read More

Chief secy gets show cause notice

The National Human Rights Commission on Monday issued a show cause notice to Delhi chief secretary P K Tripathi, asking him to explain why some victims of silicosis were not given monetary relief. He has been given six weeks to respond. Read More:

Daughter seeking asbestos justice in dad's name

“For as far back as I can remember our home was always like an open complaints department,” Guill said. “Workers could come to the door seeking my dad’s help because they didn’t know what to do, or in many cases were too afraid to speak out themselves.” Read More:

Mining reform EO out today-Phillipinnes

The order, originally due out in February, was intended to boost government revenues from the mining industry while addressing concerns of environmental groups and local governments that mining was causing too much damage. Read More:

A licence to kill - Hindustan Times

A licence to kill - Hindustan Times: The decision to revive Jeffrey Asbestos Mine will have a devastating effect on India, its main customer

Asbestos mine loan gives Charest ‘good reason to be ashamed’

The announcement was described as a national embarrassment, the crass political manoeuvre of a desperate Quebec government trying to hold on to a Liberal seat at the cost of public health. Read More:

The Hazards of Coal Mining in India

I have to keep working until I die, and hopefully my wife will then get a job on compensatory grounds. Read More:

Feds admitted dangers of asbestos while fighting 'hazardous' label: documents

 OTTAWA — The federal government acknowledged years ago that the dangers of chrysotile asbestos warranted limits on its export — but still fought against international restrictions over the past decade — internal records show. Read More:

Anti-asbestos struggle in Bihar gain momentum

Medha Patkar of National Alliance of Peoples’ Movements (NAPM) and Dr Barry Castleman, a world renowned public health expert from California, USA have written to the government of Bihar demanding the permanent closure of asbestos factories in the state. Anti-asbestos struggle in Bihar gain momentum:

M’sia ratifies ILO Convention on Occupational Safety and Health – BorneoPost Online | Borneo , Malaysia, Sarawak Daily News | Largest English Daily In Borneo

Read More: KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia had on June 8 ratified the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention on Occupational Safety and Health, joining the ranks of developed nations to place importance on occupational safety and health measures at work place.

Goa`s grand old church to go green, shed asbestos

Goa`s grand old church to go green, shed asbestos: Panaji: The Basilica of Bom Jesus, one of Goa's most revered churches, will soon have an eco-friendly roof -- thanks to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) which wanted visitors to the over 400-year-old building to have a "healthy" experience.

Japan helps Viet Nam promote occupational safety

The project, entitled Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) in Hazardous Work, will work in conjunction with the National OSH Programme and address asbestos and other chemicals in hazardous industries in cooperation with Ministry of Health and WHO. Read More:

Silicosis - 10 000 gold miners getting set to sue

While each individual miner will have to prove damages (via an independent medical panel), the basic principles governing any award will be what the South Gauteng High Court adjudicates on, paving the way for the setting up of a Silicosis Trust from which funds would be disbursed. Actuaries will use the best epidemiological data to table individual company award amounts (how many cases, of what severity, ages, life expectancy and geographical information per respondent gold mine).Read More:

National survey of malignant mesothelioma and asbestos exposure in Japan

Study confirmed that more than 70% of Malignant Mesothelioma cases in Japan are associated with Asbestos Exposure Read More:

Iron & steel industry struggling to meet green norms: CSE study

Even the best performers, CSE noted, scored only 40 on a scale of 0-100, with the industry performing on an average far below the global best as well as coming out as one of the worst performers compared to other large industries like cement, paper and pulp, which the NGO had rated earlier. A majority of the companies, the study found, did not meet green compliances even though the units had very often secured certification for high level of environmental and safety management systems. Read More:

Ruling on asbestos suit highlights need for gov't framework for compensation

A court's dismissal of a lawsuit by former construction workers and families of those who claim they were sickened after being exposed to asbestos at construction sites has highlighted the need for a government framework for compensation for such workers. Read More:

Grinding stone factories have claimed 30 lives since 2004 in Pakistan

As many as 30 persons have lost their lives since 2004 while 76 are on deathbed due to gross violations of environmental laws by grinding stone factories in Lahore, Gujranwala and Sheikhupura. Read More:

1,700 silicosis patients in 3 districts of Indore division

 More than 1,700 silicosis patients were found in three districts of Indore division in which 503 have already succumbed to the disease, claimed a voluntary organisation Read More:

Most occupational injury and illness costs are paid by the government and private payers

UC Davis researchers have found that workers' compensation insurance is not used nearly as much as it should be to cover the nation's multi-billion dollar price tag for workplace illnesses and injuries. Instead, almost 80 percent of these costs are paid by employer-provided health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and other disability funds, employees and other payers.Read More:

Import ban fails to curb asbestos danger

BEIRUT: Known for its stunning beaches, the Batroun town of Shekka has a less pristine past that might still be killing its residents. Until 2000, Shekka housed the Eternit Company, the country’s biggest importer of the carcinogen asbestos. In 1998, Lebanon banned imports of most types of asbestos – but it didn’t ban selling or using what was already here. Experts have said that asbestos still poses a serious health risk, both in Shekka and across the country. Read More:

Study: Safety inspections don't hurt profits but save workers life

While businesses bemoan the cost of regulations, a new study suggests that government enforcement of workplace health and safety rules can save lives without sapping a company's bottom line. The findings come from a decade-long look at hundreds of California work sites subject to random safety inspections. Researchers found that 9.4 percent of those companies reduced their injury claims with no discernible impact on profits. Read More:

Britain's waste: Now it's coming back to haunt us

 A GPB 300m criminal trade that smuggled rubbish out of the UK is so toxic that the trash is being sent home. Cahal Milmo saw it finish its journey from Jakarta to Felixstowe.Read More:

Asbestos Protests in India

On Tuesday (May 22, 2012) 500 Indian villagers in Odisha, India's 9th largest state, mounted a highly visible march and demonstration against plans by Vishwakarma Asbestos Ltd. to build an asbestos factory in the Sohella area of Bargarh district. Read more:

Ban Mining In Ghana

People living in mining communities in Ghana have called for a total ban on mining because their lives have worsened since mining operations began in their respective communities. Read More:

Overdue Baie Verte asbestos miner registry coming soon - Nfld. & Labrador - CBC News

 A project to set up a registry of workers exposed to asbestos at a Baie Verte Peninsula mine — which some miners and their union hope will ultimately lead to more former workers receiving compensation — is long overdue. Read More:

Government not tracking removal of cancer-causing asbestos from federal buildings- Canada

OTTAWA — The federal government says it doesn't actively keep track of projects to remove asbestos from infrastructure, despite owning 318 buildings that contain the cancer-causing substance, according to a recently compiled list from Public Works and Government Services Canada. Read More:

Malaysian children as young as 12 getting hearing impaired

 Private hearing care centre Bay Audio Malaysia tested about 4,000 Malaysians at roadshows since January and discovered that one-third of people who took a five-minute hearing test showed hearing loss ranging from mild to severe. Read More:

Illegal mining still rampant in Aravallis, 40 lives lost in Alwar region - The Times of India

ALWAR: Illegal mining on Aravali hills has not only raised environmental concerns, but also resulted in huge loss of human lives in the state. As per the records made public in the state assembly recently, 40 people have lost their lives due to illegal mining in Mewat's Alwar region over a three years' period. Read More:

Electronic waste rules: In letter, but without spirit | India Insight

The second largest electronic waste-producing state in the country — Tamil Nadu (responsible for 13 percent of the total waste produced in India) — has only one recycler for the entire state. Other states face similar problems. Read More:

India activists hail mining firm’s loss of UK award

Welcoming the BSC decision, Prafula Samantara, convener of the National Alliances of Peoples’ Movements, wondered how a firm that he alleged was looting natural resources and tribal people could be chosen for the award and invited to an event billed as the Oscars of health and safety measures. Read More:

Canadian Unions Say No to Sending Deadly Asbestos Overseas

Canadian Unions Say No to Sending Deadly Asbestos Overseas: In a overwhelming voice vote today, representatives of the 300,000-member Confederation of National Trade Unions voted against the planned expansion of Canada's last asbestos mine in the town of Asbestos, Quebec, union communications director Michelle Filteau told AOL News.

Report finds major lapses in the implementation of labour laws on occupational health

Read More: A just-released report, “Invisible Victims of Development – Workers’ Safety and Health in Asia” regrets that more than 90% of the Indian labour force (own account workers, the workers in power consuming enterprises with less than ten workers and non- power consuming enterprises with less than 20 workers) fall outside the purview of the Factory Act – and the agate workers of Gujarat are no exception. Report, prepared for the Asia Monitor Resource Center, Hong Kong, regrets, “The agate workers, who cut, grind, polish and carve agate stones into ornamental items either at their homes or in small sweatshops are exposed to silica dust causing high incidence of various lung diseases, as serious as silicosis. They are not covered under any act.”

27% of India’s doctors exist only on paper - The Times of India

Read More: 27% of India’s doctors exist only on paper. Strange but True!!!

Watchdog wants licence put on hold

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has called on the Industry Ministry to temporarily suspend the issuing of a mining licence to a potash mining company in Udon Thani. Read More:

Of mines, minerals and tribal rights

The proposed liberalisation of the mining and minerals sector is an assault on the rightful owners of the land and its resources. Read More:

BWI: Goodbye and Good Riddance! Notorious Asbestos Institute Closes Down

Canadian NDP Member of Parliament Pat Martin — a longtime critic of the asbestos industry and former asbestos miner himself — said the closing of the institute signals the "death knell" of asbestos mining in Canada. "I see it as a real tipping point in the movement to get Canada out of the asbestos industry," Martin said. "It's just another demonstration of the death rattle of the asbestos industry in this country." He said he first learned of the institute's intention to dissolve Saturday, International Workers' Memorial Day — the annual day of commemoration for workers injured and killed around the globe. Read More:

Prevent Cancer Now - It’s time for McGill to stop colluding with the asbestos industry

 It is surely long overdue for McGill to hold an independent, transparent, thorough inquiry of the allegations of improper influence of the asbestos industry over the work of Prof. McDonald. It is surely long overdue for McGill to end its collusion with the asbestos industry. As Prof. Fernand Turcotte, professor emeritus of Public Health and Preventive Medicine with Laval University’s Faculty of Medicine, states “McGill has to make it universally known that it in no way supports the propaganda efforts of the industry and that under no circumstances should the peddlers of asbestos go around the world saying that they are supported in their statements by McGill University (research).”Read More:

The long, lethal shadow of asbestos

The long, lethal shadow of asbestos: At one point earlier this year, 15 of the 100 most expensive keyword search phrases for click-through ads on Google contained the word "mesothelioma," the deadly cancer caused by asbestos exposure. The single most expensive phrase, online marketing firm SpyFu reported, was "Florida mesothelioma lawyers," at $177.74 per click

Trust deficit?

Trust deficit: The ministry of environment and forests is seeking judicial reprieve against the Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) order of April 9, 2012 asking the ministry to make public the report of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP). In its order, the CIC has noted “if such reports are put in public domain, citizens’ views and concerns can be articulated in a scientific and reasonable manner. If the government has reasons to ignore the reports, these should logically be put before people. Otherwise, citizens would believe that the government’s decisions are arbitrary or corrupt. Such a trust deficit would never be in the interest of the nation.”

13 American workers die on the job every day

PressTV - 13 American workers die on the job every day: The total of 4,690 Americans who died due to traumatic injuries at work in 2010 represented an increase over the 4,551 deaths reported in 2009, and yielded a rate of fatal injuries for 2010 of 3.6 per 100,000 workers, compared to 3.5 per 100,000 workers in 2009.

China's coal miners still at risk

China's coal miners still at risk - UPI.com: Figures from China's State Administration of Work Safety show there were 1,973 fatalities last year, down from 2,433 in 2010. In the United States, the world's second-largest producer of coal, there were 21 coal miner deaths in 2011.

From India to Appalachia, Coal Is A Human Rights Issue

From India to Appalachia, Coal Is A Human Rights Issue - Compass: “This is a human rights issue. Certain lives are valued differently, are considered expendable for resources.” This was the powerful message that resonated across the first full day of our exchange between India civil society participants and Appalachian community members fighting mountaintop removal coal mining. But it didn't come from one of our Indian guests; it came from Chuck Nelson, a former coal miner who spent 30 years working underground in West Virginia's coal mines.

Walk to find a cure for mesothelioma passes through Merredin, Australia

ABOUT 24 asbestos campaigners stopped in Merredin on Wednesday afternoon as part of their 600-kilometre walk from Kalgoorlie-Boulder to Perth to raise funds to find a cure for mesothelioma. The campaigners included a group of family and friends whose loved ones died after living and working in the WA mining town of Wittenoom in the Pilbara region.

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Safety NGO calls for comprehensive probe on Butuan killer fire

A safety NGO on Wednesday called on the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) to conduct a comprehnsive probe on a fire which killed 18 workers and injured 2 more. The fire started around 3 in the morning, May 9, 2012 at the Novo Jeans and Shirts department store along Montilla Boulevard, Butuan City. According to news report, there were a total of 22 stay-in female workers when the fire broke-out.

“The regional office of the DoLE must investigate the death of the workers and why they were trapped inside the burning building and prosecute those responsible for the neglect of the workers safety,” said Noel Colina, Executive Director of the Institute for Occupational Health and Safety Development (www.IOHSAD.org). “Rule 1943.03 of the Philippine Occupational Health and Standards (OHSS) outlines the need to have 'at least of 2 exits every floor and basement capable of clearing the work area in five (5) minutes'. There must also be a safety plan in case of fire which the workers should made familiar with.”

“Workplaces remain to be the top killer of workers, with 2.2 M dying annualy across the globe based on the International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates. The DoLE Department Order 57-04, allowing workplaces with 200 or more workers to conduct self-assessment on adherence to labor standards have failed to protect workers,” said Colina.

Colina reiterated the need to improve and add strong penal provision to the existing OHSS. “We should also legislate Industrial Manslaughter to prosecute employers who neglect their duty to protect the health and safety of their workers.”

Supreme Court bans tanker blamed for Alaska oil spill from entering India for dismantling - The Washington Post

Supreme Court bans tanker blamed for Alaska oil spill from entering India for dismantling - The Washington Post: NEW DELHI — India’s Supreme Court has banned the Exxon Valdez from entering India, saying the ship involved in one of the worst U.S. oil spills will not be allowed in for dismantling until it has been decontaminated.

CBI uses UAVs to nail illegal stone mining in MP, India

CBI uses UAVs to nail illegal stone mining in MP | Firstpost: The CBI, which was given the case by the state government in response to the public outcry against the IPS officer’s murder, hired a private UAV to fly over difficult terrain in Morena to gauge the extent of damage that illegal mining had caused. The UAV used high-definition cameras to record the depredations. These pictures, which have spotted huge moon-like craters in Morena, arrived at the CBI headquarters last week.

Apex Court refuses to lift stay on sand mining | Deccan Chronicle

Apex Court refuses to lift stay on sand mining | Deccan Chronicle: The Supreme Court has refused to vacate the stay granted by the AP High Court on sand mining in the state. While dealing with a batch of Special Leave Petitions moved by the state government and others, the apex court directed the state government to approach the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) to get clearance for the sand mining in accordance with the EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) notification.

115 mining companies operating illegally in forest areas in Indonesia

More than 100 mining companies are operating without licenses in forest areas across 471,000 hectares in Indonesia, reports The Jakarta Post.

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Firms overlook occupational diseases

Firms overlook occupational diseases: Around 170,000 workers are diagnosed with cancer every year, but only 25 on average are classified as patients suffering from a work-related illness, according to a report from the Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service. Compared to developed economies in Europe, the report suggests that Korea lags far behind when it comes to the rate at which cancer is acknowledged as caused by job activities

National Human Rights Commission irate over poor response from states to deal with silicosis - The Times of India

National Human Rights Commission irate over poor response from states to deal with silicosis - The Times of India: NHRC member PC Sharma, after the conclusion of review meetings on silicosis held in New Delhi on Friday, said that states do not appear to be serious about tackling silicosis, an incurable lung disease caused due to inhaling silica. The issue remains a neglected area as they have failed to conduct surveys of industries generating silica and submit a 10-point questionnaire to the commission to assess work done by them. The fact is that no state can claim that there is no mining or an industry which does not generate silica, NHRC members said.

Sure Safety decontaminates 500 ships at Alang in 21 months

Business Line : Industry & Economy / Shipping News : Sure Safety decontaminates 500 ships at Alang in 21 months: AHMEDABAD, MAY 2:� The Vadodara-based industrial safety solutions provider Sure Safety on Wednesday said it has decontaminated 500 ships to protect workers from asbestos exposure at the Alang Ship Recycling Yard in Gujarat during the last 21 months.

Asbestos victims claim some justice in James Hardie ruling

7.30 - ABC: Australia's highest court has found seven directors of former asbestos manufacturer James Hardie guilty of breaches over the company's asbestos compensation fund.

The Environmental Impact of the Manufacturing of Seminconductors

The Environmental Impact of the Manufacturing of Seminconductors: This module gives a brief general overview of semi-conductor manufacturing and some of the components and processes used to produce them that can potentially cause harm to humans or the environment.

A decade of malignant mesothelioma surveillance in Korea - Jung - 2012 - American Journal of Industrial Medicine - Wiley Online Library

Read More: A total of 399 cases of malignant mesothelioma were reported in the last decade, translating to approximately 40 annual cases, and an annual average incidence rate of 0.83 cases per million. Of the 152 patients interviewed by occupational physicians, 56 had occupational asbestos exposure histories (36.8%). Their occupations and industries included construction (19.7%), automobile repair (5.9%), asbestos textile, shipbuilding and repair, refinery work, boiler making, and asbestos cement work. Another 31 patients had environmental asbestos exposure histories.

3 Gandhinagar units under lens for health hazards - Indian Express

3 Gandhinagar units under lens for health hazards - Indian Express: All employees handling polyacrylate material at three industrial units in Gandhinagar district must be sent to the National Institute of Occupational Health for a complete health check-up, amicus curiae Shalin N Mehta has told the Gujarat High Court.

The Rise and Fall of the Chrysotile Institute

The Chrysotile Institute (CI), formerly known as the Asbestos Institute, surrendered its charter to the Ministry of Industry on April 5, 2012.1 This took place 5 days after its suite of offices at 1200 McGill College in downtown Montreal had been vacated. According to the Assistant Building Manager, the CI had occupied suite 1640 for at least 15 years. When the lease ran out, the office was shut and three people were put out of work. They left no forwarding address or phone number; calls made to the phone number on their website and emails sent to the CI website go unanswered.

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E-waste norms rolled out but are we prepared? - Hindustan Times

Come Tuesday, you will not be allowed to chuck your old phones, printer cartridges and television sets in municipal bins. This new rule, however, may put any law-abiding citizen in a fix because the designated centres, where they are actually meant to dispose of the e-waste, have not come up in most cities.

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Optimizing Health Care Delivery by Integrating Workplace Health Programs | EHS Today

"The workplace is organically connected to the home and to the physical communities in which workplaces exist," the authors wrote. "Individuals do not leave the impacts of their personal health risks on the doorstep when they leave for work just as they cannot leave the impacts of their workplace exposures when they return home. Health behaviors extend across multiple environments and cannot be artificially separated."
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Workplace deaths underestimated by 800%, claims Unite

Trade union Unite has accused the Government of “hiding behind statistics”, as workplace deaths are underestimated by more than 800%.

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World Day for Safety and Health Puts Spotlight on workers health

WHO Thailand Home: In collaboration with the International Labour Organization, intergovernmental organizations and civil society, WHO is actively working towards the elimination of asbestos-related diseases. The most effective way to eliminate asbestos related diseases is to stop the use of all types of asbestos. Raising awareness about the harmful effects of asbestos is part of an international campaign intended to focus attention on emerging trends in the field of occupational safety and health and on the magnitude of work-related injuries, diseases and fatalities worldwide

Activists call for asbestos inquiry - Sarnia This Week - Ontario, CA

Activists call for asbestos inquiry - Sarnia This Week - Ontario, CA: Cattran and her sister, Leah Nielsen, organized the Walk to Remember Victims of Asbestos last year. They became active in the fight to have the cancer causing agent banned completely, including exporting it to the Third World, after their father died of methsothelioma caused by asbestos exposure in his job as an electrician at the local plants

PressTV - Report: Asia facing epidemic of worker deaths

PressTV - Report: Asia facing epidemic of worker deaths: It is not known how many Asia workers are suffering from occupational diseases, but the report has warned of an epidemic in the region. The report, released by the Asia Monitor Resource Center, covered Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand, said industrial poisoning and unhealthy workplaces have created many invisible victims. In India alone, there are about 1,000 fatal accidents every year and work related health risks magnified due to an acute shortage of proper medical facilities, malnutrition and poor sanitation.

Khmerization: ILO and Labour Ministry call for Improved Health and Safety at Work

April 30th will see a large-scale event take place in Kampong Som city, Sihanoukville Province to mark this year’s National Day for Occupational Safety and Health (OSH). The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MoLVT) with the support of the International Labour Organization (ILO) will organize the event on the theme of Promoting Safety and Health in Small and Medium Enterprises as an effective measure to promote safe and healthy workplaces.

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Aust must be asbestos free: ACTU

Aust must be asbestos free: ACTU: Australia's buildings must be asbestos free by 2030 regardless of the cost of the widespread removal of the deadly construction product, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) says.

Firms need to handle e-waste recycling with care - South India - Orissa - ibnlive

Firms need to handle e-waste recycling with care - South India - Orissa - ibnlive: BHUBANESWAR: With the e-waste Management & Handling Rules, 2011 coming into effect from May 1, the Odisha Government departments as well as educational institutions are going to be the key for it is how they respond to the new norms which will decide its success.

Rajasthan HC slaps Rs 50 crore on marble mining companies, IBN Live News

Rajasthan HC slaps Rs 50 crore on marble mining companies, IBN Live News: Jodhpur, Apr 27 (PTI) The Rajasthan High Court on Friday slapped a fine of Rs. 50 crores on the Sangemarmar Khan Vikas Samiti (SKVS), disposing off a petition filed by the Centre in 1996 regarding marble mining in Makrana leading to destruction of Jodhpur-Jaipur railway track. The court also ordered halt to mining within 45 meters of any road and railway track with immediate effect and ordered a CBI inquiry against all those mining officials who were posted in Makrana during this violation by identifying them. The petitioner had identified 61 such mines which continued to be operational despite the stay by the court in 1996,

Worker Memorial Day video - we work to Live; Not Die

We work to Live; Not Die

Report Exposes Extent of Workplace Death and Disease in Asia

Asia is facing an onslaught of work-related deaths and diseases. Of the 2.2 million people who die each year all over the world as a result of work-related accidents or illness, 1.1 million are Asian. Yet the problem of workplace health and safety and its victims remain invisible, according to a new report released today in commemoration of Workers Memorial Day by the Asia Monitor Resource Centre (AMRC), a Solidarity Center partner.

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Workplace poisoning killing millions of Asians each year, says new report | World news | guardian.co.uk

Millions of Asian people are contracting fatal diseases at work but their suffering is ignored, unreported and uncompensated, according to a new report by a labour rights group. Asia Monitor Resource Centre (AMRC) says poisoning in unhealthy workplaces is creating untold numbers of "invisible victims of development".

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China Victim Struggle

Press Release - April 26 | Asia Monitor Resource Centre

Asia is home to some of the most dangerous workplaces in the world. The ILO estimates that 1.1 million work-related deaths, accounting for over half of the world’s fatalities, take place annually in Asia. On the eve of International Workers Memorial Day on April 28, Hong Kong-based Asia Monitor Resource Centre (AMRC) released a detailed report from six Asian countries namely China, India, Cambodia, Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia to portray the real situation of occupational safety and health (OSH) on the ground and the struggle of workers, victims and their families to gain recognition, compensation and justice.

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Pro-asbestos advocacy group shuts its doors

The Montreal-based Chrysotile Institute issued the notice in the Canada Gazette — the government’s official publication for announcing new laws and other public information. The institute, first formed in 1984, promotes the safe use of chrysotile asbestos on behalf of Canada’s asbestos mining industry.

Pro-asbestos advocacy group shuts its doors:

Asia facing 'epidemic' of worker deaths, report warns

"He's thankful to the stone because it helped him survive for so long. But now that he has lost so much, it is also a feeling of anger," Makwana told CNN through an interpreter, Mohit Gupta, the co-ordinator for the Occupational, Environmental Health Network of India.
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Miners get help in fight against disease - China

Miners get help in fight against disease: In recent years, mining accidents have provoked great public concern in China. However, despite being low-profile, black lung disease is a bigger cause of employee deaths. Data from a National Conference on Coal Mine Black Lung Disease show that 2.65 million people work in China's coal mines. All are regularly exposed to dust particles and approximately 57,000 contract black lung disease every year, resulting in a death toll of about 6,000, twice the number caused by production accidents.

Regulations on asbestos levels strengthened - Korea

The government said it will also limit the permissible level of asbestos near sites removing the material to 0.01 part per cubic centimeter. Any imports or production of material possibly containing asbestos will need the approval of the environment minister, it added.

Read More

Poverty will be eliminated in 8 years, says plan panel - Hindustan Times

Poverty will be eliminated in 8 years, says plan panel - Hindustan Times: As per the 2009-10 data, the panel had estimated that poverty has come down to 29.8%, a dip of 7.4%. The figure raised an adverse reaction, with many stating that the poverty line was unrealistic. Eventually, the government constituted another expert group for estimating poverty.

On Earth Day, environmentalists urge Aquino to declare a moratorium on destructive mining - Bulatlat

On Earth Day, environmentalists urge Aquino to declare a moratorium on destructive mining - Bulatlat: Quezon City, Philippines – Environmentalists formed a human chain in Quezon Memorial Circle Sunday, April 22, in celebration of Earth Day 2012 which they took also as occasion to challenge the Aquino government to implement a nationwide moratorium on large-scale mining.

Cost of destroying endosulfan puts govt in a quandary - The Times of India

Cost of destroying endosulfan puts govt in a quandary - The Times of India: THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Supreme Court's notice to the central government asking to come out with measures to dispose the banned pesticide endosulfan by June 23 has put state government in a quandary.

Apple squeezes profits from phone companies, competing electronics manufacturers - The Washington Post

Apple squeezes profits from phone companies, competing electronics manufacturers - The Washington Post: Apple is set to report another record quarterly profit on Tuesday, continuing the relentless string of results that’s made it the world’s most valuable company. Those profits don’t come out of thin air: A range of businesses —from the company’s wireless carrier friends to its PC-making foes— are seeing their profits melt away and flow to Apple’s bottom line.

Occupational disease claims another life in Mehsana - Indian Express

Occupational disease claims another life in Mehsana - Indian Express: A woman who once worked in a polyacrylate factory in Mehsana’s Kadi town died from a respiratory ailment this Saturday, nine months after her husband allegedly committed suicide over what relatives believe was extreme dejection that his spouse would never recover. The couple leaves behind two children, an eight-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl.

South African gold miners launch largest lawsuit in Africa's history

Over the past century 40 percent of all gold mined has come from South Africa.

But all that glitters is definitely not gold. The rock that bears gold also contains silica, which causes a disease called silicosis, when silica lodges in the lungs. It is estimated that half of South Africa's gold miners suffer from the life-threatening disease.

Michael Cohen, a reporter covering the story for Bloomberg News in Capetown, South Africa, said though thousands of miners have been affected, the full scale of the issue is unknown.


South African gold miners launch largest lawsuit in Africa's history | PRI.ORG

Earth Day blockade at massive mine site in the Philipines

 Yesterday, vehicles blocked the way to the development site of the foreign-backed Sagittarius Mines Inc. (SMI) in Tampakan town, Philippines. But is unclear who exactly was behind these blockades. For some weeks now, members of the B’laan tribe in Bong Mal have set up their own barricades against SMI, in protest of the mining firm’s plan to relocate them out of their ancestral lands.

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Bauxite mining should stop in Eastern Ghats, Union Tribal minister writes to Andhra governor

Union Tribal Welfare Minister V. Kishore Chandra Deo's letter to Andhra Pradesh Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan seeking his intervention in stopping of bauxite mining in the tribal areas of Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts has created ripples in the state political circles.

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Silicosis: NGO accuses Guj govt of turning back on 238 victims, IBN Live News

Indore, Apr 22 (PTI) An NGO here today alleged that the Gujarat Government was shrinking from its responsibility of compensating the family members of as many as 238 labourers from Madhya Pradesh who died of silicosis while working in the quartz factories in Gujarat over last fifteen years. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in 2010 had recommended to provide the damages to the tune of Rs 3 lakh each to the kin of the 238 workers but not a single penny has been paid to them so far by the Gujarat government, Silicosis Peedit Sangh's key activist, Amulya Nidhi, told PTI. Though the Gujarat government makes tall claims about growth and development but it continues to harbour "inhuman attitude" towards the victims of silicosis and is overlooking NHRC's recommendations in this regard, he said.

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Mongolia's "ninja" miners help sate China lust for gold, IBN Live News

 In a hot, concrete hut filled with acetylene fumes, an elderly Mongolian miner struggles to contain her excitement as she plucks a sizzling inch-long nugget of gold from a grubby cooling pot and raises it to the light. Khorloo, 65, and her sons spent the day scrutinising half a dozen CCTV screens as workers at the Bornuur gold processing plant whittled 1.2 tonnes of ore down to 123 grams of pure gold that could earn the family as much as $6,000.

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BBC News - Unused e-waste discarded in China raises questions

Adam Minter, author of the Shanghai Scrap blog, says he found boxes of defective but unused electronic components discarded at Guiyu - still in the original packaging from HP, Panasonic and Samsung. But Samsung Electronics denies any involvement in discarding the equipment, and says the components were manufactured many years ago. HP and Panasonic did not comment on the specifics of the case.

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Call Center Workers Voice Problems: 1 In 4 Has Experienced Sore Throat, Voice Loss Or Breathlessness

"Policies on voice care should exist in all call centre environments, and should be reviewed regularly. Going forward, there needs to be an emphasis on the prevention of voice problems within the industry –- to maintain optimal vocal health," study researcher Dr. Diane Hazlett, the head of the School of Communication at the University of Ulster, said in a statement. "Employers in this sector need to show they better recognize just how important the voice is, to having a healthy, well supported workforce and a thriving business."

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Should Apple Take Responsibility For Concerns Over Its Chinese Labor Practices?

The EPI, along with Students and Scholars against Corporate Misbehavior (SACOM), the Workers Rights Consortium, and others, recently held a forum to raise awareness of these issues. Their research, as Eisenbrey explained to us, found that Foxconn’s Chinese factory employees work 60-70 hours per week, are exposed to dangerous chemicals, experience explosions from uncontrolled aluminum dust, and are under a military-style of management.

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OSH Rights: April 2012, No 24

In This Issue

• ANROEV 2011 Conference Report 
• Jaipur Declaration towards ban on use of Asbestos 
• Belgian family wins historic case against Eternit 
• Landmark Victory for Italian Asbestos Victims 
• Japan Achieves Total Asbestos Ban 
• Trade Unions Along with Civil Society Groups Establish Thai-BAN Asbestos 
• Victims win Case in Japan

OSH Rights: April 2012, No 24 | ANROEV

New items at e-waste dump linked to lead -- Shanghai Daily

Workers use primitive recycling methods - using highly corrosive and dangerous acid baths - to extract gold from the scrapped metals along the river bank, with virtually no protective equipment, an unnamed industrial insider told the Bloomberg blog. But they turn a blind eye to the side effects, encouraged by the adage that a van of electronic waste can create a millionaire. "We just spend 600 yuan (US$95) on a ton of waste Intel chips, but we can extract six kilograms of gold," an unnamed worker said.

New items at e-waste dump linked to lead -- Shanghai Daily:

Samsung claims Apple infringed eight patents in reply to Apple suit

 Samsung Electronics alleged in a counterclaim to an Apple patent infringement lawsuit in federal court in California that the maker of the iPhone and iPad has infringed eight of its patents.
Samsung claims Apple infringed eight patents in reply to Apple suit:

Charity Walk for Wittenoom's Children

Wittenoom, the name strikes fear into the hearts of people in Western Australia (WA). For decades, the Wittenoom mine operated by the Australian multinational CSR (Colonial Sugar Refinery) and its subsidiary Australian Blue Asbestos produced a huge tonnage of crocidolite (blue) asbestos. It also produced Australia's greatest industrial catastrophe. Despite knowing what exposure to blue asbestos could do to human beings, the mine owners allowed deadly practices and unsafe working conditions to persist in its mining and milling operations, and even in the town of Wittenoom itself, by allowing contaminated mine tailings to be used throughout the township in both public and private projects. From the early 1940s until the mine closed in 1966, more than 20,000 people have lived in Wittenoom, amongst which were 4000 children. It is believed that 10% of Wittenoom's residents (2,000) have died of asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer.
Charity Walk for Wittenoom's Children: 

Charity Walk for Wittenoom's Children

Despite knowing what exposure to blue asbestos could do to human beings, the mine owners allowed deadly practices and unsafe working conditions to persist in its mining and milling operations, and even in the town of Wittenoom itself, by allowing contaminated mine tailings to be used throughout the township in both public and private projects. From the early 1940s until the mine closed in 1966, more than 20,000 people have lived in Wittenoom, amongst which were 4000 children. It is believed that 10% of Wittenoom's residents (2,000) have died of asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer.
Charity Walk for Wittenoom's Children

Goldman Prize

Winner of the Goldmans Environmental Prize 2012 in Environmental policy in China Ma’s most recent high-profile effort involved Apple, one of 29 companies named in a 2010 Green IT report about heavy metal pollution in China—and the only one that did not respond, citing a long-term policy not to disclose its supplier information. He led a coalition of NGOs to launch a “Poison Apple” campaign to protest the company’s lack of supply chain oversight. In September 2011, after a year and a half of silence, Apple approached Chinese environmental groups and began to drive its suppliers to clean up their practices. Ma Jun and his partners continue to communicate with Apple representatives on a regular basis

| Goldman Prize:

AMWU - Asbestos — can the world beat the toxic time bomb?

AMWU - Asbestos — can the world beat the toxic time bomb?: The AMWU Acting National Secretary, Paul Bastian, explains how Australian trade unions are leading the call for a global ban on asbestos.

Long-Term Exposure to Silica Dust and Risk of Total and Cause-Specific Mortality in Chinese Workers: A Cohort Study

We studied 74,040 workers who worked at 29 metal mines and pottery factories in China for 1 y or more between January 1, 1960, and December 31, 1974, with follow-up until December 31, 2003 (median follow-up of 33 y). We estimated the cumulative silica dust exposure (CDE) for each worker by linking work history to a job–exposure matrix. We calculated standardized mortality ratios for underlying causes of death based on Chinese national mortality rates. Hazard ratios (HRs) for selected causes of death associated with CDE were estimated using the Cox proportional hazards model. The population attributable risks were estimated based on the prevalence of workers with silica dust exposure and HRs.
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Exposure to Silica Dust Increases Death Risk | MedIndia

 Importantly, the researchers found that at silica concentrations at or below the workplace exposure limit set by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (0.1mg/m3 ), there were many more deaths (up to 11 times more) than in the general population. Furthermore, the researchers estimated that in 2008, 4.2% of deaths among industrial workers in China were attributable to silica dust exposure.

The authors conclude: "Long-term silica dust exposure was associated with substantially increased mortality among Chinese workers. The increased risk was observed not only for deaths due to respiratory diseases and lung cancer, but also for deaths due to cardiovascular disease."

Exposure to Silica Dust Increases Death Risk | MedIndia:

India’s labour market: strikes and the need for reform | East Asia Forum

India’s labour market: strikes and the need for reform | East Asia Forum: Although these strikers belong to the organised segment of India’s labour market, which represents less than 10 per cent of its 450 million-odd labour force, some parallels can be drawn between this latest event and a series of strikes in the private, unorganised labour sector in recent years. An important common strand is contractualisation of labour, against which even the organised workers were protesting — despite the fact that contract workers are not part of the organised sector.

Motion to Stop Asbestos Mining in Quebec is Denied | Institut Hartheim

Recent legislation introduced to Quebec that attempts to block financing that would reopen the province’s only asbestos mine has been denied, according to a recent Montreal Gazette report.
Lisette Lapointe, an independent who serves in Quebec legislature and is also the wife of former Parti Qu�b�cois premier Jacques Parizeau, introduced the motion yesterday, calling for Quebec to withdraw its offer to provide $58 million in financing to Balcorp Ltd. of Montreal. Of that funding, $25 million would be allocated to reopening the Jeffrey Mine located in the town of Asbestos.
Motion to Stop Asbestos Mining in Quebec is Denied | Institut Hartheim: 

Coal India OKs Fuel Pacts With Power Producers - WSJ.com

 NEW DELHI -- Coal India Ltd.'s board Monday approved a government proposal that it sign fuel-supply agreements with some new power producers in a week, but fixed itself a lower penalty if it fails to meet supply obligations, an executive said.

The diluted penalty obligation lifts key concerns of the board and the U.K.-based minority stakeholder--The Children's Investment Fund Management--which said the strict government clauses on shortfalls in supplies were against the company's interests.

"The board has approved signing of fuel supply pacts," said the executive who didn't wish to be named.
Coal India OKs Fuel Pacts With Power Producers - WSJ.com:

Exploitation among migrant labour

Consciously, today's migrants labour, men and women alike, face various challenges including poor conditions of work and harsh working environments, racism, sexism and labour market discrimination. In addition, women ...

Via www.ukessays.com

India, China Headed for Asbestos Catastrophe: Experts - InternationalBusiness Times

India and China are headed for an absolute catastrophe of death and disease because of likely massive jump in asbestos-related diseases in the coming decades, says a report written by Pulitzer winning journalist Gary Cohn.

Via www.ibtimes.com

Indonesia not only wants to own foreign mining co's, now it will imposehigher taxes on them too | MINING.com

Indonesia wants to have its mining cake and eat it too, as the country, one of the world's largest exporters of copper and coal, will speed up a tax on mining exports, the industry minister Mohamad S.

Via www.mining.com

India among top green economies - Hindustan Times

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

With India receiving $10.2 billion investments in clean energy, the country has emerged as one of the top performing clean energy economies in the 21st century, an eminent American non-profit organisation said in a report.

Via www.hindustantimes.com

Chemical industry workers prone to accidents: The Jakarta Post

Via Scoop.it - Occupational Health

Head of the Jakarta Manpower and Transmigration Agency, Deded Sukandar, said Thursday that it had recorded 800 occupational accidents in the city last year, with most of them taking place in companies producing chemical-related products.

Via www.thejakartapost.com

Microsoft to Buy AOL Patents for More Than $1 Billion

Via Scoop.it - Electronics - Issues and Problems

The lofty price Microsoft paid AOL for 800 patents — $1.3 million each — reflects the crucial role patents are playing in the business and legal strategies of technology companies.

Via www.nytimes.com

How Apple, Foxconn, and others can address labor abuses in overseas factories

Via Scoop.it - Electronics - Issues and Problems

Why do we keep hearing about labor abuses in overseas factories like those of Apple-supplier Foxconn? Auditing and inspections are inadequate to solve the problem.

Via www.csmonitor.com

Tech Needs to Clean House After Apple-Foxconn Fallout - Forbes

Via Scoop.it - Electronics - Issues and Problems

  Source: IHS iSuppli April 2012 Apple's public relations migraine over its suppliers' labor practices in China may be just a headache now, but that doesn't mean that other tech makers are off the hook for how their partners do business.

Via www.forbes.com

Starving in India: A Fight for Life in Bihar

Via Scoop.it - Occupational Health

India Real Time is publishing a six-part series on starvation in India, one of the nation's little-discussed but brutal realities.

Via blogs.wsj.com

Starving in India: Surviving on Toxic Roots

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

India Real Time is publishing a six-part series on starvation in India, one of the nation's little-discussed but brutal realities. Today, author Ashwin Parulkar looks at a tribal group whose desperation to feed itself turned deadly.

Via blogs.wsj.com

A'bad miners demand for release of 2003 NIOH report on asbestosis - India - DNA

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

The protest was held under the aegis of the Rajasthan State Mines Labour Union.

Via www.dnaindia.com

“Turned Away” – Julius' Story « ADAO – Asbestos Disease ...

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

We have been touched by asbestos in individual ways, yet we are joined together by a common bond of community. As a testament to the strength of our global family, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) is ...

Via www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org

Independent asbestos report needed: CFMEU - Ninemsn

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

Sydney Morning HeraldIndependent asbestos report needed: CFMEUNinemsnWorkers at Sydney's Barangaroo project shouldn't resume work until formal procedures to prevent asbestos exposure are put in writing, the construction union says.

Via news.ninemsn.com.au

Disruptions: Too Much Silence on Working Conditions

Via Scoop.it - Electronics - Issues and Problems

Makers of tablets and devices could talk more about how they are monitoring their supply chain.

Via bits.blogs.nytimes.com

How Canada exports death and disease to the developing world

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

Canada continues to blocking international action on deadly asbestos, financially supporting the industry and promoting its trade to the developing world.

Via www.independentaustralia.net

Walmart launches training programme for Indian women - Business Today

Via Scoop.it - Occupational Health

Via businesstoday.intoday.in

Asbestos, the outlawed fibre with a licence to kill

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

Asbestos, the outlawed fibre with a licence to kill...

Via www.smh.com.au

Starving in India: The Forgotten Problem

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

Based on government estimates that 35.6% of Indian women and 34.2% of Indian men have BMIs less than 18.5, the Planning Commission’s India Human Development Report states, “If India is not in a state of famine, it is quite clearly in a state of chronic hunger.”

Via blogs.wsj.com

'His hair was white with the dust' - The Age

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

The Age'His hair was white with the dust'The AgeJohn Limpus and one of his team remove asbestos on the central coast.

Via www.theage.com.au

Mining greatest threat to tribals: KC Deo - Economic Times

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

Mining greatest threat to tribals: KC DeoEconomic TimesHYDERABAD: Terming mining as the "greatest threat" faced by the tribal community in last two decades, Tribal Affairs Minister Kishore Chandra Deo has asked the youths selected under an ambitious...

Via economictimes.indiatimes.com

from e-waste to e-resource - Deccan Chronicle

Via Scoop.it - Electronics - Issues and Problems

from e-waste to e-resourceDeccan ChronicleBy N. Arun Kumar Students of the department of geography at the Madras University discuss ways to dispose e-waste in a safe way. —DC Don't call them e-waste, but e-resources.

Via www.deccanchronicle.com

Mines, misery and a miracle tree - The Express Tribune

Via Scoop.it - Silicosis - Oldest Occupational Disease

The Express TribuneMines, misery and a miracle treeThe Express Tribune(Right) Sins of the fathers: Both father and daughter suffer from silicosis, an incurable lung condition. (Bottom) The King of the Desert: The Khejri tree.

Via tribune.com.pk

Indian forest-dwellers take battle against mining conglomerate to ...

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

The leaders of thousands of forest-dwelling tribesmen who have fought for years to preserve their ancestral lands from exploitation by an international mining corporation have promised to continue their struggle whatever the ...

Via www.rawstory.com

78% corporates suffer sleep disorder

Via Scoop.it - Occupational Health

New Delhi, Apr 6 (IBNS) Due to demanding schedules and high stress levels, nearly 78% of the corporate employees sleep less than 6 hours on a daily basis which leads to sleep disorders amongst them, according to a recent survey conducted by ASSOCHAM...

Via www.indiablooms.com

Cardiovascular disease mortality among British asbestos workers (1971–2005) -- Harding et al. -- Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

Via oem.bmj.com

Southeast Asia to adopt human rights declaration

Via Scoop.it - Occupational Health

Southeast Asian nations have agreed to adopt this year a human rights declaration to strengthen protection in a region notorious for violations.

Via www.philstar.com

Asbestos review lacks “required records” - McGill Daily

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

Asbestos review lacks “required records”McGill DailyMcGill announced the conclusion of its review into alleged asbestos research misconduct Wednesday morning, and will seek further guidance as to whether an official investigation should be launched.

Via www.mcgilldaily.com

Asbestos hazard: NIOH indifference force mining workers from South Rajasthan to protest

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

The recent agitation by mining workers of South Rajasthan in front of National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH), Ahmadabad, say Gujarat-based activists, has once again highlighted the plight...

Via counterview.org

Goa government caps mining truck permits - TwoCircles.net

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

IBNLive.comGoa government caps mining truck permitsTwoCircles.netBy IANS, Panaji : In a slew of measures to curb illegal mining, the Goa government has ordered a cap on issuing permits to trucks ferrying iron ore, after suspending nearly 500 iron...

Via twocircles.net

RepRisk releases its report on Top 10 Most Controversial Mining Companies 2011

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

March 15, 2012 - RepRisk has released its new report on the 10 Most Controversial Mining Companies of 2011, benchmarked against the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) Principles and other international standards. This report highlights the consequences of environmental, social and governance risks on the companies’ reputations, access to capital and licenses to operate.

Via www.reprisk.com

India's e-waste output jumps 8 times in 7 years - Times of India

Via Scoop.it - Electronics - Issues and Problems

India's e-waste output jumps 8 times in 7 yearsTimes of IndiaIndia's output of e-waste has jumped by eight times in the past seven years and the open yet illegal incineration of massive quantities of such trash may lead to serious public health hazards,...

Via timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Study: Asbestos Exposure Increases Risk of Cardiovascular ...

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

Study: Asbestos Exposure Increases Risk of Cardiovascular Disease. April 4, 2012 - Posted in Heart Disease · Share. Article source: http://www.asbestos.com/news/2012/04/03/asbestos-exposure-stroke- cardiovascular - disease /.

Via coronary-heartdisease.com

I Heart Asbestos - McGill Daily

Via Scoop.it - Asbestos

I Heart AsbestosMcGill DailyWhy does the town of Asbestos, Quebec want to reopen a mine that's been giving its residents cancer for a hundred years?

Via www.mcgilldaily.com

Action Alert - Demand Justice for Sheri – Don’t Let UCLA off the hook

Via Scoop.it - Occupational Health

Action Alert - Demand Justice for Sheri – Don’t Let UCLA off the hook

Via www.change.org

Mining threatens Mongolia's tourism - Aljazeera.com

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

Mining threatens Mongolia's tourismAljazeera.com"Mining could change that." In recent years, mining has eclipsed tourism as an engine of growth in Mongolia.

Via www.aljazeera.com

Illegal mining: Noose tightens on Goa bureaucrat - Zee News

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

Illegal mining: Noose tightens on Goa bureaucratZee NewsPanaji: Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has assured of "appropriate" action against a senior bureaucrat for his alleged complicity in the illegal mining scam.

Via zeenews.india.com

Iron ore not a strategic mineral: Mines ministry - Indian Express

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

Iron ore not a strategic mineral: Mines ministryIndian ExpressThe mines ministry has shot down the steel ministry's proposal that iron ore should be classified as “ a strategic mineral”.

Via www.indianexpress.com

'India fairs badly in regulating money in politics' - Hindustan Times

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

India is among the lowest scoring countries on political finance regulation, according to a report. Global Integrity Report for 2011 released indicates that developing as well as developed countries are equally struggling in this regard.

Via www.hindustantimes.com

RPT-A massive coal pitfall for India's industrial ambitions - Reuters

Via Scoop.it - Mining_Asia

Zee NewsRPT-A massive coal pitfall for India's industrial ambitionsReuters(Repeats earlier story with no change in text) By Jatindra Dash ANGUL, India, March 30 (Reuters) - Ten years after announcing the project, Jindal Power and Steel is still waiting...

Via www.reuters.com

Rajasthani miners' protest continues

Rajasthani miners' protest continues

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Rajasthani-miners-protest-continues/articleshow/12497436.cms

AHMEDABAD: Mine labourers from Rajasthan dare the rising mercury in the city as they continue their protest in front of National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH) office at Meghani Nagar on Sunday. The labourers have been demanding the reports of their health check ups conducted by NIOH first in 2005 and again in 2011.

The labourers who have gathered, since Friday, under the banner of Rajasthan State Mine Labour Union claim that they have sought the reports several times in the past, but to no avail. Without the report, the laborers and their families have not been able to get free medical treatment and claim compensations for deaths due to lung diseases.

Dharmendra Gorna, secretary of Rajasthan State Mine Labour Union said, "We will continue with the protest until we get the results."

R K Manohar, secretary of Occupational Health and Safety Association, which is supporting the protest, explained that NIOH had conducted a health checkup of the workers in 2005 but never revealed the report. A total of 20 mine workers have already died since then but their families could not claim any compensation because of the absence of reports. "The report of the check up in 2005 was never revealed. NIOH, however, conducted another survey in 2011. The officials promised to give us the result by February 2011 and later postponed to March 29," said Manohar.

Director of NIOH, P K Nag refused to comment saying that the matter is sub judice.

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