Trends in Exposure to Diesel Particulate Matter and Prevalence of Respiratory Symptoms in Western Australian Miners

Krassi Rumchev, Dong Van Hoang and Andy Lee
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Krassi Rumchev: School of Public Health, Curtin University, Perth 6120, Australia
Dong Van Hoang: Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, Center for Clinical Sciences, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
Andy Lee: School of Public Health, Curtin University, Perth 6120, Australia

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 22, 1-12

Abstract: Diesel-powered equipment is used frequently in the mining industry. They are energetically more efficient and emit lower quantities of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide than the gasoline equipment. However, diesel engines release more diesel particulate matter (DPM) during the combustion process which has been linked to harmful health effects. This study assessed the trends in DPM exposure and the prevalence of respiratory symptoms among Western Australian miners, using the available secondary data collected from 2006 to 2012. The data consisted of elemental carbon (EC) concentrations and information on miner’s respiratory symptoms. The measured EC concentrations from n = 2598 miners ranged between 0.01 mg/m 3 and 1.00 mg/m 3 and tended to significantly decrease over the study period ( p < 0.001). Underground mine workers were exposed to significantly higher ( p < 0.01) median EC concentrations of 0.069 mg/m 3 (IQR 0.076) when compared to surface workers’ 0.038 mg/m 3 (IQR 0.04). Overall, 29% of the miners reported at least one respiratory symptom, with the highest frequency recorded for cough (16%). Although the exposure levels of DPM in the mining industry of Western Australia have declined over the study period, they are still high and adhering to stringent occupational standard for DPM is recommended.

Keywords: diesel particulate matter; underground mines; respiratory symptoms; Australia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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