Protecting Workers At Composting Facilities

All material is copyrighted and can only be used for purposes of this training. © 2008 The JG Press, Inc. MOST attention given to health aspects at composting facilities in the past has concerned public health, particularly bioaerosols, odor emissions and heavy metals in the finished product. Federal and state regulations have not dealt with worker health. For example, the federal 40 CFR Part 503 regulation, “The Use and Disposal of Sewage Sludge,” as it pertains to composting primarily deals with product use. These regulations target heavy metals and pathogens in the compost product. The regulation pertaining to volatile solids reduction does impact odor production and vector attraction. There are no federal regulations specifically related to occupational health at composting facilities. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations are industrywide and relate to noise and safety issues. Recently, the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) issued an Alert concerning Organic Dust Toxic Syndrome (ODTS), with emphasis on farm workers. There has been relatively little information on occupational health aspects at composting facilities. Recently, several events occurred at composting facilities, whereby workers have questioned health impacts or reported adverse health conditions. Most of the data is not generally available, as it resides in in-house reports or gray literature. Information on worker health can be very valuable in the future design of facilities and in evaluating the potential health impact to the areas surrounding composting facilities. Workers are the most exposed individuals. Not only are they exposed to more concentrated levels of materials, but they are also more often exposed than the general public. The objectives of this paper are to provide data and insight on occupational hazards with exposure to various biological and chemical agents and to suggest mitigation measures which would reduce potential health hazards to workers.