Nanotechnologies and Nanomaterials in the Occupational Setting

Workers are generally the first people in society to be exposed to the hazards of an emerging technology and nanotechnology is no exception. The workplaces where nanomaterials are developed, investigated, manufactured, used, and disposed of are quite varied and they span all economic sectors. To protect the health and safety of workers in all of these workplaces requires a concerted effort that includes: hazard identification, exposure assessment, risk characterization, and risk management. In this paper, the current status of efforts in each of these categories will be discussed. Although there are more than 1,000 "nano-enabled" products in commerce, there is virtually no human evidence of adverse health effects attributed directly to engineered nanoparticles, in part, due to the current observations that exposures are limited and short. Nonetheless, there is a coalescing body of evidence from animal and in vitro studies that indicates that various types of nanomaterials may be hazardous to workers. However, there are also limited published data on exposure and practically no comprehensive and quantitative exposure assessments. There have been few formal risk assessments published and no occupational exposure limits (OELs) specifically for engineered nanoparticles have been officially promulgated, although several exposure guidelines have been published by nanomaterial producing companies. A precautionary approach to risk management has been strongly advocated by various health authorities internationally and there is an array of useful general risk management guidance, but guidance for many specific operations, engineering controls, and medical surveillance is lacking. The next major phase, in addition to further hazard and control research, in the efforts to protect workers as nanomaterials become more widely available in commerce is to focus on assessing barriers that prevent implementation of precautionary guidance and to identify and evaluate worker populations.