Shipbreaking is known to be one of the most environmental hazardous industries in the world. However, according to Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) officials in Mumbai, India, there is no reason to worry that the ship-breaking taking place at Darukhana, on Mumbai's eastern coast, is causing any sort of polluting hazard. Still, the figures provided by the MPCB indicate otherwise.
Ambient air pollution levels in Darukhana show that SO2 and NOx levels are within limits, but Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) levels stand at 153 ug/m3, much higher than the permissible limit of 100 ug/m3. There can be no doubt that asbestos fibers are among the particles circulating. This highly toxic mineral fiber, banned in most first world nations, is a material commonly found in ships and ship components. Prolonged asbestos exposure can cause a wide variety of respiratory conditions, including asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma, a rare cancer.
Asbestos is an unseen hazard because its fibers are microscopic and have no taste or smell. Most asbestos cancer victims never even realize that they have been exposed until becoming ill much later in life. Mesothelioma disease can take anywhere from 20 to 40 years to develop and is asymptomatic until it reaches its final stages.
In 2010, a United Nations special officer visited the Darukhana site and found that health and safety laws were not being enforced. Over 6,000 workers are exposed to hazardous conditions every day, while breaking ships for private firms that rent space at the port.
Source: Mesothelioma.com. 20 June 2011
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