PREVALENCE OF NOISE INDUCED HEARING LOSS AMONG MINING WORKERS
Since the pre historic era mining has become a part of people’s life, until today the mining procedure is much more extensive. In a mining industry there are various equipments and machines that can create so much noise during production. The extraction of rocks from the earth’s crust can create so much noise that is prevalent in operation and most of the time the workers may not notice it since they are focused heavily on their work they have to gather minerals and that is their objective.
The prevalence of noise in the process of mining has created so much hearing loss among workers in mining construction site in America alone there are thousands of cases of hearing loss because of noise among miners during operation. There were 1403 diagnosed in West Virginia, Washington has 20 cases, Colorado has 160 cases and there are 186 cases in South Dakota and there are many other unrecorded cases that have not been employed. The cases involved includes metal and non metal mining including coal, gold, limestone, and other minerals, these cases happened between the years of 1980 to 1990. And there are many more records in the present time. (US Department of Labor: Mine Safety and Health Administration).
According to investigation and health hazard reports; the prolong exposure to noise, dust, smoke and other chemicals can largely contribute to many physical dysfunction putting the miners at risk including hearing loss and sight loss they can also be deaf or they can suffer from various diseases including respiratory diseases, minor wounds and other injury. The workers must exercise the necessary actions to prevent health hazard so that they would not be affected from various threats; the employer should provide them with the right safety gears so that the reports of incidents will be reduced.
The actual process involved in the production may include; excavation of land that needs rock breaking and drilling that is a forceful task, depending on the mining process they may even use heavy machineries like bulldozers, explosives, sink shafts and other tools to move the rocks and broke them into pieces that creates even worst noise. Undoubtedly the miners are susceptible to the hazardous level of noise of more than 85 decibel and it may reach up to a 100 or it can even extend to 150 decibel that the human ear cannot tolerate when they are too much exposed in longer hour.
Some mining process is even worst; this includes digging the earth underground that needs quarrying or mountaintop removal to reveal minerals that is hidden underneath. They may extend to reach the buried mines into the deepest part of the earth, more hard rock mining, long hole resistance, and caving. All this work includes a very dangerous task and a more level of noise that the miners should withstand in order to get what they want. The noise usually comes from the machineries and earth’s resistance; the noise may also come from processed transmission and exhaust of locomotive power engines and other components that the miners are using.
Hearing protective device (HPD) and other high impact ear plugs is used just like a headset but this device is somehow has not been very useful and it may worn out easily and degrade its use, it may not sometimes fit from workers so the possibility can still be inflicting and the noise may not be controlled. It the workers feel that the device is not much functioning it should be replaced or if they feel changes in their conditions they should report immediately if there are available medical staff on site. Because of many critical issues about noise induced hearing loss the company or employer should provide the necessary means to protect their workers to overcome its effect. There is no doubt that the noise exposure is still prevalent in the mining industry until today that is why the hearing loss of workers still prevail.
More than the negative impact to people, what mining brings are industrialization, energy and riches. But what it has brought to the environment that has causes so much destruction in our ecological balance and losses of our natural resources all around the world has been the reasons for so much devastation because of mining. The result and hazards to people and to the environment could not be compensated to the benefit it can bring. The lost of minerals, caves, mountains, hills and forest could not be recovered and will continue to worsen since the mining has never stopped.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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