The sustainability of cobalt is an important emerging issue because this critical base metal is an essential component of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. More than half the world’s cobalt mine production comes from the Katanga Copperbelt in DR Congo, with a substantial proportion (estimated at 15-20%) being extracted by artisanal miners. Here we show, in a case study performed in the town of Kolwezi, that people living in a neighbourhood that had been transformed into an artisanal cobalt mine, had much higher levels of cobalt in urine and blood than people living in a nearby control area. The differences were most pronounced for children, in whom we also found evidence of exposure-related oxidative DNA damage. It was already known that industrial mining and processing of metals have led to severe environmental pollution in the region. This field study provides novel and robust empirical evidence that the artisanal extraction of cobalt that prevails in the DR Congo may cause toxic harm to vulnerable communities. This strengthens the conclusion that the currently existing cobalt supply chain is not sustainable.
Background and Purpose— Epidemiological studies suggest an association between stroke incidence and stroke mortality and long-term exposure to particulate matter (PM) air pollution. However, the magnitude of the association is still unclear. Methods— We searched the Pubmed citation database for epidemiological studies and reviews on stroke and PM exposure. Then, we carried out a meta-analysis to quantify the pooled association between stroke incidence and mortality and long-term exposure to PM. Meta-analyses were performed for stroke events and stroke mortality and for PM 10 and PM 2.5 separately and jointly. Results— We identified 20 studies, including a total of >10 million people, on long-term PM exposure and stroke event or stroke mortality. For exposure to PM 10 (including estimated exposure to PM 10 from studies using PM 2.5 ), the pooled hazard ratio for each 10-μg/m 3 increment in PM 10 was 1.061 (95% confidence interval, 1.018–1.105) and 1.080 (0.992–1.177) for overall stroke events and stroke mortality, respectively. A stratified analysis by continent revealed that the association between stroke and long-term PM 10 exposure was positive in North America (1.062 [1.015–1.110]) and Europe (1.057 [0.973–1.148]), but studies in Asia (1.010 [0.885–1.153]) showed a high degree of heterogeneity. Considering exposure to PM 2.5 (Europe and North America combined), the hazard ratios for a 5-μg/m 3 increment were 1.064 (1.021–1.109) and 1.125 (1.007–1.256) for stroke events and mortality, respectively. Conclusions— The scientific evidence of the past decade identifies long-term exposure to PM, and PM 2.5 in particular, as a risk factor for stroke. However, we found some currently unexplained geographical variability in this association.
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