Bioaerosols and Health: Current Knowledge and Gaps in the Field of Waste Management

Abstract

The development of biodegradable waste recycling leads to increased amounts of decaying organic materials handled, and encourages the conditions in which workers, households and neighbouring communities are potentially exposed to bioaerosols. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge and gaps regarding the health risks associated to bioaerosols in the field of municipal solid waste (MSW) and commercial and industrial waste (C&IW) management. Additional objective was to identify priority issues for research in order to improve knowledge and prevention. Overall, 368 studies have been selected. Strong qualitative evidence links occupational exposure to bioaerosols in the waste industry to adverse effects on health including long-term respiratory disease, notably in the fields of composting, mechanical biological treatment (MBT) and materials recovery facilities (MRF). The literature review highlighted numerous gaps in knowledge about exposure and health effects of bioaerosols that need to be addressed to assess the risk. Most importantly, valid and standardized methods for quantitative exposure assessment are needed. Identification of environmental indicators, estimate of factors influencing the level of bioaerosol exposure at the workplace, well-designed epidemiological studies and validation of dispersion models are other priority issues.

Experimental Evaluation of Aerosol Production after Dental Ultrasonic Instrumentation: An Analysis on Fine Particulate Matter Perturbation

“…Exposure to bioaerosols can cause infections, as both bacteria, including Mycobacterium spp., Pseudomonas spp., Legionella spp., Staphylococcus aureus , and Streptococcus spp., and viruses, such as rhinovirus, HIV, HBV, HCV, and herpes viruses, may be carried through airborne particles [ 4 , 5 ]. Moreover, the development of allergies, immune reactions, non-allergic inflammations, and toxic effects may also be related to aerosol exposure [ 6 ]. The concerns regarding bioaerosols were previously raised with the advent of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome (MERS), and Ebola [ 7 ].…”

Occupational Health Issue in a 2G Bioethanol Production Plant

“…A variable human response has been described for workers exposure to organic dust in different workplace areas and it was shown that the dust composition may play an important role in determining its health effects [34]. Because of lack of health-related exposure limits for bioaerosol components based on toxicological or epidemiological studies from the workplaces or environmental health [32,35], few occupational exposure standards (not OELs) have been set by regulatory organizations, such as the ACGIH or the AIHA [10,28,36]. Although the research in this field is going on, setting OELs requires more exposure-response data derived from a greater number of animal models and, in particular, epidemiological studies of human exposure.…”

The effects of season and processing technology on the abundance of antibiotic resistance genes in air samples from municipal wastewater treatment and waste management plants

“…The MP unit is situated in a separate building equipped with screens and bars, whereas the BP unit is an outdoor facility (between activated sludge aeration tanks). The BP unit is exposed to a higher number of indoor and outdoor environmental factors, including the type of aeration, wind speed, temperature, and humidity, than the MP unit [19]. The composition of air (including the abundance of ARB and ARGs) in the WWTP is probably affected by the composition of treated wastewater.…”