Investigation into qualitative discourses of the occupational safety and health inspectors in order to promote enforcement

The aim of this study is to conduct an ex-post evaluation of the OSH Enforcement Act. The focus of the study was to collate the views of occupational safety and health (OSH) inspectors on how the OSH Enforcement Act and the practices of the governmental OSH inspectorate operate from an effectiveness perspective. The questionnaire included open questions addressed to OSH inspectors. The results indicated that there is a tension between the quantitative performance targets, e.g., the number of inspections and the effectiveness of the practical enforcement work. Harmonizing the enforcement practices should be implemented at two levels: OSH local agencies and individual inspectors. OSH inspectors believe that developing the professional skills of OSH inspectors and the monitoring of OSH management systems are important ways of promoting the effectiveness of OSH enforcement.     

In search of human-associated bacterial pathogens in Antarctic wildlife: report from six penguin colonies regularly visited by tourists

We investigated the potential role of Antarctic tourism in the introduction of human-associated pathogens into Antarctic wildlife. We collected and analyzed 233 fecal samples from eight bird species. The samples were collected at six localities on the Antarctic Peninsula, which often is visited by tourists. Every sample was investigated for pathogens of potential human origin: Campylobacter jejuni, Salmonella spp., and Yersina spp. None of these bacteria was found. Our data suggest that the tourism industry so far has achieved its goal of not introducing pathogens into the Antarctic region. There is, however, an urgent need to further investigate the situation in areas closer to permanent Antarctic settlements.     

Application of a Screening Method in Assessing Occupational Safety and Health of Computer Workstations

Employers and workers need concrete guidance to plan and implement changes in the ergonomics of computer workstations. The Näppärä method is a screening tool for identifying problems requiring further assessment and corrective actions. The aim of this study was to assess the work of occupational safety and health (OSH) government inspectors who used Näppärä as part of their OSH enforcement inspections (430 assessments) related to computer work. The modifications in workstation ergonomics involved mainly adjustments to the screen, mouse, keyboard, forearm supports, and chair. One output of the assessment is an index indicating the percentage of compliance items. This method can be considered as exposure assessment and ergonomics intervention used as a benchmark for the level of ergonomics. Future research can examine whether the effectiveness of participatory ergonomics interventions should be investigated with Näppärä.     

Toxicity of two types of silver nanoparticles to aquatic crustaceans Daphnia magna and Thamnocephalus platyurus

Although silver nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly used in various consumer products and produced in industrial scale, information on harmful effects of nanosilver to environmentally relevant organisms is still scarce. This paper studies the adverse effects of silver NPs to two aquatic crustaceans, Daphnia magna and Thamnocephalus platyurus. For that, silver NPs were synthesized where Ag is covalently attached to poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP). In parallel, the toxicity of collargol (protein-coated nanosilver) and AgNO₃ was analyzed. Both types of silver NPs were highly toxic to both crustaceans: the EC50 values in artificial freshwater were 15–17 ppb for D. magna and 20–27 ppb for T. platyurus. The natural water (five different waters with dissolved organic carbon from 5 to 35 mg C/L were studied) mitigated the toxic effect of studied silver compounds up to 8-fold compared with artificial freshwater. The toxicity of silver NPs in all test media was up to 10-fold lower than that of soluble silver salt, AgNO₃. The pattern of the toxic response of both crustacean species to the silver compounds was almost similar in artificial freshwater and in natural waters. The chronic 21-day toxicity of silver NPs to D. magna in natural water was at the part-per-billion level, and adult mortality was more sensitive toxicity test endpoint than the reproduction (the number of offspring per adult).