Waste management in the stingless bee Melipona beecheii Bennett (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

Waste management is important in insect societies because waste can be hazardous to adults, brood and food stores. The general organization of waste management and the influence of task partitioning, division of labor and age polyethism on waste processing were studied in three colonies of the tropical American stingless bee Melipona beecheii Bennett in Yucatán, Mexico. Waste generated in the colony (feces, old brood cells, cocoons, dead adults and brood) was collected by workers throughout the nest and taken to specific waste dumps within the nest. During the day, workers based at the waste dumps formed waste pellets, which they directly transferred in 93% of cases, to other workers who subsequently removed them from the nest. This is an example of task partitioning and is hypothesized to improve nest hygiene as has been found in leafcutting ants, Atta. To investigate division of labor and age polyethism we marked a cohort of 144 emerging workers. Workers forming waste pellets were on average 31.2±6.5 days old (±SD, N= 40, range of 18-45 days). The life span of M. beecheii workers was 49.0±14.0 days (N= 144). There was no difference in the life span of workers who formed (52.2±11.6 days, N= 40) or did not form (49.9±11.5 days, N= 97) waste pellets, suggesting that waste work did not increase mortality. Although waste was probably not hazardous to adults and brood, because the dumps are located outside the brood chamber, its presence inside the nests can attract phorid flies and predators, which can harm the colony

Assessment of work-related accidents associated with waste handling in Belo Horizonte (Brazil).

As more urban solid waste is generated, managing it becomes ever more challenging and the potential impacts on the environment and human health also become greater. Handling waste - including collection, treatment and final disposal - entails risks of work accidents. This article assesses the perception of waste management workers regarding work-related accidents in domestic and health service contexts in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. These perceptions are compared with national data from the Ministry of Social Security on accidents involving workers in solid waste management. A high proportion of accidents involves cuts and puncture injuries; 53.9% among workers exposed to domestic waste and 75% among those exposed to health service waste. Muscular lesions and fractures accounted for 25.7% and 12.5% of accidents, respectively. Data from the Ministry of Social Security diverge from the local survey results, presumably owing to under-reporting, which is frequent in this sector. Greater commitment is needed from managers and supervisory entities to ensure that effective measures are taken to protect workers' health and quality of life. Moreover, workers should defend their right to demand an accurate registry of accidents to complement monitoring performed by health professionals trained in risk identification. This would contribute to the improved recovery of injured workers and would require managers in waste management to prepare effective preventive action

Seroprevalence of hepatitis B and C among domestic and healthcare waste handlers in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

Infection with the hepatitis B and C viruses may occur through contact with infected body fluids, including injury with infected sharps. Collectors of domestic or healthcare wastes are potentially exposed to these infections. The aim of this article is to investigate the risk factors associated with the prevalence of hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and HCV) infection among domestic and healthcare waste workers in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. A cross-sectional study of hepatitis B and C infection was conducted from November 2014 to January 2015, through blood sample collection and interviews about socio-demographic factors with 61 workers exposed to healthcare waste ('exposed') and 461 exposed only to domestic wastes ('unexposed'). The prevalence of antibodies to HCV (Anti-HCV) antibodies was 3.3% in 'exposed' workers and 0.9% in 'unexposed', and of antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (Anti-HBc) was 9.8% and 5.6% in 'exposed' and 'unexposed' workers, respectively. Only 207 (44.9%) of those exposed to domestic waste and 45 (73.8%) of those handling healthcare waste were effectively immunised against hepatitis B virus (HBV). Exposures to domestic waste and to healthcare wastes were associated with similar risks of infection with HBV. The risk of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was marginally higher among healthcare waste workers compared with domestic waste workers, probably because of needlestick accidents owing to deficient sharps management systems. Immunisation against hepatitis B and screening tests to ensure the success of vaccination should be a condition for recruitment for both groups of waste workers

The analysis safety and health risks of workers in the municipal solid waste landfill in Malaysia

The aim of the paper is to reflect the findings from a case study conducted on the awareness to the operation of the municipal solid waste landfill. The study focused on safety and health risks for workers in the municipal solid waste landfill in Malaysia. Workers involved in and face occupational health and safety hazards which are as diverse as the materials they are handling. The study was conducted to identify the safety and health risks to their workers and implementation of appropriate exposure prevention or control measures. The information analysis throughout the research was gathered from survey conducted on a few key personnel of the company. Finally, the study draws several relationships between operation of municipal solid waste landfill in Malaysia and safety and health risk for workers and reflects several recommendations for further research

Whose Job Is It, Anyway? Capital Strategies for Labor

[Excerpt] When corporate mergers and takeovers create massively debt-ridden new entities, with the resulting pressures to sell off assets, reduce costs (especially wages) and close marginal operations, it is the company\u27s workers and their communities who suffer. And, when corporate managers accept, and even encourage, huge levels of waste, or ignore obvious opportunities because they aren\u27t profitable enough, workers and their communities end up paying for the resulting inefficiencies and lost potential. I believe that a hallmark of the new economic era we seem to be entering will be that workers and unions will be forced to actively concern themselves with all aspects of an employer\u27s business — with the intricate details of corporate structure, finance, and operations. In the process, they will have to evolve a comprehensive approach to the process of production and distribution, to investment and financial issues, as well as to corporate organization and control. In short, they will need to begin learning how to organize economic resources themselves and evolve what have been called capital strategies

Waste Management in Europe. Good Jobs in the Circular Economy?

This report was commissioned by the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) to inform a workshop entitled ‘the future of the waste sector in Europe: challenges and opportunities for workers’ to be held on 7th December 2017 in Brussels. The report provides an overview of the waste management sector in Europe in 2017. Specifically, it looks at the main trends affecting waste management in Europe; it maps the circular economy and portrays its implications on waste management, analyses the business strategies of the biggest companies dominating the waste sector in Europe and outlines the main stakeholders in the waste sector in Europe. The report also highlights obstacles and opportunities of the circular economy for workers and provides an overview of exciting social bargaining avenues

Rancang Bangun Mesin Pengolah Limbak Organic Terintegrasi Sensor Suhu Dan Kelembaban Untuk Menunjang Kualitas Kompos

Waste is one of the serious problems in urban areas, it divided into easily biodegradable (organic) waste and not easy biodegradable (inorganic). Organic waste in urban areas is often referred as domestic waste, that is waste that derived from organic waste of urban areas and recycled to be used as compost. Domestic wastes that accumulate often make a lot of disadvantages for the environment, including: a very pungent odor, a den of disease, unsightly, and the creation of black liquor (lecheate) that are toxic so damaging soil nutrients. Domestic wastes recycled using conventional machines still require some workers and a large area as the area of maturation, whereas urban areas are difficult to get workers who want to work in the trash with the minimal of vast empty land. Therefore, it needs a machine that can process waste automatically, but can treat organic waste directly into compost. Then, this composter machine designed to perform testing first in the Campus of State Polytechnic of Jakarta concerning on some hardness of domestic wastes. The size of this machine calculated as . This machine integrates cutting system and stirring, so it does not require many workers and broad land to make compost in urban areas. Keywords: kompos, sampah, crusher, mixer, sensor LM-3

Achieving compliance with healthcare waste management regulations: empirical evidence from small European healthcare units

Healthcare units generate substantial amounts of hazardous or potentially hazardous wastes as by-products of their medical services. The inappropriate management of these wastes poses significant risks to people and the environment. In Portugal, as in other EU countries, the collection, storage, treatment and disposal of healthcare waste is regulated by law. Although legal provisions covering the safe management of healthcare waste date back to the 1990s, little is known about the compliance of Portuguese healthcare units with the relevant regulations. In this study we evaluate the extent of compliance by small private healthcare units with current waste management regulations, and its determinants. Recent estimates indicate that these units account for at least 20% of the healthcare waste produced at the national level. Their large numbers, however, make monitoring and government control of their compliance with legislative requirements problematic. Using data collected by a national survey of over 700 private healthcare units, we find that the majority of these units do not comply with current waste management regulations. An estimated generalized linear model uncovers a regional effect on the degree of compliance, which is also influenced by the type of healthcare delivered, use of service providers, implementation of regular internal audits, etc. The strongest factor influencing the degree of compliance is, however, education and training. This result is extremely important for policy because it shows empirically that providing education and training for all healthcare workers on medical waste issues is crucial in order to attain proper practices in healthcare waste management and compliance with regulations.Waste management; medical waste; legislation; compliance