Yucca workers checked for silicosis

Wednesday, April 21, 2004 | 9:25 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- About 300 current or former workers at Yucca Mountain have signed up so far for free medical examinations to determine if they suffer from silicosis or other lung diseases possibly contracted while working in the five-mile tunnel at the proposed nuclear dump.

The Energy Department said that as of March 24, about 300 people have responded to an offer to be interviewed and examined by University of Cincinnati personnel. About 2,400 letters were sent to current and former employees at Yucca.

The program was announced in January.

Allen Benson, spokesman for the Yucca Mountain project, said Monday the university has started its interviews and will begin the medical examinations soon.

The state Health Division issued a public health advisory Monday suggesting anyone who worked in or near the tunnel or who spent considerate time near the tunnel from 1992 through 2003 should be screened for possible silicosis or other lung disorders associated with the inhalation of finely ground particles of fibrous minerals.

The division said the inhalation of even small amounts of silica and other finely ground minerals can result in serious and potentially life-threatening lung disorders.

The examinations by the university are free.

In September 2003 a former Yucca Mountain project employee alleged to the inspector general's office there that were excessive amounts of silica and carcinogenic substances in the air from the drilling in the tunnel and that workers had not worn proper protective gear.

Benson said the inspector general's office has not yet issued its report of its investigation.

The Energy Department said its study showed the allowable level of silica was exceeded during some tunnel operations in the mid-1990s. The agency said it directed more protections programs. And it started the free screening by the University of Cincinnati of those current and former workers who felt they might have been harmed by silicosis.

Prior to the start of tunnel drilling in 1994, some safety protections were in place. But the requirements for their uses by employees were not consistently applied, the Energy Department said. A stop work order was issued in 1996 to establish a rigorous protection program and improved dust control measures were implemented.

In 1998 the Energy Department said it established the Silica Protection Program for workers who spent more than 20 days a year underground. It included chest X-rays, spirometer analysis and medical examinations. A spirometer is an instrument for measuring the air entering and leaving the lungs.

Two cases of silicosis were identified through this program.

Workers have the option now to continue in the program or the opportunity of going through the screening program at the University of Cincinnati, where silicosis and related issues have been researched for years.