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RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

D Shulmister — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 13:21:23 GMT

prose (11/7/2007)

As for your sincere sympathy perhaps if we saw it displayed at the funeral, oh wait you were not there, nor were any of the other employees for fear of losing their jobs. No need for a response Supreme Being, I'll never log back in to read it.

No, I was not at the funeral. Your dad was still working there when I left. I did not hear of his passing until some time later. Your sarcasm is misdirected.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

prose — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 12:23:22 GMT

First of all thanks for the anonymity, I'll show you the same respect. Secondly, when dealing with the nature of wastewater management, the city, the government et cetera there will obviously never be a link to cancer or any disease that may or may not be killing the employees, not to mention that the residual effects may not occur until years after their employment has ended. Unless of course people are dying in record numbers in one specific area. As for your sincere sympathy perhaps if we saw it displayed at the funeral, oh wait you were not there, nor were any of the other employees for fear of losing their jobs. No need for a response Supreme Being, I'll never log back in to read it.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

D Shulmister — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 10:04:20 GMT

Chuck was one of the most pleasant people you'd ever want to meet. His death was a tragedy and also a shock to me. It was discovered that the reclaimed water had been cross-connected to the potable supply at Albert Whitted. However, there were several homes in the City that had potable lines crossed with reclaimed and used for drinking for several months. None of the residents suffered any ill effects to my knowledge.

During his employment, the only chemicals used were liquid chlorine for disinfection and polymer for sludge processing. Ortho-tolidine was not used to determine residual chlorine, and the sludge processing was seperate from the plant operations. Hydrogen sulfide is always present around wastewater plants, but universal exposure suggests no general connection with operator sicknesses.

As far as Hep C infections, I never knew any of the operators were infected. Like HIV, Hep C tends to be an infection transmitted by blood-to-blood contact, non-sterile needles and dental equipment, and etc. Its major effects are on the liver.

Other operators in the system have passes away due to cancer, but none could be linked to employment causes. You have my sincere sympathy.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

prose — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:18:22 GMT

You're exactly right, it was not only the sewage. It was the needles, feces, used condoms (the list is endless) which first wash into the plant, together with the chemicals, insects and the sewage itself. These people are exposed to endless contaminations from heavy rains (washing in with pesticides) to the constant acrid odor that they are inhaling everyday. I cannot tell you how much backing we had from the other employees, (who now have been diagnosed with Hep C) until they were told they would lose their job. I'm not a huge conspiracy theory person, but this I witnessed firsthand. Believe me, none of them drink water from the sink! As far as my dad's immunity, unfortunately like I previously stated, he worked all of the overtime hours he could get, holidays, etc... he was an avid jogger, and a healthy eater that never had any real health issues prior to 1996. How many times has a cross contamination happened and the public was never notified? We'll never know.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

Dedalus — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 10:58:25 GMT

One chemical that's been definitively linked to cancers of the bladder is o-tolidine, that color reagent used to test for residual chlorine. White (Handbook of Chlorination) suggests finding alternatives and I agree.

Liver diseases are also known to be linked to the development of certain cancers.

My sympathies on the loss of your father, Prose.

"Guys and Gals, use your PPE's"

That is always sound advice. And, wash your hands a lot.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

Jerry — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:20:50 GMT

People with low immunity may have a problem with some diseases if they come in direct contact. However, historically, the diseases you mention are rare in the wastewater field. I've never heard of a cancer case caused by sewage. Maybe this was caused by the chemicals used in treating the sewage. Warmer climates and conditions in sewers can promote pathoginic growth.Some polymers, and disinfecting chemicals are known carcinogens and can possibly cause health problems. A lot of these chemicals are already in your drinking water. So the possibilities are endless. That's why it's almost impossible to prove in court, or get a handle on a contaminate source.

Guys and Gals, use your PPE's

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

prose — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 14:44:10 GMT

My dad was working for the plant near Albert Whitted airport which is the one we believe where the exposure was the greatest. However, he also (primarily)worked for the 62nd Ave plant, in St. Petersburg which is where the Hep C cases have been reported, and other illnesses amongst the workers.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

D Shulmister — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 11:24:05 GMT

prose (10/26/2007)

We tried unsuccessfully to sue the city he worked for however it is a tough case to prove especially with little monetary backing.

Even with a lot of monetary backing it's a tough case to prove. Which utility was your dad working for?

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

prose — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 16:28:52 GMT

My dad was a wastewater operator in Florida for approximately 15 years. He was diagnosed with a 20lb abdominal tumor (perfectly encased in a hard shell) in 1996. The tumor was removed. In 1997 he was diagnosed with a brain tumor, which was once again removed. Shortly thereafter he was stricken with another bizarre abdominal tumor (18 lbs) which eventually took his life in 2001. All of the types of cancer with which he was diagnosed were known to be environmentally derived. My father worked overtime hours, weekends et cetera and was on a regular basis exposed to all of these carcinogens with little protection. We tried unsuccessfully to sue the city he worked for however it is a tough case to prove especially with little monetary backing. Do we believe all of the cancers were environmentally related? Without a doubt. They have changed several policies since his death, however we are aware of several cross-contamination instances in which the public was never informed, and all of the workers drink bottled water. Moreover, through one co-worker we have learned some time ago that several of the employees (approx 6 out of 10) have been diagnosed with Hep C. It is definitely a dangerous occupation and the potential for serious illness is extremely high. Good luck to you and your friend. I wish you the best.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

D Shulmister — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 15:10:02 GMT

Considering the large number of people who work in this industry, if breathing "bad" air caused bladder cancer, there would be a lot of people with the disease. I tried for a number of years to improve operators' salaries by establishing a connection between disease and working in a treatment plant/collection system. Alas, I was never able to do so.

RE: Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

Sabir — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 01:15:22 GMT

The bad smell in and around the WWTP is usually due to the presence of Hydrogen sulfide in the air. I am not sure if inhaling of the air saturated with H₂S has any effect on bladder cancer but I do now that absorbed and un-metabolized H₂S leaves body through urinary tract. Following link refers to a study by EPA “Toxicological review of Hydrogen sulfide” may help to understand its effect on human.

http://www.epa.gov/IRIS/toxreviews/0061-tr.pdf

Wastewater Plants and Bad Air Quality Links to Cancer or Bladder Cancer?

primey — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 22:44:38 GMT

I have a friend who works in the WasteWater Industry who has been diagnosed with Bladder Cancer is it likely the toxins we breath in this Industry may have caused this to form? I would appreciate any information and expert advice. Thanks for your time and thoughts and input.