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KMID : 1156220210470010020
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Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
2021 Volume.47 No. 1 p.20 ~ p.35
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Health Risk Related to Waste Incineration
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Choi Young-Sook
Ochirpurev Bolormaa
Chae Hee-Yun
Eom Sang-Yong
Kim Yong-Dae
Kim Heon
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Abstract
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Objectives: Waste treatment by incineration is gradually increasing as the emission of harmful substances has decreased owing to developments in incineration technology. However, residents living near incinerators continue to express anxiety regarding the effects on their health. Therefore, we attempted to summarize the health impact of incinerators by comprehensively reviewing the recently reported literature.
Methods: Sixty-two epidemiological research papers related to incineration and health effects were selected from the Google Scholar database and analyzed (from between January 2001 and December 2019).
Results: When compared to older incinerators, newer incinerators established after 2000 are considered relatively safe in terms of health effects. Nevertheless, there have been some studies that have linked them to various diseases, such as malignant tumors including soft tissue cancer and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, reproductive disorders, respiratory diseases, and more. In addition, incinerator workers and local residents are considered to be exposed to dioxins and some heavy metals from the incinerator. Since most studies included subjects exposed to older incinerators, it is difficult to apply these results to the health impact assessment of new incinerators. However, it is not appropriate to conclude that new incinerators made with state-of-the-art technology are safe, as chronic environmental diseases caused by hazardous substances tend to appear only after prolonged exposure.
Conclusions: In terms of environmental health, it is necessary to continuously monitor the health effects of incinerators. Also, there is a need to develop a research methodology that can minimize various confounders in incineration-related epidemiological study.
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KEYWORD
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Cancer, dioxin, health impact, waste incineration
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