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Benzene FAQ
What is benzene?
Benzene is a colorless liquid with a sweet odor. It evaporates into
the air very quickly and dissolves slightly in water. It is highly
flammable and is formed from both natural processes and human activities.
Benzene ranks in the top 20 chemicals for production volume in
the U.S. The chemical benzene is used widely in the U.S. as a building
block for plastics, rubber, resins, and synthetic fabrics, a well
as solvent in printing, paints, dry cleaning, and a variety of other
things. Natural sources of benzene include volcanoes and forest
fires. Benzene is also a natural part of crude oil, gasoline, and
cigarette smoke.
Does benzene cause cancer?
The Department of Health and Human Services determined benzene is
a known human carcinogen. Exposure to high levels of benzene has
been associated to cases of leukemia cancer, including acute myelogenous
leukemia, acute lymphocytic leukemia, and chronic myelogenous leukemia,
as well as many other types.
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What is a carcinogen?
A carcinogen is a substance with the ability to cause cancer. Benzene
has been identified as a human carcinogen. There may be no safe
level of exposure to a carcinogen so all contact should be completely
avoided.
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Why is benzene regulated?
Benzene is regulated because of the dangerous health effects that
benzene poisoning is known to cause. Congress passed the Safe Drinking
Water Act in 1974 requiring the EPA to determine safe levels of
chemicals in drinking water. Benzene's level has been set to zero.
The EPA calls these levels Maximum Contaminant Level Goals and the
EPA set a standard called Maximum Contaminant Levels based on that.
The maximum amount of benzene allowed in drinking water is set at
0.005 milligrams per liter. It is EPA required that spills or accidental
releases of 10 pounds or more of benzene be reported. OSHA has set
a permissible exposure limit of 1 part of benzene per million parts
of air in the workplace during an 8-hour workday in a 40-hour workweek.
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What health problems does benzene cause?
Even a small amount of benzene exposure can cause temporary nervous
system disorders, immune system depression, and anemia. High levels
of benzene can result in death, drowsiness, dizziness, rapid heart
rate, headaches, tremors, confusion, unconsciousness, vomiting,
and stomach irritation. Benzene was identified as a carcinogen and
can cause various forms of leukemia from just five years of exposure,
resulting in death in some instances.
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Is benzene still a risk?
Despite benzene being banned as a solvent in the U.S. for over twenty
years, workers are continually exposed to direct and indirect sources
of the chemical.
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How much benzene is produced and released
into the environment?
Benzene is mainly released into the air from gasoline fumes and
exhaust. The Toxics Release Inventory identified that over 2 million
pounds of benzene to water and land was released from 1987-1992.
The majority of benzene releases were from petroleum refining industries.
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When benzene is released into the
environment what happens?
Industrial processes are the main source of benzene in the environment.
Water and soil containing benzene breaks down more slowly and the
benzene can pass through the soil into underground water. Some soil
microbes can break down benzene, and some ground waters can degrade
benzene. Benzene released to surface water usually evaporates within
a few hours, but benzene can pass into the air from water and soil.
Benzene can also attach to rain or snow and then be carried back
into the ground.
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How can someone be exposed to benzene?
- Air containing low levels of benzene from tobacco smoke, car
service stations, motor vehicle exhaust, and industrial emissions.
- Air surrounding hazardous waste sites or gas stations contain
a higher level of benzene.
Indoor air that have products containing benzene, such as glues,
paints, furniture wax, and detergents.
- Underground storage tanks or hazardous waste sites containing
benzene can contaminate well water.
- There are many industries that expose workers to benzene.
- Tobacco smoke is a major source of benzene.
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Is the risk for getting sick from benzene
greater in workers than residents?
Exposure to benzene is much greater with workers except for if there
is a spill or fire. Even OSHA's permissible exposure limit for benzene
of 1 ppm can still cause health conditions.
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Are there medical tests showing exposure
to benzene?
There are several tests to show if you have been exposed to benzene.
Testing for benzene in the breath must be performed shortly after
exposure to benzene. Benzene can be measured in the blood, but since
benzene quickly disappears from the blood, measurements are accurate
only for recent benzene exposures. When benzene is in the body the
benzene is converted to products called metabolites, and certain
metabolites can be measured in the urine. This benzene test must
also be done shortly after exposure to benzene and is not a reliable
indicator of how much benzene you have been exposed to because the
metabolites may be present in urine from other sources.
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Are there any government recommendations
in place to protect people from exposure to benzene?
OSHA - The legal airborne permissible exposure limit is 1
ppm averaged over an 8-hour work shift and 5 ppm not to be exceeded
during any 15-minute work period.
NIOSH - The recommended airborne exposure limit is 0.1 ppm
averaged over a 10-hour work shift and 1 ppm not to be exceeded
during any 15-minute work period.
ACGIH - The recommended airborne exposure limit is 0.5 ppm
averaged over an 8-hour work shift and 2.5 ppm as a short-term exposure
limit.
Because benzene has been identified as a human carcinogen, all
exposure to the dangerous chemical should be completely avoided
if possible because there may not be a safe level of benzene exposure.
Because the identified levels of benzene exposure are in regards
to air levels, skin contact may overexpose an individual.
Do I have any legal rights for my exposure
to benzene?
Benzene is a human carcinogen, resulting in cases of leukemia and
cancer. Every year there are millions of workers exposed to benzene
that may find a company liable and qualify you for compensation.
For more information regarding your exposure to benzene, please
contact us.
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