[Nhcoll-l] Vermiculite as respiratory hazard

Sat Feb 10 11:49:16 EST 2018

Perhaps this topic could be written up in the NPS Conserve O Gram series.
This might make the information easy to distribute and cite. Previous short
papers have also been translated into Spanish.

Conserve O Gram
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Cheers,

VRR

Vanessa R. Rhue
Assistant Collections Manager
Vertebrate Paleontology

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
900 Exposition Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90007
vrhue at nhm.org
Tel. (213) 763-3248

On Sat, Feb 10, 2018 at 8:30 AM, Dirk Neumann <dirk.neumann at zsm.mwn.de>
wrote:

> Hi Jeff & all
>
> good idea - which countries/ languages would be needed ? So far, I have
> encountered vermiculite only in shipments from US institutions; never saw
> it in loans from European institutions. Maybe just Spanish would be
> sufficient?
>
> Another option would be to notify institutions/colleagues shipping
> specimens on vermiculite about the potential health issues when such loans
> arrive/are discovered. We would thus reach also colleagues which do not
> follow NHColl conversations.
>
> All the best
> Dirk
>
>
> Am 09.02.2018 um 22:48 schrieb Jeff Stephenson:
>
> Thanks Rob!
>
> Is there a way we can get this translated into some other languages and
> spread the word among our international colleagues?
>
>
>
> *JEFF STEPHENSON*
>
> *COLLECTIONS MANAGER, ZOOLOGY DEPARTMENT*
>
>
>
>
>
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> *From:* nhcoll-l-bounces at mailman.yale.edu [mailto:nhcoll-l-bounces@
> mailman.yale.edu <nhcoll-l-bounces at mailman.yale.edu>] *On Behalf Of *Dirk
> Neumann
> *Sent:* Friday, February 09, 2018 2:42 PM
> *To:* nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu
> *Subject:* Re: [Nhcoll-l] Vermiculite as respiratory hazard
>
>
>
> Very funny coincidence - James Maclain (NHM London) just brought this up
> in an internal conversation. Actually there is no reason to use it, and
> simple paper towels surely do even better as absorbent material for IATA
> packaging, compared to vermiculite. For A 180 packing, the requirement is
> that the absorbent material must be sufficient to hold the entire fluid per
> packaging in case of leakage. There are no further specifications, and even
> toilet paper would do a perfect job, but admittedly tends to be rather
> unstable compared to normal paper towels when wet.
>
> When I receive such shipments, I carefully open the outer packaging and
> remove the vermiculite into a large zip-lock back and immediately rinse the
> inner packing under water to avoid the dust; vermiculite is also VERY
> electrostatic, and you have it just everywhere.
>
> Thanks for pushing this, Rob!
>
> Have a nice weekend
> Dirk
>
>
> Am 09.02.2018 um 20:19 schrieb Rob Robins:
>
> Hi Folks,
>
> I have health and safety concerns regarding the use of vermiculite as an
> “outer packet” absorbency material in the shipping of  alcohol preserved
> specimens. We have never used vermiculite in the Florida Museum Fish
> Collection, but I receive many specimen shipments containing it and thus
> must handle it. And as anyone who has touched the stuff can attest, no
> matter how carefully handled, tiny particles of vermiculite end up
> suspended in the air one is breathing.
>
>
>
> A number of scientific papers lead me to conclude my health and safety
> concerns are not unreasonable. Here’s some of what I’ve found:
>
>
>
> ·         No matter where it was mined from, vermiculite is likely to
> contain fibrous minerals.
>
>
>
> ·         That few of these types of fibrous minerals have been formally
> classified as asbestos and regulated as such would appear to be more a
> function of what fibers were in use commercially at the time the
> regulations were created. (Baumann, F., J. P. Ambrosi, and M. Carbone.
> 2013. Asbestos is not just asbestos: an unrecognized health hazard. The
> Lancet Vol 14 June 2013).
>
>
>
> ·         To be certain, vermiculite has at times been found to contain
> asbestiform amphiboles (groups of needlelike silicates clumped together)
> such as winchite, richterite, and tremolite, the latter of which is
> regulated (Sullivan, P. 2007. Vermiculite, respiratory disease, and
> asbestos exposure in Libby, Montana: Update of a cohort mortality study.
> Environmental Health Perspectives Apr; 115 (4): 579-585).
>
>
>
> My question to the list: *Why is anyone using vermiculite as an absorbent
> when inert and safe alternatives such as polypropylene chemical spill
> absorbent pads are widely and cheaply available?* Failing any good answer
> to this question, my follow up would be, can we all please stop?
>
>
>
> Best wishes,
>
>
> Rob Robins
>
>
>
> P.S. The Baumann paper concludes thusly, and I agree:
>
>
>
> “The restricted regulatory definition of asbestos to six fibres used
> commercially contributes to miscommunication and uncertainty regarding the
> toxic effects of some fibrous minerals. We propose that all fibrous
> minerals be handled as potentially pathogenic until they are proven safe.
> Moreover, to protect human health, a wider regulatory definition of
> asbestos should include all potentially carcinogenic mineral fibres,
> without distinction of type and commercial use.”
>
>
>
> Robert H. Robins
>
> Collection Manager
>
> Division of Ichthyology
>
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> Dirk Neumann
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