CLEAN ART
the invisible danger of lead
A respectable Dutch paper recently reported the appalling conditions in which Mexican women have to work in industry. Soldering electronic devices and air bag valves for our Western and American consumer markets, they are completely without the protection of ventilation and exhaust hoods, without any knowledge of these things. Most women become very ill and their children die. Labels on lead and solder products, even in Mexico, warn the workers that the stuff is very poisonous. In spite of the warning, the lead is allowed to cause cancer, birth defects and damage to blood-forming, nervous, urinary and reproductive systems. The fumes also irritate and damage the bronchial tubes, nose and throat.
We are shocked by this story, but do you really think that we do it any better?
Two years ago I wrote in the magazine Glashelder about the disgraceful situation within our stained glass ateliers, departments of education and artists’ workshops. I also wrote a paper on the subject for the Clean Air Conference in Porto last year, in which I asked the responsible authorities to warn art students and artists and to give information about the materials they are working with. Ignorance has already harmed a lot of men and women, also here in the so-called civilized society in the Netherlands and Belgium. Colleagues have lost their babies or had babies with birth defects. Trying to get information was nearly impossible. One sheet lead producer took its responsibility by giving lectures on this subject and by publishing the information about safety. He advised to use also a special oil to rub into the fresh lead, so that the lead can make a protecting ‘skin’ and doesn’t oxidize the poisonous lead white. He, however, came hardly in contact with the artists. Meanwhile, the university hospitals, the poison centre, the unions, the departments of education and the ministry of health didn’t know what the danger could be and how to handle the problem.
Only one female colleague -after having years of health problems- could find a wise doctor who could give advice: Dr Judith Feigel from Gant knew, because she is an industrial medical officer, the invisible danger of lead.
She explained and advised: Lead can be taken into the body system by the mouth, the respiration, hair and the skin and can cause severe health problems:
1. Acute poisoning: stomach cramps, kidney disorders, possible coma and death.
2. Chronic poisoning: this will happen by continuous intake of small amounts of lead. This process the blood can change can damage the kidneys, nervous system and brain. When pregnant, the health of the fetus or child can be severely damaged.
3. To prevent the lead coming into the body system: make a partition between living and working space. Never use the space where you work with lead for other work. Never let children play in this place. Pregnant and breast-feeding women should not be allowed to work with lead. Don’t eat, drink or smoke while working with lead. Before eating, wash your hands and change clothes. When leaving: leave your clothes in the working place, take a shower and wash your hair. Don’t wash dirty clothes in your private home washing machine: give them to the laundry with the note that they contain lead. Always work with exhaust hoods and pipes, carry hand gloves, carry a mask (nozzles) P2 or P3. Take good care of those masks, change the filters frequently and after use, stow them away from dust. When doing very dirty jobs -like working with the restoration of old stained glass windows- wear a throwaway overall. If necessary, organize measurements for the lead level in your atelier. It is important for women to bear in mind that even when you don’t know that you are pregnant, the damage can be done. Before getting pregnant check with your doctor how long you will have to wait before the lead is out of your system.
4. Have a medical checkup twice a year: POB analysis of blood cells; Zpp reveals the lead exposure in the past; S-ala that measures the lead in the urine can tell the doctor about long-term exposure; Have your liver and kidneys checked.
5. After contamination the lead will be secreted by the kidneys. During really long-term contamination, the lead will be gathered in the bones and this will -even when you don’t work with lead any longer- continue to damage your health. An EDTA test, done by a kidney specialist, can be used to find this lead in the bones. Special oral medicines can bind this lead so that it is secreted by the kidneys. If your kidneys are damaged, this will be notified as a job-related disease and will be reported to the authorities. This will only be the case, however, when you are employed within a firm and not if you are self-employed!
Up to now I have heard the stories of glass artists and artists not knowing the danger of lead. I have heard them tell how they have handled lead over the fumes of the melting pots, with no protection at all!
Institutions dealing with education in arts and crafts should take their responsibilities seriously. They have to inform teachers, students and workshop assistants about the possible health hazards. When students don’t learn how to handle lead and other materials safely-and not only in the stained glass departments-, they won’t be so ‘lucky’ as the Mexican women who are dismissed after four years! We all have the right to know and to live a long and healthy life.
After a panic when the American government wanted to forbid all use of lead, the artists there changed their attitude. They have their blood checked on a regular basis to prove that the lead levels were lowered by taking good precautions. They cleaned their workshops once a week -instead of vacuuming- with wet cloths to remove the dangerous dust.
They have now two lead regulations that apply also to studios. The first is the OSHA General Industry Standard 29 CFR 1910.1025 for the use of lead and lead-based products in the studio. The other is the OSHA lead in Construction Standard 29 CFR 1926.62 and it applies when you remove or install windows or to construction related activities. The SGAA has now an Air Monitoring Program for members which provides air sampling equipment for testing workshops or job sites. There are data forms, training videos and other documentation. For more information see the SGAA website on
Standards and Guidelines for the Preservation of Stained (and Leaded) Glass Windows
SGAA Member Price $5.00 each
Non-Member Price $10.00 each (plus $2.50 for US shipping)
The SGAA Headquarters
9313 East 63rd Street
Raytown, MO 64133
+1 (800)438-9581
www.stainedglass.org
Now you have the information, please make clean art!
This Side Up! 4/1998
