Boeing workers long-exposed to carcinogen far above legal limits

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

EVERETT — An industrial hygienist for the Boeing Everett plant warned in 2020 that “literally hundreds of Boeing employees are at risk” of developing lung cancer or other forms of cancer — “regardless of respiratory protection” — because of an industrial poison that has been a key ingredient in the airplane production for decades.

Airborne levels of hexavalent chromium “greatly exceed the legal permissible exposure limit” in the factory’s paint operations, said company compliance manager Jennifer Allen in an email to colleagues arguing for the elimination of the chemical in the manufacturing process.

“As for employee health and safety, there is no chemical exposure more severe or of greater concern than chromate primer application in Boeing facilities Enterprise-wide,” said Allen, an industrial hygienist, or specialist in analyzing workplace hazards.

Hexavalent chromium, a long-established carcinogen often abbreviated as Cr(VI), is still used by the company for its anti-corrosion properties, despite its No. 1 rank on the company’s list of chemical concerns, records show.

https://www.heraldnet.com/news/boeing-workers-long-exposed-to-carcinogen-far-above-legal-limits/

[yonder]

1. 45 years ago I worked as a parts guy at an aircraft components manufacturing shop.

My exposure to it wasn't nearly like the people working with it on the line and paint booths. It makes me wonder though.

It's that peculiar yellow/green colored paint you sometimes see on parts in the innards of aircraft.