• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.16 no.4 s.50
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• pp.351-357
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• 2006

Recently there is increasing the flow of hazardous chemical substances caused by industrial waste waters into a main river. It is needed to make the high treatment in drinking water treatment plants for reducing a health risk. Therefore, the monitoring of trace hazardous chemical substances by the industrial waste water inflow is available increasing economical efficiency of river management as well as reduction of risk. In this study, the most important substance among numerical and quantitative trace hazardous chemicals is Hexachlorobutadiene in an effluent of industrial wastes. However all items of GroupII which was included with semiconductor, electricity/electron and metal assemble was not detected. It means that we must consider the characteristics and behavior of load pollutants to water resources to select monitoring items. That was called 'preparatory monitoring'. We can reduce an economical consumption as well as risks from these pollutants using the preparatory monitoring.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.196-203
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• 2018

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess environmental risk on the emerging contaminants of concern, such as ivermetin, parziquantel, tamiflu and triclosan. Furthermore, we tried to provide a more efficient management practice and a basis for future studies of risk assessment on those substances. Methods: Predicted no effect concentration (PNEC) and predicted environmental concentration (PEC) were determined through modeling and literature reviews. Environmental risk assessment was evaluated by calculating HQ (hazard quotient) by a comparison of PEC (or measured environmental concentration (MEC)) and PNEC. Results: HQ value of tamiflu calculated from MEC was 1.9E-03. For ivermectin and triclosan, the HQ values were not available because these were not detected in the aquatic environment. The toxicity of ivermectin and triclosan showed a very low value, indicating a high level of HQ. However, praziquantel can be categorized into the material that do not require management since they have less than HQ 1. Conclusion: Based on the results of the initial risk assessment, it is assumed that the ivermectin and triclosan have potential to cause direct adverse effects on the aquatic environment. To conduct an accurate environmental risk assessment, the further study on PEC estimation of such contaminants should be actively carried out.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.84-94
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• 2018

Background: This paper describes a simple-to-use and reliable screening tool called Critical Task Exposure Screening (CTES), developed by a chemical company. The tool assesses if the exposure to a chemical for a task is likely to be within acceptable levels. Methods: CTES is a Microsoft Excel tool, where the inhalation risk score is calculated by relating the exposure estimate to the corresponding occupational exposure limit (OEL) or occupational exposure band (OEB). The inhalation exposure is estimated for tasks by preassigned ART1.5 activity classes and modifying factors. Results: CTES requires few inputs. The toxicological data, including OELs, OEBs, and vapor pressure are read from a database. Once the substance is selected, the user specifies its concentration and then chooses the task description and its duration. CTES has three outputs that may trigger follow-up: (1) inhalation risk score; (2) identification of the skin hazard with the skin warnings for local and systemic adverse effects; and (3) status for carcinogenic, mutagenic, or reprotoxic effects. Conclusion: The tool provides an effective way to rapidly screen low-concern tasks, and quickly identifies certain tasks involving substances that will need further review with, nevertheless, the appropriate conservatism. This tool shows that the higher-tier ART1.5 inhalation exposure assessment model can be included effectively in a screening tool. After 2 years of worldwide extensive use within the company, CTES is well perceived by the users, including the shop floor management, and it fulfills its target of screening tool.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.227-240
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• 2015

Recent amendment on the Food Sanitation Act in Korea mandated the Minister of Food & Drug Safety to secure the scientific basis for management and reevaluation of standards and specifications of foods. Especially because the current food safety control is limited within the scope of 'Farm to Market' covering from production to retail in Korea, safety control at the plane of true 'Farm to Fork' scope is urgently needed and should include 'total diet' of population instead of individual food items. Therefore, 'Total Diet Study (TDS)' which provides 'closer-to-real' estimates of exposure to hazardous materials through analysis on table-ready (cooked) samples of foods would be the solution to more comprehensive food safety management, as suggested by World Health Organization and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Although the protection of diets from hazards must be considered as one of the most essential public health functions of any country, we may need to revisit the value of foods which has been too much underrated by the meaningless amount of some hazardous materials in Korea. Considering the primary value of foods lies on sustaining life, growth, development, and health promotion of human being, food safety control should be handled not only by the presence or absence of hazardous materials but also by maximizing the value of foods via balancing with the preservation of beneficial components in foods embracing total diet. In this regard, this article aims to provide an overview on TDS by describing procedures involved except chemical analysis which is beyond our scope. Also, details on the ongoing TDS in Korea are provided as an example. Although TDS itself might not be of keen interest for most readers, it is the main user of the safety reference values resulted from toxicological research in the public health perspective.

• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.1-6
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• 2013

This study was conducted to compare the value of the working environment measurement with the expected exposure value drawn by using a program, thereby going to investigate whether it is available to the risk assessment of domestic workplace. We used the ECETOC TRA program which is one of the exposure predictive models. Four kinds of substances were measured in two workplace which was exposed to organic solvents and one kind of substance was measured in three workplace which was exposed to dusts and then an exposure assessment of chemical risk factors was conducted. The result value of the working environment measurement, solid substance exceeded standard in one site, and it was found that the other solid and liquid substances were within the standard. The value of the exposure assessment program showd the same result; it was higher than the value of the working environment measurement, suggesting that due to its nature, the exposure assessment program is run only on the worst situation. Therefore, it was found that when the exposure assesment program is used, variables should be substituted only after accurately assessing the workplace and it is a good idea to assess the risk beforehand with the exposure assessment program in the case of the workplace which employs no more than 5 people and where it is hard to assess the working environment.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.259-268
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• 2019

One of the most effective methods to consistently ensure the safety of a tap water supply can be achieved by application of a comprehensive risk assessment and risk management approach for drinking water supply systems. This approach can be termed water safety plans(WSP) which recommended by WHO(world health organization) and IWA(international water association). For the introduction of WSP into Korea, 150 hazards were identified all steps in drinking water supply from catchment to consumer and risk assessment tool based on frequency and consequence of hazards were developed. Then, developed risk assessment tool by this research was implemented at a water treatment plant($Q=25,000m^3/d$) to verify its applicability, and several amendments were recommended; classification of water source should be changed from groundwater to stream to strengthen water quality monitoring contaminants and frequencies; installation of aquarium to monitor intrusion of toxic substances into raw water; relocation or new installation on-line water quality analyzers for efficient water quality monitoring; change of chlorination chemical from solid phase($Ca(OCl)_2$) to liquid phase(NaOCl) to improve soundness of chlorination. It was also meaningful to propose hazards and risk assessment tool appropriate for Korea drinking water supply systems through this research which has been inconsistent among water treatment authorities.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.132-137
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• 2018

Although the number of chemical accidents has been declining since the Chemical Control Act of 2015, there have been repeated occurrences of similar types of accidents at printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturing facilities. These accidents were caused by the overflow of hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide, which are toxic chemicals used in the printed circuit board manufacturing process. An analysis of the $Cl^-$ content to identify the cause of the accident showed that in the mixed route of hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide, which are accidental substances, the $Cl^-$ concentration was 66.85 ppm in the hydrogen peroxide sample. Through reaction experiments, it was confirmed that the deformation of a PVC storage tank and generation of chlorine gas, which is a toxic gas, occurred due to reaction heat occurring up to $50.5^{\circ}C$. This paper proposes a facility safety management plan, including overcharge, overflow prevention, leak detection device, and separation tank design for mixing prevention in printed circuit board manufacturing facility etch process. To prevent the recurrence of accidents of the same type, the necessity of a periodic facility safety inspection and strengthening of the safety education of workers was discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.150-156
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• 2018

As the types and usage of chemical increase, modern countries should protect their health and environment from the risk of hazardous chemical. Chemical accidents not only affect humans but also cause huge losses to the environment. Moreover, since its effects do not end in a short period of time, it is necessary to identify the extent of the damage and establish a prevention and response system in advance. In 2015, the Chemical Substances Management Act provided a system for assessing the impact on the people and the environment around the workplace. However, it is difficult to quantitatively evaluate the impact on environmental factors such as vegetation and aquatic, with the current hazard assessment methods. The purpose of this study is to analyze the quantitative risk of environmental receptors. This study improved the existing risk assessment formula by using the environmental vulnerability index and established the end point concentration criterion which can estimate the damage range to environmental media. To verify the results of the study, a virtual accident scenario was selected and a case study was conducted. As a result, the extent of impact on the environmental medium can be calculated, and the degree of environmental risk of the zone can be quantified through the risk analysis considering the environmental vulnerability. This study is expected to increase the reliability of the reliability of the existing risk anaylsis method beacause it is a risk analysis method that can be applied when the environmental factors are absolutely necessary and when the residents and environment are complex.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.56-66
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• 2013

The gas production plants supply the inert gas to production plants for maintaining safe operation and also supply combustible, flammable, explosive and toxic gases as functions of basic materials needed for producing chemical goods. In addition, gas plants need to be safe and reliable operation because they are operated under high temperature, high pressure, cryogenic and catalytic reactions. As these plants have a complex process in operation, there has been a risk that major industrial accidents such as a fire, explosion and toxic gas released, also risks of asphyxiations by inert gases and burns caused by high temperature and cryogenic substances. This study is to carry out the semi quantitative risk assesment method which is the generic risk analysis (GRA). This method is applied to air separation unit(ASU) to identify its initial risk, safety barriers, residual risk and elements important for safety(EIS). The result of this study, suggested the management tools and procedures of implementation for EIS management.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.367-373
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• 2013

Objectives: Employee exposure record refers to a record containing information about environmental (workplace) monitoring or measuring of a toxic substance or harmful physical agent. The aims of this study were to examine problems related to exposure records and provide some amendments to the Korean Industrial Safety & Health Act for the effective management of chemical substances under the law. Methods: This study performed a literature search and review on legal provisions related to exposure records of a number of different countries, including Korea, the USA, Japan, EU, Germany, and the UK. They were compared and investigated and the amendment of articles was suggested. Results: The results of this study were provided as suggested amendments to the related act. There were a variety of ways of improvement, including a 30-year retention period and the introduction of new access methods, contents, transfer, and maintenance methods. All exposure data elements have to be standardized, including reference to a similar exposure group (SEG), sampling strategy, and circumstances of exposure (e.g., date, shift length, use of personal protective equipment, etc.). The SEGs are described by process, job, task, and environmental agent. Conclusions: This study is expected to provide for the amendment of the related act in order to ensure effective management of exposure records and is helpful for solving the cause and result of occupational disease by keeping exposure records according to the Industrial Safety & Health Act.