College of Life and Environmental Science, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4RJ, UK.
Environ Geochem Health. 2020 Apr;42(4):1153-1165. doi: 10.1007/s10653-019-00367-7. Epub 2019 Jul 9.
Mining continues to be a dangerous activity, whether large-scale industrial mining or small-scale artisanal mining. Not only are there accidents, but exposure to dust and toxins, along with stress from the working environment or managerial pressures, give rise to a range of diseases that affect miners. I look at mining and health from various personal perspectives: that of the ordinary man (much of life depends on mined elements in the house, car and phone); as a member of the Society for Environmental Geochemistry and Health (environmental contamination and degradation leads to ill health in nearby communities); as a public health doctor (mining health is affected by many factors, usually acting in a mix, ranging from individual inheritance-genetic makeup, sex, age; personal choices-diet, lifestyle; living conditions-employment, war; social support-family, local community; environmental conditions-education, work; to national and international constraints-trade, economy, natural world); as a volunteer (mining health costs are not restricted to miners or industry but borne by everyone who partakes of mining benefits-all of us); and as a lay preacher (the current global economy concentrates on profit at the expense of the health of miners). Partnership working by academics with communities, government and industry should develop evidence-based solutions. Employment, health, economic stability and environmental protection need not be mutually exclusive. We all need to act.
采矿活动一直以来都是一项危险的活动，无论是大规模的工业采矿还是小规模的手工采矿。不仅存在事故，而且暴露在粉尘和毒素中，以及工作环境或管理压力带来的压力，都会引发一系列影响矿工健康的疾病。我从不同的个人角度看待采矿和健康问题：从普通人的角度来看（生活中的很多方面都依赖于房屋、汽车和手机中的开采元素）；作为环境地球化学与健康学会的一员（环境污染和退化导致附近社区健康状况不佳）；作为一名公共卫生医生（采矿健康受到许多因素的影响，通常是多种因素混合作用，包括个体遗传组成、性别、年龄；个人选择——饮食、生活方式；生活条件——就业、战争；社会支持——家庭、当地社区；环境条件——教育、工作；以及国家和国际限制——贸易、经济、自然世界）；作为一名志愿者（采矿健康成本不仅限于矿工或行业，而是由所有享受采矿利益的人承担——我们所有人）；以及作为一名普通传教士（当前的全球经济以牺牲矿工健康为代价专注于利润）。学术界与社区、政府和工业界之间的合作应该制定基于证据的解决方案。就业、健康、经济稳定和环境保护不必相互排斥。我们都需要行动。
