Elemental Carbon Levels at a Potash Mine

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Abstract
A survey of worker exposures in a potash mine and mill was undertaken to evaluate diesel exposures during the feasibility effort of an epidemiologic study. Nineteen occupations were sampled. Results were averaged into six underground groups and three surface groups. Elemental carbon exposures, a diesel surrogate measure, were similar among all surface occupations; however, miners working in the auto shop were the most heavily exposed. Underground, ramcar drivers had the highest mean exposures over a 3-day sampling period, and those miners working in the underground diesel shop and warehouse had the lowest exposures. A multiple comparison of means test in SAS yielded three statistically different exposure groups when compared at the alpha = 0.1 significance level. The results of the survey demonstrate that exposure to elemental carbon varies considerably among mining occupational groups. This should prove useful for doseresponse analyses in a future epidemiologic study.