Environmental tobacco smoke exposure in public places of European cities.

BACKGROUND: Exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) has important public health implications. The results of the first European multi-centre study that measured ETS exposure in a range of public places (transport, educational settings, and leisure facilities such as bars and restaurants) are presented. METHOD: Nicotine vapour phase was measured using ETS passive samplers containing a filter treated with sodium bisulfate. RESULTS: Bars and discos are the places with the highest concentrations of nicotine from ETS, median ranging from 19 to 122 microg/m(3). Restaurants had the next highest values. Concentrations of nicotine generally range from 0.1-5 microg/m(3) in airports, and from 0.5-10 microg/m(3) in train stations. Nicotine was also found in schools and universities, yet schools tended to have the lowest concentrations compared to all the other public places sampled. In hospitals levels were generally below 5 microg/m(3). CONCLUSIONS: Although there is some variability between cities, this study shows that tobacco smoke is present in most of the studied public places. The study also showed that in areas where smoking is prohibited, concentrations of nicotine are lower than in areas where smoking is allowed but they are not zero. The results of this study indicate that policies should be implemented that would effectively reduce levels of tobacco smoke in public areas.

[Amendments to Directive 90/394/CEE and effects on chapter VII of Law 626/94]. / Modifiche alla Direttiva 90/394/CEE e ricadute sul titolo VII del D.lgs. 626/94.

The European Union (EU) has recently twice amended the framework Council Directive 90/394/CEE on the protection of workers from risks related to exposure to carcinogens at work: protective measures were extended to category 1 and 2 mutagens; a new carcinogenic agent was identified in "work involving exposure to hardwood dusts" and three exposure limit values were fixed for carcinogens. The EU Member States are required to incorporate amending Directives into national legislation not later than 29 April 2003. Italy acknowledged these directives by the Decree 66/00 of the 25/2/2000. In this paper the development and the evolution of European legislation in the twenty years from 1980 to 2000 are overviewed: first, occupational exposure limits were defined and introduced for harmful chemicals, then for occupational carcinogens and later three binding limit values for benzene, VCM and hardwood dusts were fixed. The paper attempts to identify the expected problems and advantages that incorporation of the amending Directives will have on the protection of workers from carcinogenic risk.

[Decree 626/94, section VII "Protection from carcinogenic agents": comparison of agents tested for evidence of carcinogenicity by the EEC and IARC]. / DLGS 626/94 Titolo VII "Protezione da agenti cancerogeni": confronto tra gli agenti valutati per le evidenze di cancerogenicità dalla CEE e dalla IARC.

This paper reviews the assessments reported by the European Commission and the International Agency for Research on Cancer of evidence of carcinogenicity of agents. The aim was to identify the discrepancies in the classification of substances, jobs and occupational exposure situations considered by these two international bodies. This information can be of use in the risk evaluation of workers exposed to carcinogenic agents, as foreseen by Italian Decree No. 626/94.