Diesel fumes:
the risks
Introducing the risks from diesel fumes – a
briefing for managers
Presenter notes
 in Britain, more than 650 people a year die of lung or bladder
cancer caused by diesel fumes at work
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• This brief presentation is designed to get managers where you work
up to speed on the implications of exposure to certain types of diesel
fumes
• It’s aimed at anyone who has responsibility for managing activities
where exposure to diesel engine exhaust emissions may pose a risk
to health
• Slides include FAQs or notes that you can use to respond to
questions, or to supplement your presentation
• Hand out IOSH’s free factsheet on diesel engine exhaust fumes to
support this presentation
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
people regularly exposed to diesel exhaust fumes at work
are up to 40% more likely to develop lung cancer
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Typical questions you may get asked
• These figures seem high – how can it be proved?
There has been research done in a number of different countries
linking diesel fume exposure to the work people do and the cancer
they get. In the UK, a recent research report, funded by the Health
and Safety Executive and the largest of its kind in the world, looked
at patients who suffered from different forms of cancer and then
linked it to the work they did. Dr Rushton and her team of
researchers found a strong link between diesel exposure at work and
lung and bladder cancers
• What about if people smoke, isn’t that what gives them lung
cancer?
Robust research takes lifestyle issues into account. The Rushton
research was adjusted to reflect what are known as ‘confounding
factors’ like smoking. People who don’t smoke can still get lung
cancer as a result of diesel fume exposure. People who do smoke
and are exposed to diesel fumes are more likely to get lung cancer
than if they just smoked
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•
Diesel is much cleaner now – is this still a problem?
It depends on the standards in the country you’re operating in. For
example, in EU countries, there should are higher standards –since
1992/93 there has been a steady reduction in allowable emissions
on new vehicles including cars, trucks, trains, tractors and barges.
The latest reductions were in 2008/09 with the Euro 5/V standard
and in 2013/14 with the Euro 6/VI standard. In other parts of the
world, for example Africa and Asia, standards for diesel are lower.
Different equipment will have different standards too – for example,
a diesel generator would not be covered by some vehicle exhaust
emission standards, and seagoing ships are excluded. In addition,
remember that more recent vehicle emission standards only apply
to new vehicles so older vehicles are likely to be producing higher
emissions
Better standards mean that the risks are reduced but not eliminated
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What is it in diesel that causes cancer?
The risk of cancer is linked with the particulate emissions in the
fumes – the soot, rather than the gases or vapours. Diesel engine
exhaust exposure is now often measured by the elemental carbon
concentrations in the air inhaled by workers. Some types of diesel
contain more than 10 times the soot particles of petrol. It’s the soot
particles that include carcinogenic – cancer-causing – substances. If
you’re regularly exposed to these over a long time, you have a 40
per cent higher chance of getting lung cancer
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 around 800 new cases of cancer linked to diesel fumes are
registered each year in Britain
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• Here, you can outline the key risk areas in your business – the
picture in your own workplace
• Highlight areas where there may be risk of exposure to diesel
fumes, and the people potentially affected
• If it’s relevant to your business, you could also add that
ignoring the problem is costing you money – in time off work
through illness and sick pay plus the cost of replacement staff.
If you’ve got examples of people taking time off work with
respiratory problems then refer to them here
• Emphasise that if your competitors are handling this issue
better than you then you risk falling behind and potentially
seeing your reputation damaged – use examples if you have
them
• Convince your senior colleagues to sign up to IOSH’s No
Time to Lose pledge to tackle work-based cancer. Doing this
shows your staff, customers or clients that you’re taking the
issue seriously – and taking action. Checking out if your
competitors or suppliers have already pledged their support
can help make your case
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Typical questions you may get asked
• What’s the legal situation?
Of course, you’ll need to know what the law requires where
you work – depending on where you operate, there could be
general requirements, or very specific technical standards. In
the UK, employers are legally required to consider the risk of
cancer. Diesel fumes are covered by the Control of
Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations, as well as by
the more generic Health and Safety at Work Act and
Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations. By
law, employers should assess the risk of people being
affected by diesel fumes, and then work to either stop
exposure or reduce it with suitable control measures.
• How can we be found liable if a worker has been exposed
before they came to work for us?
You can refer to court cases here. For example, in the UK, the
Health and Safety Executive has successfully prosecuted
businesses for exposure to harmful substances, without proof
of harm. One case, involving a well known high street retailer,
resulted in a million pound fine for asbestos exposure. The
HSE issues around 200 prohibition or improvement notices a
year for exposure to substances including silica dust and
asbestos.
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If there may be an issue at your workplace, you first need to formally
assess the hazard, which could include measuring elemental carbon
concentrations.
Do you or someone in your team have the specialist knowledge and
skills to make these assessments? If not, you may need to call in a
specialist to help you assess hazards and risks.
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• in Europe, there are around 4,500 diesel cancer deaths each year
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• Many of the things we can do cost nothing – eg turning engines off
when not being used, swapping jobs around. This sort of action is
about getting people to change how they do things, or changing
working patterns. Some of these measures can even save money –
for example switching engines off as a matter of routine when they’re
not in use will save fuel costs and cut your carbon footprint too
• Other actions may need to be planned in as part of a replacement or
retrofit programme
• Remind your audience that health checks don’t stop the problem
from happening in the first place but can help check whether your
prevention tactics are working, as well as monitoring any ill health
issues
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• Use this slide as a continuation of the previous one if you need to
cover more points
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• across Europe, more than 3.6 million workers are exposed to diesel
fumes above city background levels
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• Add your business case to this slide. Put your recommendations, and
include costs, resources and timescales. Remember that a balanced
business case will also include the benefits, ie the return on
investment. Remember to include things like the fact that new
engines are more efficient and use less fuel. Some vehicles will
attract lower tax
• If you present a problem to your employer with the solution already
planned you are giving them an easy choice to make.
Things you could include:
 install diesel retrofit devices with verified technologies – for
example, look at
www.epa.gov/cleandiesel/technologies/retrofits.htm
 maintain, repair, rebuild, repower engines
 replace older vehicles and equipment
 improve operational strategies, for example, look at
www.epa.gov/cleandiesel/technologies/operations.htm
 use cleaner fuels including natural gas and propane
 deliver toolbox talks and information on using personal
protective equipment
 This leaflet may help you think through controls –
www.hse.gov.uk/ pubns/indg286.htm
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• in the UK, around 500,000 workers could be exposed to high levels
of diesel fumes
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