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Health As Dignity Risks, Health And Mobilizations For Environmental Justice

Health As Dignity Risks, Health And Mobilizations For Environmental Justice. Marcelo Firpo ENSP/FIOCRUZ m arcelo.firpo@ensp.fiocruz.br. Health: concepts and tools. Biomedical view : preventable diseases and deaths Classical scientific tool: epidemilogical studies and causal nexus

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Health As Dignity Risks, Health And Mobilizations For Environmental Justice

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  1. Health As DignityRisks, Health And Mobilizations For Environmental Justice Marcelo Firpo ENSP/FIOCRUZ marcelo.firpo@ensp.fiocruz.br

  2. Health: conceptsand tools • Biomedicalview: preventablediseasesanddeaths • Classicalscientific tool: epidemilogicalstudiesand causal nexus • Limitsof ‘normal science’ andepidemiologicalstudies • Some alternatives • Independentstudiesandcounter-expertise • Popular epidemiology • LA: Criticalepidemiologyand Environmental Clinic

  3. Risk: Conceptsand Tools • Applications: Environmental licencing, management, preventionemergencymeasuresandmitigation. • Limits: Who decides? Underwhatcriteria? Howthemostaffectedgroupsparticipate in thedecisions? • In general doesn’t take into consideration local non-specialized knowledge • Obscures the connection between scientific and political values • Alternatives: • Counter-expertise: deconstructing hegemonic and false arguments that “risks are under control”; • Combat double standards by multinational companies • Incorporation of situated and local knowledge of workers and populations (for example CBPR) • Vulnerability studies and issues on environmental inequalities and EJ

  4. The Shell Case: mainrisksofoilextractionandproduction • High risk in allactivities (offshore & onshore): survey; drillingandexploration;production in refinaries; storage; transportationbytanksetc • Innumeroushazardouschemicals: crudeoil, metals, benzene, Nox, Sox, CO ... • Accidentsanddisasters: spills, fires... • Double standards andlackofinfrastructuremaintenance.

  5. The Shell Case: Health problems • UNEP Report: Groundwatercontamination; Air pollution; Fish; Crops... • Associationbetweencontaminationderivedfromoilspillsorairpollutionandincreasedprevalenceofdiarrhea, eyeirritation, itchyskin, occupationaldiseases, severekidneyfailure, skindiseases, conjunctivitis, esophagitisandchemical pneumonia • Expected increase of infertility, hemotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, and carcinogenesis. • Lack of epidemiological studies • Very poor health data systems • Violence

  6. Shell case: vulnerabilitiesandalternatives VULNERABILITIES • State/ Federal Goverment: concentrationofpower, use ofviolencetoprotectoilexploration • Institutionalvulnerability: regulation, preventionandmitigation; Health System • Politicaldesestabilization, interethnicrivalries • Hugerevuesofcompaniesversus non investmentsoninstitutionsandpopulationneeds ALTERNATIVES & CHALLENGES • Local mobilizations linked with various local international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs); publicitationof the Ogoni struggle • Financing risk and health assessments and clean up operations BUT in cooperation with local population/local knowledge. E.g. popular epidemiology, CBPR etc. • Building up more independent regulatory and technical institutions; cooperation EC with universities and NGOs • Issues on democracy and participation: considering the needs and aspirations of the minorities of the Niger Delta.

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