Occupational impacts and adaptation to standards in accordance with Brazilian legislation: The case of Santo Amaro, Brazil

Studies conducted worldwide indicate numerous lead poisoning events related to occupational exposures, which may occur in several ways. The case of Cobrac/Plumbum, in the municipality of Santo Amaro, Brazil, is widely known for the serious environmental, occupational and social impacts in the region and it is considered by some researchers as the city with the largest case of lead contamination in the world. In this article, data were collected regarding the period during the plant operation and after its closure. The results showed that many measures required by law were not adopted, leading to the occurrence of contamination of workers and local individuals due to the constant exposure to lead. Reports of former workers also showed the precariousness of safety and protection measures, which contributed to the occurrence of occupational diseases such as saturnism. Therefore, in order to evaluate how impacts might have been different, safety conditions offered at the factory and existing legislation at the time were analyzed. The study may also be an incentive for companies to invest in worker safety measures, which helps to improve their reputation in society and increase profits without harming their employees. If such measures had been adopted by Cobrac/Plumbum in the past, most problems would have been avoided.