1010- Nepal- Brick kilns: A neglected but serious occupational and environmental risk factor

Approximately 1,500 billion bricks are produced every year, and ~90% are produced in Asia. The brick kiln industry in low- and middle-income countries is highly labor-intensive, and the majority of kilns are energy inefficient and highly polluting. Throughout the brick making processes, workers are exposed to various airborne pollutants including silica, particulate matter and sulfur dioxide. However, despite the contribution of brick kiln emissions to ambient air pollution and poor health in workers and individuals living near the brick kilns, data on the effects of brick kiln pollution on the environment and health are limited. In this project, we seek to characterize the impact of brick kiln pollution on air quality, pulmonary health and the immune system. Over the last two brick kiln seasons we have collected dust and silica measurements at the brick kilns, measured personal exposures to respirable silica, fine particulate matter (PM2.5), SO2 and NO2 among 75 brick kiln workers and conducted lung function assessments, chest X-rays and CT imaging in our participants. We have also installed a network of 32 low-cost PM2.5 monitors, 5 optical particle counters and 2 gravimetric samplers around the Bhaktapur region to continuously monitor ambient PM2.5 in the study area. In the coming seasons, we aim to enroll 300 brick kiln workers and 600 age- and sex-matched workers from two different comparison groups with no history of brick kiln or other dusty work in Bhaktapur, Nepal. We will use respiratory and environmental surveys and measure lung function and personal exposures to silica, PM2.5 and SO2. We will then estimate biologically-relevant cumulative exposures to silica and PM2.5 using historical reconstruction based on self-reported work history, measured concentrations and lung deposition modeling. We will use chest radiography to study the prevalence of silicosis by cumulative exposure groups, and inspiratory and expiratory computed tomography in a subset of individuals to evaluate the association between non-invasive imaging biomarkers and cumulative exposure groups. We will also collect induced sputum samples to immunophenotype alveolar macrophages and blood samples to measure inflammation biomarkers and evaluate the immune system response by cumulative exposure group.

Students participating in this project will work with our field team to collect exposure and health outcome data in study participants. They will work closely with our field supervisor to provide oversight of research activities and review data collected. Students will also have the opportunity to work on ambient air pollution data collection, quality control and analysis from multiple devices (low-cost nephelometric sensors, optical particle counters, combined gravimetric and nephelometric near-reference samplers).

collaborative. The student will be working closely with the local field team and Co-Is and will join the weekly virtual meetings with the entire team to discuss progress and any issues that arise in the field. Students may also have the opportunity to work with other fellows/students on site.

is interested in environmental health, chronic diseases, field epidemiology.

Name: Laura Nicolaou, Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, l.nicolaou@jhu.edu

I would describe my communication and mentorship styles as... 

My communication style is direct and attentive. I tailor my mentorship style to the needs of the student: I am more hands-on with students who prefer/require more guidance and provide more independence to those who prefer self-directed learning. I enjoy sharing my knowledge and expertise with students who are eager to learn. I have weekly one-on-one meetings with my mentees. In these meetings, we typically review the mentee’s progress, set work objectives for the following week and spend time on particular aspects of the work the mentee would like guidance on. If students have any questions/concerns in between meetings, they can reach out to me through WhatsApp or email.

A complementary student would have a working style and mentorship expectations that are..

A complementary student would be someone communicative, detail-oriented, excited to gain experience in exposure assessment and field epidemiology.

Total: $600/month
Housing: $350/month
Food: $250/month
Office is walking distance from accommodation within the old city; local transportation to the brick kilns from the office will be provided.