International Journal of Environmental Science and Toxicology Research

143-151

Authors: 1OUEDRAOGO Richard, 2TOE Adama Makoum, 3ILBOUDO Sylvain, 3GUISSOU Pierre Innocent

A risk assessment of worker exposure to pesticides in the case of sugarcane cultivation in Burkina Faso was conducted in 2011. This study was conducted at first by observation of workstations, investigation of the medical history, clinical somatic and biological examination of workers. Then, the United Kingdom Predictive Operator Exposure Model Version 7 (during only mixing/loading) and the Estimation of bystander and resident exposure Model (during application supervision) was used to quantify pesticide exposure intensity. This study involved eleven (11) workers, all male, responsible for mixing/loading and the supervision of the application of pesticides. The average age of the exposed workers was 53.1 years with 17.6 years of experience. Clinical and laboratory tests show pathology such as hypertension, diabetes and fluctuating values of biological and hematological parameters. The exposure estimate shows that the absorbed doses ranging from 0.28 to 3600 mg/day during mixing/loading, from 0.0011 to 0.8768 mg/kg/day during the supervision of application at 3 m and from 0.0001 to 0.0839 mg/kg/day during the supervision of application at 20 m of the application. Overall, the results of this study show that workers are exposed to pesticides. This exposure can be exacerbated by the long exposure time, insufficient protection and especially the general state of workers’ health. Keywords: Pesticide, Risk factor, Occupational exposure, People present, Sugarcane.