Green jobs might be safe for the environment, but are they safe for the workers involved in such construction projects? As a Riverside personal injury attorney, I would hope that any job out their meets the rigorous safety requirements laid out by the government, but sometimes that’s not the case.
A new study shows that jobs that involved the construction of buildings which conserve energy and give off a smaller environmental footprint are actually more dangerous than their non-green counterparts. After interviewing a number of contractors, researchers discovered that Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (an environmental quality certification program) jobs led to more injuries amongst workers. These injuries include a 24% jump in falls during roof work,a 14% increase of exposure to dangerous chemicals, and a whopping 36% rise in strains, sprains, and lacerations.
The culprit? New technologies, say researchers. The chemical exposure increase can be explained due to new wastewater technology. The increased number of falls have come about due to the simple fact that common green activities such as roof garden production and installation of solar panels occur on roofs. And eyestrain, which is also on the rise in such jobs, is likely a result of green buildings’ usage of reflective roof membranes.
Green jobs don’t get a pass by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The safety of workers is still paramount and employers are responsible for learning about and relating to their workers the special risks inherent in green jobs.
Despite the risks, it’s likely that green jobs are only going to proliferate. As Americans become more conscious of the effect their actions have on the environment, the popularity of such projects will only increase. As a personal injury attorney in Riverside, we need to make sure that, as technology moves forward, our safety precautions are able to keep up with the changing times.