Canadian Agricultural
Safety Week
Mr. Gerrard: Madam
Speaker, for many years, injury rates and time lost to injury in agriculture have
been too high. But the numbers have come down in the last 10 years, which is a
good sign. This appears to be because of a combination of improved design of
equipment, improved safety standards and improved handling of chemicals. But we
can and must do more.
More attention needs to be given not just to traumatic injuries but also to
diseases and health conditions which are more common among farmers. These
include respiratory conditions, exposures to farm chemicals, mental health
issues and hearing loss. The farm chemical exposures may be the cause of the
increase in certain cancers among farmers, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma,
acute leukemia, multiple myeloma and soft tissue sarcoma.
Hearing loss is common among farmers: 50 per cent or more of farmers
over 50 years of age have hearing loss. Modern cabs shield the driver from the
loud noise of their tractor, but, in the past, prolonged exposure was very
common.
When we're talking about farm safety, we should also consider safety of farm
animals. I was called recently by a farmer who lost several calves. Some hay
from last year's drought was high in nitrates and his calves died from high
levels of nitrates. The farmer I talked to had been farming for 50 years and
he'd never experienced this problem before or even heard of it. More could be
done to help farmers be aware of issues like this.
Let us work hard on an ongoing basis to continue improving farm safety. Farm
safety week is a good time to remind all of us.
Thank you.
Comments
Post a Comment