Background and Aims Metro Vancouver is implementing a disposal ban on all food scraps from entering the landfills and incinerators by the year 2015. In order to prepare the city’s residents, a food scraps recycling program, known as the Green Bin Program, was initiated in 2013 for all single family households. The aim of this research project was to measure public knowledge and awareness of the program across various demographics and collect data on the general opinion of it. Methods An online survey was created using SurveyMonkey, a survey generating website, and distributed online via Facebook and e-mail. The results from these surveys were analyzed using NCSS software to determine statistical significance via a chi-squared analysis with alpha (a) = 0.05. Results There were a total of 70 respondents. Of these, 68% of the respondents indicated that the Green Bin Program should stay the way it currently is without any further changes. 8% of the respondents were in favour of stopping the program and the remaining 24% indicated that the program needed some modifications such as more education/promotional material, implementing the program into apartment complexes and more garbage pickup days to prevent pest and odor problems. Age category, location of residence, and educational background were analyzed against other variables in the survey that tested the knowledge and usefulness of the Green Bin Program. Looking at these 3 variables in relation to knowledge: there was no association between location of residence, age, and educational background, with knowledge of what could go into the green bin (p= 0.76, p= 0.53, p= 0.33, respectively). These same 3 demographic variables were also analyzed against frequency of food scraps recycling and there was a positive association between age and frequency (p= 0.037), indicating that respondents aged 19-29 were recycled food scraps more than respondents over the age of 29. However, there was no association between location/education and frequency (p= 0.32 and p= 0.10, respectively). Non demographic variables were also analyzed, such as determining if household size and garbage bin size had an effect on frequency of food scraps recycling: household size did not have a significant association (p=0.70) while garbage bin size did have a positive association (p= 0.025), showing that residences with smaller garbage bins were more likely to recycle their food scraps. Conclusion These results indicated limited knowledge of the Green Bin program and pinpointed deterrents (mostly pests and odors) from participating in it. Environmental Health Officers’ involvement would be important as educators to emphasize that certain organic wastes (like pet fecal matter) should not go into the green bin as they create health hazards. EHOs can also collaborate with the municipality to promote the program. Several participants reported recycling their food scraps; as a result, the Metro Vancouver Green Bin Program has achieved some of its aims in creating a greener and more sustainable city., Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 2014., Peer-reviewed article, Puiblished., Peer reviewed, Food scraps, Recycling, Green bin, Metro Vancouver, Garbage
Objectives: Chloramines are by-products of chlorine disinfected swimming pools and are hazardous to people if chloramines evaporate into the air. There is evidence that chloramines cause upper respiratory tract and eye irritation. It was suspected that ozone treatment in addition to chlorine disinfection will reduce chloramine levels in the pool. The following study compared chloramine concentration in a strictly chlorine disinfected swimming pool and whirlpool (C.G. Brown) in Burnaby, BC with an ozone-chlorine disinfected swimming pool and whirlpool (Killarney) in Vancouver, BC. The study also compared each pool and whirlpool to the 1.0 mg/L combined chlorine concentration limit in the B.C. Pool Regulation. Methods: Chloramine concentrations were determined by using a Hach Pocket Colorimeter 2 Analysis System which used a DPD method of analysis. Chloramine was determined by subtracting total chlorine by the free chlorine. Thirty pool water samples were analyzed based on two samples per pool per day for fifteen days. A two sample t-test was used to compare the ozone-chlorine treated pools with the chlorine only treated pools using the Mann-Whitney U test. A z-test was used to compare all types of swimming pools and whirlpools to the 1.0 mg/L limit. Results: The chloramine concentration in both the ozone-chlorine disinfected swimming pool and whirlpool was not statistically significantly lower than in the chlorine disinfected swimming pool (p=0.263597) and whirlpool (p=0.523672). Both types of swimming pools were found to be statistically significantly greater than the 1.0 mg/L chloramine limit (p=0.000023 in the chlorine pool and p=0.00001 for the ozone-chlorine pool). Similarly, both types of whirlpools were determined to be statistically significantly greater than the 1.0 mg/L chloramine limit (p=0.000001 for the chlorine pool and p=0.000001 for the ozone-chlorine pool). Conclusion: It was determined that there was no difference between ozone chlorine treated pools and chlorine only treated pools. Environmental Health Officers can suggest other forms of secondary treatment instead of ozone since there is no significant difference compared to chlorine only treated pools in reducing chloramine concentrations. This information is also beneficial for pool operators because they can increase their flow rates for pools that use ozonation or strictly chlorination relative to what they were originally designed for., Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 2014., Peer-reviewed article, Published., Peer reviewed, Chloramine, chlorine disinfection, Ozone-chlorine disinfection, swimming pools, Whirlpool
Background: Gym equipment surfaces are known to harbor a range of contaminants due to the wide range of community use of the equipment. Certain gym equipment undergoes daily sanitation, however many other equipment surfaces do not. This study measures the levels of contamination on certain gym equipment surfaces at an educational institute gym facility and determines the contamination levels after disinfectant wipes are applied. Methods: The method to obtain the data was determined by the use of the Hygiena Systemsure II ATP analyzer in conjunction with Hygiena Ultrasnap ATP surface swabs. Gym equipment (barbells, dumbbells, machine handles, cable attachments) and other surfaces (benches, floor mats) were swabbed subsequently after a random gym patron had used the equipment to capture an accurate representation of the cleanliness of the surfaces. Disinfectant wipes were then applied to the same area before being swabbed again to determine contamination levels after disinfection. Results: The results demonstrated a statistically significant difference in the reduction of ATP levels with the use of disinfectant wipes with a p-value of 0.00001 at α=0.05. Alpha error was highly unlikely with a p-value being that low. Power was 99.9%, therefore there is a strong likelihood that we are correctly rejecting the null hypothesis. Conclusion: The study can conclude that disinfectant wipes do make a significant difference in surface cleanliness levels. Equipment that does not undergo routine cleaning such as the equipment used by the hands carry a much higher contamination rate than the body contact surfaces. Gym patrons should disinfect all body contact surfaces prior to use to reduce the risk of getting an infectious disease., Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 2014., Peer-reviewed article, Published., Peer reviewed, Gym, Disinfection, Ultrasnap, Hygiene, ATP, RLU
Background: Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are becoming increasingly common in healthcare settings in an effort to control communicable bacteria, viruses and fungi of health significance. Much research has been done on the effectiveness of alcohol-based hand sanitizers but few studies look at the effectiveness when combined with more typical usage, such as varying application times and amounts. Methods: We looked at the efficacy of the microbial killing power of an alcohol-based hand sanitizer when used in a series of 5 applications. ASTM E2755 was used with the modification of a shorter application time (8 seconds from the recommended 30 seconds) of the sanitizer to better reflect actual healthcare worker usage. Results: We found an increase in the amount of indicator bacteria on the gloved hands of the subjects after repeated applications. However the increase was not significant enough in that a 2-log reduction of indicator bacteria was still achieved. Using a One Sample T-Test we found a very low probability value (<0.00000), indicating that the results were statistically significant. Conclusions: There is an increase of bacteria on gloved hands after repeated use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers. The results show a decrease in their effectiveness, most likely due to a build up of various non-alcohol components in hand sanitizers. However even with the 8 second application time there was still a greater than two log reduction even after 5 serial contaminations and applications. This cautiously shows that there is significantly less danger posed by more common shorter application times than originally thought. These findings have a potential impact on hand hygiene education as other factors, such as frequency or sanitizer amounts can be safely emphasized over application times., Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 2014., Peer-reviewed article, Published., Peer reviewed, Alcohol hand sanitizer, Hand hygiene, ASTM E2755, Application time, Nosocomial infections
Introduction: The use of transglutaminase to restructure loose pieces of meat into a fully intact piece of steak has been a concern for the public because of the potential internalization of contaminated surfaces into the aseptic center. The aim of this study was to examine if restructured steaks are safe to consume when cooked to medium rare, a common option with whole cut steaks Methods: Strips of beef were inoculated with E.coli to induce surface contamination. Steaks were restructured with transglutaminase and the altered meat. These steaks were then cooked alongside fully intact whole-cut steak samples. Each sample was then churned in a stomacher, and the resulting solution was used to detect for potential E.coli bacteria. Samples were then enriched and finally placed into the Hygiena Micro-snap Rapid Coliform and E.coli detection test to look for the presence of E.coli. Results: The Hygiena system showed that all transglutaminase restructured steaks possessed detectable levels of E.coli even after cooking to 55 degrees Celsius. On the other hand, no whole-cut steaks had traces of E.coli even when cooked to this same temperature. Conclusion: The results demonstrated that there is a substantial risk with restructured steaks and they should not be consumed undercooked. As well, proper labelling and guidelines should be developed to enable consumers to be better equipped in making decisions to consume properly consumed altered steaks., Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 2014., Peer-reviewed article, Published., Peer reviewed, Transglutaminase, Meat glue, Steaks, Food safety, Escherichia coli
Background: Sunglasses are used to shade and protect the public’s eyes every day. However some improperly made sunglasses offer inadequate UV protection that shade the eyes and dilate pupils, while letting in a high dose of UV radiation into sensitive ocular tissues. This UV exposure can have acute and chronic effects such as temporary blindness and clouding of the eye. This study investigated the prevalence of sunglasses with poor UV protection and examined any relationships or associations between such sunglasses and their retail price or declared protective standards. Methods: 35 unused sunglasses available in the Metro Vancouver area were tested using an Agilent 8453 UV-visible Spectroscopy System for UV transmittance rates in the UVA, UVB, and UVC wavelengths. Results were statistically analyzed for any potential relationships or associations between price, price categories, total number of wavelengths failed, transmittance test results, decal presence, and types of decals present. Results: Sample sunglasses were distributed to be 51% budget sunglasses, 23% standard sunglasses, and 26% premium sunglasses. Of these 35 sunglasses, 11% failed the 4% permitted transmittance test, and 89% of the sunglasses had some form of UV protection claim adhered or printed on the product. Statistically significant associations, using Chi-squared analysis, could not be found between transmittance test results and price category, UV protection claims, or the type of UV protection claim; p-values were found to be 0.43643, 0.44525, and 0.58402, respectively. A statistically significant relationship, using linear regression, could not be found between price and total wavelengths failed; p-value was found to be 0.2272 with a slope of -0.1334 Conclusion: Though no statistically significant relationships or associations could not be found, the study did find sunglasses that offered inadequate UV protection, leading to the conclusion that there are sunglasses in the Metro Vancouver market that are inappropriate for standard UV protection., Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 2014., Published., Peer reviewed, UV protection, Sunglasses, Sunglass, UVR, UV, Photoprotection, Vancouver, Ocular health, Vision
Objective: To determine if there are any difference in the amount of EMF Wi-Fi radiation being emitted between three locations at the BCIT campus in Burnaby, BC. Background: Wi-Fi radiation is widely being used in today’s society for the quick access it gives us to connect to the internet. Some cities in the United Kingdom have installed many Wi-Fi devices throughout the public domain so people can be connected all the time. Furthermore, most schools are being outfitted with routers to provide internet access for their students. But, as this paper will show, new research is forcing a shift in the thinking of some policy makers in choosing to install these connections in the public domain. Method: To measure the amount of non-ionizing EMF radiation being absorbed by the body, an Extech RF meter was used. This instrument provides instantaneous and average readings for a particular area one measures. During the experiment, the RF meter was held stationary at one location for approximately 10-15 seconds in order to stabilize the reading. The average value was taken as the instantaneous reading was fluctuating. This process was done in 3 buildings at BCIT and in order to increase the reliability and validity, 30 data points were collected from each building. Results: The Tests of Assumption showed that the data was not normally distributed as there was more than one “Reject” at the 0.05 probability level. For analysis, the Krukal-Wallis One-Way ANOVA was utilized and results showed that due to a high probability level of 0.57, the H0 could not be rejected and as a result there are no differences in radiation levels being emitted into the buildings tested. Conclusion: The amount of Wi-Fi radiation in the three buildings tested at BCIT were not significantly different from one another., Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 2014., Peer-reviewed article, Published., Peer reviewed, Wi-Fi, EMF, Radiation, BCIT, Schools, Public, Building, Internet
