MEDICAL GEOLOGY NEWSLETTER INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL GEOLOGY ASSOCIATION www.medicalgeology.org
Newsletter 30 January 2019 ISSN 1651‐5250
CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE IN THIS ISSUE Chairman’s message Dear Friends and Colleagues:
A short note from the Dr. Diego Fridman, Director, editor. Research Department, FUNCEI, Buenos Aires, Argentina , IMGA MedGe0’19 Chairman
IMGA News
Simulating the human gut It is a great pleasure to welcome you Activities of the IMGA to our 30th edition of the International Medical chapters Geology Association (IMGA) Newsletter. IMGA was founded in 2006 and since then, one of the IMGA Structure and main objectives of the executive committee has been to organization inform members about Medical Geology education and research international opportunities as well as various Recent publications activities worldwide through IMGA Newsletters. Now we are beginning our first period of this IMGA chairing and the EC councilors have changed by the nomination and elections process. We are actively working on the
modernization of our website and have adopted measures to encourage the use of social networks for the benefit of our association. We want to welcome new members and congratulate the establishment of a new chapter in Egypt and thank you all again for your great support and contributions on behalf of IMGA. We hope to see you soon in our 8th International Conference on Medical Geology, Guiyan-Guizhou China, MEDGEO19 (August 12-15).
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"None of us is as smart as all of us.." - Eric Schmidt, University of Pennsylvania Commencement Address, 2009
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
I would like to welcome you to the first IMGA newsletter of 2019. 2018 has been a busy year for IMGA and we welcome the newly elected officers (a full listing is given at the end of the newsletter) and our new chairman Dr Diego Fridman. It is also very pleasing to see the continuing work of all of the individual chapters which can be found in the Chapter reports section.
This edition of the newsletter also includes a short article on the history of the development of an ISO standard testing method for measuring the bioaccessibility of metals and metalloids in soils.
Please take note of the information on the MEDGEO conference to be held in Guiyang, China in 2019. The website for the conference can be found at www.medgeo2019.com .
I have given a list of 7 recent papers (2018-2019) which contain the term “medical geology” in their title or abstract [1-7]which cover topics from the use of Sulphur containing minerals in medicine to the development of risk assessment tools from metals and metalloid exposure.
The author of my chosen quotation is James Eric Schmitt, MD, PHD, Physician, Assistant Professor of Radiology and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. This very succinct quotation reminds us that we can achieve far more by working together. This very much reflected in the IMGA philosophy and clearly illustrated by the work of our worldwide network of chapters.
Finally I would like to wish all members of IMGA a prosperous and productive 2019 in all your medical geology endeavors.
Mark Cave
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CONTENTS Chairman’s Message ...... 1 Note from the Editor ...... 2 IMGA News...... 4 MEDGEO 2019 ...... 4 Article ...... 6 Simulating the human gut – the story of BS ISO 17924:2018 ...... 6 Chapter reports ...... 10 Argentina ...... 10 Australia ...... 11 Bolivia...... 11 Brazil ...... 12 Bulgaria ...... 13 China-Ireland Concord ...... 13 Denmark ...... 13 Egypt ...... 14 Ghana ...... 14 México ...... 15 Nigeria ...... 15 Portugal ...... 16 Russia ...... 16 Spain ...... 17 Sweden ...... 18 UK ...... 18 Uruguay ...... 18 USA ...... 19 IMGA Structure and organization ...... 20 Governance Structure: ...... 20 Councillors: ...... 20 General Assembly ...... 21 Recent Medical Geology References ...... 23
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IMGA NEWS
1) IMGA received a fund of 2000 $ USD from the International Union of Geological Society (IUGS). This amount must be spent in programs of dissemination or research stimulation involving preparatory or secondary schools, related to the topic of Medical Geology in low income countries. The proposals of Ghana and Nigeria have been successful and will begin to be implemented this year.
2) The Proposal to host the next International Conference on Medical Geology to be held in 2021 (MedGeo'21) has been accepted. This proposal is presented by Spanish Chapter of IMGA (IMGA-Spain) in collaboration with the University of Alicante (Spain). The Chair person will be Dr. Elena Giménez-Forcada (Chair of IMGA-Spain, Spanish Chapter of IMGA) and Dr David Benavente (University of Alicante).
MEDGEO 2019
MEDGEO 2019: the 8th International Conference on Medical Geology, to be held in Guiyang, China, during August 12–15, 2019 (Conference website: www.medgeo2019.com ).
Guiyang is the capital of Guizhou Province of Southwest China, well-known as China's first “Forest City” and one of the best summer resorts, with an area of 8,034 square kilometers and a population of 4.3 million. The Mountain Park-Colorful Guizhou is abundant on natural beauties and resources as well as ethnic customs. The Karst landscape in Libo, the Red Cliff in Chishui, and the Huangguoshu Waterfall will surely impress you. Qing Yan Ancient town, Xijiang Miao Village, and Zhaoxing Dong village are famous for traditional minority culture. Guizhou is the homeland of National liquor-Moutai and paradise of Chinese snacks.
The chair of MEDGEO 2019 is Xinbin Feng, vice director, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, (E- mail: [email protected])
Ordinary Sessions
OS1: Environmental geochemistry and human health
OS2: Medical geology in sustainability of mineral and energy sectors
OS3: Medical geology in labor safety and occupational safety
OS4: Medical Geology of the urban areas
OS5: Water and human health
OS6: Soil pollution and remediation
OS7: Atmospheric pollution and human health
OS8: Climate change and health effects
OS9: Recent advances in analytical methods of medical geology
OS10: Medical Geology in Toxicology, Epidemiology and Pathology
OS11: Medical Geology, Public Health and Regulatory Sciences
Important Dates
IMGA Newsletter January 2019 Page 4
Abstract Submission Deadline 2019-03-15
Abstract Acceptance Notice2019-04-30
Early-Bird Registration 2018-12-01
Early Bird Reg. Ends 2019-05-31
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Article Simulating the human gut – the story of BS ISO 17924:2018 Joanna Wragg, Mark Cave and Paul Nathanail
20 years in the making, the Unified BARGE Method (UBM) of measuring bioaccessibility has become a British and International Standard method used to improve estimates of the risks from ingesting contaminated soil.
The British Geological Survey (BGS) is interested in the details of soil chemistry and how that affects people’s health. It’s not just about measuring total concentration but more about estimating risks from contaminant absorption into the bloodstream.
Children regularly eat soil, usually accidentally but in some cases deliberately. This soil can contain important nutrients, but also contamination.
Childhood ingestion can happen by after licking fingers after playing in the garden, rubbing faces with soily hands and making ‘mud pies’. This soil can contain important nutrients, but also contamination. Childhood ingestion can happen after licking fingers after playing in the garden, rubbing faces with soily hands and making mud pies.
The Northampton Sand Formation in the UK has naturally high concentrations of arsenic. However, BGSresearch at several proposed housing sites showed that only a small fraction would dissolve in the stomach juices and potentially pass into the bloodstream. This helped risk assessors from Land Quality Management Ltd demonstrate to the local authority that remediation was not needed before safe development of the land for much-needed homes.
Human exposure to soil contaminants may be damaging health. It is therefore important that we know how much soil we ingest, the amount of contamination within it, and the mineralogy so that we can better assess the risks of activities such as leisure use of parks and gardens or to support regeneration of post-industrial brownfields in our cities.
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The longer-term legacy of our industrial past is now becoming evident. Some contaminants can still be detected at potentially toxic levels decades after they were first released. We have shown that bioaccessibility studies on soils and made ground at post-industrial brownfields can improve decisions on future land uses.
Any soil contaminant that dissolves in the gastrointestinal juices is termed 'bioaccessible'. If dissolved contaminant is transferred through the gastrointestinal wall and into the blood, it becomes 'bioavailable' and has the potential to reach organs where it can cause harm. Any remaining bioaccessible contaminant and undigested soil is excreted.
We can measure the bioaccessible fraction of soil contaminants by simulating the chemical and physical conditions found in the human gastrointestinal system, e.g. the composition of fluids, body temperature and the amount of time solids stay in the gut.
For the last 20 years, staff at BGS and our industrial and international research partners have been developing a robust, laboratory-based method for the correct estimation of bioaccessibility. Such estimates provide defensible information for use in risk assessment and policymaking.
The BGS is part of the BioAccessibilty Research Group of Europe (BARGE). BARGE started as a small network of European research teams, comparing methods for a range of soils. We have now expanded to 20 researchers, with groups from Canada and America, and we are looking forward to more joining us. Perhaps we should change our name from Europe to 'Everywhere'!
Back in 2005, BARGE decided to use a single method, with agreed gastrointestinal parameters, for measuring bioaccessibility; the Unified BARGE Method was born. We worked together on a pooled set of samples from various countries with different concentrations of potential toxic elements: arsenic, lead and cadmium. The results of a round- robin trial were compared and the group explored the whats and whys for any differences in the data.
Then there was the question of validation: 'How well does our in vitro test compare with in vivo analogues?' Colleagues in France at the University of Lorraine and the French National Institute for Industrial Environment and Risks (INERIS) IMGA Newsletter January 2019 Page 7 vivo-vitro validated the UBM measurements using a pig analogue, resulting in a paper in the high-impact journal Environmental Science and Technology (Denys et al., 2012).
The UBM has now been used and cited internationally by a range of science disciplines, including environmental, soil, toxicology, public health, pharmacology and medical sectors and has helped inform many risk assessments.
In 2007, the International Organization for Standardization published guidance on the application and selection of physiologically based extraction methods to estimate the human bioaccessibility/bioavailability of metals in soil. In 2018, BARGE's hard work paid off when a new standard was introduced: BS ISO 17924:2018 specified the UBM as the method to use.
From the start of the journey through to the publication of the ISO standard, BARGE and researchers around the world have published over 30 peer-reviewed papers and articles for non-specialists and given oral and poster presentations at too many conferences for us to remember. The UBM has been used by researchers and commercial laboratories alike for assessing the human health risk from contaminants in soil, herbal medicines, changing land use, dust, air particulates, mine waste and food. It has been coupled with other laboratory-based methods to understand why a contaminant is soluble in the gastrointestinal environment, not just how much is available to do harm. Bioaccessibility information can be used by environment and health professionals, amongst others, to make better informed decisions on the need for remediation (and its success), land redevelopment and planning applications, and to potentially reduce the cost associated with returning brownfield sites to beneficial use.
In 2009, the Natural Environment Research Council funded a study on the financial impacts of bioaccessibility testing. It showed the savings achieved by using it at potentially contaminated sites. The results are given in the table. Similar savings will have been made at an increasing number of contaminated sites since the study reported.
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More recently, bioaccessibility data has been used to predict bioaccessibility of contaminants on a regional scale. The map uses UBM data and geochemical survey data on soils to predict the bioaccessibility of arsenic in the soils of south-west England.
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CHAPTER REPORTS
The following reports cover the period of June 2018 to December 2018.
Argentina Chapter Leader(s): Diego Hernán Fridman MD, MSc. French 3085 -C1425AWK- Ciudad de Buenos Aires – Argentina. [email protected] [email protected]
• Workshop on Geologic Resources. Degree in Environmental Sciences. Faculty of Agriculture. University of Buenos Aires. Argentina. Aug 2018.
• Dr Diego Fridman participated as Professor in the Specialization in Mining Geology, Faculty of Natural Sciences. University of Buenos Aires. Topics on Medical Geology. September 2018.
• Analysis of health situation in future areas of mining activity in the province of Chubut, Argentina.
• Dr Daniel Olmedo published the following study:
Oral exfoliative cytology and corrosion of metal piercings. Tissue implications.
Mariela Gisele Domingo, Liliana Ferrari, Silvia Aguas, Fabiana Soledad Alejandro, Tammy Steimetz, Patricia Sebelli, et al.
Clinical Oral Investigations. ISSN 1432-6981. Clin Oral Invest. DOI 10.1007 / s00784-018-2626-4.
Abstract
Objectives:- A group of adolescents with oral piercings was studied to determine the presence of metallic particles in cells exfoliated from the mucosa surrounding their metal oral piercings and the association between such particles and the metal jewelry, and to evaluate subsequent tissue implications.
Materials and methods:- Sixteen teenage patients who had tongue and/or lip piercings were included. The clinical features of the oral mucosa and lip skin were evaluated. Exfoliative cytology was performed in the area surrounding the piercing. The surface of used and unused jewelry was studied by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis.
Results:- Hyperplastic, leukoedematous, and lichenoid lesions were observed in the mucosa, as well as lesions associated with metallosis of the lip skin. Cytological smears showed the presence of particles inside the epithelial cells; the particles were found to contain aluminum, tungsten, and molybdenum. In one case requiring surgical removal of the piercing, histological examination of the tissue associated with the piece of jewelry showed the presence particles containing aluminum, iron, and tin inside multinucleated giant cells. Although surface finish defects were observed on both unused and used piercing jewelry, they were more evident on the used pieces.
Conclusions:- Ion particles are released from the metal piercings and could have been adjuvant factors in the development of the observed lesions. Cells exfoliated from the oral mucosa surrounding metal piercings may serve as bioindicators of corrosion processes.
Clinical relevance:- We propose the use of exfoliative cytology to monitor corrosion processes and for routine clinical follow up. www.geologiamedica.org.ar
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Australia Chapter Leader: Prof Dr. Jochen Bundschuh, Professor and UNESCO Chair on Groundwater Arsenic, University of Southern Queensland, Faculty of Engineering and Surveying, West Street, Toowoomba, Queensland 4350, Australia,E- mail: [email protected]
In 2018, the UNESCO Chair on Groundwater Arsenic within the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has been established at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ), Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia (Chairholder: Prof. Jochen Bundschuh; [email protected]). The topics of the chair are clearly within of those of IMGA and coordinated joint activities are envisaged.
The chair addresses the topic of “Groundwater Arsenic within the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” in transdisciplinary manner, particularly in the context to drinking and irrigation water; agriculture and food security; environment; public health; water-food-energy-environment-health nexus.
The chair deals with research, training and knowledge dissemination related to the global arsenic problem including scientific aspects and technologies for mitigation. It connects with socio-economic and environmental aspects, thereby contributing to human development at national, regional and global levels. This shall contribute to achieving the majority of the 2030 SDGs. UNESCO-As-Chair opens its umbrella – as a knowledge and independent leadership think-tank – looking for innovative ideas and disseminating best practices through strengthening collaborations within the local and international scientific communities and society. This shall be achieved by exchanging knowledge, providing strong scientific-based information to academia, industries, agriculture and mining, governmental and non-governmental organizations, international agencies for funding and technical cooperation, public health agencies, policy makers, regulators and the broader public worldwide. In this sense, integrated management practices together with integration of UNESCO target groups of the poor, women, Africa and SIDS shall be priority topics.
Ongoing activities comprise at present PhD supervision of 7 candidates at USQ (4 female and 5 male (targeting gender equity)) within the topics of or relevant to the chair (Age Group 32-41) cross-cutting among different core program themes of IHP VIII in particular of 2, 3, 4 and partly 6).
Bolivia Chapter Leader: Ing José Luis Aramayo, E mail: [email protected]
Our chapter is in a stage of reengineering the work methodology that we will use during 2019.
During the year that has ended, no major achievements have been achieved than the diffusion of the local and global environmental problem, which has sought to sensitize the recipients to change attitudes towards the environment. The Bolivian chapter of the IMGA has been in search of institutional associations that strengthen our work. We have not generated working documents, investigations or reports. We propose one that reaches a greater population.
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Brazil Chapter Leaders: BERNARDINO FIGUEIREDO, [email protected] and CÁSSIO SILVA, [email protected]
Short course: Medical Geology, workload of 16 hours, taught by geologist Cassio Roberto da Silva, in the VIII Academic Week of Geology of the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), in the period February 20 and 21, 2018.
Short course: Medical Geology, workload of 16 hours, taught by geologist Bernardino R. Figueiredo, doctor Eduardo Di Capitani, geologists Cassio Roberto da Silva and Carlos S. Bandeira de Mello, at the 49th Brazilian Congress of Geology, Rio de Janeiro, at August 17th and 18th , 2018.
Short course: Introduction to Medical Geology, workload of 4 hours, taught by geologists Cássio Roberto da Silva, Patricia Duringer Jacques and the medical doctor Adriana Duringer Jacques, during the XXIV Week of the Medical School of Petrópolis, in October 16, 2018, Petrópolis-RJ
Short course: Medical Geology, workload of 12-hour, taught by geologists Bernardino R. Figueiredo and Cassio Roberto da Silva, at the Postgraduate Course in Geology of the Federal University of Bahia, from November 26th to 28th, 2018 Salvador –BA. (Photo of participants in the attachment).
Technical Section: Environmental and Medical Geology, Coordination: Cassio Roberto Silva and Bernardino R. Figueiredo, held in the period from August 21 to 22, 2018, during the 49th Brazilian Congress of Geology, Rio de Janeiro, with 24 oral presentations and 57 poster presentations. Among others, Prof. Figueiredo Dr. Anderson Mendes, Dr. Marina Meschede, and the students Jessica Thiemy and Jorge Mesquita presented the paper “Water quality in two elementary schools in Santarém (Amazon) and related health issues”.
Elaboration of video addressing the concepts of Medical Geology for the dissemination of the population. Authors geologists Dario Dias Peixoto and Cassio Roberto da Silva.
Publication
In connection with his studies in the Amazon region, Prof. Figueiredo and co-authors published the paper “Mercury sink in Amazon rainforest: soil geochemical data from the Tapajos National Forest, Brazil”. Environmental Earth Sciences , v. 77, p. 1-7, 2018.
Chapter-Brazil / IMGA busyness meeting at the 49th Brazilian Congress of Geology, 22nd at 6pm, Rio de Janeiro where several subjects were discussed
- New book on Medical Geology in Brazil (edition of the second volume)
- Proposal of an additional professional attribution in Medical Geology to Brazilian geologists before the Regional Council of Engineering and Agronomy (CREA)
We would also like to inform that it was very much appreciated by the community present at the Latin American Association of Organic Geochemistry (ALAGO), which took place in Salvador from November 3 to 7, the presentation of Dr. William Orem (USGS, USA) as Key Note speaker, entitled: Human Health Impacts of Organic Substances in the Environment: an Underappreciated Aspect of Medical Geology.
In addition to Professor Orem's presentation, we also had a short course Pre-Congress given by the aforementioned geologist Dr. Carlos S. Bandeira de Mello from Petrobrás, and Dr. Josino from FIOCRUZ.
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Carlos S. Bandeira de Mello also present a paper entitled “Studies on Organic Pollutants with emphasis on Sandstorms, Mud volcanoes and Natural seeps - a Review” (Bandeira & Josino) in addition to an open lecture in the Petrobras Stand entitled Organics in Medical Geology.
Also at the end of November the Carlos to present a brief speech to the General Management of medical geology area at Cenpes laboratory / PETROBRAS. Similarly, Bernardino Figueiredo was a invited speaker during the business meeting of the Board of Directors of The Brazilian Geological Survey in last October.
Bulgaria Chapter Leader: Prof. Krasimira Staneva, MPH, PhD,University of Forestry, 10 bld Kl. Ohridski, , 1756 Sofia, [email protected]; [email protected]
Bulgarian Association of Geomedicine and Geotherapy (BAGG) presented results of partner’s projects in the area of health prevention and creation of competency model of public health care specialists. In line with our focus for 2018 year: Wellbeing, our members took part in some international and national conferences and special events, organized by Ministry of Tourism in Bulgaria, University of Forestry, some NGOs etc. The public activity of members is in the area of environmental protection, Medical SPA and Forest recreation tourism as an approach of wellbeing of society. BAGG as a partner of Ministry of Tourism in the SPA area, took part in the modelling of very new Medical SPA destinations in Bulgaria.
China-Ireland Concord Chapter leaders China: China (3):
Prof. Xinbin Feng, Institute Of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 99 Lincheng West Road, Guanshanhu District, Guiyang, Guizhou Province 550081, P.R.China, E-mail: [email protected]
Prof. Tangfu Xiao, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, 230 Wai Huan Xi Road, Guangzhou Higher Education Mega Center, Guangzhou 510006, P.R.China, E-mail: [email protected]
Prof. Yanxin Wang, President, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, P.R. China E-mail: [email protected]
Chapter leader Ireland:
Dr. Chaosheng Zhang, School of Geography and Archaeology, National University of Ireland, Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland, E-mail: [email protected]
Our chapter leaders and members actively involved in preparing MEDGEO 2019 conference. The website for MEDGEO 2019 is currently open to public (www.medgeo2019.com), and the first announcement was posted in August 1, 2018. The 8th International Conference on Medical Geology (MEDGEO 2019) will be held in Guiyang, China, during August 12–15, 2019. The Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IGCAS) hosts the Conference with the support of the Guangzhou University, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), National University of Ireland, Galway, Guizhou Medical University and the International Medical Geology Association (IMGA). The Second Announcement (Call for Abstract) will be launched very soon.
Denmark Chapter Leader(s): Birgitte Hansen ([email protected] ), secretary Jörg Schullehner ([email protected] )
A study from Denmark found an association between nitrate in drinking water and colorectal cancer at levels far below the current maximum contamination level, which got world-wide news coverage. A number of Medical Geology projects have been carried out, epidemiological studies on lithium in drinking water and risk of suicide, dementia and bipolar disorder IMGA Newsletter January 2019 Page 13 and arsenic in drinking water and risk of stroke and myocardial infarction. Several students (PhD studies and Master students) are working within Medical Geology at the moment, e.g. arsenic in drinking water and its health-effects; calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium levels in drinking water and cardio-vascular diseases and manganese in drinking water and psychiatric outcomes. A MSc student is mapping trace elements in Danish drinking water, which will result in a series of geogenic water quality maps – stay tuned.
Egypt Chapter Leader(s): Dr. / Moataz Tarek, Arish University, E-mail: [email protected]
The IMGA Local Chapter in Egypt was established in 2018 with great ambitions and challenges. Being the first Arabian IMGA chapter gives us the responsibility of promoting medical geology in North Africa and the Middle East.
Our first steps after establishing the chapter were to determine the research areas which we will work on and our marketing mentality to attract many members from different specializations.
The main aims of our chapter are to:
1--Redefine medical geology in order to reduce the confusions with other closed sciences.
2--promote medical geology at the Middle East and North Africa.
3--Link geology with new medical areas like psychology.
According to our plan to increase the awareness of medical geology topics for the public, we presented the concept of medical geology, our vision, chapter activities and the role of IMGA through many TV programs. Further, we will translate them into English.
Our members are working in the following research fields:-Environmental geochemistry and health; ; Geo- psychology;Planetary Medical geology; Mining health impacts; and Promoting medical geology science
We were involved in the following conferences:-Ain Shams 7th Annual Conference ( Internationalization and Mobilization) - April 2018 - Oral presentation about (The role of Medical geology in achieving sustainable development in Egypt by 2030); and The 7th International Conference of Food Industries and Nutrition Division – National research center – Egypt ( September 2018) - Oral presentation about (Mineral nutrients deficiency and toxicity in Egypt from a medical geology approach)
Finally, We are pleased to invite you to participate in the exciting special sessions convened by our chapter leader Dr. / Moataz Tarek on the 8th International Conference on Medical Geology
August 12–15, 2019 Guiyang, China (MEDGEO 2019) where we are organising sessions on:- Medical Geology and Psychology ; and Planetary Medical Geology.
Ghana Chapter Leader Name: Prof Emanuel Arhin University for Development Studies, Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Department of Earth Science, email: [email protected]
The Chapter working as a team on a common research did not happen this year but a lot had been done by individuals to convey the ideals of IMGA in Ghana. Many people are talking about medical geology than it used to be now thanks to public lecturers that the Chapter leader presented to the Association of Public Health in the country’s capital Accra. In this lecture, the phrase ‘what goes around, comes around’ was explained so much that audience realized the need for medical geology if many of public issues are to be curtailed. The Ghanaian environment has been hurt and this is not only the IMGA Newsletter January 2019 Page 14 mining districts but the entire country. The effects are yet to be seen but we in the IMGA Ghana-Chapter know it will come but not now. The immediate impact will be catastrophic because we are not prepared. The zeal to succeed is there but decision to propel the ideals of IMGA in Ghana has not been invoked yet. We need to communicate the good objectives of IMGA to Ghanaians and this requires some funds. I will say the local Chapter lack that capacity. But we are doing something to create the awareness of the group. The Chapter is based at the University for Development Studies. To achieve the policy of decentralization, Prof S.K.Y. Gawu of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology is to reach out for members in that academic environment whilst Prof Richard A. Amankwah is doing same at University of Mines and Technology. We intend to get to the government but that may need some grants or funding to move around.
As part of the Association’s plans we wish to make the Association known at least in the Public and Private Universities in the country. Our only problem is funding to do the outreach service. We have the IMGA flyer and with some local research some individual IMGA members have carried out we will be able to get more to join or follow IMGA activities. Impact of geological processes on health is least spoken of in Ghana. Awareness is very much needed particularly in Ghana. Geological and environmental processes coupled with the climate changes are affecting trace elements distributions and concentrations. Background values for potentially toxic elements (PTEs) and essential elements (EE) in specific rock types and soils are unknown. Enrichment factors (EF) are calculated using average continental crustal values that appear too simplified and do not address specifically the background value at a place. Ghana Chapter intend to undertake a research to establish background values for some trace elements that are of environmental concerns and have since started. We intend to report and publish the results by 2019.
México Chapter Leader(s): Héctor Rubio Arias, Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua, email: [email protected]. María Aurora Armienta, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, email: [email protected]
The members of the Mexican chapter have given conferences in various parts of the country, and published articles and book chapters related with Medical Geology, mainly focused on the presence and health impacts of arsenic and fluoride in water, and on the development of removal procedures with geological materials. Several of the members are developing a project awarded by the National Science and Technology Council: Use of natural Mexican zeolites to remove water pollutants. Abstract: In Mexico, there are vast deposits of zeolites, and these materials can be used to filter the water and remove heavy metals and other pollutants, especially in communities that do not have access to clean water. The main objectives of this project are the Identification of deposits of zeolites in Mexico, the collection of samples from the accessible deposits, the analysis of each zeolite through different methods like TEM, SEM or XRD, to characterize each zeolite, and to identify the facilities that extract zeolite from the deposits, sell or process it. The project includes the development of experiments to assess the suitability of each zeolite to use as a filter to remove arsenic, cadmium, fluoride and lead, the designing of a zeolite filter to remove the main contaminants based in the information provided by the results obtained. Another objective is to have a congress each year with scientific researchers and industries to exchange information and form a web of zeolite users and producers, to promote the zeolites knowledge and uses in different sectors that can apply this mineral.
Members of IMGA are also organizing the: “2do. Simposio Internacional Encuentro Zeolitas, temática Zeolitas y Agua en Conjunto con Geología Médica (2nd International meeting on zeolites, focused on zeolites, water and Medical Geology)” to be held at the Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua, Chihuahua, México, March 20-22, 2019.
Nigeria Chapter Leader: Dr A. S. Olatunji; Department of Geology, University of Ibadan; [email protected]
IMGA-Nigeria was the convener of the Session on the Sun-theme ‘Mineral Resources and Health: Benefit and Burden” during the 54th Annual International Conference and Exhibition of the NMGS in the Northern Nigeria City of Kano from
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18-23 March, 2018. Fourteen Research papers on diverse topics were presented, while two workshops sessions were facilitated by Prof. Theo Davies and Prof Charles Okujeni.
Members of IMGA-Nigeria participated actively in the 26th Colloquium of African Geology, held from 22-27 July, 2018 at the University of Aveiro, Portugal. Several papers on Environmental Geochemistry and Medical Geology was presented by the Nigerian delegation.
On Membership Drive, the Chapter was able to register 15 new members in the course of the year 2018 bringing the financially-up- to- date membership strength of the chapter to 16 as at the time of compiling this report out of 21 members. The Chapter is actively pursuing an aggressive membership drive and believe that more will still join before the end of the year.
On Information dissemination among members, IMGA-Nigeria continue to use the Social media WhatsApp platform for disseminating useful information among members on matters pertaining to Medical Geology.
The Inaugural IMGA-Nigeria Conference was held from 11-14 December, 2018 at the Department of Geology, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. The conference was attended by 92 members made up of 39 professional and 53 student members. The theme of the conference was “the Nexus between Geology, Environment and Health”. Highlights of the conference include: Ice Breaker, Opening ceremony, Keynote Talk, three Plenary talks and the presentation of 23 Technical papers on various Medical Geology related topics. The first General Assembly also held and a new governing structure for IMGA-Nigeria was put in place for the next two years. The conference was rounded off with a Conference Dinner attended by all participants.
Portugal Chapter Leader: Eduardo Anselmo Ferreira da Silva. Departamento de Geociências. Universidade de Aveiro. Campus de Santiago. 3810-193 Aveiro. Portugal, [email protected]
The Portuguese Chapter on Medical Geology (PCMG) was involved in the following activities:
Several members of the PCMG were involved in the administrative procedures to establish the IMGA headquarters in Portugal. The PCMG is represented in the IMGA Executive Committee with 3 members (Secretary, Treasurer, and Councillor)
A research structure "OHM-Estarreja - Observatoire Homme Milieux Estarreja", LabEx DRIIHM, Dispositif de Recherche Interdisciplinaire sur les Interactions Hommes-Milieux, financed by CNRS has been created to carry out specific studies in Estarreja area; significant contributions have been accomplished in the Medical Geology area related to contamination in aquifers, aquifer risk assessment, soil contamination.
Participation in the organization and the Scientific Committee of the:-1st Iberian Congress (Spain and Portugal) on Groundwater: Environment, Health and Heritage held in 12 to 15 November; 2018; 1st World Congress on Health and Welfare Tourism; and One Curricular Unit “Geomedicine” was created in the Undergratuated Couse of Geology of the Geosciences Department of Aveiro University.
Russia Chapter Leader: Dr. Iosif Volfson, Chair of Medical Geology Division, Russian Geological Society, st. 2-d Roshchenskaya, h.10, off. 211, Moscow, Russia, 115191, E-mail: [email protected] , ROSGEO Website: http://www.rosgeo.org
A Brief Report on Works in the Field of Medical Geology Done in the Year 2018 by Representatives of IMGA RC Russia and NIS.
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A review: “Analysis of the modern experience and methods of carrying out of the researches in geochemistry, environmental geochemistry, environmental geology and medical geology” was done on the basis of contract signed between Russian Geological Society and Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Russian Federation. An interest to this topic was aroused mainly after the 7th International conference on Medical Geology - MedGeo’17 held in Moscow (Russia) in 2017. Currently a manuscript with the same title has been preparing for publication.
A special issue of magazine Geological Prospecting and Bowel Protection (#1, 2018) devoted to the results of MedGeo’17 was published in January 2018. 9 articles prepared on the basis of materials of oral presentations by participants from Russia were included in this issue.
Russian Geological Society took a third place at the international contest EcoWorld’18 organized by Russian Academy of Natural Sciences in cooperation with UN and UNESCO structures (NIS branch) for the series of research works in the field of medical geology including organization of MedGeo’17.
IMGA RC Russia – NIS Executive Committee are going for rotation of its staff. We all hope that younger generation of Russian scientists will offer for a contest some candidates on position of IMGA RC Russia – NIS Executive Committee Chair.
On behalf of members of IMGA RC Russia-NIS let me congratulate all colleagues and friends with upcoming winter holydays. We wish you A Very Happy and Prosperous New Year & Merry Christmas and send our greetings from snow blanketed Russia.
Spain Chapter Leader(s): President: Elena Giménez-Forcada, Geological Survey of Spain, [email protected]
The activities of the Spanish chapter during the year 2018 have been several. All of them have had a great social and academic impact. Highlight, the creation of our web-site: http://www.geologiamedica.org/, where the activities of IMGA- Spain are collected
On November 11, 2018, the 1st Specialization Course on Medical Geology in Spain was held, organized by the Spanish chapter (IMGA-Spain) and the University of Salamanca, within the official ongoing training program for the 2018-2019 academic year.
The course was also part of the Iberian Congress (Spain and Portugal) on Groundwater: Environment, Health and Heritage (from November 12 to 15), organized by the Spanish and Portuguese groups of the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) and the International Medical Geology Association (IMGA).
This year the president of IMGA-Spain, Elena Giménez-Forcada has received the official commission to write the first book on Medical Geology in Spain, within the scientific dissemination program established between her institution (Geological Survey of Spain) and the Catarata publishing house (ISBN: 9788490975664; Publisher: CATARATA; Number of pages: 112; Dimensions: 21 x 13.5 cm; Language: Spanish; Collection: PLANETA TIERRA).
Also this year, the publication service of the Geological Service of Spain has published the book II Workshop on Medical Geology in Spain, which includes the portals of the Conference during the month of October last year. The book can be downloaded freely from the following link: http://www.igme.es/Publicaciones/publiFree/libro%20de%20actas%20II%20JGM.pdf
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Sweden Chapter leader: Robert Wålinder, Dept of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Uppsala University Hospital, 751 85, Uppsala, Sweden, Email: [email protected]
The Swedish chapter of IMGA has 7 members. One chapter meeting was held in Uppsala, Sweden, concerning publications, membership and the contacts with IMGA. Planning scientific papers and new edition of textbook of Medical geology.
UK Chapter Leader: Dr Darren Beriro, British Geological Survey [email protected]
• Adoption of the unified barge method (UBM) bioaccessibility test as an international and British standard: BS ISO 17924:2018. Soil quality. Assessment of human exposure from ingestion of soil and soil material. Procedure for the estimation of the human bioaccessibility/bioavailability of metals in soil. https://shop.bsigroup.com/ProductDetail?pid=000000000030295491
• Presentations on progress toward in vitro testing for the dermal absorption of soil PAH at ‘Remediate 2018’ in Belfast (19th September) and ‘Current Issues in Land Contamination’ by Society of Brownfield Risk Assessment and Royal Society of Chemistry in London (5th December)
• Publication of research on the solid phase partitioning of arsenic, chromium and lead in Glasgow soils. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/earth-and-environmental-science-transactions-of-royal-society-of- edinburgh/article/linkage-between-solidphase-apportionment-and-bioaccessible-arsenic-chromium-and-lead-in-soil- from-glasgow-scotland-uk/1439FA4C737460797B1E7A13259202F3
• Publication of a literature review on the PAH in dusts and particulates. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304389418307167
• Dr Cave was an invited lecturer at the 2nd International Symposium on Medical Geology in Africa in Johannesburg in November 21018
Uruguay Chapter Leader: Dr. Nelly Mañay, Dept of Toxicology and Environmental Hygiene, University of the Republic (Facultad de Química- Gral.), Flores 2124 Montevideo CP 11800, Uruguay, E-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]
Organised Symposium of Arsenic in Groundwater of Uruguay November 2018
Conference presentations
A. Noguera, H. Bentos Pereira, L. Fornaro. “Natural and anthropogenic radionuclides in Barra de Valizas – Aguas Dulces area, 290 RAMSAR site,Uruguay”, 18th Radiochemical Conference” Marianske Lazne, Czech Republic 13 - 18 may 2018.
Nelly Mañay, Adriana Cousillas “Ecohealth and Medical Geology Approaches as Integrative Methodological Tools to Address Environmental Lead or Arsenic Exposures and Health Issues in Uruguay” Joint Annual Meeting of the International Society of Exposure Science and the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology (ISES-ISEE 2018), 26-30 august Ottawa, Canada
Elena Alvareda a , Franco Teixeira de Mello b , Gonzalo Sapriza a , Christine Lucasa , Paola Russo a , Vanessa Erasun a , Rafael Banega a , Andres Saracho a , Adriana Piperno c “Raising awareness for sustainable urban water management based on Eco-hydrology research: a new approach for evaluating risk to human health”.
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Cousillas, Adriana * A, C, Iaquinta, FiorellaB, “The Ecosystem approach to health in Uruguay” Ecohealth 2018 ( ECOSALUD 2018) Cali, Colombia
Educational courses given:- Metals Toxicology and Medical Geology dictated by Prof. Nelly Mañay in a Postgraduate specialization course at the “Universidad de Montevideo”; and New Postgraduate curricular course at Faculty of Chemistry/ University of the Republic of Uruguay (UDELAR for PhD and MsC Students ) Title : Update in Environmental Toxicology and Medical Geology.
On April 2018, Ana Lia Nogueira obtained her PhD on the subject "Irradiation and natural radioactive contamination in the coastal ecosystem of the Department of Rocha, Uruguay, and its incidence in social, labor and productive aspects", Faculty of Chemistry - University of the Republic of Uruguay (UDELAR), Montevideo, Uruguay.
Chapter Leader(s): Laura Ruhl; University of Arkansas at Little Rock, 2801 S. University Ave. Little Rock, AR 72204; [email protected]
USA Members of the US Chapter of the International Medical Geology Association participated in several medical geology related events within the United States. During the Fall 2018 semester, Dr. Laura Ruhl taught a Medical Geology course at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. In November, the Geological Society of America’s Geology and Health Division, which is an honorary chapter of the IMGA, sponsored many technical sessions on medical geology at the Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Geology and Health division of GSA hosted a special technical session honouring and celebrating the career and contributions of Robert (Bob) Finkelman to the field of Medical Geology.
Many medical geology related sessions were attended by chapter members at the Annual American Geophysical Union Meeting in December. The sessions at both GSA and AGU were successful in bringing together geologists and medical professionals from all over the world to discuss their research and potential collaborations.
Lastly, the US Chapter will hold elections in Spring 2019 to fill the additional officer positions.
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IMGA Structure and organization Governance Structure: Executive Committee Chair: Diego Hernán Fridman Director, Clinical Research Department Fundación Centro de Estudios Infectológicos Buenos Aires, Argentina Email: [email protected] ; [email protected]
Co-Chair for Geological Sciences: Elena Gimenez Forcada IGME - Instituto Geológico y Minero de España (Geological Survey of Spain) Salamanca, Spain Email: [email protected]
Co-Chair for Medical Sciences: Chaosheng Zhang National University of Ireland, Galway Galway, Ireland Email: [email protected]
General Secretary: Carla Patinha Geoscience Department, University of Aveiro Aveiro, Portugal Email: [email protected]
Treasurer: Nuno Durães Geoscience Department, University of Aveiro Aveiro, Portugal Email: [email protected]
Councillors: • Eduardo Ferreira da Silva (Geoscience Department, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal, Email: [email protected] )
• Iosif Volfson (Medical Geology Division, RosGeo, Moscow, Russia, Email: [email protected] )
• Xinbin Feng (State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, China, Email: [email protected] )
• Akinade Shadrach Olatunji (University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria, Email: [email protected] )
• Rita Salgueiro (Geology Department, University of Federal do Ceará, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, Email: [email protected] )
• Ines Tomašek (Department of Chemistry, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium, Email: [email protected] )
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General Assembly Chair: María Aurora
Geophysics Institute, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
Mexico City, México
Email: [email protected]
Co-Chair: José Centeno
Director, Division of Biology, Chemistry, and Materials Science (DBCMS)
Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories (OSEL)
Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH)
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Email: [email protected]
Secretary: Ester Sztein
U.S. National Committees for the Geosciences
Board on International Scientific Organizations of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences
Washington, D.C., USA
Email: [email protected]
Audit Committee
Chair: Nelly Mañay
Director, Specialised Centre for Chemical Toxicology
University of the Republic
Montevideo, Uruguay
Email: [email protected]
Member 1: Alejandro Villalobos
Universidad Autonoma de Chihuahua
Chihuahua, Mexico
Email: [email protected]
Member 2: Theophilus C. Davies
Visiting Professor (Medical Geology)
Department of Geology
University of Nigeria at Nsukka. NIGERIA
Email: [email protected]
IMGA Newsletter January 2019 Page 21
IMGA Support
Editor-in-Chief, Medical Geology Newsletter: Mark Cave
Geochemistry and Applied Statistics
British Geological Survey
Nottingham, UK
Email: [email protected]
Webmaster: João Quintas
Email: webmaster @ medicalgeology.org
Chapters:
Local Chapter Coordinator: Chaosheng Zhang
National University of Ireland, Galway
Galway, Ireland
Email: [email protected]
IMGA Newsletter January 2019 Page 22
RECENT MEDICAL GEOLOGY REFERENCES
[1] B.Y. Horasan, F. Arik, ASSESSING HEAVY METAL POLLUTION IN THE SURFACE SOILS OF CENTRAL ANATOLIA REGION OF TURKEY, Carpathian Journal of Earth and Environmental Sciences, 14 (2019) 107-118. [2] D.G.A. Paranagama, M.A. Bhuiyan, N. Jayasuriya, Factors associated with Chronic Kidney Disease of unknown aetiology (CKDu) in North Central Province of Sri Lanka: a comparative analysis of drinking water samples, Applied Water Science, 8 (2018). [3] A.S. Ojeda, S.D. Ford, R.M. Gallucci, M.A. Ihnat, R.P. Philp, Geochemical characterization and renal cell toxicity of water-soluble extracts from U.S. Gulf Coast lignite, Environmental geochemistry and health, (2018). [4] G. Lopez-Abente, O. Nunez, P. Fernandez-Navarro, J.M. Barros-Dios, I. Martin-Mendez, A. Bel-Lan, J. Locutura, L. Quindos, C. Sainz, A. Ruano-Ravina, Residential radon and cancer mortality in Galicia, Spain, Science of the Total Environment, 610 (2018) 1125-1132. [5] G. Lopez-Abente, J. Locutura-Ruperez, P. Fernandez-Navarro, I. Martin-Mendez, A. Bel-Lan, O. Nunez, Compositional analysis of topsoil metals and its associations with cancer mortality using spatial misaligned data, Environmental Geochemistry and Health, 40 (2018) 283-294. [6] M.P. Darbandi, J. Taheri, USING SULFUR-CONTAINING MINERALS IN MEDICINE: IRANIAN TRADITIONAL DOCUMENTS AND MODERN PHARMACEUTICAL TERMINOLOGY, Earth Sciences History, 37 (2018) 25-33. [7] L. Borgel, M. Schulthess, Tools for risk assessment of acute and chronic effects due to metal and metalloid exposition, Health and Technology, 8 (2018) 71-79.
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