No abstract

Occupational hazards arising from physical agents present in wood harvesting equipment may cause irreversible damage to the health of exposed operators. Thus, the objective of this study was to quantify the noise and vibration levels emitted by three types of wood harvesting equipment (Feller-buncher, Harvester and Forwarder) in a forestry company in north-eastern Brazil during a workday. Noise measurements were performed with an equivalent noise level meter (audiodosimeter) at the workstation and compared with the limits set in NR-15. To evaluate the vibration was used a full cup gauge, which has a sensor called triaxial accelerometer (directions X, Y and Z), installed on the operator's seat. As a result, the average noise dose of all activities in the operation studied did not exceed the maximum allowable limit of 85 dB (A) for 8 hours of continuous Lima et al.; JEAI, 40(5): 1-9, 2019; Article no.JEAI.51345 2 work. The whole body vibration in all equipment was below the exposure level, however, some equipment obtained indexes slightly higher than the alert level, a fact that shows a higher accuracy in the equipment. Original Research Article

This study evaluated ergonomically the workers of a furniture industry making sofa structures, located in the city of Visconde do Rio Branco, Minas Gerais State, between August 2016 and December 2016, aiming to evaluate the quality of life and the ergonomic risks of the workers present. It was evaluated a population of 66 workers, including assemblers of sofa structures and carpentry machine operators, both males. Initially, all of these were submitted to the pain test, performed by means of questions regarding the greatest and least muscular discomfort, with the help of a map of the musculature of the human body. A sample of the workers with the highest rates of muscular pain was withdrawn from this population. The sample was submitted to WHOQOL-Bref (World Health Organization Quality of Life -Bref) questionnaire, which evaluates Vasconcelos et al.; JSRR, 23(5): 1-10, 2019; Article no.JSRR.49052 2 the perception of quality of life; After the kinesiological analysis of the work, observing the positions adopted and the assembly time of the structures of the sofa; the RULA method (Rapid Upper Limb Assessment), responsible for evaluate possible damage to limbs, such as the arm, forearm, wrist, neck, trunk and legs; and finally the biomechanical evaluation of static and postural forces, using 3DSSPP software (3D Static Strength Prediction Program). The results of WHOQOL-Bref questionnaire revealed that, in general, the perception of the sample about quality of life at work was classified as "very satisfactory" and the "physical environment was the one with the lowest degree of satisfaction. The kinesiological and biomechanical analyzes showed that the factors most critical to the work routine are related to wrist flexion, ulnar deviation and flexion of the indicator. However, based on static and postural forces, this activity can be developed without health risks by 97% of the workers. The load on workers during the working day did not prove to be crucial for triggering musculoskeletal disorders, so most workers are able to develop their work activities without health risks. Original Research Article

A instituição de áreas de elevado valor biológico por meio da criação de Unidades de Conservação (UC) tem se tornado importante instrumento de proteção aos recursos ambientais no país, frente ao desenfreado avanço antrópico sobre ambientes naturais. Integrante do grupo de Unidades de Conservação de Proteção Integral, os Monumentos Naturais caracterizam-se pela singularidade dos atributos naturais existentes. Apesar da sua relevância ambiental, escassos são os estudos direcionados a destrinçar as peculiaridades das UC’s e a fomentar a legislação ambiental pertinente. A análise espacial em ambiente geotecnológico, tem se mostrado uma importante ferramenta no gerenciamento e proteção das UC’s, visto que permite uma melhor representação do espaço geográfico e dos fenômenos que nele ocorrem. Este trabalho objetivou espacializar e caracterizar os Monumentos Naturais do Brasil. De modo a cumprir tal objetivo, foram utilizados os seguintes procedimentos metodológicos: i) pesquisa documental qualitativa, de acordo com Kripka (2015), mediante levantamento bibliográfico e consultas de dados referentes aos Monumentos Naturais em órgãos oficiais; ii) aplicação de ferramentas geotecnológicas. A fonte de consulta primária foi o Cadastro Nacional de Unidades de Conservação, vinculado ao Ministério do Meio Ambiente. O processamento dos dados para espacialização de cada Monumento Natural foi realizado através do software computacional QGIS. Foram identificados 73 Monumentos Naturais atualmente cadastrados no país, divididos entre cinco biomas, com destaque à Mata Atlântica. Administrados em esferas de atuação federal, estadual ou municipal, 50,68% dos Monumentos Naturais não dispõem de órgão gestor. Para mais, 82,19% das unidades não possuem plano de manejo aprovado, em detrimento à existência de apenas 13 planos em todo o Brasil (17,81%). Constatou-se que os recursos naturais instituídos como Monumento Natural no país não são gerenciados à luz da importância e valor que refletem. Em face à imensidão dos atributos biológicos existentes, a caracterização físico-administrativa dos Monumentos Naturais converte-se em uma importante ferramenta na gestão dos mesmos.