Green jobs and occupational safety and health: - European Agency

216 Pages·2013·2.22 MB·English

ISSN 1831-9343
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work
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The European Agency for Safety and Health at n
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The Agency researches, develops, and distributes h occupational safety and health:
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information and organises pan-European aware- ate
ness raising campaigns. Set up by the European soci Foresight on new and emerging risks
Union in 1996 and based in Bilbao, Spain, the as
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European Agency for Safety and h:
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ISBN 978-92-9191-966-6
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Green jobs and
occupational safety and health:
Foresight on new and emerging risks
associated with new technologies by 2020
Report
Based on a report by:
Authors:
Sam Bradbrook, Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL)
Martin Duckworth, SAMI Consulting
Peter Ellwood, HSL
Michal Miedzinski, Technopolis Group
Joe Ravetz, SAMI Consulting
John Reynolds, SAMI Consulting
Cartoon artist: Joe Ravetz in collaboration with John Reynolds, SAMI Consulting
Project management:
Emmanuelle Brun and Xabier Irastorza, EU-OSHA
Cover pictures: (from left to right)
Kim Hansen, Post-processing by Richard Bartz and Kim Hansen
Felix Kramer (CalCars)
U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Nadine Y. Barclay
This report was commissioned by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA). Its contents, including any opinions
and/or conclusions expressed, are those of the author(s) alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of EU-OSHA.
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Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2013
ISBN 978-92-9191-966-6
doi:10.2802/39554
© European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2013
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.
Printed in Luxembourg
PRINTED ON ELEMENTAL CHLORINE-FREE BLEACHED PAPER (ECF)
Contents
Figures and tables 6
Executive summary 7
1. Introduction 19
1.1. Context 20
1.2. New and emerging risks 20
1.3. Green jobs 21
1.4. Introduction to scenarios 22
1.5. Project phases and structure of the report 23
1.6. Acknowledgements 23
2. Methodology 25
2.1. Project initiation 26
2.2. Project Phase 1: Contextual drivers of change 26
2.2.1. WP 1.1: Review of existing information on contextual drivers of change 26
2.2.2. WP 1.2: Consolidation of the list of contextual drivers of change 27
2.2.3. WP 1.3: Selection of key contextual drivers 28
2.3. Project Phase 2: Key technologies 28
2.3.1. WP 2.1: Review of existing information on technological innovations 29
2.3.2. WP 2.2: Consolidation of the list of technological innovations 29
2.3.3. WP 2.3: Selection of key technologies 30
2.4. Project Phase 3: Scenarios 31
2.4.1. WP 3.1: Scenario development 31
2.4.2. Technology workshops 31
2.4.3. WP 3.2: Testing and consolidating the scenarios 32
3. Phase 1: Contextual drivers of change 33
3.1. Consolidated driver set 34
3.2. Selection of key contextual drivers 38
4. Phase 2: Key new technologies 39
4.1. Results of the literature review 40
4.2. Consolidation of the list of technological innovations 40
4.2.1. Interview programme 40
4.2.2. Internet questionnaire 43
4.2.3. Comparison between the interview programme and Internet survey results 43
4.2.4. Consolidated list of technologies 43
4.3. Workshop on the selection of key technologies 44
4.3.1. Energy technologies 44
4.3.2. Non-energy technologies 44
4.3.3. Voting on selected technologies 45
4.4. Selection of the key technologies for Phase 3 47
EU-OSHA — European Agency for Safety and Health at Work | 3
Green jobs and occupational safety and health: Foresight on new and emerging risks associated with new technologies by 2020
5. Phase 3: Scenarios 49
5.1. Introduction to the three scenarios 50
5.2. Constructing the base scenarios 50
5.2.1. Analysing the drivers of change 50
5.2.2. Choosing scenario axes 50
5.2.3. Defining the scenario space 52
5.2.4. Defining the Scenarios 53
5.2.5. Allocating the remaining drivers 55
5.3. Base scenarios 57
5.3.1. Win-Win (Base scenario) 57
5.3.2. Bonus World (Base scenario) 59
5.3.3. Deep Green (Base scenario) 61
5.3.4. Social context of work in the base scenarios 62
5.4. Exploration of new and emerging OSH risks through the scenarios — Validating
and extending the scenario tool 64
5.4.1. Wind energy 64
5.4.2. Green construction 70
5.4.3. Bioenergy and energy aspects of biotechnology 76
5.4.4. Waste management and recycling 81
5.4.5. Green transport 87
5.4.6. Green manufacturing, robotics and automation 93
5.4.7. Domestic and small-scale energy systems 100
5.4.8. Batteries and energy storage 106
5.4.9. Energy transmission and distribution 110
5.4.10. OSH factors common across technologies 113
6. C onsolidation and testing of the scenarios 117
6.1. OSH challenges and opportunities 118
6.2. Consolidation workshop exercises 121
6.3. Conclusions from the consolidation workshop 125
7. Scenario presentation 127
7.1. Introduction to scenarios 128
7.2. Win-Win 128
7.3. Bonus World 135
7.4. Deep Green 142
7.5. Using the scenarios 149
8. Conclusions 151
8.1. New and emerging challenges for OSH in green jobs 152
8.2. The foresight and scenario-building process 153
9. References 154
4 | EU-OSHA — European Agency for Safety and Health at Work
Annexes
159
Annex 1: Participants at project kick-off meeting 160
Annex 2: Literature sources for contextual drivers of change 161
Annex 3: Drivers of change for green jobs and potential health and safety risks in green jobs 171
Annex 4: Participants in Phase 1 Interview programme 177
Annex 5: Participants in Phase 2 Interview programme 178
Annex 6: Consolidated list of technologies 179
Annex 7: Phase 2 Workshop participants 195
Annex 8: Attendance at Phase 3 Technology workshops 196
Annex 9: Participants at Phase 3 Policy workshop 203
Annex 10: Phase 2 Interview results 204
Annex 11: Phase 2 Internet survey results 206
Annex 12: Scenario 4 208
EU-OSHA — European Agency for Safety and Health at Work | 5
Green jobs and occupational safety and health: Foresight on new and emerging risks associated with new technologies by 2020
Figures and tables
Figure 1: The three scenario axes 10
Figure 2: Combined responses from interviews and the Internet survey: preferred technology for Phase 3 44
Figure 3: Four scenarios plotted by Economic growth v Green values axes 52
Figure 4: Three-dimensional view of scenario axes 53
Figure 5: Green innovation shown as a proportion of total innovation 53
Table 1: Key technology innovations for Phase 3 9
Table 2: Green recovery in the US 22
Table 3: Ranking of drivers after voting exercise 38
Table 4: Technologies (left hand column) and sectors (top line) resulting from the literature review show
significant overlaps 41
Table 5: Results of the workshop votes, initial conclusions, interviews and Internet survey 48
Table 6: Plausible high and low outcomes for economic growth in Europe 50
Table 7: Clusters of drivers, and associated LOW and HIGH outcomes 51
Table 8: Summary of the base scenario definitions 52
Table 9: Summary of remaining scenario definitions 53
Table 10: Outcomes of remaining drivers 55
Table 11: Allocation of remaining drivers to scenarios 56
Table 12: Social context of work across the three scenarios 63
Table 13: Technology developments: Wind energy 64
Table 14: Technology developments: Construction 71
Table 15: Technology developments: Bioenergy 76
Table 17: Technology developments: Transport 88
Table 18: Technology developments: Manufacturing 94
Table 19: Technology developments: Domestic and small-scale energy 101
Table 20: Technology developments: Batteries and energy storage 106
Table 21: Technology developments: Energy transmission and distribution 113
Table 22: Summary of OSH issues identified as ‘cross-technology’ 114
Table 23: Priority OSH challenges and opportunities by scenario 121
Table 24: Potential OSH policies supported within each scenario 123
Table 25: Potential OSH policies that are scenario-dependent 123
6 | EU-OSHA — European Agency for Safety and Health at Work
Executive summary
Green jobs and occupational safety and health: Foresight on new and emerging risks associated with new technologies by 2020
Introduction Contextual drivers of change
This report describes the project ‘Foresight of new and emerg- Sixteen key drivers were identified as having the greatest impor-
ing risks to occupational safety and health associated with new tance for the creation of the green economy in Europe up to
technologies in green jobs by 2020’, carried out for the European about 2020:
Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA).
(cid:116)(cid:1) environment: carbon emissions, effects of climate change
The outcome of the exercise is a set of scenarios covering a range (temperature rise, natural disasters), shortage of natural
of new technologies in green jobs and the impact they could resources (e.g. fossil fuels and water);
have on workers’ health and safety. They are intended to inform
EU policymakers, Member States’ governments, and trade unions (cid:116)(cid:1) government incentives: policies, grants, loans, and subsidies
and employers, so that they can take decisions to shape the future for green activities;
of occupational safety and health (OSH) in green jobs towards
safer and healthier workplaces. (cid:116)(cid:1) government controls: taxes, carbon pricing, duties, and
legislation;
The project was conducted by a consortium of the UK Health and
Safety Laboratory, SAMI Consulting and the Technopolis Group. (cid:116)(cid:1) public opinion: the public’s views on climate change and its
causes;
Project phases and (cid:116)(cid:1) public behaviour: demand for green products, support for
recycling;
structure of the report
(cid:116)(cid:1) economic growth: the state of European economies and avail-
ability of resources to tackle environmental issues;
This project was conducted over three phases and the methodol-
ogy for each of these is described in Chapter 2. (cid:116)(cid:1) international issues: effect of globalisation on the EU and other
economies, and its effect on competition for scarce natural
(cid:116)(cid:1) The first phase was to select the key contextual drivers for resources, driving the need for green activities;
new and emerging OSH risks associated with new technolo-
gies in green jobs by 2020. These drivers were used to define (cid:116)(cid:1) energy security issues: need for energy security, desire to
the base scenarios. The descriptions of the drivers and the reduce the dependency on energy imports;
results of the selection process are provided in Chapter 3.
(cid:116)(cid:1) renewable energy technologies: progress in their develop-
(cid:116)(cid:1) The second phase selected key technologies that could cre- ment and availability;
ate new and emerging OSH risks in green jobs. The data and
results of this phase are in Chapter 4. (cid:116)(cid:1) fossil fuel technologies: development of technologies to allow
continued use of fossil fuels (carbon capture and storage and
(cid:116)(cid:1) The third phase of the project developed the scenarios. clean coal technologies);
Three base scenarios were developed and then used through
a series of technology workshops to explore the respective (cid:116)(cid:1) nuclear energy: the extent of its use, and whether it is regarded
development of the key technologies and the new and as ‘green’;
emerging OSH risks to which they could lead in each of the
three base scenarios. The information gathered informed the (cid:116)(cid:1) electricity distribution, storage and use: development of tech-
production of the full scenarios. The scenario development nology to allow increased decentralised renewable electricity
and the results of the technology workshops are described generation;
in Chapter 5. The scenarios were tested and consolidated in
a further workshop, which also served to demonstrate how (cid:116)(cid:1) energy efficiency improvements: energy-efficient new build-
the scenarios can be used to develop policy options address- ings, retrofitting of old ones, promotion of energy-efficient
ing the emerging OSH challenges identified. The results of public transport, less energy-demanding manufacturing, etc.;
this workshop are set out in Chapter 6.
(cid:116)(cid:1) growth in waste and recycling driven by resource shortages,
The three scenarios are presented in Chapter 7 together with public opinion and legislation;
guidance on their use.
(cid:116)(cid:1) other technologies: availability of non-energy technologies,
The conclusions drawn from the process and findings are set such as nanotechnologies and biotechnologies; and
out in Chapter 8.
8 | EU-OSHA — European Agency for Safety and Health at Work