Editing Pottery (section)

===Health and environmental issues===
Although many of the environmental effects of pottery production have existed for millennia, some of these have been amplified with modern technology and scales of production. The principal factors for consideration fall into two categories:
* Effects on workers: Notable risks include [[silicosis]], [[toxic heavy metal|heavy metal poisoning]], poor [[indoor air quality]], [[noise health effects|dangerous sound levels]] and possible [[over-illumination]].
* Effects on the general environment.

Historically, [[lead poisoning]] (''plumbism'') was a significant health concern to those glazing pottery. This was recognised at least as early as the nineteenth century. The first legislation in the UK to limit pottery workers exposure to lead was included in the [[Factory Acts#Factories Act Extension Act 1867|Factories Act Extension Act in 1864]], with further introduced in 1899.<ref name=autogenerated1>{{Cite web |url=http://www.stokemuseums.org.uk/collections/browse_collections/ceramics/research_resources/general/health_risks_pottery |title=Stoke Museums – Health Risks in a Victorian Pottery Industry |date=7 July 2012 |website= |access-date=23 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120707001548/http://www.stokemuseums.org.uk/collections/browse_collections/ceramics/research_resources/general/health_risks_pottery |archive-date=7 July 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.historyofosh.org.uk/timeline.html | title=Timeline – History of Occupational Safety and Health }}</ref>

[[Silicosis]] is an [[occupational lung disease]] caused by inhaling large amounts of crystalline silica dust, usually over many years. Workers in the ceramic industry can develop it due to exposure to [[silica]] dust in the raw materials; colloquially it has been known as 'Potter's rot'. Less than 10 years after its introduction, in 1720, as a raw material to the British ceramics industry the negative effects of calcined flint on the lungs of workers had been noted.<ref>'The Successful Prevention Of Silicosis Among China Biscuit Workers In The North Staffordshire Potteries.' A. Meiklejohn. British Journal Of Industrial Medicine, October 1963; 20(4): 255–263</ref> In one study reported in 2022, of 106 UK pottery workers 55 per cent had at least some stage of silicosis.<ref>'A Case Of Silicosis In The Ceramic Sector. 
Y. Yurt, M. Turk. EJMI. 2018; 2(1): 50–52</ref><ref>[https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/silicosis/ Silicosis], nhs.uk</ref><ref>[https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/1639348/cancer-warning-silicosis-risk-lung-cancer Cancer warning: The type of dust linked to a higher risk of lung cancer – 'harmful'], express.co.uk, 12 July 2022</ref> Exposure to siliceous dusts is reduced by either processing and using the source materials as aqueous suspension or as damp solids, or by the use of dust control measures such as [[Engineering controls#Local exhaust ventilation|local exhaust ventilation]]. These have been mandated by legislation, such as ''The Pottery (Health and Welfare) Special Regulations 1950'' in the UK.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1950/65/regulation/17/made|title=The Pottery (Health and Welfare) Special Regulations 1950}}</ref><ref>'Whitewares: Production, Testing And Quality Control." W.Ryan & C.Radford. Pergamon Press. 1987</ref> The [[Health and Safety Executive]] in the UK has produced guidelines<ref>UK Health and Safety Executive [https://www.hse.gov.uk/coshh/essentials/direct-advice/ceramics-silica.htm guidelines].</ref> on controlling exposure to respirable crystalline silica in potteries, and the British Ceramics Federation provide a guidance booklet.<ref>British Ceramics Federation [https://www.ceramfed.co.uk/resource/respirable-crystalline-silica-guide-2018/ guidance booklet]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419090744/https://www.ceramfed.co.uk/resource/respirable-crystalline-silica-guide-2018/|date=2023-04-19}}</ref>

Environmental concerns include off-site [[water pollution]], [[air pollution]], disposal of [[hazardous materials]], disposal of rejected ware and fuel consumption.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-07-14 |title=Is Pottery Clay Eco-Friendly? – or is it Costing the Earth? |url=https://thepotterywheel.com/pottery-clay-eco-friendly/ |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=Pottery Tips by the Pottery Wheel |language=en-US}}</ref>