Mercury in hats, arsenic in taxidermy, lead in silk, and historic pesticides (DDT!) everywhere. Contamination is still present in collections, so what is a conservator to do? Oregon OSHA, with the help of Museums all over Oregon, has been investigating conservators’ exposure for the past four years. This conversation will cover:

● A brief history of problematic (and deadly) contaminants in/on Museum Objects

● Examples of Oregon Objects with contamination

● Breaking current science (inhalation overexposures!)

● Simple and effective ways to reduce your exposure

● Resources for Museum specific hazards

Discussion and questions are planned throughout this valuable conversation.

Presenter Bio:

Averie Foster has been an Industrial Hygienist for the past 15 years. She currently works as a Health Consultant at Oregon OSHA evaluating museum and cultural heritage hazards. Prior to joining OR-OSHA, Averie worked for an environmental company, where she evaluated a wide variety of industrial inhalation hazards. She then worked at a Superfund site evaluating and sampling for historic Beryllium contamination to characterize current employee risks. Averie holds a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Washington University and has completed advanced Industrial Hygiene coursework through the University of Washington and the U.S. Department of Labor.