WASHINGTON, Sept. 21 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The Chinese government recently forced numerous manganese production facilities to shut down because of widespread pollution according to reports published this month in an industry newsletter, Ryan's Notes (Vol. 11, No.36, pp. 4-5)

A major pollution problem is the selenium used by Chinese manganese producers to reduce costs, which in addition to threatening the health of workers and their families, poisons local rivers and streams, rendering the water unfit for drinking, agricultural or other uses, according to other reports out of China in recent months.

These conditions, first reported in a site investigation posted on the http://www.SeleniumWatch.org Web site, led to protest demonstrations and violence at several of the plants.

Investigation of pollution at the plants will continue through the end of this year, according to the newsletter, quoting Chinese industry sources. It reports that about two-thirds of the smelters in one of China's largest manganese production bases -- Xiangxi (Hunan) and Xiushan (Chongqing) -- have been shut down.

China is the world's largest producer and exporter of manganese flake, used in the production of aluminum and other metals. According to industry sources, all but four of the approximately 100 Chinese manganese metal manufacturers use selenium, resulting in contamination of manganese metal with significant levels of selenium.

"Chinese manganese is widely used in North America in the aluminum, steel and metals recycling industries, and yet there is very little data from OSHA or other sources to show that workers are adequately protected from unsafe levels of selenium," noted Dr. John Heinze, executive director of the Environmental Health and Research Foundation. Selenium is classified by the     Environmental Protection Agency as a hazardous substance.