Community Health and the Environment

Chapter 14

Introduction

• Health is affected by the quality of the environment• Includes air we breathe, water we drink, food

we eat, communities in which we live

• Regulatory measures address environmental assaults

• Environmental health

• Environmental hazards

The Air We Breathe

• Outdoor air pollution

• Regulation of outdoor air quality

• Indoor air pollutants

• Protecting indoor air

Outdoor Air Pollution

• Air pollution – contamination of air by substances in great enough amounts to harm living organisms• Major sources in U.S. – transportation, electrical

power plants fueled by oil and coal, industry

• Primary pollutants

• Secondary pollutants• Phytochemical smog vs. industrial smog

• Ozone

• Thermal inversion

Thermal Inversion

Regulation of Outdoor Air Quality

• Clean Air Act (CAA)

• National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQSs)

• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• Criteria pollutants

• Air Quality Index (AQI)

• Greenhouse gases

Criteria Pollutants

Air Quality Index

Indoor Air Pollutants

• Come from a variety of sources• Asbestos

• Biogenic pollutants

• Combustion by-products

• Volatile organic compounds

• Formaldehyde

• Radon

• Environmental tobacco smoke• Mainstream smoke, sidestream smoke

Air Pollution Sources in the Home

Protecting Indoor Air

• People spend 50-90% of time indoors

• Energy crisis of 1970s lead to tight ventilation• Sick building syndrome

• No federal indoor clean air act

• Smoking ordinances

The Water We Use

• Waterborne disease examples – cholera, typhoid fever, dysentery• Responsible for 1.5 million deaths worldwide

each year

• 2006 – 1/7 of world population had no access to supply of clean drinking water

• U.S. – 100% of population has access to clean water and sanitation• Waterborne disease outbreaks still occur

Sources of Water

• Surface water• Water in streams, rivers, lakes, reservoirs

• Groundwater• Located under surface of the ground

• Aquifers• Porous, water-saturated layers of underground

bedrock, sand, and gravel that can yield economically significant amounts of water

• Only .003% of earth’s water is available for human use

Sources of Water Pollution

• Point source pollution• Pollution that can be traced to a single source

• Nonpoint source pollution• All pollution that occurs through runoff,

seepage, or falling of pollutants into water• Runoff – water than flows over land surfaces,

typically from precipitation

Types of Water Pollutants

• Classified as biological and nonbiological

• Runoff a problem

• Can cause human illness

Biological Pollutants of Water

• Examples: viruses, bacteria, parasites

• Cause a variety of diseases

• Waterborne disease outbreak• At least 2 people affected by recreational or

drinking water

• Drinking water outbreaks have declined in recent years, but recreational has increased

• Traced to source within or outside of water utility jurisdiction

Nonbiological Pollutants of Water

• Examples: heat, inorganic chemicals, organic chemicals, radioactive pollutants

• Endocrine-disrupting chemicals

• Pharmaceuticals and personal care products• No government regulation on disposal of meds

• Water quality in U.S. has deteriorated in many communities• Population growth, chemical manufacturing,

reckless land use, disposal of hazardous waste

Ensuring the Safety of Our Water

• Treatment of water for domestic use• Domestic use only 6% of water usage in U.S.

• Each U.S. resident uses 80-100 gallons a day

• Most municipalities use surface water, others use groundwater• Needs to be treated/disinfected

• Fluoridation

Wastewater Treatment

• Wastewater (liquid waste or sewage)

• Primary wastewater treatment• Sedimentation tanks; sludge

• Secondary wastewater treatment• Clarified wastewater; aeration tanks

• Tertiary wastewater treatment• Filtration; disinfection; discharge

• Regulated by EPA

Septic Systems

Regulating Water Quality

• Clean Water Act (CWA)

• Watershed

• Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

The Food We Eat

• U.S. has one of the safest food supplies

• More than 200 known diseases transmitted through food

• Food can be contaminated at several points

Foodborne Disease Outbreaks

• Two or more cases of similar illness resulting from ingestion of food

• Symptoms mild to severe

• Causes• Inadequate cooking temperatures; improper

holding temperatures

• Unsanitary practices (handwashing)

• Contaminated equipment

• Federal, state, and local efforts to protect food

Growing, Processing, and Distributing Our Food Safely

• Need to protect plants and animals

• Health concerns with chemicals• Risk of unintentional poisoning where

chemicals are stored and used

• Residues reaching food workers and consumers

Pesticides

• Pests – weeds, termites, mold

• Pesticides – synthetic chemicals to kill pests

• Over 19,000 products currently registered

• Use increases farm production

• Target organisms

• Nontarget organisms

• Herbicides and insecticides most commonly used pesticides

Regulating Food Safety

• Regulated by federal and state authorities

• Enforced by local registered environmental health specialists (sanitarians)

• Consumer awareness

The Place We Live

• Environmental hazards occur where we live due to household and land management practices

• Solid waste – solid refuse from households, agriculture, and business

Solid and Hazardous Waste

• Solid waste – garbage, refuse, sludge, discarded solid materials• 95%+ traced to agriculture, mining and gas and

oil production, industry; <5% MSW

• Municipal solid waste (MSW)• Generated by households, businesses,

institutions located within municipalities• Create 4.5 pounds MSW per person/day

• Hazardous waste

Municipal Solid Waste Generation Rates, 1960-2008, U.S.

MSW Generation by Material, 2008, U.S.

Managing Our Solid Waste

• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA)

• Solid waste management• Source reduction

• Product reuse and recycling

• Disposal

• Composting

• Sanitary landfills

• Leachates

• Combustion (incineration)

Sanitary Landfills

Managing Our Hazardous Waste

• RCRA and EPA• Strict controls over treatment, storage, and

disposal

• Deep well and underground injection

• Dealing with past disposal cleanup

• Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability act (CERCLA)

• Superfund

Brownfields

• Property where reuse is complicated by the presence of hazardous substances from prior use

• 450,000 in U.S.

Lead and Other Heavy Metals

• Often contaminate well water

• Lead found in soil, household dust, air, paint• Children at greatest risk of poisoning

• Major health problems

Controlling Vectorborne Diseases

• Vectors – fleas, lice, ticks, etc.

• Vectorborne disease outbreaks• Unexpectedly large number of cases of disease

caused by an agent transmitted by insects and other arthropods

• Federal, state, and local efforts for prevention and control

• #1 vectorborne disease is Lyme disease

Natural Hazards

• Naturally occurring phenomenon or event that produces or releases energy in amounts that exceed human endurance, causing injury, disease, or death• Often termed disasters

Radiation

• Process in which energy is emitted as particles or waves

• Heat, sounds, visible light are long-wavelength, low-energy radiation

• High-energy ionizing radiation

• Can cause sickness, permanent damage

Radiation from Natural Sources

• Ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sun

• Skin cancer• ABCD rule

UV Index Scale

Radiation from Humanmade Sources

• Those associated with medical and dental procedures “(X-rays, nuclear medicine diagnoses, radiation therapy), consumer products (smoke detectors, TVs, computer screens) and nuclear energy and weaponry

Natural Environmental Events

• Geologic activity (volcanic eruptions, earthquakes), weather-driven events (tornados, hurricanes, floods)

• Can result in serious physical and psychological health consequences for humans

• Natural disasters – substantial loss of human life and property

• Create new variety of needs

Psychological and Sociological Hazards

• Can affect health

• Overpopulation and crowding

• Hate crimes

• Wars

• Acts of terrorism

Population Growth

• Carrying capacity

• Growth rate declining, but population growing

• Unsustainable to maintain quality of life and health of today

• Humane means of limiting population growth

• Bias and hate crimes

World Population Growth, 1750-2050

Terrorism

• Calculated use of violence or threat of violence against civilians to attain goals that are political or religious in nature

• Sociological hazard• Affects entire societies

• Psychological hazard• Produces fear, stress, hysteria

Responding to Environmental Hazards

• Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)• Within U.S. Department of Homeland Security

• American Red Cross (ARC)• Works to prevent and alleviate human suffering

Discussion Questions

• What environmental issues will have the biggest impact on community health in the next 10 years? 50 years?

• What environmental issues will have the biggest impact on personal health in the next 10 years? 50 years?