2. 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
3. The Air We Breathe
• Outdoor air pollution
• Regulation of outdoor air quality
• Indoor air pollutants
• Protecting indoor air
4. 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
6. 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
11. 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
12. 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
13. 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
14. 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
15. Types of Water Pollutants
• Classified as biological and nonbiological
• Runoff a problem
• Can cause human illness
16. 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
17. 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
18. 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
22. 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
23. 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
24. 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
25. 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
26. Regulating Food Safety
• Regulated by federal and state authorities
• Enforced by local registered environmental
health specialists (sanitarians)
• Consumer awareness
27. 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
28. 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
33. 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
34. Brownfields
• Property where reuse is complicated by the
presence of hazardous substances from prior
use
• 450,000 in U.S.
35. 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
36. 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
37. 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
38. 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
39. Radiation from Natural Sources
• Ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sun
• Skin cancer
• ABCD rule
41. 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
42. 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
43. Psychological and Sociological Hazards
• Can affect health
• Overpopulation and crowding
• Hate crimes
• Wars
• Acts of terrorism
44. 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
46. 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
47. 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
48. 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?
