Environment DEC
From the May 2008 issue
Symposium on Children's Environmental Health
"Our children are our most precious resource," was a phrase heard several times as experts on the health effects of environmental contaminants on children spoke to more than 160 concerned professionals at the Children's Environmental Health Symposium. It was the first such symposium hosted by the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and drew both national and regional experts on the topic.
Along with DEC and the New York State Department of Health, several non-governmental organizations sponsored the symposium, including the Children's Environmental Health Partnership of New York, co-led by the Healthy Schools Network and the Learning Disabilities Association of New York State. Other sponsors included the
Protecting children from contaminants will require aggressive enforcement of existing laws
American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and the Environmental Business Association of New York State.
More State Funding Needed
Judith Enck, Deputy Secretary for the Environment, gave an overview of what the state is doing now and what it needs to do in the future to protect children from environmental health hazards. She spoke about allocating funds in such areas as pollution prevention, aggressive enforcement of existing laws and more safeguards against toxic toys.
DEC Deputy Commissioner Val Washington said, "Commissioner Grannis' priorities, like building a toxic-free future and fostering green and healthy communities, have direct relevance to the connection between environmental health and the health of our children."
Children Not Little Adults
Children are not little adults. Researchers continue to discover that, because a child's body is still developing, it is much more susceptible to toxic chemicals in the environment, even at levels previously considered safe. This is especially true for a developing fetus.
Conditions such as asthma, autism and attention deficit disorder have been linked to environmental causes
Dr. David Carpenter, Director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the University at Albany, presented research findings connecting exposure to persistent environmental contaminants (like PCBs, lead and mercury, which are not easily removed from the environment) to lower IQ scores in children. Dr. Philip Landrigan, of the Department of Community and Preventive Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, listed several childhood developmental problems like asthma, autism and attention deficit that are increasingly linked to environmental causes. Dr. Landrigan proposed, "a statewide network of eight centers of excellence in children's environmental health as an efficient and cost-effective approach to diagnosing, treating and preventing disease of toxic environmental origin in New York State's children."
Innovative Outreach Programs
Katrina Korfmacher, from the University of Rochester's Environmental Health Sciences Center, gave a presentation on an innovative outreach program called the "Healthy Home Project." In this project, the university purchased an older home and set up displays showing hazards, fixes and, crucially, costs of repairs and replacements. Residents, landlords and contractors are given guided tours to educate them about how to address home environmental hazards themselves.
Another program called GLO for "Get the Lead Out" has been successful at educating people about the hazards to children of lead poisoning from chipped paint and lead dust in older homes.
Panel Discussion
A panel discussion was conducted on protecting children from toxic chemicals in toys, jewelry and other products in commerce. Panelists included Cecil Corbin, Deputy Director of WE ACT for Environmental Justice; Kathy Curtis, Policy Director of Clean New York (both Corbin and Curtis are co-coordinators of the JustGreen Partnership); Steffi Domike, Communications Coordinator of the United Steelworkers of America Associate Member Program; Sally Edwards, Research Associate at the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production; Jean Halloran, Director of Food Policy Initiatives for the Consumers Union, and Ted Potrikus, Executive Vice President and Director of Government Relations for the Retail Council of New York State.
With all of the recent stories about toys contaminated with lead and other toxins, the panel discussion took on particular importance and relevancy. Representing retailers, Ted Potrikus fielded several questions about the response of retailers to increasing numbers of recalls of toxic products. Presenting the views of organized labor, Steffi Domike outlined how the United Steelworkers have responded to the issue with programs designed to raise awareness and move people to action. Cecil Corbin provided an environmental justice perspective, inspiring the audience with his call to work for a world with a clean, healthy and safe environment, where parents don't have to worry about their children being poisoned by their surroundings.
Collaborative Approaches Needed
It was generally agreed that, because of the complexity and daunting scope of the issues involved, governments, advocacy groups and businesses will need to use collaborative approaches to develop realistic solutions that protect both children and the environment. Calls to continue to inform others in government, business and the community about the need to act on children's environmental health issues brought the symposium to a close.
