Chapter 14: Environmental Health and Safety

Environmental health

The study and management of environmental conditions that affect the health and well-being of humans.

Lyme disease

- 2014 more than 33,000 confirmed and probable cases of Lyme disease were reported - transmitted by the backlogged tick IXODES SCAPULARIS (a tick that flourishes when deer are abundant). - called the deer tick - The tick transmits that bacterial spirochete BORRELIA BURGDORFERI that causes of the Lyme disease. - 8 out of 10 states reporting the highest incidence of Lyme disease in 2014 were in the east. Penn, Mass, NY, NJ, Conn, Min, Maine, Maryland, Wisconsin, Virginia - No vaccine. Virtually non existent and personal protection is the best defense - avoid entering tick infested areas (wooded and bushy areas with high grass and leaf litter), dress appropriately, apply tick repellent, examine oneself and family members for ticks, and carefully remove any ticks found with a pair tweezers - Control efforts of ticks: landscaping techniques that discourage ticks (reduce leaf litter and tall grass), make a litter free and tick free border. Keep the lawn short and use acaricides by instructions

less developed countries (LDCs)

- About 80% of the population lives in LDCs and all the population increase between now and 2050 will happen here. Largest percentage fo growth in 40 years is to occur in Africa. The growth rate remains high for LDC but fertility rates are secreting in less developed and growth rate for MDCs has fallen low. MDCs fertility rates are below replacement levels (the level at which children born will replace those person lost to morality)

Managing Our Solid Waste

- Accumulation of solid waste would produce undesirable odors and attract vermin and other disease reservoirs and vectors. It would constitute a community-wide environmental health hazard. - Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976. Solid waste management.

Secondary Wastewater Treatment

- Aerobic bacteria are added and mixed with the clarified water to break down the organization waste. Mixture flows to aeration tanks. Oxygen is added to support aerobic decomposition of organic waste into carbon dioxide, water, and minerals. - When completed after 6-10 hours, wastewater sent to the sedimentation tanks where solids and flocks of bacteria are separated from the treated liquid portion of wastewater. - Some treatment plants disinfect and discharge the treated wastewater to surface waster bodies and other plants perform tertiary treatment

Outdoor Air Pollution

- Air pollution. Containments or pollutants originate from natural (dust storms, forest fires, and volcanic eruptions) or human sources (divided into mobile sources like cars and stationary sources like power plants and factories. - Major sources in the US: transportation (cars), electric power plants fueled by oil and coal, industry (mills and refineries), and other small sources like coal-burning stoves, fireplaces, dry cleaning, and waste incinerators. - Pollutants separated into primary and secondary pollutants. Secondary pollutants makes photochemical smog.

The Air We Breathe

- Air we breathe is the most important development of life on earth.

population growth

- Attributed to 3 factors: birth rate, death rate, and migration - population growth rate is zero when, migration is not a factor so that when the birth rate and death rate are equal - Birth rate exceeds the death rate means that population size increases. Increase in population and per capita consumption means increase in environmental impact. - World population exceeds 7 billion. Past three decades the rate of the world population growth has declined. Forecast to grow 11 billion by the end of the 21st century - Not occurring in absolute terms but continues to be substantial. At a rate that is unsustainable. - Ramifications of over-population: climate change, acid rain, waste waste landfills, increasing crime rates, vulnerability to epidemics and pandemics, smog, exhaustion of usable water supplies, contamination of soils and groundwater, degradation of arable land, growing international tensions, and complex emergencies. - We degrade millions of acres of arable land. And there is a dwindling for natural resources for energy, housing, and living space. Since 1950, the urban population more than tripled. Three-fourths of the population is urban. There are 28 megacities (cities of. more than 10 million residents). 2030 there is going to be 43 megacities accounting for 9% of the global urban population or more than 400 million persons. Leads to pollution and degradation that affect everyone. - World population is approaching the maximum sustainable limit. No one knows what the ultimate population size will be, what the ultimate crying capacity of the Earth is, and how many people it can support. World population growth rate was over 2% just 30 years ago, now it is 1.2%. react concern of population growth of Middle East and Africa but come developing countries have slowing growth.

Foodborne Disease Outbreaks

- CDC, the occurrence of two or more causes of a similar illness resulting from the ingestion of food - Norovirus was the most commonly reported virus accounting for 31% of the outbreak, Salmonella (14%). The leading cause of food borne illness of bacteria, chemical, parasites, viruses, and unknown are listed on page 425. - Leading factors: inadequate cooking temperatures or improper holding temperatures for foods (bacterial outbreaks), unsanitary conditions or practices at the point service (like failure to wash hand - norovirus outbreaks), drinking raw milk (bacterial outbreaks). Contaminated equipment or obtaining food from unsafe source. - 75% of FBDOs are from nonpasueruzied dairy products. - Prevention: Coordinated effort of federal, state and local health agencies. Federal: the CDC under the Emerging Infections Program established the Food borne Diseases ActiveSurveillance Network (FoodNet) to provide better data on foodborne diseases. FoodNet tracks disease that are caused by enteric pathogens from the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service, the US FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition and respective state epidemiologist. - Healthy people 2020 objectives aims to reduce the number of outbreak associated infections due to food borne disease agents.

Regulation of Outdoor Air Quality

- Clean Air Act (CAA) - National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) - US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - States are empowered to regulate air quality and to levy fines against those who violate the standards. States are allowed to adopt and implement programs. - Between 1990 and 2014 the US reduced the ambient air concentration of 6 pollutants substantially. In 2014, about 57 million people lived in the US with pollution levels above the NAAQSs, but 54% fewer in 2010. - EPA creates the Air Quality Index - Coal-fired power plants: Provides 37% of the nation's electric power and produces pollution. Plants lack the modern pollution controls and discharge excess sulfur, mercury, and other harmful chemicals into the air and waterways. Makes toxic soot and ash that is harmful to the health of people and environment. These plants are the nation's leading source of heat trapping carbon dioxide (co2) - reducing the levels go greenhouse gases will reduce heat retention in the atmosphere and slow global climate change

The WaterWe Use

- Clean water is essential for life and health ' - Consumption of polluted water: outbreaks of waterborne disease like cholera, typhoid fever, dysentery, and other gastrointestinal diseases. Responsible for 1.5 million deaths. Most affected are children in developing countries. - 1/3 of the world population (2.5 billion people) lived without proper sanitation and 11% of the world population (783 million) have no access to drinking water. - US population has 100% access to clean water supply and sanitation rate is among the highest reported rate for any world region. - 100 waterborne disease outbreaks (WBDOs) linked to drinking or recreational use water occur annually. - Major source of drinking water contamination is waste produce by humans - prevention and treatment of polluted water essential community activities

underground storage tank (UST)

- Contains the tank, underground piping, and containment system that stores petroleum or hazardous substances. - gasoline leaking from service stations is one of the most common sources of groundwater pollution (1.5 cups of leaking hazardous chemicals can contaminate 1 million gallons) - 90 million residents get water from community water system in part of groundwater and 13 million drink from private wells - best prevention os groundwater contamination is appropriate management and maintenance to prevent releases

air pollution

- Contamination of the air that interferes with the comfort, safety, and health of living organisms

US Public Health Service - The Health Consequence of Smoking 50 years of Progress: A report of the Surgeon General

- Discusses the progress made, efforts that have resulted in the reduction of tobacco use, and evidence of the continued burden tobacco use impose on the US - 5.6 million minors alive in 2014 die prematurely from smoking - Shows the link between ETS and health effects: cancer heart disease and stroke - Exposure shown to increase risk of prenatal consequence and postnatal health conditions in infants - Has specifically associated with intrauterine growth retardation, low birth weight, preterm delivery, orofacial clefts, respiratory tract infections, and behavioral and cognitive abnormalities - Young children are especially susceptible to secondhand smoke and likely to suffer from coughing wheezing breathlessness increase of developing asthma and disruptive behavioral disorders.

Protecting Indoor Air

- Energy crisis in 1970s led to conservation movement that included reducing ventilation rates. Reduced to 20 cubic feet per minute to 5 cubic feet per minute. Lead to creating tight buildings also known as sick buildings. - Measures to monitor and correct indoor air pollution have been limited. US has not developed indoor air policies but is supported by voluntary industry standards. - Ex. safety codes for kerosene space heaters, action guideline for radon, smoking restriction for commercial airlines and public buildings, federal guidance on handling asbestos, demolition and disposal and prohibition on new uses of asbestos. - Absence fo federal indoor clean air legislation, meant that states, countries, and municipalities had created their own. Banned or in the process of outlawing smoking in workplaces and public areas, and outdoor smoking - District of Columbia. - Healthy People 2010 objective was to eliminate state laws that preempt stonier local legislation. 2005 to 2009 preemptive smoking legislation was rescinded by legislation, ballot initiative, or court ruling in 7 more states, leaving 12 (dirty dozen) with preemptive smoking legislations.

Lead and Other Heavy Metals

- Environmental hazards: lead, mercury, cadmium, chromium, and arsenic - Contaminate well water and ingested by people. Heavy metals are regulated bu the EPA by industry or businesses under the RCRA.

Preparedness and Response

- FEMA

ABCD rule

- From the American Cancer Society that outlines the signs of melanoma. Asymmetry (half of the mole does not match the other), border irregularity (edges are ragged notched or blurred), color (pigmentation is not uniform), and diameter greater than 6 mm.

combustion by-products

- Gases and particulates generated by burning - includes gases like CO NO2 SO2 and particulates like ash and soot - long exposure can lead to illness and death - fireplaces, wood stoves, kerosene heaters, candles, incense, secondhand tobacco smoke, and improperly maintained gas stoves and furnaces

Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus

- Involved in the transmission of Chikungunya and Zika virus. - Chikungunya had a sharp increase incidence in disease in 2014 - Zika virus is a nationally notifiable disease that are linked to virus to incidents of Guillain-Bare syndrome and birth defects in babies.

Tertiary Wastewater Treatment

- Involves filtration through sand and carbon filters. Remaining dissolved pollutants are removed. Treated water is disinfected and discharged. Disinfecting the water through colorization is the cheapest. - Chlorine is removed from the water called dechlorination to prevent poisonings of aquatic life in streams or rivers downstream of discharge point - Discharge of treated wastewater regulated by EPA

Ensuring the Safety of Our Water

- Involves proper treatment of water intended for drinking and properly maintained distribution system for that water. Proper construction and maintenance of water-assoicated recreation facilities. Depends on the enforcement and enactment of well-conceived water quality regulations and waste water treatment and sanitation are required.

bias and hate crimes

- Is a criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity - They occur when offenders choose a victim because of some characteristic and provide evidence that the hate prompted them to commit the crime. - Race is the leading characteristic associated with bias and hate crimes in the US. Internationally, it is religion and ethnicity.

Biological Pollutants of Water

- Living organisms or their products that make water unsafe for human consumption - Examples: viruses, bacteria, parasites and other undesirable living microorganisms - Waterborne viral agents and disease they cause: Poliomyelitis virus (polio), Hep A (hepatitis) - Waterborne bacteria and disease that they cause: Escherichia coli (gastroenteritis), Legionella app (legionellosis), salmonella (typhoid), Shigella (bacillary dysentery), and Virbrio (cholera) - Waterborne parasites: Entamoeba, Giardia, Cryptosporidium - Typhoid fever and cholera have killed thousands. - Pathogens enter the water though human or animal wants that were disposed improperly or without being treated before their disposal or without being treated before their disposal. Sources include runoff (etc). Biological wastes spread viruses, bacteria, and parasites into rivers, lakes, reservoirs, and drinking water supplies

sanitary landfills

- MSW that cannot be reused or recycled must be disposed. - Methods of acceptable disposals: sanitary landfills or combustion (incineration). - Waste disposal site on land suited for this purpose and on which waste is spread in thin layers, compacted, and covered with a fresh layer of clay or plastic foam each day - 53.8% of municipal solid waste is placed here. They are sites issued operating permits that are judged suitable for in-ground disposal of solid waste. - Concern with landfills: accumulation of dangerous amounts of methane gases (greenhouse gases) created by the anaerobic decomposition of refuse (some systems can harness the methanol gas and use it as an energy source). - As landfill space becomes more restricted the demand will drive up the cost of MSW disposal (which lead to the interest in combustion)

Humane means of limiting population

- Methods of conception control (oral contraceptive pills, physical or chemical barrier methods) or sterilization (tubal ligation and vasectomy), north control methods (intrauterine devices, legalized abortion, and morning after pills), and social policies like financial incentives and societal disincentives for having children. - If not, we can allow for exponential population growth to continue until it declines naturally through famine, epidemic disease, and perhaps warfare. Requires more environmental deterioration, social disintegration, poverty, and human suffering.

Primary Wastewater Treatment

- Occurs in sedimentation tank, called a clarifier, where the wastewater remains in quiescent condition for about 2-4 hours. Heavier solids settle to the bottom forming sludge.

Growing, Processing, and Distributing Our Food Safely

- Past century, farming has become a "big business" with more farmland owned by large corporations. Modern agriculture is characterizes as a process of converting petroleum into food. Large amounts of fuel is need to run the tractors, combines,, and other equipment. Tractors apply petroleum-based chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and insecticides. - Health concerns with nature of agricultural chemicals (especially pesticides): the risk of unintentional poisoning where these chemicals are stored and used and residues reaching food workers and consumers

Regulating Food Safety

- Pesticides are regulated by a combination of federal and state authorities. EPA regulates the registration and labeling of pesticides. Individual state agencies license those who can buy, sell, or apply pesticides within their state. National level is insured by the USDA (inspects meat and dairy products), FDA (ensuring the safety of the remainder of our foods. - registered environmental health specialists (REHSs)

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)

- Primary participant in the cleanup of hazardous waste was the federal government - 1980 passed the CERCLA in response to the demand to clean up leaking dump sites. - Law is known as the Superfund. It created tax on chemical and petrochemical industries to clean up abandoned hazardous waste sites. Established the National Priority List (NPL) of hazardous waste sites and provided funds for remediation. - Superfund dollars are eligible (if no private party was identified) to use for remediation and for temporary or permanent relocation of residents affected by the contaminated sites. Superfund does not provide compensation to victims for health related problems. - Since this program, there are more contaminated sites that are placed. - Superfund is more than 35 years old and provided billions of dollars for the assessment and cleanup of the NPL sites. - Hazardous wastes cost is $750 billion.

Managing Our Hazardous Waste

- RCRA created the cradle-to-grace regulation. It is a system for controlling hazardous wastes from the time it is generated until disposal. RCRA mandates controls over the treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous wastes. - More than 400 substances on the EPA's hazardous waste list. Does not include radioactive wastes (controlled by Nuclear Regulatory Commission) or biochemical wastes (regulated by individual states). - EPA Office of Solid Waste overseas the management of hazardous waste (including treatment, storage and disposal). More than 34.3 million tons of hazardous wastes was generated in the US in 2011. - 15 method of hazardous waste management. Methods that is most common is deep well or underground injection (used for disposal of about 59% of hazardous wastes), most common were found in Texas and Florida Other 41% is managed through special landfills, impoundment, recycling, and incineration. - Leaking underground storage tanks, abandoned mine lands, and abandoned hazardous chemical waste sites present threats to human health and environment.

Complex Disasters

- Results when a natural disaster escalates an ongoing crisis or causes a technological disasters - Can also result from different hazards and include a combo of natural and human made causes - a natural disaster that escalates an ongoing crisis or causes a technical disaster resulting in communities being affected by the consequences of natural and human made hazards ex. Tohoko earthquake in 2011

Radiation From Natural Sources

- Sources of natural radiation are extraterrestrial (outer space and the Sun) or terrestrial (radioactive mineral emanating form the earth). - ex. Sunshine: has many wavelengths that include visible light, heat, and ultraviolet (UV) radiation

endocrine disruptors

- a chemical that interferes in some way with the body's endocrine (hormone) system - Include pesticides, commercial chemicals, and environmental contaminants tax can disrupt, imitate, or block the body's normal hormonal activity (causing developmental or reproductive problems) - evidence of adverse reproductive outcomes, and effects on thyroid and brain - EPA developed two tier process to screen and evaluate chemicals.

thermal inversion

- a condition that occurs when warm air traps cooler air at the surface of the earth (preventing cooler air from rising) - ozone and other air pollutants accumulate in the cooler air, which is the air we breathe - longer thermal inversion = pollutants will reach dangerously high levels

Controlling Vectorborne Diseases

- Standing water (runoff water from septic systems or overloaded sewer systems) and improper handled solid waste provide the habitat for the proliferation of disease vectors. - We have more mosquitoes because we became the global economy. Others include the Asian tiger (Aedes albopictus) that was dickered in Texas in 1985. And Aedes japonicus. Both can transmit pathogenic viruses. - Federal, state, and local governments have units whose primary responsibility is the prevention and control of vector borne diseases. At the federal level it is the CDC's Division of Vector Borne Diseases. - State departments of health have offices or labs that maintain vector borne diseases surveillance programs and provide expertise to local health departments (which deals with reducing the mosquito problems and preventing disease transmission) - despite mosquito control, there are many cases that are reported annually - Defense against mosquito borne outbreaks: proper land, solid waste, and wastewater management, mosquito control efforts, promotion of personal protection against mosquito bites and active surveillance - Number one vector borne disease is a tick borne disease. - Improper management of waste foster the expansion of rate and mouse populations. They are hosts for fleas that transmit murine typhus (rickettsial disease that causes headaches, fever, and rash). Improper MSW management could make an environment conducive to murine typhus transmission.

Regulating Water Quality

- Surface water and drinking water regulated by Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act. Public concern of the pollution of surface water lead to the Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 and 1977 which became known as the Clean Water Act (CWA). - TO reduce water pollution, EPA considers land uses and sources of pollution within the entire watershed rather than controlling and regulating only individual pollution sources or contaminants. - Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

Clean Water Act (CWA)

- The federal law aimed at ensuring that al rivers are swimmable and fishable and that limits the discharge of pollutants in the US waters to zero - Goal is to restore and maintain chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the waters in the US to protect and propagate. TO achieve the goal EPA employs regulatory and non regulatory programs to reduce direct pollutant discharges into waterways by industrial and wastewater treatment facilities. And manages polluted runoff by implementing non regulatory programs - Earlier, the CWA's efforts focused on regulating discharges from traditional point source facilities and make it unlawful for a person to discharge any pollutant from a point source into navigable waters without a permit.

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA)

- The federal law the sets forth guidelines for proper handling and disposal of hazardous wastes. - It was an amendment to the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965 to address management of nonhazardous and hazardous wastes

Radiation from Human-Made 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 - Topic of debate is nuclear power plants

Septic Systems

- Those that live in unsewered areas (25%) dispose their wastewater using a septic system. - Two major components: septic tank and a buried sand filter or absorption field - Local health departments are in charge of issuing permits, inspecting the system,s, and enforcing state and local regulations regarding the septic systems. - System must be: located in appropriate soil, properly constructed and inspected prior to being buried, and maintained regularly

Aedes triseriatus

- Thrives on environmental mismanagement in north central and eastern US. Called the eastern tree-hole mosquito. - Flourished in water held in discarded automobile and truck tires. 2 billion used tires that are discarded and 2 million m ore that are added to the environment each year. - Transmits LaCrosse encephalitis (arbovirus that produces a serious and fatal disease in children)

Culex Pipiens

- Transmits West Nile virus (WNV) that can cause the West Nile fever, West Nile encephalitis, and West Nile meningitis (the two that are the severe forms of the disease that affect the nervous system). - Encephalitis: inflammation of the brain. - Meningitis: inflammation of the membrane surrounding the brain and spinal cord - Appeared in NY in 199 then is spread westward until it established throughout the country. The lowest incident was in 2000 and the highest was in 2012.

The Food We Eat

- US food supply ranks as one of the safest. Safety is a result fo public health efforts and regulatory actions during the past century. Safer and healthier foods in the US is the 10 greatest achievements in public health in the 20th century - More than 200 known disease are transmitted through food. Food is the vehicle and the agents are the viruses, bacteria, parasites, toxins, metals, and prions. Food borne diseases cause 47.8 million cases of illnesses and 3,037 deaths. Majority of cases are not reported to the CDC. Economic cost of food borne is $78 billion. Healthy foods that become contaminated (farm or factory) can lead to an outbreak of food-borne disease.

Treatment of Water for Domestic Use

- Water is used for agriculture, industry, energy generation, and domestic use - Domestic use: includes water for drinking, cooing, washing dishes and laundry, bathing, toilets, and outdoor use. Makes up 13% of the total water usage. Each resident uses 80 to 100 gallons of water each day. - Rural: get water from untreated private wells (groundwater) Urban: get their water from municipal water treatment plants. 2/3 municipalities use surface water and 1/3 uses groundwater. - Virtually all surface water is polluted and needs to be treated. The treatment of water for domestic use: removing solids through coagulation, flocculation, and filtration, disinfectant is added into the water to kill the remaining viruses, bacteria, algae, and fungi. Then fluoridation. - Municipal water treatment plants is to provide water that is chemicals and bacteriology safe for human consumption. Must be reliable in quantity and quality.

primary pollutants

- air pollutants emanating directly from transportation, power and industrial plants, and refineries - includes carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, and suspended particulate

waterborne disease outbreak (WBDO)

- a disease in which at least two persons experience a similar illness after the ingestion of drinking water or after exposure to water used for recreational purposes and epidemiological evidence implicates water as the probable source of the illness - WBDOs associated with drinking water has decreased but recreational exposure has increased - CDC issues biennial surveillance summaries based on WBDOs reported on the Waterborne Disease and Outbreak Surveillance System - Leading cause of WBDOs associated with recreational water was parasites (67%), bacteria (13%), viruses (7%), and chemicals/toxins (13%). 65 WBDOs associated with drinking water were reported from at least 14 states and Puerto Rico. The leading cause of WBDOs associated with drinking water is the bacterium Legionella. - Waterborne disease outbreaks are traced wither within or outside of the jurisdiction of water utility. 2009-2012 about 77% of WBDOs were associated with community water supplies, 23% non community water bottle water or individual supply. - Largest WBDO reported in the US occurred in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1993. Disease agent was CRYPTOSPORIDIUM PARVUM. Outbreak occurred because a breakdown in the city's water treatment plan.Public health laws that set standards for drinking water and for treated recreational water are a community's first line of defense. Happens more often in developing countries. - Water quality deterioration can be attributed to: population growth, agricultural and manufacturing activities, land use practices, mismanagement of hazardous materials ad deteriorating water treatment and distribution infrastructures

Natural Hazards

- a natural hazard that results in substantial loss of life or property - natural occurring phenomena or events that produce or release energy in amounts that exceed human endurance, causing injury, disease, or death - examples: naturally occurring radiation, geologic activity (earthquakes and volcanoes), and severe weather-driven events (tornadoes, hurricanes, and floods)

radon

- a naturally occurring colorless, tasteless, odorless, radioactive gas formed during the radioactive decay of uranium-238 - number one cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers and second leading cause of lung cancer overall - 21,000 lung cancer deaths each year - Naturally occurring gas that seeps into a home from surrounding soil, rocks, and water and through openings. - Preventable: Should be tested for radon and homeowners can administer test. - More homes with operating radon mitigation systems is the Healthy People Objective 2020

asbestos

- a naturally occurring mineral fiber identified as a Class A carcinogen by the EPA - used as insulation and fireproofing material - harmless if intact and left alone, but when disturbed inhaled airborne fibers can cause health problems

American Red Cross

- a nonprofit, humanitarian organization led by volunteers and guided by its Congressional Charter that provides relief to victims of disasters

sludge

- a semiliquid mixture of solid waste that includes bacteria, viruses, organic matter, toxic metals, synthetic organic chemicals, and solid chemicals - semisolid mixture that includes bacteria viruses organic matter toxic metal, synthetic organic chemicals, and solids - Above the sludge, wastewater that has bacteria and chemicals known as the aqueous layer. On top of this layer is a layer of fats and oils called scum. Layers of sludge and scum are removed and clarified wastewater enters the secondary stage.

sick building syndrome

- a situation in which the air quality in a building produces (nonspecific) generalized signs and symptoms of ill health in building's occupants

hazardous waste

- a solid waste or combination of solid wastes that is dangerous to human health or the environment - requires special management and disposal - Waste is hazardous if it is ignitable, corrosive, reactive, or toxic, or if it is designated hazardous by the EPA. - Designated hazardous wastes found in the by-products of manufacturing and industrial processes (solvents and cleaning fluids), by-products of petroleum refining operations and pesticide manufacturing. Also, batteries mercury-containing instruments and fluorescent light bulbs are universal hazardous wastes. - Electronic waste (e-waste) contains hazardous components like polyvinyl chloride, brominated flame retardants, lead, and mercury. 2013 there was 3.14 million tons of electronics that were discarded. More about it on page 431. - EPA 2013 Toxic Release Inventory 25.63 billion pounds of production related waste were managed.

source reduction

- a waste management approach involving the reduction or elimination of the use of materials that produce an accumulation of solid waste - ex. not buying or using such throwaway products as paper towels and disposable diapers and minimizing packaging associated with groceries and carryout foods

formaldehyde

- a water-soluble gas used in aqueous solutions in hundreds of consumer products - Most ubiquitous VOCs. Widely used chemical. Exposure occurs when it evaporates from wood products (plywood and particle board) in which it is a component of the glue that bind these products together. - found in products like grocery bags, wallpaper, carpet, insulation, wall paneling, and wall board - exposure can cause water eyes, burning in the eyes and throat, and difficulty breathing, and asthma attacks - may be a carcinogen - To reduce: use exterior grade products that emit less formaldehyde, increase ventilation in the home, use dehumidifier and air conditioning to control humidity, and keep the temperature at moderate levels in the home to reduce formaldehyde emissions.

septic tank

- a watertight concrete or fiberglass tank that holds sewage; one of two main parts of a septic system - sewage leaves the home through toilets or drains and goes through the pipe to the septic tank - Wastewater is retained in quiescent conditions for 1 to 2 days where separation of heavier solids and lighter scum from liquid wastewater occurs in the process called sedimentation - liquid portion of wastewater is carried by a pipe to an absorption field - needs to be pumped out 3 to 5 years to remove sludge and prevent overflow, sewage backup to the house, or failure of the absorption field - failure to do so : fecal contamination of both land and water sources and can provide breeding sites for disease transmitting mosquitoes (like the Culex Pipiens - the vector west nile virus)

Sources of Water

- acquire water for domestic, industrial, and agricultural needs from surface water or groundwater - Earth's supply of freshwater available for our use is limited. 0.003% of the Earth's water is available for use by humans and it is too costly to be of practical value.

carcinogen

- agent, usually chemical, which causes cancers

secondary pollutants

- air pollutants formed when primary air pollutants react with sunlight and other atmospheric components to form new harmful compounds - includes nitrogen dioxide, nitric acid, nitrate salts, sulfur trioxide, sulfate salts, sulfuric acid, peroxyacyl nitrates, and ozone - Air pollution acute effects: burning eyes, shortness of breath, and increased incidences of colds, coughs, nose irritation, and other respiratory illnesses (can also lead to death). Chronic effects: chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and increased incidence of bronchial asthma attacks, and increased the risk of lung cancer.

biogenic pollutants

- airborne biological organisms or their particles or gases or other toxic materials that can produce illness - includes: living and nonliving fungi and their toxins, bacteria, viruses, molds, pollens, insect parts, and animal dander - Enter in the body by being inhaled. Triggers allergic reactions, asthma, infectious illnesses (influenza and measles), or release disease producing toxins - symptoms include: sneezing, watery eyes. coughing, shortness of breath, dizziness, lethargy, fever, and digestive problems - children, elderly, and people with breathing problems, allergies, or lung disease are susceptible to airborne biogenic pollutants - To minimize exposure to pollutants: control the relative humidity level (30% to 50%), remove standing water and any wet or water-damaged materials from around the home.

environmental tobacco smoke (ETS)

- also known as secondhand smoke - Tobacco smoke in the environment that is a mixture of mainstream and side stream smoke that can be inhaled by nearby or transient nonsmokers - hundred of toxic agents and more than 40 carcinogens are in secondhand smoke - Harmful agents: CO, NO2, CO2, hydrogen cyanide, formaldehyde, nicotine, and suspended particles - 18% 42 million adult Americans 12 years and older were active cigarette smokers in 2014. So, nonsmokers were exposed to ETS. - ETS classified as human (group A) carcinogen and causes 3,000 lung cancer deaths annually in US nonsmokers.

Air Quality Index (AQI)

- an index that indicates the level of pollution in the air and the associated health risk (tells you how clean or polluted the air is and the health effects) - for five criteria air pollutants regulated the the Clean Air Act - Values: Good Air Quality = 0 and Hazardous air quality = 500. AQI values below 100 is satisfactory and values above 100 are unhealthy. Most sensitive to air pollutants will be effected first.

Sources of Water Pollution water pollution

- any physical or chemical change in water that can harm living organicism or make the water unfit for other uses (like drinking, domestic use, recreation, fishing, industry, agriculture, or transportation) - water pollution falls in two categories: point source and non point sources

Types of Water Pollutants

- biological pollutants (pathogens or undesirable living organism) - nonbiological pollutants (nonliving hazardous materials like chemicals)

volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

- compound that exists as vapor over the normal range of air pressures and temperatures - Acute symptoms: irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract, headaches, dizziness, and memory impairment (some chemicals are known or suspected carcinogens) - Sources: construction materials (insulation paints), personal care products, cleansers and solvents, insecticides and pesticides, electrical equipment, structural components, furnishing, and combustion of wood and kerosene

The Place We Live

- environmental hazards occur because our household and land management practices (like production and mismanagement of our solid waste) - result can be environmental degradation, increase exposure to unsanitary and hazardous materials, and amplification and transmission of vector-borne diseases

registered environmental health specialists (REHSs)

- environmental worker responsible for the inspection of restaurants, retail food outlets, public housing, and other sites to ensure compliance with public health codes (like food service and food vending machines) - also known as sanitarians - hired by local health departments - public health officers enforce food safety laws to protect he health of the community by reducing the incidence of FBDOs - Consumers can reduce their risk of food borne illness by dafe food-handling practices and avoiding consumption of certain unsafe foods. Unsafe food: unpasteurized milk and milk products and raw or undercooked oysters, eggs, ground beef, pork, fish, poultry

mold

- fungi that spread and reproduce by making spores: grow best in warm, damp, and humid conditions and can cause respiratory difficulties for sensitive people - allergy reactions and respiratory difficulties like asthma - Preventable: remove damp or wet furnishing or building materials preventing condensation, and maintaining indoor humidity between 30% to 60% - use venting damp air out of the home, using air conditioners, dehumidifiers, and bathroom exhaust fans

industrial smog

- haze or fog formed primarily by sulfur dioxide and suspended particles from the burning of coal, also known as gray smog

photochemical smog

- haze or fog formed when air pollutants interact with sunlight - brown smog

ionizing radiation

- high-energy radiation that can knock an electron out of orbit, creating an ion, and can thereby damage living cells and tissues (UV, radiation, gamma rays, X-rays, alpha and beta particles) - If damage is too severe or widespread it can turn into radiation burns.

Nonbiological Pollutants of Water

- include heat, inorganic chemicals (lead copper and arsenic), organic chemicals (industrial solvents like TCE or DDT, herbicides like atrazine, and speciality chemicals PCBs and dioxin TCDD), radioactive contaminants - These pollutants are presented in high concentration and easy to identify - In 2002 pollutants that have been detected in our waterways and tasing health concerns: endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) - No governmental regulation or guidance for the disposal fo pharmaceuticals meant for personal use. We should dispose of unused or unwanted medication in an environmentally sound manner. Call or disposal in the household trash is better than in the sewage system. - waterborne disease outbreak (WBDO)

Natural Environmental Events

- includes geologic activity and weather driven events - Results in physical and psychological health consequences: immediate loss of life and destruction of homes and businesses, unavailability of clean water, food, and sanitation. Longer term consequences can continue for days or months after the event - Like homes that are flooded have high level of mold that led to respiratory problems and volcanoes can lead to acute respiratory problems/nasal irritation and discharge/throat irritation/and sore throat/coughing/and uncomfortable breathing. Floods can lead to mosquitoes that leads to the outbreaks of vector borne disease - failure for a community, state, or nation to provide the needs can exacerbate the extent of human suffering

District of Columbia

- met the American Lung Association's "Smoke free Challenge" to pass comprehensive legislation prohibiting smoking in all public places and workplaces. - 24 states earned an A grade for smoke free air laws that protect the public from ETS - Some states have preemptive laws that impede the passage and enforcement of stronger local tobacco control laws

Skin Cancers

- more than one million new cases of skin cancer, the rate has been increasing about 3% per year - Most of the cases are highly curable basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas (the most common forms of cancer). The most serious and least common skin cancer is malignant melanoma. - Melanoma: has the ability to grow and spread quickly but it is curable if treated and discovered early - Morbidity and mortality rates can be lowered by reducing the exposure to UV radiation or early detection and treatment. Reduce the exposure by staying out of the Sun or by covering the skin with clothing and commercial sunscreens. Look at the UV index where 1 (low danger) and 11 (extreme danger). - Sunscreens absorb, reflect, and scatter UV light and reduces the amount the reaches the skin. - Can also get early diagnosis and prompt treatment. Do a monthly skin self-examination. Basal and squamous cell carcinomas are pale, waxlike, peely nodule or red, scaly, sharply outlined patch. - Reduce solar radiation: avoid excess direct Sun exposure and tanning beds

criteria polluants

- most pervasive air pollutant and those of greatest concern in the US - include sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, ground level ozone, respirable particulate matter, and lead - levels of the six pollutants is monitored in the ambient (outdoor) air to determine if and when they exceed the NAAQSs.

Psychological and sociological hazards

- overpopulation and crowding, hate crimes, wars, and acts of terrorism - can be related to the population growth indirectly or directly

Guidelines for preventing food borne illnesses

- page 428 - Clean: Wash Hands and Surfaces often - Separate: Don't Cross-Contaminate - Cook to Proper Temperature - Chill: Refrigerate Promptly

point source pollution

- pollution that can be traced to a single identifiable source - identifiable sources that discharge pollutants into water (like pipe, ditch, or culvert). - ex. pollutants that include release of pollutants from a factory or sewage treatment plant. - Easy to identify, control, and treat

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation

- radiant energy with wavelengths of 0 to 400 nanometers - UV radiation between 290 and 33 nanometers are called UV-B that causes the most of harm to humans. - Most of the UV radiation from the Sun is screened out by the layer of ozone in the stratosphere. The erosion of the ozone layer lead to the increasing levels of UV-B radiation

municipal solid waste (MSW)

- remaining 2 to 5% - waste generated by individual households, businesses, and institutions located within municipalities - 2014 we produced average of 4.40 pounds per person of MSW - Major categories: paper, yard waste, food scraps, rubber and textiles, wood, metals, glass, plastics, and other. Paper makes up the largest percentage (27%), food scraps (14.6%), yard trimmings (13.5%), and plastics (12.8%).

Solid and Hazardous Waste solid waste

- solid refuse from households agriculture, and business; garbage, refuse, sludge, and other discarded solid materials - 95 to 98% of solid waste traced to agriculture, mining and gas and oil production, and industry

Indoor Air Pollutants

- sources include building and insulation materials, biogenic pollutants, combustion by-products, home furnishings, and cleaning agents, radon gas, and tobacco smoke - asbestos, biogenic pollutants, combustion by-products, volatile organic compounds, formaldehyde - radon, mold, carcinogen, ETS, secondhand smoke, mainstream and side stream, and passive smoking

National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)

- standards created by the EPA for allowable concentration levels of outdoor air pollutants

pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs)

- synthetic chemicals found in everyday consumer health care products and cosmetics - Includes prescription and over the counter drugs, cosmetics (soaps and shampoos), fragrances, sunscreens, diagnostic agents, biopharmaceuticals - Detected in water supplies around the world. - They are flushed down in toils and washed down our drains and transported to our wastewater treatment plants, where they are discharged, into our rivers and streams. Exposure to low concentrations of PPCPs on humans provides margin of safety for humans.

Wastewater Treatment wastewater

- the aqueous mixture that remains after water has been used or contaminated by humans - Includes liquid waste or sewage. Consists about 99.9% water and 0.1% of suspended and dissolved solids. Solids: human feces, soap, paper, garbage, grindings (food parts), and other items that are put into wastewater systems from homes, schools, commercial buildings, hotels/motels, hospital, industrial plants, and other facilities connected to the sanitary sewer system.

watershed

- the area of land from which all of the water that is under it or drains from it goes into the same place and drains in one point - ex. Mississippi River - Approach emphasizes protecting health waters and restoring impaired ones to protect human and environmental health

combustion (incineration)

- the burning of solid wastes - second major method of refuse disposal - Clean Air Act 1970: restricted the rights of individuals and municipalities to burn refuse because most could not comply with the strict emission standards. 12% of all municipal waste is combusted. 86 incinerators are waste to energy incinerators or energy recovery plants (they are able to convert some of the heat generated from the incineration process into steam and electricity). - Combustion reduces weight of solids by 75% and volume of solid waste by 90% - Advantages: Resulting waste will take up less sanitary landfill space because the incinerator is located closer to the source of the solid waste and transportation costs may be less than for landfills - Disadvantages: startup costs are high because commercial incinerators are expensive, nitrogen oxides sulfur dioxide and other toxic air pollutants are produced, and ash may be too toxic to place in sanitary landfill

recycling

- the collecting, sorting, and processing of materials that would otherwise be considered waste into raw materials for manufacturing new products, and the subsequent use of those new products - diverts items like paper, glass, plastic, and metals, from the waste stream and conserves sanitary landfill space - US recycles about 34% of MSW. US recycle rates are low compare to European countries. Like Austria that composts 60% of its household solid waste.

Solid waste management (integrated waste management)

- the collection, transportation, and disposal of solid waste (involves collection, source reduction, product reuse and recycling, treatment, and disposal - Source reduction is the most desirable. Second best is waste management (to reuse or recycle the waste).

absorption field

- the element of a septic system in which the liquid portion of waste is distributed - a system of trenches (dugout channels) where perforated pipes are surrounded by gravel - wastewater trickles through gravel, films of aerobic microorganism develop and feed on this liquid wastewater; which causes decomposition of organic waste - treated wastewater then infiltrates though soil profile into the groundwater

US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

- the federal agency primarily responsible for setting, maintaining, and enforcing environmental standards or authorizing and overseeing state agencies that enforce established standard - oversees state programs or enforces standards in states where no state programs exist or is inadequate - sets limits on how much of a pollutant can be in the air anywhere in the US

Clean Air Act (CAA)

- the federal law that provides the government with authority to address interstate air pollution - Created because steady deterioration of air quality in the 1950s and 60s. Regulation was based on voluntary compliance. - 1970 amendments: emission standards for automobiles, emission standards for new industries, and ambient air quality standards for urban areas - 1990 amendments: set deadlines for establishing emission standards for 190 toxic chemicals, put tax on toxic chemical emissions, and tightened emission standards for automobiles. - Auto industry lobbyists did not want to increase the corporate average fuel efficiency (CAFE) but high competition and higher fuel prices forced automakers to begin to make more fuel-efficient models. US relies on pollution clean up and not prevention.

Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

- the federal law that regulates the safety of public drinking water - Quality of drinking water is regulated by the SWDA - Implements actions that protect drinking water and it sources - Under this, the EPA its national standards to limit the levels of contaminants in drinking water and oversees the states, localities, and water suppliers who implement those standards. - Maximum contaminant level (MCL): national standard for each contaminant that is set at a level allowed in drinking water to protect public health. 87 MCLs are implemented and enforced. List of contaminant includes: inorganic chemicals, microorganisms, disinfectants and disinfectants by products and radionuclide. EPA periodically releases a list of unregulated contaminants

passive smoking

- the inhalation of ETS by nonsmokers - involuntary inhalation of ETS by nonsmokers

Radiation

- the process in which energy is emitted as particles or waves - Low energy radiation (long wavelength): heat, sound, and visible light. - High energy (ionizing) tradition (shorter wavelengths): UV light, X-rays, and gamma rays, or particles like alpha or beta particles - ionizing radiation - radiation sickness: nausea, weakness, hair loss, skin burns, diminished organ function, premature aging, cancer, or death

wastewater treatment

- the process of improving the quality of wastewater (sewage) to the point that it can be released into a body of water without seriously disrupting the aquatic environment, causing health problems in humans, or causing nuisance conditions - if not, can cause waterborne disease or cause nuisance conditions - most municipalities and companies have wastewater treatment plants that have primary and secondary treatment processes

nuclear power plants

- they are stations that generate 20% of our nation's electricity and fit comfortably into the nation's electricity grid (produce little air pollution) - The produce large volumes of radioactive waste, pose significant environmental and human health risks should failure occur, and are costly to build, operate, and decommission. - Contamination of the environment caused by the release of nuclear materials. - Health effects resulted from 1986 meltdown in Chernobyl. Lead to high exposure of radiation. Increase in the incidence of thyroid cancer and leukemia, cataracts, CVD, mental health effects, and reproductive and hereditary effects. Another example can be the Fukushima Prefecture nuclear plant

CDC's Division of Vector Borne Diseases

- unit of National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Disease. - DVBD is located in Colorado and conducts and funds research on vector borne diseases, maintains surveillance of vector-borne diseases, assists states in investigating vector borne disease outbreaks and assists other countries with vector borne problems

groundwater

- water located under the surface of the ground - subsurface water or water that infiltrates into the soil - groundwater that is not absorbed by the roots move downward until it reaches the zone of soil completely saturated with water known as aquifers

global economy and global health

- we are all in it together; we are one big community

ozone

An inorganic molecule considered to be a pollutant in the atmosphere because it harms human tissue, but considered beneficial in the stratosphere because it screens out UV radiation. - single most dangerous air pollutant - Breathing ozone (low levels): chest pain, coughing, throat irritation, congestion, bronchitis, emphysema, asthma, and reduced lung function. Repeated exposure: permanently scar lung tissues. - in many urban and suburban areas

Environmental hazards

Factors or conditions in the environment that increase the risk of human injury, disease, or death.

fluoridnation

Helps prevent dental decay. Main reason for the decline in dental caries (tooth decay) since the 1950s. 50% to 70% reduction rates. Reduction among adolescents was 25%. By 1992, 144 million people were receiving fluoridated water at 31 cents a year. Savings are attributable to fluoridation from 1979to 1989 (39 billion) which is $53 per person each year

carrying capacity

Maximum population of a particular species that a given habitat can support over a given period.

surface water

Precipitation that does not infiltrate the ground or return to the atmosphere by evaporation; the water in streams, rivers, and lakes and reservoirs

terrorism

When acts are committed not against individuals but against populations or with the intention of influencing government or policy, they fall into terrorism. IT is a sociological hazard because it affects entire societies and psychological hazard because it produces fear, stress, and hysteria and endangers mental health.

vector

a living organism, usually an insect or other arthropod that can transmit a communicable disease agent to a susceptible host (like mosquito or tick) examples of vectors and diseases they transmit include mosquitoes, fleas, lice, and ticks (page 436)

natural disaster

a natural hazard that results in substantial loss of life or property

lead

a naturally occurring mineral element found throughout the environment and used in large quantities for industrial products, including batteries, pipes, solder, paints, and pigments - found in soil, dust, air, paint, old painted toys and furniture, water pipes made of lead or solders with lead, foods and liquids, or contaminated private wells - 24 million housing units that have dangerous levels of lead based paint and 4 million of children live in those. - EPA: 40 million Americas live in homes built before 1930 (copper began to replace lead in water pipes) are drinking water containing more than the legally permissible level of lead (15 parts per billion) . - Children are at the greatest risk for lead poisoning. 50% of lead ingested by children is absorbed, compared to the 10% in adults. Pregnant women and fetus have equivalent blood lead levels (BLLs). - Health problems to exposure of lead: anemia, birth defects, bone damage, depression of neurological and psychological functions, kidney damage, learning disabilities, miscarriages, and sterility. - Since 1976, BLLs in children were greater than 10 mg/dL has decreased from 88% to less than 1% in 2010. Between 1997 and 2009 percentage of children with high BLLs declined from 7.61% to 0.52%. Children with the highest BLLs are non Hispanic African American children. - Major source of lead exposure = dust and chips of lead paint in their homes. And also household water because of older infrastructure or inadequate water treatment. For adults that major source of lead intake is occupational exposure through inhalation. - Solution to prevent lead poisoning: education, regulation, and prudent behavior. Healthy People 2020 objective is to reduce BLLs in all children. Between 2007 and 2012 87,601 children <5 years of age had blood lead levels greater than 10 mg/dL and 2016 there was 500,000 children ages 1 to 5 have BLLs greater than action level of 5 mg/dL.

non-target organisms

all other susceptible organisms in the environment, for which a pesticide was not intended - ex. weeds kills flowers and plants and rat poison can harm dogs

nonpoint source pollution

all pollution that occurs through the runoff, seepage, or falling of pollutants into the water where the source is difficult or impossible to identify - Ex. runoff of water from cities, highways, and farms resulting from rain events (stormwater runoff), seepage of leaches from land fills and acid rain - greater problem because it is difficult to track the source of pollution and control it - not a common practice to capture and treat urban stormwater runoff from streets - increase urbanization and growing proportion of land with concrete makes it hard for the rainwater to infiltrate the land surface and therefore it is collected by storm and sewer lines and dumped without treatment

vector borne disease outbreak (VBDO)

an occurrence of an unexpectedly large number of cases of disease caused by an agent transmitted by insects or other arthropods - Most concern is the northern house mosquito CULEX PIPIENS. Important vector of St. Lous encephalitis (SLE) in eastern US. California the SLE virus is transmitted by the CULEX TARSALIS (proliferates in mismanaged irrigation water). - SLE is a disease where older people are more susceptible. Greater risk liven unscreened houses without air conditioning.

pest

any organism - a multi-celled animal or plant, or a microbe - that has an adverse effect on human interests ex. weeds in beatable garden, termites in the house, and mold on the show curtains

greenhouse gases

atmospheric gases, principally carbon dioxide, chloroflurocarbons, ozone, methane, water vapor, and nitrous oxide, that are transparent to visible light but absorb infrared radiation

Leachates

liquids created when water mixes with wastes and removes soluble constituents from them by percolation - Must be located and constructed so that leaches that the liquids that drain wastes to the bottom of a land fill do not contaminate the groundwater. EPA says that they eventually leak.

aquifers

porous, water-saturated layers of underground bedrock, sand, and gravel that can yield economically significant amounts of water

Brownfields

property where reuse is complicated by the presence of hazardous substances from prior use - contaminated properties where expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of hazardous substances, pollutant, or contaminant that can pose as a threat to health - cleaning up and reinvesting take development pressures off underdeveloped open land, increase local tax bases, facilitate job growth, and improve and protect both the environment and human health

pesticide

synthetic chemicals developed and manufactured for the purpose of killing pests - used in agriculture where pest destroy about 37% (estimated loss of $122 billion) of the food crop before it reaches to the marketplace - agriculture chemicals are needed for farm production - most of the pesticide kills a range of organisms , called broad range pesticides - type of pesticides on page 429 - Two most common pesticide: herbicides (pesticides that kills plants) and insecticides (pesticides that kills insects). Account for 46% and 10% of the pesticides applied for agriculture. From these two, the most human pesticide poisonings occur in young children and workers who apply the pest. Poisonings occur when pesticides are consumed orally, inhaled, or when they come in contact with the skin (most children consume them orally and adult poisoning occurs because of careless practice). - Adult poisoning: eating food without washing hands after handling with pesticides, mouth siphoning, applying pesticides while skin is exposed, spilling pesticides on body. Low concentrations of pesticides through handing and ingestion of food. - Workers: happens with agricultural workers fail to follow directions on the pesticide label - Pesticides depend on the pesticide type, dose, route, and duration exposure and the characteristics of the person exposed. Exposures can be acute (single high level exposure) or chronic (repeated exposure over an extended period of time). Signals can be headaches, weakness, rashes, fatigue, and dizziness OR respiratory problems, convulsions, coma, and death OR (chronic) cancer, mutations, and birth defects

target organism

target pest, the organism (or pest) for which a pesticide is applied

Dioxin (TCDD)

the by product of improper incineration of paper products and chlorinated plastics

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

the nation's official emergency response agency - Mission: support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capabilities to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards - Takes whole community approach in providing resources for preparing for, responding to, and recovery from all hazards that threaten the stability and sustainability of communities. - agency within the US Dept of Homeland Security. - Provides programs, grants, and resources (both written and personnel) to achieve its mission and manages federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident - works with state and local emergency management agencies, other federal agencies, and numerous nongovernmental organizations like the American Red Cross

composting

the natural, aerobic biodegradation of organic plant and animal matter to compost (can be done easily at home) - composting conserves precious landfill space

sanitation

the practice of establishing and maintaining healthy or hygienic conditions in the environment

mainstream smoke

tobacco smoke inhaled and exhaled by the smoker

sidestream smoke

tobacco smoke that comes off the end of burning tobacco products

runoff

water that flows over the land surfaces (including paved surfaces), typically from precipitation