To join the Collaborative on Health and the Environment (CHE) and the LDDI Working Group, please complete the form at http://www.healthandenvironment.org/roles/register?&phase=registerform. Be sure to mark that you want to join the Learning and Developmental Disabilities Initiative Working Group at the bottom of the application.
1) LDDI's National Conference 2007, "Priming for Prevention: An Ecological Approach to Research, Education and Policy" will be held May 10-11, 2007, at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta. Former US Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher, among other distinguished speakers, will be presenting at this conference. A registration form is now available on our website: http://www.iceh.org/LDDImeetings.html
2) LDDI has published two new Practice Prevention columns on baby care products and lindane. These columns are posted with our 13 other Practice Prevention columns at http://www.iceh.org/LDDIpublications.html. These columns offer many useful suggestions to help you and others protect children from harmful exposures to toxics.
For information about additional events, please visit our searchable calendar of events at http://www.iceh.org/calendar.html.
February 1 - 2, 2007
Washington, DC
at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center
The conference theme is "Integrating Environment and Human Health." Over 850 scientists, policymakers, businesspeople, and civil society representatives will explore the linkages between the environment and human health. The conference will address the many essential roles the environment plays on our well-being as well as the multi-dimensional relationships between human health and environmental components, which may have far-reaching consequences for society. Over 120 experts will speak in plenary sessions, symposia, and topical breakout sessions.
Website: http://www.NCSEonline.org/2007conference/
Contact: conference2007@ncseonline.org
February 8, 2007
9:00 a.m. Pacific / Noon Eastern
Jointly hosted by CHE, Health Care Without Harm, and Physicians for Social Responsibility, this call will feature special guest Cindy Parker, MD, MPH, of the Center for Public Health Preparedness at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. For this call Dr. Parker's presentation will first review the latest scientific consensus on climate change and human contributions to it, and then explore the broad array of human health impacts expected or suspected -- these include not only infectious disease risks, but also increased human risks from extreme weather events, from drought and water shortages, and from changes to agriculture and food systems. To join this call and receive dial-in information, please RSVP as described below. A copy of the presentation will be made available to registered participants prior to the call.
Contact: Julia Varshavsky, Julia@HealthandEnvironment.org
February 8 - 10, 2007
Los Angeles, California
at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel
The 2007 conference will bring together partners who work toward our common goal of creating safe, healthy, and livable communities for all.
Website: http://www.newpartners.org/index.html
Contact: Vallia Dahdouh, 916-448-1198 x327 or vdahdouh@lgc.org
February 11 - 13, 2007
Washington, DC
The 2007 Forum will provide two days of advocacy training leading up to a final day of lobbying members of Congress on Capitol Hill. Forum attendees will learn about PAN's 2007 legislative agenda and see first-hand the power of advocacy and the issues important to the Parkinson's community. The forum will provide a unique opportunity to educate attendees on the latest scientific advances in Parkinson's disease research, interact with others in the Parkinson's community and discover skills that you can take back with you to better convey the message that we will not stop fighting for a cure. The annual gathering of our advocates and leaders in the Parkinson's community will give those new to PAN the chance to learn from those who are active in grassroots activities.
Website: http://www.parkinsonsaction.org/content/view/267/10/
The American Public Health Association is announcing the Call for Abstracts for the 2007 Annual Meeting to be held November 3-7, in Washington, DC. The theme of the meeting is "Politics, Policy & Public Health." Abstracts are encouraged in all areas of public health and also that focus on the Annual Meeting theme. Abstracts should be no more than 250 words and must include learning objectives. All abstracts must be submitted online. An online form is available at http://www.apha.org/meetings. Authors do not have to be a member of APHA to submit an abstract. The deadline for submission of abstracts range from February 5 to February 9, 2007, depending on the Section, SPIG or Caucus to which you wish to submit.
by Amy Quinton, New Hampshire Public Radio
January 30, 2007
http://www.nhpr.org/node/12220
Article Summary: Lead is a heavy metal that can be disastrous to a child's health -- a fact that has been known since the early 1900's. By 1909, France, Belgium and Austria had banned the use of lead paint inside homes. America also banned lead paint -- in 1978. But almost three decades later, New Hampshire still confronts about 250 cases of lead poisoning each year. Such paint is not the only source of the metal, but today, it is the most widespread. One group that has been hit hardest by lead poisoning is newly arrived refugees from Africa. African refugees are a tiny fraction of the Manchester population, but they account for a full third of the lead poisoning cases in the city. Sue Gagnon, with Manchester's Public Health Department, says that's because their malnourished bodies -- presenting with iron deficiency anemia -- soak up lead like sponges. Many homes built prior to 1978 have lead-based paint. If any of that flakes, or if lead dust is stirred up in a doorway or window, a child can become poisoned. Sometimes lead is released when an older home is refurbished and renovated, but most of the lead paint problem is found in lower income housing. Many property owners simply can't afford to remove the lead themselves.
by Kevin Schofield, Edinburgh Scotsman
January 30, 2007
http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=154472007
BY ANY measure, the rise in autism rates in the past 20 years has been astronomical. Pre-1990 estimates put the number at about four or five cases per 10,000 people. But a study published last year in the medical journal the Lancet suggested that the condition now affects one person in every hundred. Such a huge surge has inevitably led to much speculation about the cause, but there has not been a definitive answer.
Article Summary: Traditionalists insist that autism is a genetic condition and that the increase in cases is due to the medical profession's better diagnosing. But others say that, while that may explain part of the rise, there must be other reasons given the enormous scale of the increase. This argument appeared to be given some weight in 1998 when the Lancet published research linking autism with the triple measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. That paper by Dr Andrew Wakefield has since been discredited, but the effects of his claims are still felt today.
Dr. Iain McClure, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist based at the Vale of Leven hospital in Alexandria, is a specialist in autism assessment and intervention and subscribes to the view that there is no evidence linking MMR and autism. He warned: "Parents are worried about this, and if parents are worried, scientists and clinicians need to pay attention to that worry and not be seen as dismissing it, because then people start to suspect that there is some kind of cover-up." As chairman of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network's (SIGN) forthcoming guideline on autism spectrum disorder (ASD), he has also spent the past three years examining all the available evidence on screening, assessment and clinical interventions in ASD, as regards children and young people. The research will lead to the publication in March of guidance for medical practitioners involved in the treatment of autism. "The purpose of the guidance we are publishing is to make sure that clinicians are using the best evidence available and the best interventions are being used for children and young people with autism." These interventions can take the form of drugs to address the young person's behavior or therapy to improve their communication skills. Dr. McClure stressed that doctors were reluctant to take the pharmacological route unless all other options had been explored.
by Samantha Young, Associated Press, San Jose Mercury News
January 29, 2007
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/northern_california/16575140.htm
California homebuilders on Monday won the right to use less-expensive plastic water piping instead of copper, ending a two-decade-long battle against groups that warned of plastic's potential health hazards. Developers called the decision by the California Building Standards Commission a victory for consumers because it will reduce plumbing costs in new homes and when doing retrofits.
Article Summary: Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride, otherwise known as CPVC piping, is a sturdy material that -- unlike most plastics -- holds up even when filled with hot water. That makes it an ideal substitute for the metal pipes traditionally used in homes. It also costs several thousands dollars less in a typical home than copper piping. But environmental concerns and fire hazards prompted state regulators to ban its use in drinking-water lines throughout the state. Environmental and consumer groups have argued that chemicals in the type of plastic piping preferred by the industry are dangerous, leaching into the soil and contaminating water that eventually runs out the faucet. Labor groups had sought to protect workers from the fumes given off by the glue used to fit the pipes together, while fire officials warned of the toxic fumes CPVC emits when it burns. The regulations adopted unanimously Monday by the 11-member commission are expected to be made final early next year as part of an update to the state building code. They will give builders the option to install the cheaper plastic pipes anywhere in the state.
by John Richardson, Portland [Maine] Press Herald
January 29, 2007
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/state/070129dust.html
Maine may become one of the first states to crack down on a common flame retardant chemical that is found in household dust and, according to researchers and state officials, may be affecting how children's brains develop. The chemical, known as deca-BDE, is the last of a group of brominated flame retardants that were added to TV sets, computers, furniture and other consumer goods starting in the 1970s. Two others, penta-BDE and octa-BDE, were banned by the Legislature in 2004 and have since been taken off the market because of potential toxic effects. Maine's Department of Environmental Protection issued a report to the Legislature last week calling for a phaseout of deca in residential products such as the plastic casings on many televisions. A handful of other states, including Washington, also are considering bans or phaseouts. The chemical industry, however, is fighting the efforts, saying alternatives may not provide the same fire safety benefits and could end up being more dangerous to human health.
Article Summary: The report says evidence continues to grow that household dust is a collector of potentially toxic chemicals. Scientists say deca leaches out of the TV sets and other electronic products and attaches to dust. Deca is believed to enter people's bodies when they breathe in or eat traces of dust, as well as through food containing residues of the chemical, health experts said. It also has been found in the breast milk that mothers feed their babies. The deca compound has been considered safer than the other bromine flame retardants because it is a bigger, less soluble molecule. While the DEP report cites "increasing recognition" that the compound can break down into smaller forms, Kyte said that has not yet been proven. Vincent Markowski, a lead researcher and an associate professor of psychology at USM, said the state-financed pilot study is one of the first to raise questions about deca's toxic effects on humans. To conduct the study, the USM research team fed varying doses of deca to newborn mice, simulating what a nursing human baby might receive from its mother. Mice that ate deca developed reflexes later, were slower to develop grip strength and were more likely to be hyperactive than those that didn't eat deca. The chemical seemed to affect males more than females. A representative for chemical manufacturers defended deca's safety and said the industry is eager to see more details and evaluate the USM research. He also argued that alternatives are unlikely to be as effective at preventing fires. Research by the DEP found that there are safer alternatives to meet flammability standards for TV sets and other products, according to Commissioner David Littell.
by Tom Meersman, Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune
January 28, 2007
http://www.startribune.com/462/story/963411.html
The widening discoveries of groundwater contamination from chemicals once manufactured by 3M has intensified concerns about the safety of drinking water used by thousands in the east metro.
Article Summary: In the next two weeks, state investigators will extend their search by taking samples from both city and private residential wells, as well as some that serve institutions such as businesses, churches and schools. The state health and environmental officials, as well as 3M, are trying to understand how the pollution moves underground and where else it might show up. The pollution is from a family of compounds called perfluorochemicals (PFCs), which were used in nonstick cookware, stain-resistant carpets and fabrics and other products. Two of the chemicals, which have been linked to thyroid, liver and developmental problems in animal studies, have turned up in private and public wells. The likely sources are the three landfills that 3M used to dispose of PFC production wastes from 1956 to 1974. The company also disposed of PFCs intermittently near its Cottage Grove manufacturing plant but stopped the practice in 1974, Nelson said, when 3M began destroying all PFC wastes in an incinerator.
by Marla Cone, Los Angeles Times
January 28, 2007
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-fish28jan28,1,5225551.story
Many fish caught off Los Angeles County still contain extremely high levels of DDT, a sign that anglers and consumers remain at risk and that the ocean's ecosystem may be far from recovery 35 years after the pesticide was banned. Newly released data from a federal survey indicate that fish caught in the area contained the world's highest-known DDT concentrations.
Article Summary: The data, collected primarily in 2002, offer the most comprehensive look at the scope of contamination from a 100-ton deposit of DDT that still covers several square miles of the ocean floor decades after the pesticide flowed into county sewers beginning in the late 1940s. The data from the federal survey by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency suggest that there has been no improvement since the late 1980s, when the last regional fish survey was conducted. In response to the new federal findings, the state's environmental health agency is reevaluating the risks of eating locally caught fish, which could result in updates to a health advisory and a commercial fishing ban that have been in effect since 1991. Fish from local waters are often eaten by recreational anglers and subsistence fishermen, who catch them from piers and boats. Some highly contaminated white croaker is still showing up in a handful of Asian markets in Los Angeles and Orange counties.
Banned in the United States in 1972, DDT is classified as a probable human carcinogen and has been linked to liver disease, reproductive damage and altered hormones in lab animals and wildlife. So much DDT remains in bald eagles on Santa Catalina Island that their chicks die unless the weakened eggs are removed from the island to hatch.
from BBC News
January 26, 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6298909.stm
Article Summary: Research by Professor Vivette Glover of Imperial College London found stress caused by arguments with or violence by a partner was particularly damaging. High levels of the stress hormone cortisol crossing the placenta correlated with harmful effects on the fetal brain. Babies exposed to the highest levels of cortisol during their development had lower IQs at 18 months. The same infants were also more likely to be anxious and fearful, according to Dr. Glover. Maternal stress increases the risk of a range of problems, including doubling the risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), for example. Dr. David Coghill, senior lecturer and honorary consultant in child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of Dundee, cautioned against undue concern: "We are talking about here is extremely high levels of stress and distress" in the study.
by Patricia Anstett, Detroit Free Press
January 26, 2007
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007701260322
More than 500 companies have signed agreements to eliminate potentially unsafe ingredients in their cosmetic and body care products, a national health and environmental coalition said Thursday. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics requires companies to meet standards, now in place in Europe, to ban chemicals linked to birth defects, cancer and other health problems. Among those to sign the agreements are the Body Shop and Burt's Bees manufacturers. Names of the companies signing the agreement can be found at http://www.safecosmetics.org/companies/signers.cfm.
by Hiawatha Bray, Boston Globe
January 26, 2007
http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2007/01/26/cambridge_considers_nanotech_curbs/
The Cambridge City Council is considering a law to regulate the use of super-small nanoparticles in research and manufacturing. If the council decides to act, it will make Cambridge the second city in the United States, after Berkeley, Calif., to regulate nanotechnology.
Article Summary: According to council member Henrietta Davis, the aim is not to stifle nano-based businesses, which are expected to be a big part of new industry in Cambridge. The efforts in Cambridge and Berkeley underscore growing concern about health and environmental risks from nanoparticles, which are used in an increasing number of manufactured goods. Certain materials, such as carbon, acquire unusual and useful properties when fabricated into particles of 100 nanometers or smaller. Carbon nanotubes, for example, can be used to make extremely strong but flexible materials, and are turning up in bicycle frames and bullet-resistant T-shirts. But these materials also behave differently when they are reduced to tiny particles, and there has been little research into their effects on living organisms, if inhaled or ingested, or their effect on the environment. The Environmental Protection Agency last year said it would regulate nanosilver -- super-small silver particles used as a disinfecting agent in shoe liners and washing machine tubs. There's no explicit EPA regulation covering nanosilver particles, but the agency concluded that existing pesticide regulations could be applied to the material. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is studying whether exposure to nanoparticles poses a risk to factory workers. A nano-industry executive countered that Adding a new layer of regulation will only burden businesses with extra costs and legal hassles.
January 24, 2007
http://www.greenseal.org/newsroom/pr012407.cfm
Green Seal, a national non-profit organization, announces the beginning of a comprehensive review and revision of GS-37, its environmental standard for institutional and industrial cleaning products, and invites all interested stakeholders to actively participate. The review and revision of GS-37 will be managed by Green Seal with the help of an executive committee. Green Seal develops its environmental standards in an open and transparent process. The public will have an opportunity to comment when the standard is proposed for public review. Stakeholders will also have the opportunity, through a representative stakeholders committee, to provide input throughout the process, including scoping, drafting of the proposed revised standard, and addressing issues raised in the public review. All stakeholders or interested parties who want to be more actively involved in the review process of GS-37 should send an e-mail to Green Seal with their full contact information, including their organization or occupation, by February 15, 2007, at GS37@utk.edu.
by Scott Streater, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
January 24, 2007
http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/business/16539249.htm
TXU Corp., which has been sharply criticized by clean-air advocates over its proposal to build 11 coal-fired power plants, is moving forward on a plan that would dramatically cut pollution from its four largest power plants, a move that should improve the region's air quality. The Dallas-based energy company is negotiating with state regulators on a binding agreement that would require TXU, over the next four years, to add pollution controls at the four plants to chemically change ozone-forming pollutants into harmless water vapor.
Article Summary: The agreement could cut the amount of ozone-producing emissions at each plant by at least half and should aid regional efforts to improve air quality and bring the nine-county region into compliance with federal ground-level ozone standards by a 2010 deadline. The agreement would also mandate pollution controls that would significantly cut emissions of toxic mercury at each plant. The additional pollution controls are part of a promise by TXU to cut pollution companywide by 20 percent in exchange for permission from the state to build 11 coal-fired power plants in East and Central Texas. But the proposed agreement would require the company to add the pollution controls regardless of whether the state approves TXU's $10 billion plan to build the plants. The goal is to complete the work by 2011, the company said.
by Peter N. Spotts, Christian Science Monitor
January 24, 2007
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0124/p03s03-uspo.html
The nation's new program to regulate mercury may be short-lived. Several draft bills in Congress -- as well as a suit in federal court -- are challenging the Bush administration's mercury pollution program, which took effect last year. A key reason, they charge, is that the plan's emissions-trading scheme -- which has worked to curb other pollutants that spread far and wide -- doesn't work for mercury, which accumulates locally as well as spreading over long distances.
Article summary: Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are preparing bills that would tackle the toxic pollutant by reducing mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants by 90 percent, rather than the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) target of 70 percent. The bills also would set up a nationwide monitoring network to track airborne mercury and its effects on the environment. Three major scientific studies published during the past several months have added urgency to legislative efforts. The research indicates that airborne mercury is far more likely than pollutants such as sulfur dioxide to drop back to earth close to its source, generating "hot spots" of contamination and accumulating in the food chain. The research also is cited in a lawsuit 16 states and a handful of environmental groups have filed with the US Court of Appeals in Washington. The studies:
[Editor's note: See a related article about attempts to implement an emissions-trading system in Texas: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-txu_24bus.ART.State.Edition1.1cc05b6.html.]
by Richard L. Hill, Portland Oregonian
January 24, 2007
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/news/1169612728115700.xml&coll=7
Article Summary: In the most widespread survey of mercury in the nation's streams, four Corvallis researchers with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Oregon State University sampled more than 2,700 fish in Oregon, Washington and 10 other Western states. They found detectable -- and in some cases, high -- amounts of mercury in every fish sampled from 626 randomly selected rivers and streams that flow nearly 190,000 miles. Although they found only a few fish with high enough mercury levels that could pose a risk to people who eat them frequently, the scientists suggested that consumers -- especially pregnant women and young children -- follow federal guidelines that limit intake of fish known to contain mercury. They, as well as federal officials, recommend calling state and county agencies for any advisories issued on locally caught fish. The highest mercury concentrations were primarily in larger fish-eating species including northern pike, bass, walleye and pikeminnow. The levels in more than half of these samples were similar to those found in cans of albacore or "white" tuna. The EPA and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommend pregnant women eat no more than one 6-ounce can of albacore tuna each week. Levels in trout and other salmonid species had far lower levels of mercury. The scientists did not test salmon but speculated that mercury in salmon would be similar to the low levels found in trout.
Mercury is a neurotoxin. It is emitted by natural sources such as volcanoes and geothermal springs -- making it a "background" element -- but also by coal-burning power plants, waste incinerators, forest fires and cement kilns.
by Megan Rauscher, Reuters, Scientific American
January 23, 2007
http://sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa003&articleID=2F093E72FA038B855C80131EC3FBA75C
Among 21 multivitamin products for adults and children independently selected and tested by ConsumerLab.com, problems were found with more than half -- including unacceptably high levels of lead, and too much or too little of a particular ingredient.
Article Summary: Dr. Tod Cooperman, president of ConsumerLab.com, said one of the most serious problems was a women's multivitamin that contained 15.3 micrograms of lead per daily dose. This is more than 10 times the amount of lead allowed without a warning label in the state of California, the only state to regulate lead in supplements. Another "disturbing finding," Cooperman said, was a children's vitamin that contained 216 percent of its labeled amount of vitamin A -- an amount far in excess of the "upper tolerable intake level for kids under the age of 9. The report is available at http://www.consumerlab.com/results/multivit.asp.
by Cheryl Hogue, Chemical & Engineering News
January 23, 2007
http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/85/i05/8505rules.html
Article Summary: A new directive from President George W. Bush to federal agencies will slow down regulation. Critics say it also shifts regulatory priorities, which were set by Congress in federal laws, away from protection of health and environment to economic rationales. Some industry groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, praise the directive. Under the new directive, agencies can regulate only when they can demonstrate to the White House Office of Management & Budget (OMB) that the free market is not producing the desired results of the rule, such as health protection. In addition, the directive requires each agency to have a presidentially appointed "regulatory policy officer." The agency cannot begin work on a new rule -- even one required by Congress through a law -- until it gets a green light from its regulatory policy officer or unless the head of the agency gives approval. In addition, the directive requires agencies to calculate the costs and benefits of each of the upcoming rules they plan to issue in a calendar year. The Administration will use these economic analyses to set regulatory priorities for that year. Guidance documents, which agencies often distribute to companies to help them comply with regulations or to the public at large, must undergo the same rigorous economic cost-benefit analysis and White House review as regulations currently do.