Some of the data have advanced options, like breakdowns by age, race, or gender. Advanced options are selected last. Tracking Network data can be viewed in maps, tables, and charts. Users can customize the maps, tables, and charts. Examples include adjusting the zoom, changing map backgrounds and color schemes, sorting and hiding table columns, and selecting different chart types.
The Tracking Network provides metadata , or data about the data, for all indicators. Metadata describe the content, quality, and context of a dataset and provide links to additional information such as quality assurance documents and data dictionaries. Once you have completed your search through the Data Explorer, the metadata will help you decide if it meets your needs.
In addition to data and contextual information, the Tracking Network provides a number of tools to help users better understand and use environmental health data. Some of the tools you will find are:. Info by Location is a data tool that provides a snapshot of environmental health issues by county. Data come from the Data Explorer but are presented in an infographic format. Tracking Network data may be used in several HIA steps, including community engagement, scoping, assessment, and evaluation.
An HIA is a process to evaluate the potential positive and negative public health effects of a plan, project, or policy before it is approved, built, or implemented. Find contextual information and resources about how the environment may be affecting public health. There are many examples of how environmental public health tracking data from the Tracking Network have been used to improve public health across the United States.
Breast cancer is a public health concern in California. Breast cancer data are usually analyzed and reported for the state as a whole or at the county level.
Not having city or neighborhood level data makes it difficult for public health professionals and health care providers to identify specific areas that are most in need of breast cancer services. The California Tracking Program External worked with an advisory group to determine that the best way to map breast cancer data for the state is to show data not limited by county boundaries.
Mapping data to smaller area showed places with elevated rates of invasive breast cancer, including portions of East Ventura and West Los Angeles. This was surprising because Ventura and Los Angeles Counties had not shown consistently elevated rates of invasive breast cancer when shown in previous county-level maps. The tracking program enhanced the cancer data by providing and analyzing demographic data for the areas with elevated rates, which was a key recommendation from the advisory group.
They incorporated breast cancer—specific messages into other hospital education and outreach efforts. The Florida Department of Health had been sampling drinking water wells in the central part of the state for arsenic based on suspected areas of concern.
They found that about 1 out of every 3 Hernando County drinking water wells tested had elevated levels of arsenic. The External Florida Tracking Program External led the well water project in Hernando County with help from the local department of health. Results from the study confirmed that using filters is an effective way to reduce exposure to elevated levels of arsenic.
During the study, two households had such high levels of arsenic in their well water that they qualified for free bottled water or filters. Before the study, these households were not aware of the high arsenic levels and the need for a filter to reduce exposure. Al Gray, Environmental Manager at the Florida Department of Health in Hernando County, says that the strong collaborative relationships among the affected communities, the Florida Tracking Program, and local media contributed to the success of the study.
The elderly are among the most vulnerable to heat illness during a heat wave. Knowing this has prompted public health practitioners to develop prevention messages, community outreach programs, and other interventions to help keep seniors safe during extreme heat events. In the summer, cooling centers can be critical for keeping people, especially seniors, from getting heat related illnesses. This interactive map allows Missouri residents to locate a cooling center close to their homes.
Watch this video External to see how the Missouri Tracking Program worked with local health officials to create an interactive, dynamic online map that makes cooling centers easy to find.
Tracking programs provide essential environmental health infrastructure and expertise to keep communities safe and help improve where we live, work, and play.
Faces of Tracking showcases the people who have been impacted by Tracking, or have used Tracking data to enact public health change across the United States. National Environmental Public Health Tracking. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Likewise, people can affect the health of the environment. An environmental health hazard is a substance that has the ability to cause an adverse health event.
This includes physical, chemical, and biological factors that are external to a person. Hazards can be natural or human-made. There are gaps in information about how the environment affects human health. Some health effects are known, others are suspected. These health effects can be both short term acute and longer term chronic.
Science has proven some links between health conditions and the environment. We know that: Poor air quality can trigger asthma attacks. Elevated blood lead levels in children can cause developmental disabilities. Vulnerable populations like the elderly and infants are most at risk for heat-related illnesses during heat waves. Extreme weather that causes power outages can lead to cases of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Health problems with suspected links to environmental issues include: Certain cancers i. Which of the following is true about environmental health? Environmental health effects are chronic only. The most common environmental hazards are air and noise pollution. For most chemicals, we know that low level environmental exposures affect our health.
None of the above [The correct answer is a. Personal traits b. Dose c. Exposure route d. Duration e. Particle pollution Particle pollution, or particulate matter, consists of particles that are in the air, including dust, dirt, soot and smoke , and little drops of liquid. Particle pollution includes: PM coarse, inhalable particles with diameters 10 micrometers and smaller PM2.
Sources of particulate matter The composition of these particles can vary based on location, season, and whether they are from primary or secondary sources. When particle levels are high, older adults are more likely than young adults to have to go to the hospital or die because the exposure to particle pollution has made their heart or lung disease worse.
Children are still growing and spend more time at high activity levels. When children come in contact with particle pollution over a long period of time they may have problems as their lungs and airways are developing. This exposure may put them at risk for lowered lung function and other respiratory problems later in life.
Children are more likely than adults to have asthma and other respiratory problems that can worsen when particle pollution is high. Improving air quality improves health.
Epidemiology is defined by CDC as: The study of the origin and causes of diseases in a community, and The scientific method of investigation to get to the root of health problems and outbreaks in a community. Measure or estimate whether those persons have come in contact with an environmental hazard. When the hazard and risk have been assessed, this information must be shared with other people involved. Possible interventions to reduce the risk or measures to control or remove the hazard should be decided and then put into effect.
The outcomes from the interventions or control measures must be monitored to check if they have been successful. Throughout this process, detailed records must be kept of the hazards and actions taken to control them.
Your list of appropriate interventions will depend on your own answer to SAQ 2. This is a response for the answer we provided. The types of pollution from a health centre could be air, water and land pollution. Water pollution may occur if sterilising fluids are discharged into a nearby river.
Air pollution may arise from the burning of wastes. Land pollution is possible if health centre wastes are not disposed of correctly. There are two main approaches to pollution management: pollution prevention which should be used to stop pollution being produced in the first place or reducing any waste generation at the source where possible and pollution control the measures taken to control pollution and wastes after they have been generated or produced.
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Hygiene and Environmental Health Module: 2. Learning Outcomes for Study Session 2 When you have studied this session, you should be able to: 2. SAQ 2. Photo: Nicholas Watson. Source: Pam Furniss.
Photo: Abera Kumie. You may have thought of some different reasons, but here are some we have thought of: The head of the household might not have taken the lead and guided others in using the latrine. Children may be afraid of falling into the latrine hole. They may be afraid the bad odour will cause a disease. The hazard exposure is described as follows: The source is sewage from a factory. The type of hazard is chemical, in this case cadmium.
In addition, any fish contaminated with cadmium may have been eaten. The response is that people who consumed the contaminated water and fish had symptoms of cadmium poisoning i. Establish the context and identify the hazard : These are the first steps.
You have learned that a hazard is something that is harmful to our health. A description of the categories of hazards is given in Section 2. You should identify the type of the hazard in as much detail as you can. You should also describe the exposure conditions and try to answer the following questions: What is the source of the hazard?
Who is exposed? What are the pathways or activities that expose a person? What part of the environment is involved in the transfer of the hazard to humans? This step needs a deeper appraisal in collaboration with the woreda environmental health worker. The evaluation may require appropriate design, sampling and laboratory investigation. Communicate and consult : When the hazards and risks have been determined, advice can be communicated on the interventions or control measures that are needed to control the hazard.
There can also be consultations with relevant people and organisations. Monitoring and reviewing : The implementation of interventions or control measures for the hazard must be followed up in order to determine whether they are successful. Correction measures can be applied if there is any failure. Identifying appropriate indicators for monitoring is critical and must be done formally. Record keeping : Keeping records and reports on hazard management is always important.
These records must contain the type of hazard, exposures and what control measures were taken. The process of hazard management is shown in Figure 2. View larger image. For example, self-cleaning processes in a river could involve: You will learn more about these processes in Study Session Here are some that we came up with: Industrial sources: sewage discharged into water bodies; air emission of smoke released to the atmosphere see Figure 2.
Domestic sources: cooking and heating that releases smoke to the atmosphere. Solid waste and liquid waste are other forms of pollutants that can be released to water bodies and soil. Transport: discharge of air pollutants from various types of vehicles. Heavy trucks and diesel engine vehicles are much more polluting than a petrol engine. Agricultural sources: organic wastes such as agriculture residues, animal dung and wastes from agriculture-based plants.
Air pollution This occurs with the release of chemicals in gaseous or dust form into the atmosphere. Water pollution Water can be polluted by the release of liquid waste human, animal or industrial into rivers, streams and lakes. Waste management options are listed in order of desirability from most desirable at the top to least desirable at the bottom. Summary of Study Session 2 In Study Session 2, you have learned that: An environmental health hazard is anything in the environment that endangers human health and life; there are various types of environmental health hazard.
Managing environmental health hazards requires knowledge of environmental health hazard identification, exposure conditions including the pathways of the hazards and hazard controls or interventions. The principle of hazard management involves hazard recognition, deeper analysis of the risk of the hazard and the control or treatment and monitoring of the hazard. For example, benzo a pyrene BaP , which is a marker of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, is emitted mainly from the burning of organic material and mobile sources.
The increasing wood burning in homes in some parts of Europe may become an even more prominent source of such hazardous pollutants. Climate change mitigation strategies may also play a role, by stimulating use of wood and biomass as domestic energy sources. The 6th EAP sets the long-term objective of achieving levels of air quality that do not give rise to unacceptable impacts on, and risks to, human health and the environment.
Its subsequent Thematic Strategy on air pollution 23 set interim objectives through the improvement of air quality by It has also introduced additional PM2. Furthermore, several international bodies are discussing the setting of targets for in relation to the long-term environmental objectives of European policies and international protocols Map 5. Air quality is worse in urban areas than in rural areas.
Yearly average PM10 concentrations in the European urban environment have not changed significantly over the past decade.
The main sources are road traffic, industrial activities, and the use of fossil fuels for heating and energy production. Motorised traffic is the major source of the PMfractions responsible for adverse health effects, which also come from non-exhaust PM emissions, for example, brake and tyre wear or re-suspended particles from pavement materials.
Meanwhile, road traffic injuries, with an estimated more than 4million incidents in the EU every year, remain an important public health issue. Transport sources also account for a substantial proportion of human exposure to noise, which has negative impacts on human health and well-being Data delivered in accordance with the Directive on Environmental Noise 29 are available through the Noise Observation and Information Service for Europe The WHO night noise guidelines for Europe recommend that people should not be exposed to night noise greater than 40 dB.
According to a German Environmental Survey for Children, children from families of low socio-economic status are more heavily exposed to traffic, and annoyed by road traffic noise, during the day, as compared with children with higher socio-economic status Urban air quality and noise often share a common source and may cluster spatially. There are examples, such as Berlin, of successful integrated approaches to reducing both local air pollution and noise levels Wastewater treatment, and the quality of both drinking and bathing water have improved significantly in Europe over the past 20 years, but continued efforts are needed to further improve the quality of water resources.
Human health can be affected through a lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation, the consumption of contaminated freshwater and seafood, as well as exposure to contaminated bathing water.
The bio-accumulation of mercury and some persistent organic pollutants, for example, can be high enough to raise health concerns in vulnerable population groups such as pregnant women 33 Understanding of the relative contribution of different exposure routes is, however, incomplete. The burden of water-borne diseases in Europe is difficult to estimate and most likely underestimated The majority of the European population receives treated drinking water from municipal supply systems.
Thus, health threats are infrequent and occur primarily when contamination of the water source coincides with a failure in the treatment process. While the DWD addresses water supplies serving more than 50people, a European data exchange and reporting system applies only to supplies for more than people. In , 10 out of 12 outbreaks of waterborne diseases reported in the EU were linked to the contamination of private wells However, EU Member States have staggered transition periods for full implementation ranging up to The UWWTD addresses agglomerations with a population of or more; thus potential public health risks linked to sanitation exist in some rural areas of Europe.
Note: Only countries with data for virtually all of each period were included, the numbers of countries are given in parentheses. Regional percentages have been weighted by country population. For Denmark no data have been reported to the joint questionnaire since This is not accounted for in the figure. Whilst wastewater treatment has improved, both point and diffuse pollutant sources are still significant in parts of Europe and health risks remain.
For example, algal blooms linked to excessive nutrient levels, particularly during extended periods of hot weather, are associated with toxin-producing cyanobacteria — which, in turn, can cause allergic reactions, skin and eye irritation and gastroenteritis in exposed people. Large populations of cyanobacteria can occur in European water bodies used for drinking water, aquaculture, recreation and tourism Looking ahead, major investment will be needed to maintain existing wastewater treatment infrastructures In addition, the discharge of some pollutants in treated effluent can raise environmental concerns, for example, endocrine-disrupting chemicals 44 or pharmaceuticals 45 While wastewater treatment at municipal plants will continue to play a critical role, complementary approaches, such as tackling pollutants at source need to be explored more extensively.
In combination with the full implementation of the Water Framework Directive 49 , this should lead to a reduced emission of pollutants to water, leading to healthier aquatic ecosystems and reducing risks to human health. Pesticides disrupt essential biological processes, for example through affecting nerve transmission or mimicking hormones.
Thus, human health concerns related to exposure via water, food, or close proximity to spraying have been raised 50 Due to their intrinsic properties, pesticides can also be harmful to organisms in the wider environment, including freshwater organisms Mixtures of pesticides are common both in the human food supply 53 and in the aquatic environment.
Though assessment of mixture toxicity has been a challenge, a single-chemical approach is likely to underestimate ecological risk, including impacts of mixture of pesticides on fish 54 and amphibians The EU Thematic Strategy on the sustainable use of pesticides 56 sets objectives to minimise the hazards and risks to health and the environment stemming from the use of pesticides, and to improve controls on the use and distribution of pesticides.
Full implementation of the associated Pesticides Directive will be required to support the achievement of good chemical status under the Water Framework Directive Information on pesticides in surface and ground waters in Europe is limited; however, the reported levels, including pesticides classified as priority substances, can exceed environmental quality standards.
Good quality natural environments provide basic needs, in terms of clean air and water, fertile land for food production, and energy and material inputs for production. Green infrastructure also serves to regulate climate and prevent flooding. Access to green and blue spaces also provides important opportunities for recreation and supports well-being.
At the same time, the environment represents an important pathway for human exposure to polluted air, noise and hazardous chemicals. Improving the quality of the environment in key areas such as air, water and noise can prevent disease and improve human health.
Air pollution is the single largest environmental health risk in Europe, and is associated with heart disease, stroke, lung disease and lung cancer. Exposure to air pollution is estimated to result in over premature deaths in the EU each year. Noise exposure from transport sources and industry can lead to annoyance, sleep disturbance and related increases in the risk of hypertension and cardiovascular disease.
Exposure to hazardous chemicals is also a key concern. People can be exposed to a wide range of chemicals in their daily lives, via polluted air and water, consumer products and diet. The properties of certain hazardous chemicals cause them to persist in the environment and bioaccumulate in the food chain, which means there will be a considerable time lag before reductions in emissions translate into reduced exposure. In addition, the volume and range of chemicals in use today and the ongoing growth in chemical production suggests that human and environmental exposure will continue to increase.
This raises concerns about the health effects of exposure to mixtures of chemicals over our lifetime, in particular during vulnerable life stages, such as early childhood, pregnancy and old age. The impacts of climate change also pose immediate threats to health, in terms of heat waves and shifts in the patterns of infectious diseases and allergens. In general, bathing water quality is of a high standard across the EU, with the quality of bathing waters consistently improving over time as a result of investment in the sewerage system, better waste water treatment and the reduction of pollution from farms.
A growing body of evidence suggests that environmental risks are not evenly distributed across society , but rather disproportionally affect socially disadvantaged and vulnerable population groups. Socially disadvantaged people may be more sensitive to the impacts of environmental stressors due to pre-existing health conditions, poor nutritional status and specific behaviours, such as smoking or inactivity.
They may also face constraints in adapting to and avoiding environmental risks. Recognising the intrinsic link between the state of the environment and quality of life, priority objective 3 of the Seventh Environment Action Programme 7th EAP aims 'to safeguard the Union's citizens from environment-related pressures and risks to health and well-being' EU, The profound dependency of human society on supporting ecosystems lies at the very core of the 7th EAP vision that 'in we live well, within the planet's ecological limits'.
A broad range of policies are in place at EU level to address environmental impacts on health. Some examples from the main environmental policy areas include:. The European Environment and Health Process, led by WHO Europe, aims to bring together the environment and health sectors, and promote joint solutions, in particular to address the environment-related health goals and targets of the Sustinable Development Agenda.
In the Ostrava Declaration of , ministers and representatives of countries in the WHO European Region set out an intersectoral and inclusive approach towards improving environmental health.
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