Healthy Homes, Healthy Communities, and Healthy Drinking Water Initiatives or Programs
Healthy Drinking Water and Healthy Homes
The Healthy Homes, Healthy Communities, and Healthy Drinking Water Initiatives or Programs
The Healthy Homes Program / Healthy Home Initiates
“Environmental hazards in the home potentially harm millions of children each year. The Healthy Homes Program addresses multiple childhood diseases, exposures, and injuries that may originate in the home. The Initiative has a focus on housing-related hazards and educating and informing the public. This was one of the key factors missing in the Flint Michigan Drinking Water Crisis. In response to Congress, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) launched its Healthy Homes Initiative (HHI) in 1999. The objective of the program was to protect children and their families from housing-related health and safety hazards.
HUD has developed a new Healthy Homes Strategic plan that lays out the next steps their office will take to advance the healthy homes agenda nationwide. The HHI builds upon HUD’s successful Lead Hazard Control programs to expand its efforts to address a variety of environmental health and safety concerns including: mold , lead , allergens/ asthma, air quality gases and VOCs , pesticides , and radon .”
Learn More – https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/healthy_homes/hhi
New Healthy Homes Strategic Plan -https://www.hud.gov/sites/documents/DOC_13701.pdf
Healthy Communities
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) developed the Healthy Communities Program (HCP). The program uses local, state, territory, and national partnerships to attempt to prevent chronic diseases and reduce health disparities (Note: For me this is a buzz word related to equity, we will never have equal outcomes in communities because of genetics, individual choice, and economics, and lifestyle issues, but we can attempt to treat all individuals equally).
Nearly 50% Americans die of one chronic disease, such as: heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer (polycythemica vera/ radon), obesity, and arthritis.
Chronic diseases make up 7 of the 10 leading causes of death in the United States and based on our recent experience with COVID, these diseases made individuals more vulnerable to the negative and adverse impacts associated with COVID-19. Not only can these diseases result in death, they can also be associated with chronic pain, inability to function and support an individual or family, limit daily activities, and significant impact a family’s budget and health care costs.
The Healthy Communities Program attempts to raise awareness and provide fact-based information, but also encourage citizens to make better choices, increase physical activity, make better food choices, and reduce the use of tobacco. These efforts addressed key factors that raise the risk of disease, including: CDC funded 331 communities and 52 state and territorial health departments through HCP .
Healthy Drinking Water/ Water Initiatives
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) implemented an education and information about healthy water, including drinking water, swimming / recreational water , diseases related to poor sanitation and hygiene and waterborne disease , and and how to make water safe to drink in emergencies for outbreaks, preparedness, and response.
The Know Your H20 Program started our education outreach efforts in 1985 and created a formal program known as the Homeowner Outreach Program in 1989 and part of our program includes educating users about current and historic hazards in their communities (Neighborhood Hazard Report), community outreach efforts, asbestos, “Forever Chemicals (pfos, pfoa)“, and fact based information on drinking water and other environmental contaminants.
Drinking water comes from a variety of sources including public water systems , private wells , or bottled water. Ensuring safe and healthy drinking water may be as simple as turning on the tap from an EPA-regulated public water system. Other water sources may need to have point-of-use or whole house filtration systems, citizens educated and informed, water quality monitored, water distribution systems flushed and septic systems need to be serviced or inspected. It is important to know where drinking water comes from, how it’s been treated, and if it’s safe to drink. Therefore, it is important to Know Your H20 and Get on the Path to Clean Water.
Call to Action:
Step 1: Get Informed
Step 2: Get Tested
Step 3: Get Treatment
Learn More at https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/index.html
EPA Enforcement Actions Help Protect Health of Vulnerable Communities from Lead Paint Hazards
WASHINGTON (October 28, 2022) – As part of National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) highlighted several federal enforcement actions completed from October 2021 through September 2022, as well as future planned investigations. These actions ensure that renovation contractors, landlords and realtors comply with rules that protect the public from exposure to lead from lead paint. By bringing companies into compliance with these rules, EPA protects future customers and their families.
Lead-contaminated dust from chipped or peeling lead-based paint in homes built prior to 1978 presents one of the most common causes of elevated blood lead levels in children. Infants and children are especially vulnerable to lead paint exposure because their growing bodies absorb more lead than adults do, and their brains and nervous systems are more sensitive to the damaging effects of lead.
“Because lead-based paint is the most common source of elevated blood lead levels in U.S. children, EPA is taking action against those who violate federal lead-based paint regulations and ensuring the public understands the danger of this hazard,” said Larry Starfield, EPA’s Acting Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “The enforcement actions EPA took this past year send a clear message that EPA is committed to enforcing regulations designed to protect the public from lead-based paint exposure.”
Reduction of childhood lead exposures is a high priority for EPA. These enforcement actions reflect the agency’s continuing commitment to implementing the Federal Lead Strategy and EPA’s Lead Strategy and result in reducing or eliminating lead exposures, particularly to children.
Regulations under the federal Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act (LHRA) apply to most pre-1978 dwellings and child-occupied facilities such as pre-schools and child-care centers. TSCA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule (RRP) and Lead-based Paint Activities Rule require contractor certification and lead-safe work practices. LHRA’s Section 1018 Lead Disclosure Rule requires disclosure of information about lead-based paint before the sale or lease of most housing built before 1978. By ensuring compliance with federal lead-based paint requirements, EPA addresses a major source of lead exposure that occurs in communities across the nation.
The cases below involve alleged noncompliance with at least one of these lead paint requirements. These cases highlight the range of the Agency’s work, including:
- criminal prosecution in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ),
- a focus on geographic areas that suffer from disproportionate levels of lead exposure, and
- bringing civil administrative actions against renovators with a far-reaching influence on the compliance landscape locally, regionally or nationwide.
By ensuring compliance with federal lead paint requirements, EPA strives to address major sources of lead exposure that occur throughout the nation and particularly in areas of environmental justice concern. In addition to EPA’s actions, the Agency supports states, tribes, and territories on the implementation and enforcement of the EPA-authorized lead-based paint programs.
Although the federal government banned residential use of lead-based paint in 1978, it persists in millions of older homes, sometimes under layers of new paint. Lead exposure, particularly at higher doses, continues to pose a significant health and safety threat to children, preventing them from reaching their fullest potential for their health, intellect, and future development. Even small amounts of lead dust can cause harm to children living in the home.
Case Highlights:
GB Group, Inc. Settles to Resolve Alleged Renovation Violations
Property Management Firm Settles Alleged Lead Renovation and Asbestos Violations
Property Manager Sentenced for Failure to Properly Notify Tenants about Lead Hazards
Owner of Maryland Lead Inspection Company Sentenced
To see additional highlights of FY2022 enforcement actions involving lead, see EPA’s 2022 Lead Enforcement Bulletin.
Members of the public can help protect our environment by identifying and reporting environmental violations. Learn more about reporting environmental violations.
Healthy Home and Health Community Articles
Lead in Drinking Water and Impacts on Wildlife
Asbestos is a naturally-occurring mineral created by geochemical processes within our planet. Although infamous for its link to cancer, it also has many potential beneficial properties. The difficulty is to avoid the negative aspects of this potentially dangerous mineral while enjoying its positive aspects.
Radon – Radionuclides – Cancer (Polycythemia vera (pol-e-sy-THEE-me-uh VEER-uh)) – Radon is a gas produced by the radioactive decay of the element radium whose remote parent is either uranium or thorium
Forever Chemicals – What Are PFOA, PFOS, PFAS, and PFCs ? Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a grouping of man-made fluorinated organic chemicals that have a wide range of use in industrial application and commercial goods
Asbestos in Drinking Water and Environment
Asbestos is a fibrous mineral occurring in geologic deposits. Asbestos can enter the drinking water through the natural weathering of geological material containing asbestos or for a period of time cement water lines were used that contained asbestos. As the water lines decay, the asbestos enters the drinking water. “Asbestos is a generic term used to describe hydrated magnesium silicate minerals that crystallize as bundles of long, thin fibers which readily separate when broken or crushed. These minerals include chrysotile (serpentine) and fibrous varieties of amphibole group minerals such as crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite, tremolite, byssolite, and actinolite. The special properties of asbestos — high tensile strength, flexibility, and resistance to heat, chemicals, and electricity — have made it well suited for a number of commercial applications, particularly as fire-resistant tiles and insulation (Source).”
They are found in areas with igneous and metamorphic bedrock. Asbestos exposure has been linked to these manufacturing sectors: shipyards, power plants, chemical plants, oil refiners, and mining. The following trades are more likely to be exposed to asbestos drywall tapers, electricians, firefighters, auto mechanics, and plumbing and heating contractors. This is one reason we suggest you obtain a copy of your Neighborhood Hazard Report and if you are a public water customer to get a copy of your consumer confidence report (see below).
In 1974, the maximum contaminant level goal, i.e., MCLG, for asbestos was 7 million fibers per liter or MFL. In 1992, the Phase II Rules set the drinking water standard at 7 million fibers per liter was adequate to protect human health. Some people who drink water containing asbestos well in excess of the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for many years may have an increased risk of developing benign intestinal polyps.
For large scale water treatment – coagulation/filtration, diatomaceous earth filtration, nanofiltration, and corrosion control with sequestering are commonly used. For residential treatment – the most likely and reliable form of treatment would be a combination of reverse osmosis system that includes a filtration system that removes particles < 1 micron. This would include microfiltration, ultrafiltration & nanofiltration. The appropriate NFS Standards that would apply would be NSF / ANSI 53 and NSF/ ANSI 58.
NSF/ANSI Standard 53: Drinking Water Treatment Units – Health Effects
Overview: Standard 53 addresses point-of-use (POU) and point-of-entry (POE) systems designed to reduce specific health-related contaminants, such as Cryptosporidium, Giardia, lead, volatile organic chemicals (VOCs), MTBE (methyl tertiary-butyl ether), that may be present in public or private drinking water.
NSF/ANSI Standard 58: Reverse Osmosis Drinking Water Treatment Systems
Overview: This standard was developed for point-of-use (POU) reverse osmosis (RO) treatment systems. These systems typically consist of a pre-filter, RO membrane, and post-filter. Standard 58 includes contaminant reduction claims commonly treated using RO, including fluoride, hexavalent and trivalent chromium, total dissolved solids, nitrates, etc. that may be present in public or private drinking water.
other routes of exposure – Airborne
Asbestos dust was been found to have carcinogenic effects. The inhalation of asbestos fibers can cause fatal illnesses like malignant lung cancer, mesothelioma, and asbestosis.
City Water Customers for Public Water Supplies – Check your consumer confidence report.