Environmental Health: Thoughts & Reflections

After a quick Google search, I found that there are plentiful facilities that treat sewage/waste water in Placer County. While there are a lot in the general area, there are a handful of facilities that are particularly close to where I live: City of Lincoln Wastewater Treatment Facility, Placer County Waste Waster Treatment Plant, Roseville Water Treatment Plant, and Pleasant Grove Waste Water. As seen in the image below, there is a wealth of agencies and treatment plants in the community. Having a visual of where these facilities are located helps give peace of mind that there is a process for water after use and that several plants manage the wider communities needs.

The daily recommendation for water intake is 8-11 glasses each day. It is detrimental to human health to have access to drinkable water because if not, then the body will become dehydrated and thus reducing its regular functions. If I were to develop a campaign to encourage nationwide use of tap water, I would call it #BackToTap. Prior to the rise of bottled water, people survived sufficiently with water from the tap. So, let’s get #BackToTap and use bottles for repeated use. If people go #BackToTap, we reduce the manufactured demand for bottled water, which help to also reduce plastic waste. This will also encourage consumers to fill their reusable bottles with the amount they can drink. This campaign will benefit many aspects of environmental health from waste reduction and water conservation. Join me in the fight for #BackToTap!

Placer County water is primarily from Folsom Lake but is also supplied by other sources. This area’s water originates from the Sierra snowpack and the American River’s surface water, which flows into Folsom Lake, then supplies the Placer County Water Agency (PCWA) Bianchi service area. Chemicals found in Placer County water that were higher than expected include: fluoride, total trihalomethane, and total haloacetic acids. Trihalomethane and haloacetic acids were an unexpected discovery for me, but after my quick search about them helped me understood they were categories for disinfectants of drinking water. Using the ToxNet database, I found that these groups of chemicals could have serious reproductive and developmental effects on humans. Upon looking into the consumer confidence report, I realized the water quality in Placer County is not terrible, but some of the chemicals found were near the higher end of the spectrum of the maximum levels allowed. Our family uses a filter for o...

The Clean Water Act of 1972 is the US law that regulates water pollutants and surface water quality. It is a significant accomplishment for public health because the government recognized the need to protect our water from industrial runoff, sewage, and other substances that pollute bodies of water, and that these unwanted substances must be separated from clean, clear water to keep it “clean.” Although the Earth consists mainly of water, the exponential growth of the human population and need for clean water is much greater. In order to sustain and meet this need, it is our human responsibility to create and follow governmental policies and actively protect our water from pollution. Animals who live and/or highly depend on these waters are greatly impacted. If their ecosystem is polluted, these creatures can become sick, genetically mutated, and/or die. This is an added factor that could also affect human health because many people rely and consume these creatures and the waters they...

Background : A national survey revealed that 30% of the public have some sensitivity to fragrances and 27% of asthmatics note that their conditions are aggravated (Flegel & Martin, 2015). Fragrance is often used as a general term to describe the concoction of chemicals that are thought to give a product a “natural smelling scent.” An example of this is found in hospitals when they use fragrances to mute or control odor, given that hospitals house concentrated populations of the unwell individuals. However this poses an issue, particularly with individuals who have asthma. Therefore, hospital and employees alike must be required to adhere to a fragrance-free policy. To ensure that patients are provided with the best care, this policy must be implemented in order to mitigate or eradicate any additional external stressors that may impede recovery or trigger unwanted asthma attacks. Policy : Effective January 2019, the fragrance-free hospital policy will require all patient areas wi...

Leveraging the technological age, I will develop a national awareness campaign by using social media to raise awareness about radon using and will introduce a new hashtag: #ridradon. I will also collaborate with apartment renters, facilities, landlords, facility managers; local home inspectors and health departments; and the National Radon Hotline to help plan, initiate, implement, and evaluate the campaign. Identify target population Apartment renters who use social media for news and information Gain interest Use the slogan Rid Radon and hashtag #ridradon to introduce the campaign to the public Use eye-catching flyers with information about radon and ways for renters to request or access tests Develop concern Provide facts about radon, particularly morbidity and mortality information Provide information Provide options for renters to help identify whether their homes are safe/unsafe Request for landlords/facility managers to provide documentation regarding r...

Using the NIH NLM ToxNet Database I searched the following terms: “urea formaldehyde” and “bleach.” Since urea formaldehyde foam is inexpensive, requires easy-install, and provides efficient insulation, many homes are built with this type of insulation. Unfortunately, reports demonstrate that inhabitants of these homes experience minor immobilizing symptoms due to formaldehyde exposure, but long-term health effects from this chemical exposure have yet to be studied. This source also compares polyurethane foam insulation to the urea formaldehyde foam, and it’s somewhat reassuring that no inhabitant toxicities have occurred thus far. On the other hand, bleach is a product more well-known to consumers for cleaning and sanitizing purposes. With such a powerful, distinguishable scent, I’m not surprised to learn that research has been done to study the daily use of bleach for cleaning and asthma symptoms/diagnoses. It was useful to search bleach toxicity because I have relatives with ...