Title: Journal of Environmental Health

Title: Journal of Environmental Health

ISO Abbreviated Title: J. Environ. Health

JCR Abbreviated Title: J Environ Health

ISSN: 0022-0892

Issues/Year: 6f

Journal Country/Territory: United States

Language: English

Publisher: Natl Environ Health Assn

Publisher Address: 720 S Colorado Blvd Suite 970, South Tower, Denver, CO 80222

Subject Categories:

Environmental Sciences: Impact Factor 0.233, 114/126 (1999); Impact Factor 0.188, 116/127 (2000)

Public, Environmental & Occupational Health: Impact Factor 0.233, 81/85

Hart, C. (1981), Community education: An opportunity for environmental-health education. Journal of Environmental Health, 43 (5), 265-267.

Bagby, J. (1983), Environmental-health education: At a crossroad. Journal of Environmental Health, 46 (2), 52-53.

Gorch, D.H. and Gorch, J.E. (1986), Environmental health education in the caribbean. Journal of Environmental Health, 48 (6), 309-310.

Gist, G.L. (1992), Problem-based learning: A new tool for environmental-health education. Journal of Environmental Health, 54 (5), 8-13.

Abstract: Academic programs in environmental health recognize the need for experiential learning. This need is currently being addressed through the use of internships and cooperative programs with federal, state, and local governmental agencies and private industry employers. Over time, however, the ability of academic programs to provide meaningful internships for students has decreased due to a variety of reasons, including an increase in the number of students in some programs and a dramatic increase in the time demands on professionals who proctor students during their internships. It is evident that a supplement to and/or potential replacement for internships must be found. It is proposed that problem-based learning (PBL) be utilized as an alternative to internships.

Gomez, A., Taylor, M. and Nicola, R.M. (1992), Development of effective on-site sewage disposal surveys in King-County, Washington. Journal of Environmental Health, 54 (5), 20-25.

Abstract: The Seattle-King County Department of Public Health (SKCDPH) has developed a tool to comprehensively evaluate on-site sewage disposal (OSSD) operation in selected regions of King County. Through public education, information-gathering, and decision-making, the program has facilitated appreciation and improvement of public health and the environment in relation to OSSD. By extensively networking with elected officials, community groups, and other interested agencies, the lines of communication are open for input and feedback on the project. Background research builds the foundation for why and how the study area is evaluated, and the protocol development that results sets the project on track. Door-to-door inspections, including dye-testing of all systems adjacent to water, environmental sampling for fecal coliform organisms, required repairs of failing OSSD systems, and nurturing of media and community relations are all aspects of the protocol for survey. For 962 OSSD systems studied, the finding of a 12% failure rate in which raw sewage is discharged to the surface of the ground or surface waters and a 17% pre-failure rate in which sewage is not properly treated suggest that problems of OSSD may be more widespread than anticipated. Through study, acceptance of the problem, and community mobilization, money and efforts can be directed at improving OSSD problems. The project has resulted in millions of dollars garnered for the design, planning and construction of sewer projects for the studied communities in addition to providing information that helps communities, elected officials, and health and resource agencies make informed decisions about the need and type of utilities in various areas of the county. Significant reductions in nonpoint source pollution can occur through this study tool that will improve public health and the environment.

Hayes, L.C. and Rodenbeck, S.E. (1992), Developing a public-health assessment: Impact of a mercury-contaminated discharge to surface-water. Journal of Environmental Health, 55 (2), 16-18.

Abstract: In its public health assessments, the Agency for Toxic Substances and disease Registry (ATSDR) evaluates data and information on the release of hazardous substances into the environment to assess any current or future impact on public health, develop health advisories or other recommendations, and identify studies or actions needed to evaluate and mitigate or prevent human health effects. Activities at the Stauffer Chemical LeMoyne National Priorities List (NPL) site, Mobile, Alabama, resulted in the discharge of mercury-laden effluent into a wetland area. This case study illustrates how site-specific information was used to develop the ATSDR health assessment for the Stauffer Chemical LeMoyne NPL site and how the movement of contaminants from an NPL site into surface waters may affect public health.

? Varady, R.G. and Mack, M.D. (1995), Transboundary water-resources and public-health in the United-States-Mexico border region. Journal of Environmental Health, 57 (8), 8-14.

Full Text: J\J Env Hea57, 8.pdf

Abstract: The “Ambos Nogales Water Project” represents an interdisciplinary study of water management policy in a community straddling the U.S.-Mexico border. The project was a joint effort undertaken from 1989 through 1993 by the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy at the University of Arizona and El Colegio de la Frontera Norte (COLEF) in Nogales, Sonora. Funding was provided by the Ford Foundation. Three key water managementIssues were the research focus: quantity (water supply), sewerage (water and waste removal), and quality. All three have inseparable linkages with public health. Regarding quantity, the study revealed that entire neighborhoods, especially in Nogales, Sonora, are unsupplied or undersupplied with running water, suggesting negative implications for the health of residents on both sides of the border. Sewerage systems do not reach many neighborhoods in Nogales, Sonora. Even sewered areas are problematic due to breaks in poorly maintained systems, resulting in leaks to the aquifer and threates to groundwater quality. A pilot, water sample survey to assess water quality of area wells revealed significant bacteriologic contamination due to wastewater, elevated nitrate levels, and detectable concentrations of volatile organic compounds, all of which have potentially deleterious health effects. The project database offers an opportunity to analyze environment-related health problems in Ambos Nogales. The authors were not involved in the primary water resources research or sampling surveys that are the background of this essay. They have employed the data generated to discuss previously unaddressed public health aspects of the work and reviewed some of the project’s implications within the larger context of research on U.S.-Mexico border environmental health. The project itself contributes a model for cooperative, transboundary research on an important set of factors affecting public health. Project outputs are particularly valuable given that the newly created North American Development Bank (NADBank) and its sister institution, the Border Environmental Cooperation Commission (BECC), have identified water-related problems as their initial priority to improve quality of life in the border region.

? Boatright, D.T. (1995), Environmental health education: What’s wrong with this picture? Journal of Environmental Health, 58 (1), 33-34.

Full Text: J\J Env Hea58, 33.pdf

? Rogers, H.W. (1995), Incinerator air emissions: Inhalation exposure perspectives. Journal of Environmental Health, 58 (5), 12-15.

Full Text: J\J Env Hea58, 12.pdf

? Mitchell, T.J. and Harding, A.K. (1996), Who is drinking nitrate in their well water? A study conducted in rural northeastern Oregon. Journal of Environmental Health, 59 (3), 14-19.

Full Text: 1996\J Env Hea59, 14.pdf

Abstract: This study evaluated the health risks for a rural northeastern Oregon population which is exposed to high nitrate levels in well water. The study also identified possible sources of nitrate contamination, and investigated measures the residents had taken to reduce their nitrate exposure from well water. Three data sets were used in the study, including a telephone survey of the residents, existing information collected by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality about well water nitrate concentrations, and demographic information from census records.

Results revealed that 23% of the surveyed population was drinking well water that contained nitrate in excess of the 10 ppm nitrate-nitrogen maximum contaminant level adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for drinking water. Seventy-two percent of the households with nitrate levels exceeding the 10 ppm level did not use devices that effectively remove nitrates. The population included few women of childbearing age, and was generally older than other nearby urban or rural populations. Resident infants were not exposed to well water nitrate in excess of the 10 ppm level, and were therefore not at apparent risk for methemoglobinemia (“blue-baby syndrome”). Although the risk of infant methemoglobinemia was low in this area, it is recommended that alternative water sources be explored, and the follow-up monitoring be performed by state and/or local agencies.

Keywords: Contamination, Groundwater

Bierma, T.J. and Krishnan, U. (1997), Educator-employer partnerships: A tool for improving environmental health education. Journal of Environmental Health, 60 (1), 11-15.

Full Text: J\J Env Hea60, 11.pdf

Abstract: Partnerships between employers of environmental health graduates and the schools that produce those graduates can help overcome three of the most serious challenges currently facing undergraduate environmental health programs: employing qualified faculty, ensuring the relevance of the skills and knowledge developed by environmental health students, and motivating students to learn. One form of partnership, in which students work on real problems faced by employers, can be particularly useful in a variety of courses. The authors present several examples that have been used at Illinois State University.

Hamaguchi, Y., Iwai, M., Uchida, T., Shimada, H. and Mitsuhashi, M. (1997), Rapid fluorometric measurement of trace amounts of contaminant DNA in drinking water. Journal of Environmental Health, 60 (5), 14-20.

Full Text: J\J Env Hea60, 14.pdf

Abstract: To develop a simple method for quantification of trace amounts of DNA in a large volume of solution, this study used the newly available fluorescent dye, SYBR DX, which is capable of visualizing DNA on membranes. When a large volume of solution is filtered through appropriate nylon membranes, trace amounts of DNA in the solution as low as 1 nanogram per milliliter (ng/mL) can be detected simply by staining the membrane with a 1:1000 dilution of SYBR DX and measuring its fluorescence in a fluorometer. More interestingly by using this method, the authors have identified DNA contamination in some bottled drinking water, Because oi the rapidity, sensitivity, and minimal handling requirements oi this assay, it may be applicable as a part of standard water quality tests in a wide range of environmental research fields in the future.

Keywords: Plates, Fluorescence, Yoyo-1

La Follette, S., Broadbear, J. and Bazan, C. (1999), Beyond regulatory compliance: Enhancing environmental health with an education paradigm. Journal of Environmental Health, 62 (5), 8-13.

Full Text: J\J Env Hea62, 8.pdf

Abstract: When regular business procedures provide for quality environmental and public health, the need for regulatory intervention is reduced, The regulatory environmental health practitioner can play a key role in teaching and motivating businesses to adopt operational procedures that proactively promote environmental health. within regulated businesses, environmental health practitioners can provide the evaluations and assessments needed to propel their businesses beyond the requirements and into innovative environmental health practices. Currently, changes in the attitudes of society toward environmental health problems are driving businesses to advance beyond regulatory compliance in providing environmentally healthy services, safe workplaces, and low-impact products. The role of the environmental health practitioner is to facilitate this movement away from the traditional, or regulatory, paradigm and toward a participatory, adult-learning model-the education paradigm. Putting theory into practice requires knowledge and application of adult learning strategies practiced by health educators, Although studies of this paradigm shift are still in progress, results thus far are encouraging.

Keywords: Responsible Care

Arcand, Y. and Talbot, P. (2000), Using peat to treat wastewater. Journal of Environmental Health, 62 (6), 36.

Full Text: J\J Env Hea62, 36.pdf