YOUR ASSOCIATION
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Environmental Health Is Hyperlocal—The Many Flavors of Environmental Public Health
Tom Butts, MSc, REHS
A s I reflect on working in environ- mental health for the past 35+ years, I am regularly reminded of how good environmental health professionals are at responding to emerging issues. This responsiveness is especially evident at each National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) a liate conference I have attended. When new hot issues come to our state or community, environmental public health professionals often embrace the challenge as leaders or as contributors to a larger com- munity of public health response leaders. We are often limited not by knowledge or ability but by funding. I have proposed in the past—sometimes more seriously than others—that environmental health budgets should include 10% to 20% for new and on- going funding for sta to deal with the en- vironmental health issues of the day and to ensure there is the capacity to manage the near-constant demands on our programs. Over the years these issues have included, to just name a few: • Leaking underground storage tanks and the emergence of leaking tanks containing methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) in areas where oxygenated fuels were required to address ozone air pollution issues • Illegal hazardous waste dumping and the ongoing cleanup of hazardous material spills and waste sites • Household chemical waste management • Indoor air quality • Consumer product safety investigations • Radiator shop lead exposure assessments • Use of GIS to map and address a range of issues such as old landfills and vectors
living programs. We may struggle, however, to be included in this type of work. On a dierent level, environmental pub- lic health is called on to respond to natu- ral and human-made disasters—including wildfires, hurricanes, droughts, and torna- dos—as well as expected to aid in the recov- ery of these disasters. Local governmental environmental health programs face a range of challenges, often due to a combination of fiscal constraints, political pressures, technical barriers, and evolving environmental threats. Address- ing these challenges necessitates a combina- tion of innovative strategies, public–private partnerships, working with new and dier- ent partners, community engagement, and capacity building eorts. I have observed a wide range of ways envi- ronmental public health has been engaged in community planning and actions around greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. Although at times those words are not used, the work carried out around miti- gation is important and under-recognized. So, given the wide range of work we are asked to engage in, what do environmental health professionals bring to the table? Many of our skills and abilities have been built through the work done in our core environ- mental health programs that address food, water, waste, vectors, housing, schools, pools, body art, and more. One of the most impor- tant skills we have is communication. We should think of information as a social determinant of health. We should know how to engage with the local information ecosys- tem and not fear it. Unfortunately, we must
• Emergence of West Nile virus and its ran- dom resurgence in communities • Emergence of the Zika virus, E. coli O157:H7, and the range of potential caus- ative agents of foodborne illness (e.g., sea- sonal norovirus) • Cannabis (e.g., medical use, recreational use, hemp) • The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act • Bisphenol A (BPA) in plastics • Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and other persistent organic pollutants in water, wastewater, and many other places We often have the skills, abilities, and authority to contribute to community work to take on obesity and address the built envi- ronment to support healthy eating and active By adopting a proactive and collaborative approach, local environmental health programs can address hyperlocal and global challenges in the face of evolving environmental threats.
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