Unwanted Exposures:
In New York, Who’s in Charge of Protecting Children from Environmental Hazards?
(April 11, 2007, Albany, NY and New York City), Leading New York State disability rights, environmental and education organizations joined with the Learning Disabilities Association and Healthy Schools Network today in Albany to release a new, landmark report about children’s health, Unwanted Exposure: Preventing Environmental Threats to the Health of New York State’s Children. [A copy of the report is available at www.healthyschools.org.]
Moved by the undeniable correlation between the growth of learning and developmental disabilities and the proliferation of harmful toxins in the environment, representatives of the disability advocacy, environmental health, children’s health and education communities joined together to call on Gov. Eliot Spitzer and the Legislature to address this growing public health problem.
Heather Loukmas, Executive Director of the Learning Disabilities Association of New York State said: “We spend a lot of time talking about the need to protect our natural resources from environmental threats. The number of children diagnosed with cognitive disabilities is increasing and science has demonstrated that exposure to environmental toxins at critical stages of brain development may play a role.”
George Dunkel, Executive Director of the American Academy of Pediatrics District II/New York State said, “Young children are uniquely vulnerable to environmental hazards because their body organs and systems are still developing. It is imperative that we as a society commit to protect our children from environmental health hazards in our homes, schools, and communities.”
Stephen Boese, New York State Director of Healthy Schools Network, said: “Last year, the Legislature established the state’s first ever Children’s Environmental Health Advisory Council. We stand together today to offer our support for this new Council. "
David Carpenter, MD, Director for Health and Environment for the University at Albany said: “The evidence of harm to children from environmental hazards is clear and irrefutable. Now is the time to work together to protect children.”
Cecil Corbin Mark, Director of Programs for WEACT for Environmental Justice said: “We know that children are disproportionately impacted by environmental hazards and toxins. We also know that children of color suffer disproportionately as well. We must collectively take the findings of this important report and move our state political leadership to act now to protect all the children of the state.”
Unwanted Exposure presents a comprehensive set of recommendations for New York State to address the need to protect children from environmental hazards:
• Develop a multi-agency agreement (MOU) for increased collaboration between state agencies on prioritizing children’s environmental health goals and initiatives.
• Establish a children’s environmental public health protection program that will provide a national model of information and support services for parents of children with exposures at school and in daycare.
• Adopt a precautionary approach to protect children from environmental harm.
• Fully fund a system of regional centers for pediatric environmental health clinical services.
• Establish a comprehensive system for reporting children’s exposures to environmental toxicants and complaints of environmental hazards that put children at risk. • Support state and federal efforts to address emerging chemicals of concern and related efforts to get ahead of the curve on HPV and PBT chemicals.
• Implement a broad toxic reform initiative similar to the national “Child, Worker and Consumer Safe Chemicals Act” .
• Support the National Children’s Study, a multiple year prospective epidemiological study that will examine the influences on disease and development of exposures in early life.
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