Association of Environmental Health Academic Programs
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Environmental Health Issues 

Environmental Health Issues Impact People throughout the United States and the World and Environmental Health Professionals are on the frontline of confronting these challenges, challenges that range from addressing climate change to inspecting sewage treatment facilities.  Below are types of domestic and international environmental health challenges that you could be a part of addressing that have been highlighted by the American Public Health Association’s (APHA) National Environmental Health Partnership Council (NEHPC) as of great concern currently and for the future:

Zika Virus 

  • Zika infection - passed from an infected pregnant woman to her fetus is capable of causing devastating birth defects.
  • There is no vaccine to prevent Zika. The best way to prevent disease-carrying mosquitoes is through community-based mosquito control and public education programs.
  • Environmental health actions are mobilized through Integrated Mosquito Management Programs that provide mosquito monitoring and surveillance
  • Public education and promoting healthy housing, will undoubtedly result in reduced illness and suffering.

Natural Disasters - Hurricane Katrina and Super Storm Sandy

Hurricane Katrina flooded the city of New Orleans in 2005, damaging more than 100,000 homes .
Super Storm Sandy hit New York, New Jersey and other neighboring states in 2012, also causing devastating damage to homes and businesses.Storms like these have both acute and longer term environmental health impacts capable of causing physical, emotional, and economic harm. The victims’ focus was on mere survival and not necessarily whether the water coming from their kitchen sink was safe to drink.Whether residual mold growth in their home would impact the health of their children, or whether the reconstruction of their home would cause harmful exposures to lead or other building materials or contaminants. A strong environmental health system provides the necessary safeguards to measure, track, and respond to such concerns and mitigate the adverse health consequences.

Water Quality Crises - Flint Michigan example

​Due to recent, highly visible events, the safety of, and trust in our nation’s drinking water systems have been called into question. The drinking water crisis associated with lead contamination in Flint, MI, sheds a national spotlight on an issue that is occurring across the country. In Flint, due to a change in the source of the city’s drinking water without taking the necessary corrosion control steps, the safety of approximately 100,000 people’s drinking water was threatened. This resulted in the leaching of lead from the plumbing causing an increase in the blood lead levels in children consuming the water