WASHINGTON - April 2, 2018 - PRLog -- United Effort for Children, Health, Environment, and Education "It is time to put children first and end lead and other risks to all children in school and child care," said Claire Barnett, Executive Director of Healthy Schools Network, the national not-for-profit that co-founded and hosts Healthy Schools Day. She added, "For the 16th annual Day, we thank all the education and health leaders and staff in the states who have recognized the high cost of lead and other toxics to the future of children and are taking action to find and to reduce risks in school and child care settings."
The 2018 Healthy Schools Day theme is lead in school and child care infrastructure. This year, a record 60 NGOs nationwide are engaged in the event.
About lead. There is no safe level of lead for any child, according to US EPA, the federal Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. In fact, like many other health hazards common to educational facilities, lead has been ignored too long. Recently however, schools and child care facilities in dozens of states have become active on lead in drinking water. In fact, lead is ubiquitous: it is in paint, water, building and instructional materials, soil, and products. Schools in poor communities are often in the worst condition, a strong indication they may also have the most lead in paint and water systems. President of HS Network's Board of Director's Chip Halverson, ND, of Oregon said: "In my work as a teacher and now a physician, I am working with children and adults every day who are adversely affected by the polluting chemicals they can smell, taste, and touch. We need to protect our children when they are in our halls of learning. Regardless of what's happening at home or the community, schools have an affirmative responsibility to reduce artificial barriers to learning by reducing the use of toxic products indoors and out."
Fewer schools, less money, more children in need. Across the US, there are 130,000 public and private K-12 schools enrolling some 55 million children and employing about 7 million adults. There are another 11 million children in tens of thousands of child care facilities. In all, over 20% of the total US population is in one of these facilities every day. Today, there are fewer public schools than a few years ago, but more children in them, more children with asthma and in poverty, more with special needs, and more on subsidized meal programs, yet fewer federal and state dollars for education and fewer staff. Since lead paint must be carefully managed during school/child care renovations, and tests at the tap for lead and water systems improvements can also be costly, there is no question that many schools and child care facilities will need new resources to find and to eliminate lead. Health hazards and children.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reported that half of all schools have problems with indoor air pollution, a complex problem attributable to various sources, such as poor siting or engineering, leaky roofs, deferred maintenance and repairs, and the use of toxic products indoors and out. These hazards contribute to rising asthma cases, frequent asthma hospitalizations during the school year, absenteeism, and other health issues, such as problems concentrating and headaches, as well as cancer and other long-term diseases. Indoor pollutants, including lead and asbestos and PCBs, can add to children's health and learning problems every single day.
See sample list of events at the foot of this release. See all partners and activities at www.NationalHealthySchoolsDay.org SELECTED SUPPORTING STATEMENTS Patrick Breysse, PhD, CIH, Director, National Center for Environmental Health & Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: "Protecting children from harmful environmental exposures and health risks where they live, learn, and play is significant to a child's growth and development. Because schools and early care and education facilities play an essential role in promoting the health and safety of children, National Healthy Schools Day is an important day to recognize the work that has been done amongst many partners and agencies to progress towards healthy and green indoor school environments for children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) are dedicated to ensuring that all children in the US have healthy homes, schools, and communities in which to grow."
David Rowson, Director, Indoor Environments Division, Office of Radiation and Indoor Air, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: "Children and school staff spend more time in their school than anywhere else, other than home. We need to ensure that our nation's school officials are working to control exposures to indoor environmental pollutants and irritants that may affect the health and productivity of students and staff. Until every school has adopted an indoor air quality management program, we have a lot of work to do. Today I invite officials across the country to use EPA's IAQ Tools for Schools guidance and take the necessary steps to provide a healthy learning environment for their students."
John Musso, CAE, Executive Director, Association of School Business Officials-International, (DC): "ASBO International believes all children deserve a safe and healthy learning environment. As the finance, facility, and operations leaders of school districts, school business officials can pave the way to healthier schools by educating staff about the dangers of lead products and developing lead-free procurement policies in their districts. We are proud to support National Healthy Schools Day and encourage our members to participate too!"
David T. Dyjack, Dr.PH, CIH, Executive Director, National Environmental Health Association: "The National Environmental Health Association recognizes that children spend some 16,000 hours of their youth inside schools and classrooms. Those spaces should be free from recognized hazards associated with indoor environments so that every American child can reach their full potential. With that aim in mind, NEHA is proud to support this year's National Healthy Schools Day."
Kat Danaher, Senior Executive Assistant/Marketing, Green Seal, Inc. (DC): "Our children deserve safe places to learn that minimize their exposure to toxins, irritants, and health dangers.Switching to proven-green cleaning products is one of the easiest ways to start, and can result in fewer sick days, fewer asthma attacks, better indoor air quality, and improved academic performance. National Healthy Schools Day is an excellent opportunity to reassert our commitment to making schools greener and healthier and to drive real changes and improvements that will protect people and the planet."
See additional statements of support and all registered events here:
Contact
Claire L. Barnett,
***@healthyschools.org
Photos: (Click photo to enlarge)
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