Wearing a Mask
Each Monday we write about the New England environment and way of life seen through our local perspective. Previous postsBy Amy Miller
In some Asian towns an estimated one out of five people wears a face mask. Until you see it, though, that’s just a statistic from afar. In the last five years in Boston, New England’s largest city, I don’t recall ever seeing a face mask outside a doctor’s office.
But sitting recently in a Bangkok café, riding a “tuk tuk” in Luang Prabang, Laos, and touring the ancient temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia, I saw the reality. We, residents of Planet Earth, have begun to build our bubbles – bubbles protecting us from the world we are polluting.
My journey to Southeast Asia began during Chinese New Year, when millions of Chinese tourists filled the streets. The month before had seen a national health emergency in Beijing – the second most populous city in China. As the city experienced 19 days above acceptable air pollution levels that month, many of them way above, companies gave masks to employees, residents were told to stay home, factories were closed and government cars were ordered off the road.
At the height of the smog, readings for PM2.5 – particles small enough to penetrate the lungs deeply – hit 993 micrograms per cubic meter, almost 40 times the World Health Organization’s safe limit. According to EPA, levels between 301 and 500 are “hazardous,” meaning people should avoid outdoor activity.
Many of the masked tourists were coming off the heels of this.
But the reasons to wear a mask can range from fear of getting sick to fear of infecting someone else to protection from air pollution. On dusty roads masks make breathing easier. Masks are even becoming fashion statements, I read.
The masked included police officers in Chiang Mai, Thailand; construction workers in Angkor Wat, Cambodia, and residents on motorbikes in Laos. And of course Chinese tourists everywhere. All protecting themselves from the world around them.
On the same trip, I visited a village in the mountains of northern Laos where the men still weave bamboo walls for houses, women head to the fields to reap grass for making brooms and night falls in a world devoid of electricity, letting the stars in the sky light the way to the loo.
I am not prone to sentimental musings on sunsets or dewdrops. But confronting so directly the human cost of pollution, set starkly against a backdrop of unspoiled beauty, I greatly appreciated stepping off the plane into Boston, where the AQI was, oh, about 35 on the day I landed.
http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=airnow.local_city&zipcode=02138
About the author: Amy Miller is a writer who works in the public affairs office of EPA New England in Boston. She lives in Maine with her husband, two children, seven chickens, two parakeets, dog and a great community.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Your Assimilative Capacity Has Been Reached
By Pam Lazos
On a recent excursion to Santa Fe, N.M. I was struck by how dry it was even in the late fall. Yes, the climate ranges from arid to semi-arid, but should snow feel dry? For me, it accentuated what’s true of much of the western half of our nation: they’re running out of water.
The Ogallala aquifer, a 10-million-year-old deposit, provides water to New Mexico and seven other High Plains states and is the most important water source in the region, serving an area of 174,000 square miles. Eighty-two percent of the people living in the High Plains get drinking water from this aquifer yet most of the Ogallala is used for agriculture. About 80 percent of the food grown in the U.S. comes from this part of the country.
No wonder the Ogallala is being depleted at a rate 14 times faster than it’s recharging. Population growth, and contaminants like pesticides and nitrates, have contributed to its decline.
Failure to recharge means not only less water but also degraded water quality. Recharge occurs through rainwater and snowmelt combined, a paltry one inch per year. With eight states tapping into one aquifer, at this rate of withdrawal and recharge the Ogallala will be depleted in a few decades and once depleted there is no turning back.
The main barrier to further recharge is impermeability. Currently, the specific yield of the Ogallala — meaning what’s available for use — is 15 percent. The rest of the water is locked up in the unsaturated zone where it’s inaccessible due to impermeability.
Until technology is developed to move this water to the saturated zone, the high quality Ogallala, once used for drinking without either filtration or treatment, will continue to degrade. If a water body is unable to refresh, the water quality tanks, or to put it in scientific parlance, its assimilative capacity, the level at which the water can no longer cleanse itself, has been reached.
Here in the water abundant eastern states drought conditions last seasons, but in the western higher elevations, arid land droughts can last for years, turning an acute issue into a chronic one. Without attention, chronic problems tend to become emergencies. While some inroads have been made regarding the impermeability puzzle, it’s only been achieved on a small scale. It’s time to focus our attention locally before our most valuable global natural resource is beyond recharging.
About the Author: Pam Lazos works in Region 3’s Office of Regional Counsel chasing water scofflaws and enforcing the Clean Water Act. In her free time, when her family allows, she writes both fact and fiction, but mostly she likes to laugh.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Unleash the Child Within You
By Lina Younes
The other night as I was tucking my youngest in bed, she asked me a question that I have been mulling over ever since. “Mom, why do adults lose their creativity when they get older? Imagine if children invented things!” Her insight left me speechless as I tried unsuccessfully to find a thoughtful explanation.
As we grow up and mature, what stifles our creativity? Why do we seem less willing to take risks? I have seen many children absorb new languages like sponges, while adults seem to lose the power to “hear and pronounce” new sounds. Though there may be some physiological issues involved, it seems to me that grammatical rules of the Mother Tongue become the main constraints to learning foreign languages. The same seems to apply to science and math. I’ll explain.
I remember playing the “Wheel of Science” game at several environmental education exhibits. Young children would eagerly spin the wheel to play and guess the questions even if they had no clue of the correct response. I remember watching how the parents, on the other hand, literally cringed in fear when they saw the word “science” and hesitated in their answers. Why is that? Is it society’s norms and conventions that prevent us from thinking out of the box? Is it the natural maturing and aging process that does so?
Haven’t you noticed that many of the most creative inventors, artists, movie directors are criticized for “acting too much like kids?” I don’t think that they have a Peter Pan complex. Quite the contrary, these creative adults see beyond traditional conventions. So, we, as a society, explain that unique behavior by saying that these creative individuals are acting too much like children, unfortunately.
As I was working with my colleagues in the EPA Office of Research and Development on a project to highlight the work of EPA scientists and engineers, I noticed that they shared something in common. No, it wasn’t their love for science and math. It was something more profound. They shared a sense of wonder. They were inquisitive. Many loved nature and outdoors activities.
So, why don’t we encourage our children to embrace their creativity? Both our children and the world as a whole would benefit in the process. Don’t you think? What are your thoughts on the issue?
About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and currently serves the Multilingual Outreach and Communications Liaison for EPA. She manages EPA’s social media efforts in Spanish. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Making Sure Chemicals Around Us are Safe
By Jim Jones, Acting Assistant Administrator, OCSPP
Chemicals are found in most everything we use and consume— from plastics, to medicine, to cleaning products, and flame retardants in our furniture and clothing. They can be essential for our health, our well being, our prosperity and our safety— it’s no understatement to say that the quality of life we enjoy today would be impossible without chemicals. However, our understanding of chemical safety is constantly evolving and there remain significant gaps in our scientific knowledge regarding many chemicals and their potentially negative impacts on our health, and the environment.
While you may be familiar with the Clean Air and the Clean Water Acts— you may not be as familiar with the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the environmental statute enacted in 1976 to regulate all chemicals manufactured and used in the U.S. When TSCA was enacted, it grandfathered in, without any evaluation, the 62,000 chemicals in commerce that existed in 1976.
Unlike the laws for drugs and pesticides, TSCA does not have a mandatory program where the EPA must conduct a review to determine the safety of existing chemicals. TSCA is the only major environmental law that has not been modernized. The process of requiring testing through rulemaking chemical-by-chemical has proven burdensome and time consuming.
Compared to 30 years ago, we have a better understanding of how we are exposed to chemicals and the distressing health effects some chemicals can have – especially on children. At the same time, significant gaps exist in our scientific knowledge of many chemicals, including those like flame retardants. Increasingly, studies are highlighting the health risks posed by certain chemicals and recent media coverage has heightened public awareness about the safety of flame retardants.
As part of EPA’s efforts to assess chemical risks, we will begin evaluating 20 flame retardants in 2013 in order to improve our understanding of the potential risks of this class of chemicals, taking action if warranted, and identifying safer substitutes when possible. Over the years, EPA has also taken a number of regulatory and voluntary efforts, including negotiating the voluntary phase-outs of several toxic flame retardants. EPA’s review of and action on flame retardants has spanned over two decades and while these are important steps forward, the long history of EPA’s action on flame retardants is tied in no small part to the shortcomings of TSCA and stands as a clear illustration of the need for TSCA reform.
We have the right to expect that the chemicals found in products that we use every day are safe and provide benefits without hidden harm. It is critical that we close the knowledge gaps and provide this assurance under a reformed, 21st century version of TSCA.
About the author: Jim Jones is the Acting Assistant Administrator of the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. He is responsible for managing the office which implements the nation’s pesticide, toxic chemical, and pollution prevention laws. The office has an annual budget of approximately $260 million and more than 1,300 employees. Jim’s career with EPA spans more than 24 years. From April through November 2011, Jim served as the Deputy Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. He has an M.A. from the University of California at Santa Barbara and a B.A. from the University of Maryland, both in Economics.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
2012 Winner for Overall Excellence in Smart Growth: The BLVD Transformation, Lancaster, CA Photo courtesy of EPA
By Sarah Dale
Do you know a community that has made its downtown more walkable, bikable, and accessible to public transit? Used policy initiatives and regulations to improve the local environment? Turned its public parks into a driver for economic development? Then you might know a community that could apply for the National Award for Smart Growth Achievement. If so, please pass this blog post along!
Communities across the country are making choices about how to grow and develop while improving environmentally, socially, and economically. Through this award, EPA recognizes and supports communities that use innovative policies and strategies to strengthen their economies, provide housing and transportation choices, develop in ways that bring benefits to a wide range of residents, and protect the environment. This year, EPA is
2012 Winner for Equitable Development: The Mariposa District, Denver, CO Photo courtesy of EPA.
recognizing communities in four categories:
- Built Projects
- Corridor and Neighborhood Revitalization
- Plazas, Parks, and Public Places
- Policies, Programs, and Plans
Additionally, the review panel will choose one Overall Excellence winner.
Past winners are enthusiastic about the award: here’s what a few of the 2012 winners had to say:
- “We’ve received an outstanding response from winning this award, and our project has received attention from throughout the state, across the nation, and even internationally.” Marvin Crist, Vice Mayor, Lancaster, CA
- “Receiving the award increased awareness about what the Denver Housing Authority is doing among many different policy makers and stakeholders.” Kimball Crangle, Denver Housing Authority, Denver, CO
- “I think the Smart Growth Award is a part of what solidified our position to the point where partners decided they wanted to be a part of this.” Scott Strawbridge, Housing Authority of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Lauderdale, FL
2012 Winner for Programs and Policies 2012: Destination Portsmouth, Portsmouth, VA Rendering courtesy of Urban Advantage.
If you know a community that is doing amazing things, encourage them to apply today! The competition is open to both public- and private-sector entities that have successfully used smart growth principles to improve communities. The application process is outlined here; the application deadline is April 12, 2013.
About the author: Sarah Dale is a special assistant with the Office of Sustainable Communities, which manages EPA’s Smart Growth Program. This is her third year managing the awards.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Snow Slushies in Spring
Each Monday we write about the New England environment and way of life seen through our local perspective. Previous posts
By Amy Miller
It was the first day of spring and northern New England was looking just plain gorgeous. Not gorgeous like tiny lilac crocus bulbs emerging. Not gorgeous like sun beating down on my patio while I drink coffee.
Rather, gorgeous like Santa in the North Pole, gorgeous like Disney’s winter wonderland. In my Maine yard, soft white snow laces every branch, covers all the pavement and hides any dirt kicked up by car traffic last week. Icicles hang off eaves, while smoke wafts up from woodstoves warming children thrilled to have another snow day home.
OK, it sounds more like heaven in December than in April. But we New Englanders have learned to take what we can get. And make the best of it. So we make snowmen, take walks, get exercise by shoveling and do charity by shoveling for neighbors. We also celebrate with snow slushies. Yes, slushies made with the fallen-from-the-sky white stuff.
Turns out, though, we have to be careful if we are going to make these natural slushies. We all know – even southerners must know – that if the snow is yellow, it has been polluted by animals (likely my dog or his best friend neighbor dog). And black or brown snow most likely comes from cars and people kicking up dirt.
But what about pink snow? Apparently, snow can collect bacteria, which turns the white stuff pink. Snow can also become contaminated by pollution as it falls to the ground. Snow is fairly efficient at collecting pollution as it falls, according to Dr. Helen Suh, environmental studies professor at Northeastern University.
Once formed, the crystals that are snow can stay in the air for hours collecting pollutants before they fall to the ground. This means airborne pollution can be hidden in even newly fallen snow. Meaning that metals, acidic pollutants, and persistent organic pollutants can all be in our slushies.
Lucky for me and my kids, the amount of pollution is related to the amount of pollution in your neighborhood air, which generally is related to traffic. Although my street is sometimes a bypass for people avoiding traffic in the village, we often go minutes at a time without seeing a car.
Even in cities, Suh said, studies have found freshly fallen snow has a low amount of pollution. Just stay away from that colored stuff. And if your kids don’t believe you about the colored stuff, Dr. Suh suggests you melt some snow in a container and see what you find.
About the author: Amy Miller is a writer who works in the public affairs office of EPA New England in Boston. She lives in Maine with her husband, two children, seven chickens, two parakeets, dog and a great community.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
New Home Page
Click for a larger view
As we continue the process of rebuilding our entire website to better serve your needs, we’ve kept our focus on the mantra ‘think first of your audiences and their top tasks.’
In a post back in 2010, Jeffrey Levy told you about how we approached our home page design, using data to make decisions.
We use tools like: popular search terms, web metrics, a customer satisfaction survey, and ‘heat maps’ (scans that show where people are clicking on the current home page).
To add to that, I recently helped with a series of usability tests on different types of content on the site. This is one more critical tool to help give you what you need when you come to epa.gov.
We’ve adjusted the home page since 2010, adding things like the map that lets you roll your mouse around to get state-by-state updates. Now it’s time to again apply what we’ve learned. We took all that good historic knowledge and combined it with what we learned in the usability tests to create a new, more usable home page.
Some highlights of the new design:
- A smaller banner: it’s smaller than it was in 2010, but shrinking it even more frees up critical space ‘above the fold’ while still giving us a place to tell you about some of the most important topics affecting the environment.
- Task-specific navigation: Next to the banner are several links that will help different audiences accomplish their tasks.
- An entire section on what you can do, divided into “At Home”, “At School or Work” and “In Your Community”.
- Links related to our three main pillars of Science, Health, and the Environment are directly under the banner and use our visual ‘chunk’ concept we’ll be using throughout the site.
Our main goal was to give you easy access to what you need in a clean uncluttered and visually appealing page. While it’s not live quite yet I do have a mock up to share. Want to take a peek?
Please tell us what you think.
About the author: Danny Hart is EPA’s Associate Director of Web Communications
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
A Peek into an Unknown World
By Kelly Dulka
A while ago, I made a discovery that reminded me of the vastness of the unknown or unseen. There are all kinds of references, both funny and fantasy, to worlds and places unknown to us: from the Keebler elves to the Hobbit and even a Journey to the Center of the Earth. I’d like to tell you about my discovery of an unseen natural wonder that really set me to wondering.
A few months ago while getting ready for winter, I was helping my husband replenish the firewood for our woodstove. He was splitting, and I was stacking. As he was splitting the logs, the pieces would fall apart and to the ground. As I picked up one of the pieces, to my amazement I discovered a small, fragile mushroom growing INSIDE a knothole in the middle of the log. I was shocked, but it was an instant reminder that no matter how far I travel or how hard I try, much of the world around me I may never see.
It also made me wonder about what else exists in nature around us in places that we’ll never know. Frequently we hear of a new discovery of an animal species previously unknown, or new sea life that exists far down in the ocean where humans have never been. These unexpected discoveries remind me of both the fragility of nature, but also of its durability and continuity. It seems that Mother Nature has been doing what she does best for years and years just fine, in spite of our mistreatment and the demands we place on her.
Imagine how much more beautiful our world could be if we all took the time to tend and care for her like she does for us. Maybe by picking up trash in a neighborhood park, or snagging a few plastic bags from the branches of one of her trees, or taking the few extra minutes it takes to recycle the oil from that Saturday afternoon oil change. It’s amazing to me that such a little time investment can make such a difference in this old world of ours.
Have you ever made a discovery like this that has made you rethink how you do things? Tell us about it.
About the author: Kelly Dulka works in the Office of Web Communications. She lives in Southern Maryland.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Proper Cleaning Prevents Poisonings
By Lina Younes
Among the fondest memories of my childhood was the time that I spent at my grandmother’s home in Old San Juan. I loved walking through the city with such a rich history and unique architecture. Every time I visit the Island, I take a stroll through the old city and memory lane.
I remember one day, I must have been around 9 or 10. I attempted to help my grandmother in cleaning around the house. I wanted to make her proud of my efforts. So I started mixing some of the cleaning products under the misguided notion that “more is better.” To this date, I still have a very vivid image of my cleaning experiment. I remember one of the liquid cleaners was a dark amber color that when you diluted it in water it would become white. The other was some sort of clear liquid. However, when I made my cleaning concoction, it turned into a bright red! I quickly flushed the cleaning potion down the toilet. It was a good thing that it didn’t explode, but who knows what chemical reaction occurred! I guess I will never find out, but that leads me to the real subject of this blog entry: how to prevent accidental poisonings and exposures to chemicals. The issue is very timely given that we are celebrating National Poison Prevention Week.
Here are some tips to prevent accidental poisonings:
- At EPA we stress the fact that “the label is the law.” Read labels carefully and follow instructions when using household cleaning products and pesticides.
- As I learned from my experience decades ago, mixing products will not make your house cleaner. In fact, mixing cleaning household cleaners and pesticides can be dangerous.
- Always keep cleaning products away from children’s reach. If you are in the process of cleaning and you get a phone call or someone knocks on the door, don’t keep the cleaning products unattended. That can be an accidental poisoning waiting to happen.
- Since most poisonings occur in the home, make sure that you household cleaners and pesticides are properly stored. We even have a checklist to help you in a room-by-room inspection to ensure safety.
So, if in spite of your best efforts, someone in your home becomes accidentally exposed to a toxic chemical, please call the National Poison Control Centers at 1-800-222-1222. There are English and Spanish-speaking operators available round the clock anywhere in the United States, including Puerto Rico.
About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and currently serves the Multilingual Outreach and Communications Liaison for EPA. She manages EPA’s social media efforts in Spanish. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
Real Progress on Environmental Justice
Cross-posted from the CEQ blog; http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ceq/blog
By EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe and CEQ Chair Nancy Sutley
All Americans deserve to have clean air to breathe, safe water to drink and healthy communities in which to raise their families. These things are an essential part of what it means to live in America.
But too often, America’s low-income and minority communities bear the brunt of the nation’s pollution. That also means that these communities are disproportionately affected by the many serious – and costly – illnesses that are linked to pollution, and that they are less attractive to the businesses and investments that help create thriving neighborhoods. And unfortunately, these groups often have little say in the decision-making process that can fix these inequities.
The Obama Administration is working to address these disparities. As part of an initiative led by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), Americans across the country are benefiting from new approaches by Federal agencies to ensure healthy, thriving communities.
In new annual reports, agencies show the steps they have taken to ensure they are meeting environmental justice goals, including engaging overburdened communities early and often in decision-making, integrating environmental justice into grant application processes and agency programs, and improving the tools and methods used to identify and address concerns. This work impacts areas ranging from education and labor to health services, housing and more. For example:
- The Department of Veterans Affairs is helping to provide green jobs and workforce development opportunities for veterans in low-income communities.
- The Department of Labor is now translating educational materials and hazard alerts into Spanish, Chinese and Vietnamese for non-English speaking workers.
- The Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is using Health Impact Assessments to proactively address the potential impacts a policy or project may have on overburdened populations’ health.
- The Department of Education awarded $35 million in Promise Neighborhoods grants to create safe and healthy spaces for children and improve the educational and developmental outcomes of youth in distressed neighborhoods.
- The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), building on the America’s Great Outdoors Presidential Initiative, is studying the federal government’s urban assets and developing ways to promote work opportunities on public lands in urban areas.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture worked with American Indian, Native Alaskan, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities and intertribal organizations to meet information needs for protecting their communities from the impacts of climate change, including working with individual tribes on place-based responses to climate change that serve as models for future efforts.
Moreover, inter-agency collaboration is setting the foundation for even more progress. The Administration has reinvigorated the Interagency Working Group on Environmental Justice, and hosted the first-ever White House Forum on Environmental Justice to engage stakeholders from across the country. In addition, federal agencies, working together, have released an Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Asthma Disparities and helped communities nationwide improve access to affordable housing, provide more transportation options, lower transportation costs, and reduce pollution through the Partnership for Sustainable Communities.
We are making great progress, but there is still much work to do. Across the federal government, we are committed to better serving communities burdened by harmful pollution, engaging these communities as we work to address environmental issues, and ensuring environmental justice is part of federal decision-making for the benefit of all Americans.
About the author: Bob Perciasepe is the Acting Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
About the author: Nancy Sutley is Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.
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