Virginia groups urge better air quality
From an Article by Prue Salasky, Virginia Daily Press, June 30, 2015
There are almost 700,000 asthmatics in Virginia and their health is directly tied to air quality, according to representatives of several state and national organizations committed to spreading the word about the link between climate change and public health.
In a follow-up to last week’s White House Summit on Climate Change and Health, representatives of the American Lung Association of the Mid-Atlantic, the Allergy and Asthma Network, the College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, and the Virginia Asthma Coalition joined forces in a webinar Tuesday to urge the public to “protect the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate air pollutants” and support the EPA’s Clean Power Plan.
Support for the regulations would prevent hundreds of premature deaths and thousands of asthma attacks in Virginia alone, they said. (Information on West Virginia is included at the end of this Article.)
According to U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, speaking at the White House summit, the health effects of climate change disproportionately affect children, the poor and the elderly, and exacerbate disparities in health outcomes. Murthy himself lost an uncle to a severe asthma attack, he said.
“In Virginia, minorities and children are dying,” echoed Stuart Tousman, president of the Virginia Asthma Coalition, which was formed 10 years ago when the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recognized asthma as a public health issue and provided significant funding. Since then, he said, the money has dried up. Tousman urged its renewal for increasing education and awareness. “It made an impact on the numbers,” he added.
Kevin Stewart of the American Lung Association emphasized that air quality affects a large swath of the population, putting about half at increased risk for poor health. “The sensitive groups are not a small minority,” he said.
While Virginia had one of the best grades in the ALA’s annual “State of the Air” report, ozone levels in some counties still were in the F category, with air pollution dangerous for people’s health on many days, Stewart added.
The highest concentration of asthma cases are in Richmond, the Washington, D.C. suburbs, and in Hampton Roads, according to Tousman. Typically, asthma develops in childhood.
“The vast majority come from early environmental exposures that have a lifelong effect,” said James Sublett, president of the American College of Allergy. “Most have an underlying allergy that sets off the reaction,” he added.
Tonya Winders, of the Allergy and Asthma Network, said she has four children who suffer from respiratory illnesses. “We need to teach children at the youngest age about effects of climate change, engage school nurses and develop an early education curriculum about its impact on respiratory health,” she said.
Participants urged individuals to learn about the air quality index and what levels affect them adversely in order to adjust their activities accordingly. Also, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality issues a daily alert with details on particulates and ozone levels to those who sign up at deq.virginia.gov, said Jennifer Kaufer, coordinator of the Healthy Air Coalition of the lung association.
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West Virginia Air Quality Can Be Improved
The Annual Report of the American Lung Association indicates that most of the counties in WV have no air quality monitors. However, regarding Ozone Exposure, Monongalia County received a grade of B while a C grade applies to Cabell, Hancock, Ohio, and Wood counties, with a D for Kanawha County where there are significant amounts of traffic and chemical industry.
Of the 1,854,000 residents of WV, many are at risk of ozone and particulate exposure including 382,000 (20.6%) being under 18 years of age and 320,000 (17.3%) at 65 or older. There are an estimated 33,000 (1.8%) cases of pediatric asthma, 133,000 (7.2%) cases of adult asthma, 156,000 (8.4%) cases of COPD and 209,000 (11.3%) cases of cardio-vascular disease.
The rural residents of WV are at great risk of exposure to toxic chemicals from drilling and fracking and from the diesel exhausts of heavy truck usage due to the deep/narrow valleys throughout the State. Ultra-fine particle exposure has generally been ignored in the past but is now understood to be extremely dangerous to persons of all ages. Even wildlife will be affected by diesel exhausts and silica particulates.
See also: www.FrackCheckWV.net
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