C HAPTER 15: E NVIRONMENTAL H AZARDS AND H UMAN H EALTH APES Classical HS 2016`

M AKE A FOOD WEB ….. Read Acorns are a key food for white-footed mice, and make a food web of the organisms discussed… Acorns are a key food for white-footed mice, 5 minutes…GO!!!

O F A CORNS, M ICE, M OTHS, D EER, T ICKS, S PIROCHETES - AND L YME D ISEASE ? Tick larvae molt into nymphs that overwinter on the forest floor. In the spring infected nymphs seek hosts such as deer and humans.

Ticks do not actually get Lyme disease from deer, ticks contract it as larvae when they feed on infected mice. Adult female ticks need the deer to lay their eggs and for food,

L YME D ISEASE Mice carry the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi Borrelia burgdorferi

15.1 L INKS BETWEEN H UMAN H EALTH AND THE E NVIRONMENT The picture of health Environment: combination of physical, chemical, and biological factors Hazard: anything that can cause injury, death, disease, damage to personal/public property, or deterioration or destruction of environmental component Risk: probability of suffering a loss as a result of exposure to a hazard Why are we discussing this in an “environmental science” class???

T HE P ICTURE OF H EALTH : S OME T ERMS Health has many dimensions.. Health: state of complete mental, physical and social well being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity …measuring all of these is impossible so we focus on disease… Morbidity: incidence of disease in a population Mortality: incidence of death in a population Epidemiology: study of presence, distribution, and control of disease in a population

C AUSES OF H UMAN M ORTALITY

E NVIRONMENTAL H AZARDS Cultural Biological Physical Chemical

C ULTURAL H AZARDS Consequence of choice Risky behavior Cultural or lifestyle hazards- result from the place we live, our socioeconomic status, occupation, or behavioral choices. To what cultural hazards do college students (sometimes high school students )commonly subject themselves?

D EATHS FROM V ARIOUS C ULTURAL H AZARDS

B IOLOGICAL H AZARDS Pathogenic bacteria Fungi Viruses Protozoans Worms

G LOBAL M AP OF T UBERCULOSIS, 2014

I NFECTIOUS D ISEASES More prevalent in, but not exclusive to, developing countries Contamination of food and water Lack of resources for sanitation Lack of education Ideal climates for transmission of vector-borne diseases like malaria

M ALARIAL P ARASITE L IFE C YCLE P. 413 F IGURE 15-6

P HYSICAL H AZARDS Natural disasters, e.g., tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, and wildfires Avoidance of risk important in prevention, e.g., building homes in floodplains, and living on the coast Climate change: consequences of elevated greenhouse gases

C HEMICAL H AZARDS Result of industrialization Exposure through ingestion, inhalation, absorption through skin May be direct use or accidental Many chemicals are toxic at low levels

C HEMICAL H AZARDS 74 chemicals are known to be carcinogenic (Table 15-2) Environmental carcinogens initiate mutations in DNA; several mutations lead to a malignancy

P ATHWAYS OF R ISK The risk of being poor The cultural risk of tobacco use Risk and infectious diseases Toxic risk pathways

T HE R ISK OF B EING P OOR One major pathway for hazards is poverty No money for health insurance Higher probability of exposure to environmental hazards

T HE 10 L EADING G LOBAL R ISK F ACTORS Fig here

E NVIRONMENTAL H EALTH Factors contributing to the environmental health of a nation include: Education Nutrition Commitment from government More equitable distribution of wealth

T HE C ULTURAL R ISK OF T OBACCO U SE

R EGULATION OF S MOKING Warning labels Smoke-free zones in public places FDA regulations Lawsuits against the tobacco industry

R ISK AND I NFECTIOUS D ISEASES One major pathway of risk is contamination of food and water Inadequate hygiene Inferior sewage treatment

C ONTROL OF I NFECTIOUS D ISEASE Genome sequencing of the Anopheles mosquito Bed nets Change in land use practices: wetland development New effective antimalarial drugs

W ORLDWIDE D ISTRIBUTION OF M ALARIA

T OXIC R ISK P ATHWAYS Categories of impact of airborne pollutants Chronic : effect takes place over a period of years Acute : life-threatening reaction within a period of hours or days Carcinogenic : pollutants initiate cellular change leading to cancer

I NDOOR A IR P OLLUTION : D EVELOPED C OUNTRIES Hazardous fumes from home products Well-insulated buildings Long exposure to indoor air

I NDOOR A IR P OLLUTION : D EVELOPING C OUNTRIES Results from burning biofuels (wood, dung) inside homes Acute respiratory infections in children Chronic lung diseases Lung cancer Birth-related problems

R ISK A SSESSMENT Environmental risk assessment by the EPA Public-health risk assessment Risk management Risk perception

D EFINITION OF R ISK A SSESSMENT The process of evaluating the risks associated with a particular hazard before taking some action in which the particular hazard is present

L OSS OF L IFE E XPECTANCY FROM V ARIOUS R ISKS : T OP F IVE ( SEE F IG ) Alcoholic Poverty Smoking – male Poor social connections Heart disease

L OSS OF L IFE E XPECTANCY FROM V ARIOUS R ISKS

E NVIRONMENTAL R ISK A SSESSMENT BY THE EPA Hazard assessment (What chemicals cause cancer?) Dose-response assessment (How much?) Exposure assessment (How long?) Risk characterization (How many will die?)

P UBLIC -H EALTH R ISK A SSESSMENT Potential global impact High likelihood of causality Modifiability Availability of data

R ISK M ANAGEMENT Usually involves: Cost–benefit analysis Risk–benefit analysis Public preferences

R ISK P ERCEPTION : H AZARD VS. O UTRAGE Hazard: expresses primarily a concern for fatalities only

R ISK P ERCEPTION : H AZARD VS. O UTRAGE Outrage includes: Lack of familiarity with technology Extent to which the risk is voluntary Public impressions of hazards Overselling safety Morality Control Fairness

R ISK A SSESSMENT /M ANAGEMENT Some suggest we use distributive justice in making decisions about risk Ethical process of making certain that everyone receives proper consideration Should reduce environmental racism/injustice

R ISK A SSESSMENT /M ANAGEMENT Not a perfect system Precautionary principle Lack of certainty should not be used as a reason for preventing environmental degradation/hazards

The End