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Children’s Environmental Health Issues in Indiana

March 2005 Edition

(Version in pdf - 0.59 MB)

IKE Seeks New Executive Director

IKE’s Executive Director, Tom Neltner, has decided to leave IKE and take on new challenges in Washington, DC.  On March 5, IKE’s Board of Directors began to search for a new executive director.  Applications are due by March 30.  The Board anticipates making a decision by late April to ensure a three- or four-month transition time.  Go to www.ikecoalition.org for more information.

Indiana Legislature – So Far So Good

Last November, Indiana elected Republican Mitch Daniels to be Governor.  It also gave the Senate a Republican supermajority and the House went from a slight Democrat majority to a slight Republican majority. While children’s environmental health issues had strong bipartisan support in the Indiana General Assembly, IKE was concerned that open discussion and deliberation would be lost under one-party control.  IKE’s Tom Neltner decided to spend more time attending the committee meetings and engaging in the discussion than in years past.

While controversy has swirled around other aspects of the General Assembly’s bills and process, Tom Neltner is pleased to report that the discussion in both the House Environmental Affairs Committee and the Senate Energy and Environmental Affairs Committee has been excellent.  Senator Gard and Representative Wolkins have worked hard to solicit input and respond constructively to ideas.  There has been less posturing and more discussion, especially in the House where proxy voting was stopped.  The House Environmental Affairs Committee even proposed tax increases on tires and diesel fuel to address funding needs. 

IKE’s interaction with other committees also has been good.  While the agencies are still struggling to find their voice during the major leadership transition, the key legislative committees related to children’s environmental health are doing well.  While the last weeks in the session are usually the most telling – and trying – so far, so good!

                  Asthma

Burden of Asthma in Indiana – Daviess County has Highest Rate

The Data and Surveillance Workgroup of the Indiana Joint Asthma Council (INJAC) published its report on “The Burden of Asthma in Indiana” in December 2004.  The report is 73 pages long and a 0.86 MB download.  Dr. Stephen Downs of Indiana University’s School of Medicine chaired the workgroup. 

The report is loaded with statistics and charts to help you understand the magnitude of the asthma problem in Indiana.  The information is drawn from four Indiana-specific databases.  The bottom line is that Indiana is close to national averages.  For children, boys are more likely than girls to have asthma. 

Statewide, 10.4% of children on Medicaid had asthma.  Daviess County had the highest rate with 17.2%.  Huntington, Jefferson, Lawrence, Monroe, Montgomery, and Tipton counties had a rate greater than 15%.  Elkhart and Crawford Counties had the lowest rates with 5.8% and 5.9% respectively.  LaGrange, Newton, and Spencer had rates below 7%.  Of the five largest counties, Marion (Indy) had the lowest rate.  Please note that estimates for the large counties may be artificially low because they have a larger percentage of children in managed care.  Managed care organizations are less likely to submit specific claims for asthma because of their reimbursement structure.

Of children on Medicaid, 18% had an emergency room visit with diagnosis of asthma.  6% were hospitalized. 

INJAC Publishes Five-Year Strategy

INJAC, IDEM and ISDH published “A Strategic Plan for Addressing Asthma in Indiana” in December 2004 (104 pages / 3.8 MB).  The plan is an initial five-year action plan to begin to deal with the burden of asthma in the state.   The plan consists of goals, objectives, strategies, and action steps over a real timeline with specific deadlines.  The plan has five major areas:  data/surveillance, children & youth, public education, healthcare, and environment.  To reduce environmental hazards associated with asthma attacks, the plan’s only efforts that do not consist solely of research and outreach will be to:

§         By 2006, propose revisions to the Indiana Sanitary Schoolhouse Rule;

§         By 2009, recommend revisions to voluntary and regulatory codes that affect schools and regulated early care settings; and

§         By 2010 or in advance of federal deadlines, attain ozone and fine particulate matter health standards in 24 counties designated in whole or in part as non-attainment areas in 2004.

IKE believes that the plan is a great start.  IKE remains concerned that the plan’s objectives to reduce environmental triggers will not be effective at helping the low income, multi-racial, and African-American communities that struggle with the disproportionate impact of asthma.   IKE will stay involved in the effort to impact state policies and strategies that reduce asthma attacks in children. 

For more information on Indiana’s asthma efforts, check out www.in.gov/isdh/programs/asthma/index.htm. 

With Changes at ISDH and IDEM, Will the Plan Have an Impact?

ISDH Commissioner Dr. Wilson was the driving force behind Indiana’s renewed energy in reducing the burden of asthma on Hoosiers, especially children.  His leadership engaged IDEM as a strong partner, led to the creation of the Indiana Joint Asthma Coalition (INJAC), got agency staff to step up, secured funding from CDC, integrated the medical research community into the effort, and made primary prevention a priority.  He brought the parties to the table and gave INJAC’s chair, Dr. Leickly, the support he needed to get the strategic plan written. 

Unfortunately, Dr. Wilson left ISDH on January 27, 2004 with the change of Governor.  On March 7, 2005, Governor Daniel’s appointed Dr. Judith Monroe to be the new ISDH Commissioner and to serve as Medicaid’s Medical Director.  All reports are that she will be an excellent commissioner but it is too early to tell what her priorities will be.  In addition, Governor Daniel’s choice for Commissioner of IDEM, Tom Easterly, dismissed or transferred the key leadership on asthma at IDEM.  And a recent speech indicated that he did not see a role for IDEM inside buildings – where asthma triggers dominate. 

The foundation has been laid.  Time will tell if the structure needed to reduce the burden of asthma on kids and communities is reduced.

INJAC, Inc.

Anticipating changes at IDEM and ISDH, INJAC’s leadership took the precautionary step of establishing the Indiana Joint Asthma Coalition as a separate non-profit corporation.  This option does not foreclose any other structure but allows INJAC to ensure that Indiana stays on track in implementing the Strategic Plan for Addressing Asthma in Indiana.  At its January 27 meeting, INJAC devoted significant time to discussing the options and formed a by-laws task force to make recommendations.  IKE serves on that task force.

IDEM BreathEasyVille

Before Assistant Commissioner Cheryl Reed left IDEM, she implemented one of her major projects.  BreatheasyVille is on-line at www.in.gov/idem/breatheasyville/city.html.  Check out the site.  Click on the buildings to get basic guidance to reduce lead hazards.  Thanks also to Tami Johnson for getting the project done.

Cockroaches and Kids

An Inner City Asthma Study funded by the National Institutes of Health reinforced and expanded on earlier research regarding the causes of asthma attacks in inner city youth.  The study was published in the March issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

The study concluded that children who were both sensitive and exposed to cockroach allergens in the home had significantly more asthma symptom days, more caretaker interrupted sleep, and more school days missed than children who were not sensitive or exposed.  The study found that 69% of the inner city children were sensitive to cockroach allergens – more than dust mites and molds.  It also found that a majority of homes in Chicago had significant levels of cockroach allergens.  The good news for Indiana was that cockroach allergens were highest in high-rise apartments.  Indiana does not have as many high-rise apartments.

Indiana Sues to Stop Fine Particulate Matter Designations

Fine particulate matter penetrates deep into the lungs and can trigger asthma attacks.  For that reason, EPA and IDEM regulate the fine particulate matter referring to it as PM2.5 – particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns in size.  If EPA determines that counties or parts of counties exceed a specific standard set for PM2.5, EPA will designate the area as non-attainment.  IDEM would need to develop a plan to bring the area into attainment and stricter standards for new operations would be imposed. 

In December 2004, EPA designated 14 counties and parts of five more counties as non-attainment.  On March 7, 2005, Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter sued EPA on behalf of IDEM challenging EPA’s designation of 16 of the 19 counties as nonattainment.  See www.in.gov/idem/air/pm25standard/index.html for IDEM’s presentation of the timeline and copies of key documents.  While several counties with monitors such as Elkhart and Vigo indicated they were in attainment, 16 of the 19 counties designated as nonattainment relied on modeling not actual monitoring information.

The state seeks to have the 16 counties without actual monitoring data dropped from the list and designated as attainment.  According to the press release, only Marion, Dubois and Clark counties should be non-attainment for PM2.5.  While IKE will leave it to the lawyers to argue over the nuances of the designation, an overriding message seems to be that it is better not to have a monitor if there is a chance of having a problem.  The reasoning that IDEM lacks the resources to monitor the air in all 16 of the counties at issue raises questions about the investment of resources into gaining the knowledge to get the right answers versus using resources for litigation.

                 Mercury

Streamlined Mercury Variances for NPDES Permits

On January 12, 2005, the Indiana Water Pollution Control Board unanimously adopted 327 IAC 5-3.5 establishing a streamlined mercury variance program.  This rule would simplify the procedures for wastewater discharge permit holders to apply for and receive a variance from the water quality based effluent limitations for mercury in their National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit.  The variance from the mercury permit limits lasts the duration of the five-year permit.  Because of limits in state law, the variance could only be renewed once.  The rule and supporting documentation is at www.in.gov/idem/rules/#new. 

IKE supported the final rule and was an active participant in the two years of workgroup meetings that drafted and revised the rule.  The rule is limited to dischargers that have less than 30 parts per trillion (ppt) of mercury in the wastewater.  This limit is necessary to protect bald eagles (but not humans) from harm from eating fish contaminated with mercury.  Facilities would be required to develop a pollution minimization plan to identify and eliminate or reduce sources of mercury in the wastewater.  The rule establishes additional responsibilities on municipalities to work with indirect dischargers of mercury to their sewer systems. 

IKE believes that the rule will give permit holders the confidence they felt they needed before starting aggressive mercury reduction efforts.  Many permit holders used the lack of a simplified and clear process as a reason not to act aggressively to reduce mercury discharges.  In response, IDEM delayed permits and when forced to issue permits, extending the compliance date out as long as possible. A few leaders such as Ispat Inland Steel, Bethlehem Steel, and U.S. Steel began an aggressive program years ago.  They have developed a model that works.  Unfortunately, even when the variance conditions are fully implemented and the dischargers reduce as much mercury as possible from known sources in their discharges, trace levels of methyl mercury in wastewater makes it unlikely that the permit holders will consistently meet the water-quality based effluent limits.

Linking Mercury Variances and Mercury Air Emissions

Rep. Dennis Avery of Evansville introduced HB-1698 to establish in state law Indiana’s responsibility to reduce mercury contamination of water, wastewater and fish.  HB-1698 would have required the Indiana Air Pollution Control Board to adopt strict limits on mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants.  If the Board did not fulfill its mandate, IDEM would not be allowed to issue the streamlined mercury variances described above. 

The bill also directed the Board to adopt rules to protect the water from materials that persist or bioaccumulate in the environment and contribute to violations of water quality standards.  This bill would have begun to breakdown the “silos” that have plagued Indiana’s environmental programs.  Many programs fail to deal with pollutants moving between the air, water and land.

One surprise came from Rep. Tim Brown of Crawfordsville was an excellent proposal to require that mercury switches be removed from vehicles before recycling at steel mills.  A representative of the steel industry called for an amendment to establish the requirement.

Thanks to House Environmental Affairs Committee Chair Rep. David Wolkins of Winona Lake for giving the bill a hearing.  The bills opponents called for a national solution to the problem since a significant portion of the mercury travels long distances.  The bill did not get a vote, but it was a significant step forward in dealing with the policy issues regarding mercury.  Hopefully, the mercury switch issue and possibly signs to help people fishing know the fish consumption advisory for a lake or stream will be added to another bill. 

                   Environmental Tobacco Smoke       

Second-hand or environmental tobacco smoke is the most significant environmental threat to children’s health, especially children with asthma. IKE strongly supports efforts to reduce children’s exposure to tobacco smoke. 

IKE has traditionally not had special efforts to restrict this exposure.  Advocates at the state level and in Indiana’s communities such as SmokeFree Indy had more resources and capability to have an impact than a small organization like IKE.  IKE has focused on filling the gaps in advocacy. 

Progressive Indiana cities such as Bloomington have already adopted an ordinance to protect people from environmental tobacco smoke.  In 2003, Indianapolis’ Councilor Beulah Coughenour proposed an ordinance but it died in committee.   Indianapolis is considering a proposal again.  Under the leadership of Councilor Angela Mansfield and the strong support of Councilor Greg Bowes, her Children’s Health and Environment Committee is in the midst of conducting six public meetings to discuss the issue in depth.  Council President Steve Talley and Councilor Keller are co-sponsors of the proposal.  A formal proposal should be considered in May, 2005.  Thanks to Councilors Mansfield and Bowes for their approach and effort.

Even the Indiana General Assembly has begun to heed the call for action.  The House Public Health Committee considered HB-1202 authored by Rep. Vernon Smith of Gary and coauthored by Rep. Orentlicher of Indy and committee chair Rep. Becker of Evansville.  The bill was dramatically softened in the committee to only require designation of no smoking areas in restaurants that allow children.  Studies have shown that this approach is ineffective at protecting children since smoke will spread.  Amendments to strengthen it on the House floor were rejected.  The bill died with many others when the House Democrats walked out to protest other bills.  This important issue will not go away for those worried about children’s environmental health.

                Sewage

SB-620 – A Way Out of the Logjam

IDEM has received 84 Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Long-Term Control Plans (LTCPs) from the 104 CSO Communities.  It has labeled 75 as complete.  Only one – Michigan City – was approved.  Michigan set as its goal achieving Indiana’s stringent water quality standards.  For specifics on each plan and IDEM’s guidance, go to  www.in.gov/idem/water/npdes/permits/wetwthr/cso/index.html.

IDEM is in a quandary that stops it from approving plans.  After the plans are fully implemented, combined sewer overflows will remain.  The CSOs will exceed the recreational water quality standard for bacteria.  IDEM will have to undergo a formal Use Attainability Analysis (UAA) to allow for the exceedences.  CSO communities are reluctant to move forward with LTCP implementation until they are confident that the UAA will be granted – in essence they want to know the rules before they commit.  If they are expected to achieve the water quality standards during severe wet weather conditions, they will need to make a much greater investment possibly using a completely different strategy – usually full sewer separation rather than storage and later treatment.  While many cities such as LaPorte, Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and West Lafayette have undertaken important early action projects without an approved plan, they are gambling that common sense will prevail.

For Anderson, Elkhart, Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, South Bend and Miskawaka, EPA is negotiating consent decrees to ensure implementation of the CSO LTCPs so the issue is not as critical for them.  Forther, the other CSO communities want to be protected from citizen suits while they are implementing their LTCP. 

Senator Gard’s SB-620 is designed to break down the barriers that have paralyzed the system.  If enacted it:

·    Establishes a “CSO Wet Weather Limited Use Subcategory” as an alternative to the recreational use designation that essentially suspends water quality standards related to recreational use (primarily bacteria) that cannot be met due to the CSO;

·    Requires IDEM to allow CSO communities who have fully implemented their CSO LTCPs to meet this new subcategory for not more than four days after a CSO occurs;

·    Removes the special limitation Indiana has that limits variances from water quality standards (not just for CSOs and wet weather events) to one renewal.

·    Allows extended compliance schedules; and 

·    Requires the state to revise its guidance document by September 1, 2005 and its rules by October 1, 2006 to reflect these changes.

IKE supports SB-620.  For six years, reducing CSOs have been one of IKE’s top priorities.  IKE’s Tom Neltner knows all too well the warning issued by a conservative Senator when he voted against the bill.  He believes that cities and towns will only take action when threatened with legal action.  Without the pressure, he was concerned that downstream communities like his will continue to suffer from sewage in their stream.

However, Senator Gard with the facilitation of the Indiana Association of Cities and Town’s Miriam Dant have done an excellent job of including the environmental community in the discussions and responding to its concerns.  The bill reflects a compromise – but IKE believes it is a compromise that is essential for Indiana to make sustained progress to reduce sewage in our streams. 

SB-620 passed the Indiana Senate by a vote of 34-14.  On March 15, 2005, it passed the House Environmental Affairs Committee by a 10-0 vote without amendment.  It should be considered by the full House for final adoption within two weeks.

611 Dry Weather Sewage Discharges Reported in 2004 for more than 84 Million Gallons

While Indiana is poised to make substantial progress on combined sewer overflows, it is stagnant when it comes to sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) and treatment plant bypasses (Bypasses).  Sanitary sewers are designed and sized to handle sewage and wastewater not stormwater.  SSOs commonly occur because of pump failures, sewer collapses, too little capacity, blockages, stormwater inflow and groundwater infiltration.  Bypasses occur for similar reasons but they occur after the sewage and wastewater has entered the treatment plant. 

In 2004, communities reported 2,023 wastewater discharge events to IDEM for a total of more than 1 billion gallons.  The actual gallons were much greater since the communities did not report the gallons discharged in 30% of the events.  IDEM does not require an estimate of the gallons released.  Almost all of these events were SSOs, bypasses, or dry weather CSOs.  They should not include wet weather CSOs since they are addressed in the separate program discussed above. 

IKE analyzed IDEM’s database to identify which events were related to rain, which events were sanitary sewer overflows, and how 2004 compared to the reported events since 1997.  Communities, companies, mobile home parks, and other entities that own and operate wastewater collection and treatment systems submit a report when an event occurs.  IKE analyzed the summarized the reports by county at www.ikecoalition.org/documents/All_v_04_SSO_County_3-1-05.xls.  Key findings include:

·    Number of Reported Events – Marion County topped the list with 193 reported events in 2004.  Marion County is the most populous county in Indiana and is made up largely of Indianapolis.  Madison County was second with 166 reported events.  Clark County was third with 120 reported events.  No other county reported more than 85 events.  24 counties had more than 25 reported events.

·    Total Reported Gallons – Madison County topped the list with 395 million reported gallons in 2004.  Marion County was second with 137 million.  No other county had more than 75 million reported gallons but comparisons are difficult since counties can choose not to report gallons – see next item.

·    No Reported Gallons – Of counties with more than 25 events in 2004, Howard and Clay counties reported gallons on only 11% of the events.  Washington and Hendricks reported gallons on only 29% of the events.

·    Sanitary Sewer Overflows – 887 reported events for a total of 173 million gallons in 2004.  Marion, Clark, Madison, Allen, Tippecanoe and Floyd counties top the list with more than 50 SSOs each.  22 counties had more than 10 reported events.  Generally SSOs are a violation of the NPDES permit for the reporter.

·    Dry Weather Discharges – 611 reported events for a total of 220 million gallons in 2004.   Marion County had 90 reported events and more than 84 million gallons.  Tippecanoe was second with 49 reported events.  Jefferson County was third with 36 reported events and 78 million gallons.   Twenty counties had 10 or more reported events.   Generally dry weather discharges are a violation of the NPDES permit for the community.

·    Events Since 2004 – 12,883 reported events for a total of 6,746 million gallons.  Marion County topped the list for events with 1404.  Madison County tops the list for gallons with just over 2,000 million gallons. 

·    Trends in 2004 – 2004 represented 16% of all reported events since 1997.  44 counties had more reported events than that average.  Vigo, Greene, Brown, Madison, Hamilton, Noble, Lawrence, Kosciusko, White and Wayne had more than 20% of their reported events in 2004.

All SSOs and dry weather discharges are generally a violation of the community’s NPDES permit.  The community is required to submit a written report documenting how it will it prevent a reoccurrence.  A number of Indiana communities, such as Indianapolis, are moving ahead with projects to eliminate SSOs and add sanitary sewer capacity to overloaded areas.  However, IDEM’s permitting and enforcement programs need to catch up.

In IKE’s review of IDEM’s records, IDEM does not appear to react in a timely manner to these events.  It appears that IDEM does not ensure that the steps to prevent a recurrence will work.  Any confirmation occurs during the periodic inspection.  In addition, IKE believes that, in the interests of accountability and transparency, IDEM must make the reports available to the public and the community on the website quickly to identify reporting omissions, correct reporting errors, and help parents access the problem.  While IKE recognizes that IDEM has done an excellent job in the past few years to improve reporting omissions, more work is needed to prevent these dangerous discharges.  Children are playing in streams.  Report problems to IDEM’s spill-line at 888-233-7745.

Indianapolis CSO Civil Rights Action - Timeline

On October 19, 1999, Improving Kids’ Environment and the Hoosier Environmental Council filed an administrative complaint with U.S. EPA’s Office of Civil Rights on behalf of minority residents of the Fall Creek and White River neighborhoods in Marion County, Indiana. The Concerned Clergy, Sierra Club’s Hoosier Chapter, and the Mapleton–Fall Creek Neighborhood Association quickly joined as co-complainants. 

The complaint alleged that the City of Indianapolis violated the resident’s civil rights because its sewer system had a disproportionate impact on minority residents of those neighborhoods.  The complaint called upon EPA to fulfill its responsibilities under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and under EPA’s Title VI regulations at 40 C.F.R. Part 7 by investigating the allegations and, if it found them to be valid, force the City to eliminate the disproportionate impact or lose its funding from the EPA.

On October 12, 2001, EPA accepted three allegations for investigation and notified the City of Indianapolis and the complainants of its decision.  On December 3, 2001, EPA agreed to suspend its investigation pending structured discussions between EPA, the City of Indianapolis, and the complainants. 

Since January 2002, the discussions have been productive and constructive thanks to the leadership of the parties and EPA's oversight.  The parties anticipate that the City of Indianapolis will finalize its CSO Long-Term Control Plan in the Fall of 2005 that will address its concerns.

For those interested in the details, IKE has posted the timeline and relevant correspondence at www.ikecoalition.org/Sewers_Indy/Indy_CSO_Civil_Rights.htm. For more information on the overall CSO effort by the City’s Clean Stream Team go to www.indycleanstreams.org. 

Indy Sanitary Sewer Regulation – The Devil is in the Details 

The City of Indianapolis is working through a major overhaul of its sanitary sewer standards with an anticipated completion date of August 2005.  These standards are designed to ensure not only that the sewers will work as installed and maintained, but that the downstream sewer system has the capacity to handle the increased flow without causing sewer overflows.  The challenge is to translate the agreement reached by the City of Indianapolis and the public interest community, led by IKE, on sewer capacity issues into action.  This agreement was contained in the Report to the City-County Council of Indianapolis-Marion County Public Works Committee on Sewer Connection Issues by the Sewer Connection Stakeholder Workgroup on October 14, 2004.  A special thanks to the City’s Bill Grout for keeping stakeholders involved and the issues progressing.

Lead and Healthy Homes

IKE publishes the Indiana Lead-Safe and Healthy Homes Newsletter on a quarterly basis.  Please check out the October 2004, December 2004, and February 2005 at www.ikecoalition.org/publications.htm.  Topics include:

·          Lead-Safe and Healthy Homes Conference

Ø        2004 Lead-Safe Indiana Award Winners

Ø        2004 Lead-Safe and Healthy Homes Conference Summary – Attendance, Evaluations & Presentations,

Ø        2005 Indiana Lead-Safe and Healthy Homes Conference on November 8 & 9

·          Legislation & Legal Actions

Ø        SB-538 Passes Indiana Senate with Amendment Limiting Information Sharing with IDEM

Ø        Private Litigation – Two Cases Filed for Failure to Disclose

Ø        IKE Asks IDEM to Clean-Up Homes that Poisoned More Than Once

Ø        RCRA 90-Day Notice of Intent to Sue Terre Haute Landlord for Lead Hazards

Ø        HUD Enforcement in Indy

Ø        Rental Housing Quality Meetings in Indianapolis on November 22

Ø        Rental Housing Quality in Indy – Ordinance Being Considered

Ø        Landlords Respond to Problems in Indianapolis in a Variety of Ways

Ø        Fair Housing Act Complaint

·          Funding

Ø        Indiana Shutout of $168 Million of HUD Grants

Ø        HUD Grant Controversy Grows

·          Special Media Coverage

Ø        Fort Wayne Newspaper Covers Lead Poisoning

Ø        WISH-TV in Indy Focuses on Lead

Ø        Terre Haute Highlights Problem Landlord – Three Children Poisoned

·          Medicaid

Ø        IN Medicaid to Measure MCOs Performance on Lead Poisoning Prevention

Ø        IN Medicaid and ISDH Reach Agreement on Case Management

Ø        Senator Simpson on Medicaid

Ø        ISDH Proposed Medicaid Reimbursement for Local Health Departments

·          People, Places & Opportunities

Ø        Changes at IDEM

Ø        ISDH Replaces Lead Program Staff

Ø        IN EPAC Gets Going

Ø        EMI Upgrades Website

·          Research & Ideas

Ø        Lead in Soil from Roadways – A Study in Indianapolis

Ø        ISDH Blood Lead Testing Results for 2004

Ø        CPSC Takes Action on Lead in Jewelry

Ø        IKE’s Moisture Meter

·          Workshops

Ø        ISDH Workshop on HUD Grants – February 23, 2005

            Affordable Comfort Conference in Indianapolis on May 16 to 21, 2005

            Healthy Schools

21 of 36 School Indoor Air Quality Assessments for 2003 and 2004 Found Problems

Under IC-20-10.1-33, ISDH must respond to such requests by providing an investigation followed by a report and recommendations.  IKE obtained copies of the reports from ISDH and posted them on its website at www.ikecoalition.org/Schools/IAQ_IN_2003-2004.htm.   You can get more information about the reports by contacting Dr. John Ruyack at ISDH.

IKE found that ISDH:

·         Published 36 reports in 2003 and 2004;

·         Found problems at 21 of the schools – mostly related to carbon dioxide;

·         Cited one school for violating the fresh air requirements of the Indiana Sanitary Schoolhouse Rule at 410-6-5.1; and

·         Does not follow-up on its recommendations to determine if they were followed or if they worked.

IKE sees four shortcomings in ISDH’s effort:

·         The sampling for mold spores provides little value to the school or the concerned parents and staff.

·         Important fundamental issues, such as sources of excess moisture, capabilities of ventilation system, determination of maintenance schedule, are not addressed.

·         They do not provide a feasible plan for improving air quality.

·         ISDH’s lack of proactive follow-up on its recommendations raises serious questions whether the identified problems were fixed and, if implemented, whether the recommendations were correct.

ISDH explained that its reports only make recommendations to schools.  It does not have the authority to require compliance with its recommendations.  In addition, its staff lack the expertise and training to determine whether a school is complying with the critical aspects of the Indiana Sanitary Schoolhouse Rule. 

IKE recognizes that ISDH is doing its best given it current focus, its resources, and its authority.  ISDH is careful about not overselling the results and provide relevant disclaimers.  However, IKE has questions about the value of these indoor air quality inspections.  The mold spore sampling provides little assistance since there are no standards.  An effort to identify moisture problems would be more valuable.  The snapshot that the sampling provides can give parents, faculty, and school management a false sense of security since serious problems can be missed.  A more structured review of the cause of air quality problems such as moisture damage and ventilation systems similar to Marion County Health Department's approach may be more productive and less potentially misleading.

ISDH would benefit from actively engaging the dormant School Indoor Air Quality Panel created by IC 20-10.1-33-3 to identify and make available to schools best operating practices for indoor air quality in schools; and to assist ISDH in developing plans to improve air quality conditions found in inspections.  The solution is to work smarter, not harder.   We will not achieve quality results in buildings where poor ventilation, asthma and allergy triggers, and even carbon monoxide poisoning are sapping our children's ability to learn. 

Drinking Water at Schools – EQSC Calls for Legislation

The Environmental Quality Service Council considered Senator Gard’s Senate Resolution #23 calling for IDEM to ensure that faculty, staff, students, and parents be promptly notified when potentially dangerous contaminants are found in drinking water at their school.   This resolution was prompted by an Indiana Parent Teachers Association resolution. 

EQSC’s final report concluded that legislation should be adopted to require a school corporation to notify school children’s parents of contamination or potential contamination whenever the school corporation is notified of a problem.

Monroe IPM Model – A Option for Tight Financial Times

At the Indiana Pesticide Review Board’s November 18, 2004, the Office of Indiana State Chemist reported on its inspections at 40 schools to determine whether they had adopted the Board’s model Integrated Pest Management policy.  OISC found that 29 of the schools – 73% of those surveyed – had voluntarily adopted a policy.  The report and list of schools is available at www.ikecoalition.org.  In a January 2004 survey, the Indiana School Board Association found that 255 school districts had adopted the policy and 15 were in the process of adopting the policy.  Only two schools had rejected it.  

Policies are one thing but implementation is another.  The State Chemist found that only 16 of the 29 school corporations that adopted the policy.  Disappointing!  A voluntary program such as Indiana’s model policy takes diligence and resources to be sustainable in the thousands of school buildings across Indiana.  With urban and rural schools confronted with serious funding cuts, schools are forced to make tough decisions.  Voluntary programs often get cut. 

A viable alternative is the Monroe IPM Model championed by Indiana University’s Dr. Marc Lame.  It is consistent with the state’s model policy but provides the means to save money and to dramatically reduce pesticide use and the presence of pests.  It is an excellent way to make the program self-sustaining.  http://www.mccsc.edu/~mccscipm/html/reg/ipmodel/ipmodel_steps.htm

Thanks to the Office of Indiana State Chemist for conducting the inspections. 

Thanks for improving kids' environment!   

If you have any questions or comments about this newsletter or Improving Kids’ Environment, contact Tom Neltner at neltner@in.net, 317-442-3973 or 5244 Carrollton Avenue, Indianapolis, IN  46220-3181.  Please let us know if you do not want to receive this newsletter.  You may get enough emails and faxes already.  We do not want to add to the burden if you are not interested in receiving the materials. 

IKE publishes additional newsletters on a regular basis.  Let Tom Neltner if you want to get copies of either of those newsletters.  Check out the “Indiana Lead-Safe & Healthy Homes” newsletter on behalf of the Indiana Lead-Safe Task Force.  This newsletter deals with issues and events involving lead-poisoning and healthy homes in Indiana.

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Membership fees: $25 for individuals and non-profits / $50 for governments / $100 for corporations

Donations are graciously accepted to help the organization achieve its mission. Please donate!

Attached is my contribution of:  � $25  � $50  � $100  � $200  � _____

Please make checks payable to: Improving Kids’ Environment. IKE also accepts payments by personal or corporate credit cards. The Environmental Management Institute processes contributions on behalf of IKE. Mastercard or Visa Only.

Card # ________________________________________ Expiration Date _____________