Children’s Environmental Health Issues in Indiana

September 2004 Edition  

PDF Version (0.45 MB)

ISDH Fills Critical Need

In September, ISDH hired Linda McDole Foley to be director of the newly created division at ISDH that includes environmental epidemiology, radiological health and indoor air quality as well as a chemical terrorism public health response.  One of her primary responsibilities will be to use state health and environmental databases to evaluate the relationship between environmental pollution and human health.

She fills a critical need at ISDH to lead efforts to address environmental health issues at the agency and to coordinate work with IDEM.  IKE is scheduled to meet Ms. McDole Foley on October 8 but is pleased to see ISDH fill this need. 

Ms. McDole Foley has a bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of Michigan and a master's degree in Preventive Medicine from the Ohio State University School of Public Health.    She has been a district epidemiologist in western Kentucky covering seven counties and has served as a consultant for the Research Department at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.

   Asthma   

Indiana Asthma Plan Due in December

After 15 months of work, the Indiana Joint Asthma Council (INJAC) is finalizing the Indiana Asthma Plan.  The plan is the work of INJAC, Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM).  INJAC will be asked to approve the plan at its October meeting.  The goal is to publish the plan in December 2004.

The plan covers a five-year timeframe.  INJAC, ISDH and IDEM developed it thanks to a grant to ISDH from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and must comply with CDC’s Guide for State Health Agencies In the Development of Asthma Program.  CDC’s guidance focuses on the structure and management of a state’s effort to reduce asthma.  It does not establish or call for specific asthma reduction goals that the state or the plan must try to achieve. 

Consistent with the CDC guidance, the draft plan does not set any specific goals for asthma reduction.  Instead, ISDH and IDEM have approached the plan as if it were an enforceable promise to CDC that must be met with existing resources and commitments.  ISDH and IDEM could only promise to try to pursue more funding, more authority, or more cooperation with other agencies.  As a result, the plan relies heavily on education, toolkits, case studies and outreach.  To reduce environmental hazards associated with asthma attacks, the plans only non-outreach or non-research based efforts 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.

These efforts fall far short of what INJAC’s Environmental Quality Committee recommended.  Those recommendations called for more funding, more support for local health departments, stronger building codes, more effective rental housing quality requirements, and greater enforcement of existing laws and regulations dealing with workplaces, schools, childcare, housing and trash burning.  The recommendations for schools, childcare, and homes are included below.

IKE is concerned that the plan’s modest goals will have relatively little tangible impact on the burden of asthma in Indiana.  IKE is especially concerned that without more resources and more significant efforts to reduce environmental hazards in housing and childcare, the plan could have an unfortunate and unintended impact.  It could make the existing health disparity of asthma’s burden on the African American community worse.   Minorities and low-income residents suffer from a disproportionate impact of asthma but often lack the time and resources to reduce the environmental hazards in their home, school, work or childcare. 

Fine Particulate Matter

Particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns (PM_2.5) is clearly associated with asthma attacks.  The fine particulate matter is primarily from burning – whether it is coal burned at a power plant with inadequate controls, diesel fuel in a truck, or trash and wood burned in the backyard or stove.

Areas with PM_2.5  in excess of federal standards is considered non-attainment and subject to stricter controls than other areas. IDEM and EPA have a fundamental disagreement over the designation.  IDEM wants to narrow the designation to only the county or area actually measured and EPA extends it to the metropolitan area.  IDEM also wants to presume that reductions required by existing rules can exempt an area from being non-attainment.  EPA disagrees.  Go to http://www.in.gov/idem/air/pm25standard/index.html for the latest correspondence.  The controversial counties are:

• Porter County in Northwest Indiana;

• St. Joseph County in North Central Indiana,

• Hamilton, Hendricks, Morgan and Johnson counties in Central Indiana around Indianapolis;

• Gibson, Pike, Warrick and Spencer counties in Southwest Indiana;

• Floyd and Jefferson counties in South Central Indiana; and

• Lawrenceburg Township (Dearborn County) in Southeast Indiana.

The decision is important to economic development in these counties.  But it is more important to children’s health, especially those children who miss school due to asthma! 

 Mercury

Wastewater Discharges

The Indiana Water Pollution Control Board preliminarily adopted a rule that would grant a streamlined mercury variance for facilities with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for the discharge of wastewater to waters of the state.  For copies of the preliminarily adopted rule, response to comments on the draft rule, and a fact sheet on the rule go to  www.in.gov/idem/rules/packets/water/2004/sep/index.html.  The preliminarily adopted rule will be published in an upcoming Indiana Register for another round of comment before final adoption.  The schedule calls for the rule to be effective in Spring 2005.

Virtually any facility required to test for mercury in its effluent using the new, more sensitive testing method will find mercury and require a limit for it.  It appears that most of these facilities will not be able to consistently comply with the required limit due to a legacy of mercury use, mercury in consumer products, mercury in rainwater from atmospheric deposition and other sources.  Therefore, they will need a variance. 

The variance will allow the facility to comply with its NPDES permit until the mercury limits are consistently achieved.  They are only eligible for a variance if the average mercury concentration is less than 30 parts per trillion (ppt).  This is the level Michigan demonstrated to EPA as not impacting endangered species – specifically bald eagles.

Facilities across the state have begun getting mercury limits in their permits.  However, whenever possible, IDEM has given the facilities a five-year compliance schedule to buy them time.  The need for a variance is especially important for facilities discharging to the Great Lakes Basin when the limits are more stringent. 

IKE supported the rule but raised two concerns:

•                State Not Doing Its Part:  A variance is only allowed where there is widespread and substantial economic and social hardship.  That is the case for the facilities that struggle with mercury due to sources beyond its control.  However, the state is clearly not doing its part to reduce mercury.  It is not enforcing the requirements of HEA-1901 See www.in.gov/idem/mercury/rules/index.html.  HEA-1901 imposes strict limits on the use of mercury and products that contain mercury.  The state has also been reluctant to deal with mercury from power plants.  See article below.

•             Combined Sewer Overflows:  Traditional biological wastewater treatment removes well more than 95% of the mercury in sewage.  However, mercury levels in sewage often exceed 300 parts per trillion (ppt).  When the sewage is discharged from a combined sewer overflow, the levels will exceed the 30 ppt limit to qualify for a variance.  Eventually, IDEM will realize that it is obligated to established limits for mercury on CSOs.  Municipalities with combined sewer overflows will not be eligible for a variance.  Despite IKE’s requests, the rules make no accommodation for this situation.

Rulemaking Petition

In a surprising turn of events, IDEM and the Chair of the Air Pollution Control Board sought to strictly limit the public’s right to a hearing on a potential state rule to control mercury releases from coal-fired utilities.  While the motives are unclear, it appears that IDEM does not want the issue to be addressed in a public hearing before the gubernatorial elections. 

In a June letter to EPA, IDEM stated that it believes federal multi-pollutant legislation was the best way to address the issue.  IDEM objected to EPA’s proposed rule for mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants on the following four basis:

•                The proposed regulation unjustifiably favors certain coal types and we firmly believe that the  program should be fuel neutral;

•                Both the emission targets and timing appear to fall short of what is technically feasible and environmentally responsible;

•                While a market based approach is supported, we do not believe that concerns about local impacts are sufficiently addressed in the current proposal,

•                The conclusion that mercury and nickel are the only air toxics of concern needs further study, although we agree with USEPA that aggressive standards for new sources should be established, we also believe that USEPA’s proposal can be strengthened.

In June, the Hoosier Environmental Council presented a petition to the Air Pollution Control Board (APCB) asking for public hearings on a proposed rule to restrict mercury emissions from power plants.  State law requires that the APCB hold a public hearing.  At the APCB’s July meeting, the chair of Board accepted comments and unilaterally declared that IDEM would convene a workgroup.  Public hearings were not scheduled and were unlikely to be held until the workgroup process was completed. 

An editorial in the Indianapolis Star cried foul.  The public objected in the media and at various meetings.  IDEM and the APCB relented by allowing one early evening public hearing before the full Board at an Indianapolis meeting.  HEC and others called for meetings in areas where the power plants were located.  The Water Pollution Control Board has set an excellent precedent of multiple public hearings around the state.  The APCB refused.  Again an Indianapolis Star editorial cried foul. 

Hopefully, the APCB will relent and allow public hearings that are accessible to concerned citizens across the state, not just those in the Central Indiana.  

Lead and Healthy Homes

IKE publishes the Indiana Lead-Safe and Healthy Homes Newsletter on a quarterly basis.  The September 2004 edition is available at www.ikecoalition.org/publications.htm.  Topics include:

• CDC Pleased with ISDH Lead Poisoning Elimination Plan

• IHFA Raises $16,000 for IKE and Lead-Safe Indiana Task Force at Golf Outing

• ISDH Revises Blood Lead Testing Reports

• Indiana Medicaid Makes Progress on Reimbursements for Lead

• Medicaid Told to Make Progress on Blood Lead Screening

• Lead-Safe and Healthy Homes Conference – November 9 & 10 in Indy

• Sherwin Williams Meets With IKE

• Fort Wayne Tenant Files Fair Housing Act Complaint for Lead Poisoning

• Lead Dust and Paint Chips as a Solid Waste Under RCRA

• 24 of 26 Apartment Building on Indy’s Meridian Street Cited for Lead Hazards

• HUD and EPA in Indy for Compliance Investigations

• Rental Housing Quality Meetings in Indianapolis in October

• Housing Code Enforcement in Indianapolis

• Major Mold Settlement in Indy Against Beazer

• HUD Lead and Healthy Homes Grants Pending

  Healthy Schools

Indiana School Air Quality Board

The Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) convened the Indiana School Air Quality Board for its second meeting on August 31, 2004.  Like its first meeting in January 2004, ISDH focused the panel’s attention on possible revisions to ISDH’s Schoolhouse Rule. 

The Indiana General Assembly directed ISDH to create the panel when it unanimously enacted Senate Enrolled Act 407 in 2002.  The law was effective on July 1, 2002.  The General Assembly was responding to parent and teachers concerns about indoor air quality at Indiana’s schools.  The bill was authored by Senator Miller and sponsored by Senators Gard, Craycraft and Landske and Representatives Welch and Porter.  The law also requires ISDH to conduct air quality inspections when requested by a parent, teacher, student or staff at a school. 

IC 20-10.1-33-3(f) establishes the responsibilities of the panel.  It states that the panel shall:

(1)        Identify and make available to schools best operating practices for indoor air quality in schools; and

(2)        Assist the state department of health in developing plans to improve air quality conditions found in inspections by ISDH.

IKE submitted public comments in person in the brief time allowed asking the panel to:

•               Refocus its deliberations by drawing on existing documents to develop its best operating practices recommendations;

•               Consider the recommendations of INJAC’s Environmental Quality Committee to improve school air quality to reduce asthma attacks;

•               Ask ISDH for summaries of its school air quality inspections; and

•               Ask ISDH to identify actual changes implemented at schools based on those inspections and the benefits realized from this changes. 

Click here for a copy of IKE’s comments.

EQSC Fails to Consider Senate Resolution #23

In March 2004, the Indiana Senate adopted Senate Resolution #23.  It called upon:

•               IDEM to ensure that faculty, staff, students and parents are promptly notified when potentially dangerous contaminants are found in drinking water at their school; and

•               The Environmental Quality Service Council (EQSC) to consider the issue and provide more specific guidance to IDEM during its 2004 deliberations. 

The resolution was authored by Senator Gard and coauthored by Senators Landske and Hershman.  It was prompted by a public school in northwest Indiana that failed to notify parents when methyl tert butyl ether (MTBE) was found in drinking water.  MTBE was a gasoline additive that has contaminated groundwater across the country. 

Unfortunately, the Environmental Quality Service Council did not consider the issue in its deliberations. 

IDEM Releases “Enviroville”

Check out IDEM’s new Enviroville at www.in.gov/idem/enviroville/.  The interactive website provides excellent suggestions to Hoosier youth to protect the environment.  Next up is Breatheasyville!

Asthma and Schools

The Indiana Joint Asthma Council’s Environmental Quality Committee recommended the following goal as a core element of its plans to make tangible reductions in asthma attacks in schools

Goal                 Reduce environmental risk factors that contribute to the asthma burden in Indiana schools.

Objective 1.      By June 2008, revise the Indiana Sanitary Schoolhouse Rule (Schoolhouse Rule) to address environmental risk factors for asthma in the location, construction, management, or renovation and repair of school buildings or facilities.

Objective 2.      By January 2009, increase by 20% the number of schools with the capacity to identify environmental risk factors for asthma and the knowledge to reduce environmental risk factors in school buildings or facilities.

Objective 3.      By January 2009, integrate environmental risk factors for asthma into voluntary and regulatory codes that affect schools.

Objective 4.      By January 2009, all superintendents as part of the school asthma management program for each school district will verify and document to ISDH on an annual basis the environmental risk factors in individual schools.

Objective 5.      By January 2009, increase by 20% state and local government capacity to identify and reduce environmental risk factors for asthma in schools.

   Healthy Stores

IKE Provides Toolkit to Community-Based Organizations Checking Retail Stores

A basic principle in business is that you excel at what you measure.  Retail stores measure their success by sales.  Some stores also measure customer satisfaction.  But what if a customer unwittingly and unknowingly poisons their children or their client’s children as a result of bad advice from the store’s clerks or the lack of supplies to do a project safely. 

IKE believes that few stores appear to take their customer’s health seriously enough to adequately train clerks.  There are glimmers of hope from trade associations or some chains but nothing firm or widespread.  Certainly no retail store has embraced the issue of competency on such critical issues as lead-based paint safety or integrated pest control.  Some retail stores have taken the easy road by telling clerks not to give advice regarding the critical issues ignoring the reality that they hire employees who want to help customers and find it difficult – if not impossible – to ignore a customer’s plea for help.

IKE’s goal is to get retail stores that sell pesticides and paint to:

•             Affirmatively provide customers with sound advice regarding the safe and effective use of pesticides and paints; and

•             Offer customers the information and products they need to protect children from the hazards of pesticides and lead-based paint. 

IKE has developed a toolkit to help community-based organizations assess the retail stores in their community.  The toolkit is available www.ikecoalition.org/Stores/Toolkit.htm.  Organizations in Cleveland and Chicago have already begun to use it.  IKE provides $10 per store to groups participating in the survey.  Contact Tom Neltner at 317-442-3973 or mccabe@ikecoalition.org for details. 

IKE Meets with Sherwin Williams

IKE’s volunteers and staff have visited hundreds of retail paint and hardware stores across Indiana.  In addition, Lara Nochomovitz of Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry in Cleveland has visited more than thirty stores in her area.  Finally, Marion County Health Department formed a Paint Retailers Task Force and invited all retailers. 

After reviewing progress in August, IKE determined that Porter Paints performs the best but still has room for improvement.  Lowes Home Improvement is making progress and appears committed to improvement.  In contrast, Sherwin Williams’ stores had the most room for improvement.  While the stores had pamphlets on display, had warnings on the can, and took the extra step of warning labels on paint stir sticks, Sherwin Williams’  clerks consistently gave out dangerous advice when asked how to prepare a painted surface for a new coat of paint.  IKE’s efforts to engage local management in Indianapolis met with little success.

With the help of the National Paint and Coatings Association, IKE met with Sherwin Williams’ Vice-President for Corporate Planning and Communications and its outside counsel on September 17 in Indy.  The Concerned Clergy, Organization for a New Eastside and MCHD participated in the meeting.  It was a productive discussion. 

Sherwin Williams understood IKE’s concerns and stated that they were unaware of concerns about the advice their clerks were dispensing.  They committed to significant improvements.  With 17,000 retail employees nationwide, their ability to impact the lives of their customers – for better or for worse – is tremendous.  It is also a challenge to get all 17,000 to have a consistent message.  Finally, they shared the difficulties in getting state and local requirements integrated into the countertops displays and education for a national company.  They agreed to make sure employees received information on the issues.  They also agreed to determine why LeadCheck® swabs had been pulled from their shelves.  

Indiana State Chemist Fines Stores Violating Pesticide Rules

In March 2004, IKE visited the retail hardware stores serving Indianapolis.  95% of the stores were violating Indiana’s pesticide rules by giving advice without posting the proper signs and getting the required training.  In the past six months, the Indiana State Chemist, which enforces the rules, issued fines totaling $1750 against the stores.  If a store repeats the violation, the fine will be doubled.  The latest results are as follows:

• Do-It-Best  – One store fined $250.  Three stores received warning

• Ace – Four stores fined $250 each.  Two stores received warning.  No violation at one store.

• Menards – One store fined $250.

• Lowes – One store fined $250.

• Menards – Two stores received warning.

Air Toxics 

School 21 and Citizens Gas Company

For more than one year, IDEM has maintained a gas chromatograph to continuously sample the air at Indianapolis’ School 21.  The monitor provides hour-by-hour totals of key air toxics found in the air at the school.  The monitoring includes meteorology information including wind speed and direction  The data builds on three years of 24-hour sampling data from canisters.  See the monitoring results at www.in.gov/idem/air/amb/data/toxic/toxic.html.

The results point to Citizen’s Gas and Coke Company coke manufacturing facility as a significant source of benzene in the air around the school.  The benzene as well as toluene, ammonia, and various other toxics come from the plant’s coke ovens and quench operations.  Many of these are known or probable carcinogens.

IKE participates on a workgroup with IDEM, EPA, the City of Indianapolis, Citizens Gas, Marion County Health Department and several local residents to evaluate the situation and assess the potential health risks to residents, especially children.  The risk assessment includes the Citizen Gas facility, mobile sources and other businesses in the area.

IKE is also concerned that the facility has many unresolved compliance violations and the City of Indianapolis and IDEM have been slow to get the plant’s compliance issues resolved.  IDEM is waiting to issue the Title V air operating permit for the facility until IDEM’s contractor completes an audit of operating practices for the facility. 

  Sewage

IDEM Tells EPA to Back Off

EPA has met with several of large cities in Indiana including Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, South Bend, Mishawaka and Elkhart to discuss consent decrees to make the city’s long-term control plan enforceable.  In a July 23 memo to EPA, IDEM objected to EPA’s active role and its use of consent decrees.  IKE weighed in and supported EPA’s approach, especially in light of IDEM’s in ability to review and approve the CSO LTCPs for the 105 cities in a timely manner.  Despite having more than 80 plans in hand, IDEM has approved only one.

IDEM Agrees in Part to Demands from Cities and Towns

In July, the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns and the Indiana Water Environment Federation published a white paper calling for significant changes in IDEM’s CSO program including changes to state law, water regulations, and IDEM policies.  While many of the proposals are constructive steps, IKE believes that several proposals are prohibited by the Clean Water Act.

IDEM responded with a letter agreeing to seek revisions to state law to remove the limit of two variances to water quality standard-based effluent limitations and to develop a model state agreed order as well as compliance schedules that extend longer than five-years.   IDEM also agreed to establish wet-weather water quality criteria for CSO discharges.  IDEM did object to revisions to the state law to define existing uses of surface water based on the existing water quality instead of the actual uses.  IKE has expressed an interest in working with IDEM, IACT, and IWEF to find workable solutions to these issues. 

Indy Sewer Connections

IKE and the Hoosier Environmental Council objected to Indianapolis’ proposed ordinance that would prohibit the construction of new combined sewers.  They objected to the definition of a combined sewer which allowed for reconstruction of a whole neighborhood with sewers that received stormwater.  They also asked the City to incorporate language limiting new sewer connections that increase the frequency and duration of sewer overflows.  To involve additional stakeholders in these policy discussions, IKE and the City of Indianapolis agreed to a formal process to develop a joint report regarding these issues.  After four meetings, we reached a resolution that establishes criteria that the city will consider when approving new connections.

News About IKE

Thanks to IKE’s New Board!

In September, IKE selected a new, expanded Board of Directors.  Thanks to these leaders committed to protecting children from environmental threats!

•            Richard M. Van Frank – President – Secretary of Keep Indianapolis Beautiful and A.W. Butler Audubon Society, and Member of EPA’s Title V Advisory Committee

•            Dr. Bill Beranek – Vice-President – Executive Director of Indiana Environmental Institute

•            Dr. Jack Leonard – Treasurer – President of Environmental Management Institute in Indianapolis, Indiana

•            Dr. Indra Frank – Pathologist and Chair of Health and Environment Committee for the Hoosier Environmental Council in Indianapolis, Indiana

•            Senator Beverly Gard – Chair of Senate Environmental Committee in the Indiana General Assembly from Greenfield, Indiana

•            Dr. Stephen Jay – Chair of Department of Public Health at the Indiana University School of Public Health in Indianapolis, Indiana

•            Dr. Marc Lame – Professor at Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs in Bloomington, Indiana

•            TaNaisha Lee – Masters Degree Student at Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs from Michigan City, Indiana

•            Dr. Rae Schnapp – Water Policy Director of Hoosier Environmental Council and Wabash Riverkeeper in Lafayette, Indiana

•            Dr. Fred Whitford – Coordinator of Purdue Pesticide Programs at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana                        

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 two additional newsletters on a quarterly basis.  Let Tom Neltner know if you want to get copies of either of those newsletters.  To avoid duplication, issues addressed in these newsletters are only briefly mentioned in this newsletter.

•      “Sewage in Our Streams” newsletter on behalf of the Indiana Clean Water Coalition.  This newsletter deals with issues and events that directly relate to sewer overflows, sewer management and septic systems.

•      “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.