Policy Programming
Women for a Healthy Environment strives to make information and solutions to complex problems more accessible to all in our communities through connecting families to resources and programming. WHE collaborates with dozens of partners to protect community members, especially children, from the irreversible damage caused by environmental toxins in homes, schools and early learning centers. Our core focus areas for community-based programming include climate change, lead, radon, air and water quality, soil, and homes.
Coalitions and Collaborators
WHE serves as the Pennsylvania representative in the Great Lakes Lead Elimination Network (GLLEN), convened by the Ecology Center. GLLEN has identified local, state, and federal priorities to help reach the objective of eliminating lead poisoning. Our state priorities include:
- Universal lead testing for all kids aged 1 and 2
- Shifting the burden of proof to landlords, including documentation of remediation after a child is poisoned and inspections/remediation prior to renting a unit
- Funding for lead abatement & lead poisoning prevention programs.
- Align with State or local Lead Commissions and boards.
- Requiring contractors to have lead-safe certifications to do work on homes built before 1978.
WHE is a proud member of The Lead-Free Promise Project. This coalition of physicians, advocates, and parents is protecting PA kids by ending lead paint poisoning.
The coalition, led by Co-Chairs Dr. Harriett Okatch of Franklin & Marshall College and Colleen McCauley, Health Policy Director for Public Citizens of Children and Youth (PCCY), has two primary goals:
- Establishing a state fund for homeowners and landlords to remove lead paint-based hazards in their properties, and
- Passing legislation that will require all children to be screened for lead poisoning.
WHE created the Radon in Schools Workgroup in 2019 to advocate for legislative action to protect children from radon exposure in schools and childcare centers. We advocate for the following PA policy solutions:
- Require all school buildings test for radon after any new construction or major renovation OR every 5 years, whichever comes first.
- Create an advisory board with medical and public health professionals, certified radon scientists and other experts to provide guidance to schools on best practices and health-based standards.
- Require school districts to submit plans for remediation to the DEP if radon levels are found above 4 pCi/L.
- Require schools to make their testing data and any applicable plans for remediation public within 90 days of receiving results.
The Cancer and Environment Network of Southwestern PA is a network of concerned citizens who advocate for policy change that will reduce exposures to harmful chemicals that are known to cause cancer and other health defects. Visit their page to take the pledge and get involved.
Get the Lead Out, Pittsburgh is a public awareness campaign designed to shine a light on lead poisoning in Allegheny County, helping families impacted by lead poisoning and enacting changes to make our community safer.
This grassroots campaign was launched at the 2019 Creating Healthier Communities Conference where 200 community members and partners gathered to learn from national leaders in lead poisoning prevention strategies.
Join the Get The Lead Out PGH campaign and request a community program.
Lead Safe Allegheny is a county-wide coalition that envisions a community where all children and their families live and grow in a lead-safe environment. The mission of the Lead Safe Allegheny Coalition is to provide leadership and advocacy to advance strategic initiatives and foster collaboration among the community by focusing on primary prevention and ultimately creating a lead-safe environment. Dedicated resources are needed for lead testing, screening, lead hazard control and abatement. Assistance for community education and organizing, workforce development for lead professionals, increasing the supply of safe, affordable housing options, training in lead-safe work practices for property owners, contractors and more is needed.
Schools
Every child deserves to learn in a healthy school. The Commonwealth’s K–-12 education system serves more than 1.7 million students across 500 public school districts. The importance of healthy schools cannot be overstated.
Healthy schools are not just about our buildings, but rather about our commitment to ensuring that every child has the opportunity to succeed. That opportunity includes learning in an environment that is safe, clean, healthy, dry, and pest-free; in an environment that encourages health promoting behaviors, where green space is accessible, and healthy nutritious food is available to all; and where mental, behavioral, and socioemotional services, are accessible to help serve the growing needs of families across the commonwealth. The research is clear that when we act, we see a difference – improved absenteeism, improved health outcomes, healthy cognitive development, and the ability to achieve academic potential.
Policy Solutions to Radon Exposure
- Require all school buildings test for radon after any new construction or major renovation OR every 5 years, whichever comes first.
- Create an advisory board with medical and public health professionals, certified radon scientists and other experts to provide guidance to schools on best practices and health-based standards.
- Require school districts to submit plans for remediation to the DEP if radon levels are found above 4 pCi/L.
- Require schools to make their testing data and any applicable plans for remediation public within 90 days of receiving results.
Healthy schools make for healthy learning. 1000 Hours A Year is helping schools, child care centers and after-school programs in Allegheny County address environmental hazards, like lead and radon, to keep children healthy and safe in the places they learn. Take action, read the FAQ and apply for a grant to protect children where they learn.
While there are many known health hazards presented, the State of the Schools report also includes preventative strategies that school districts can immediately undertake to protect students, teachers and staff from environmental harm. Healthy Schools PA offers free technical assistance and guidance to schools and should be considered a valuable partner and resource for identifying incremental steps to improve a school district’s environmental health. We work with schools to assist with everything from environmental health education, curricula, and policy and procedure reviews that will lead to a healthier school community.
For far too long, PA public schools like schools across the nation, have been underinvested in. Unlike schools across the nation, Pennsylvania public schools are uniquely vulnerable to environmental hazards. The global COVID-19 pandemic has taught us, more urgently than ever, that indoor environments matter for students’ health, safety, and academic potential. This report is a call to action. We have an unprecedented opportunity to reinvest in our schools for the long-term—to fund school infrastructure that can positively impact current and future generations of learners across the commonwealth. The challenge ahead of us is to act to ensure a healthy school for every child to grow, learn, and play.
