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Chemistry

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Feb 20, 2024

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EH730 Spring 2023 Problem Set #3 (out of 45 points) DUE: Wednesday, April 26, 2022 (6pm) 1. Why do you think so few chemicals (96 out of 80,000 chemicals used in commerce and industry) are regulated in drinking water in the U.S.? Some of your response will be your opinion, but please draw from reputable sources and cite appropriately. (8-10 sentences; 10 points) Guidelines for certain limits of chemicals were never implemented into the Safe Drinking Water act, so as a result, water contaminated with the remaining 80,000 never broke any laws, and no one was penalized. To make or add to such laws, it requires legal and political work, which comes with resistance from both the community, as they think the water is fine because it is “legal”, and political officials (Duhigg, 2009). Safety standards have also not been kept up with recent contaminants, specifically new forms of old chemicals or new chemicals altogether. Additionally is updating regulations, of which have been reviewed in over 50 years, and the EPA is not working fast enough on these issues. I also think there is still much more to learn about some of the 80,000 chemicals that are used in commerce and industry, to understand their effects on human health and the environment (Environmental Working Group, 2021). 2. What do you think is the most important EH relevant exposure that the United States faces today? Why? Provide some data or citations to support your position (can be scientific articles in addition to news articles or Scientific American-type stories). (8-10 sentences; 10 points) I think the most important EH relevant exposure that the United States encounters today is Air pollution, with around 67 million tons being emitted into the atmosphere in 2021(EPA, 2022). Additionally, in the same year around 102.1 million people lived in counties with one or more pollutants mentioned previously, at levels higher than the EPA’s standards (EPA, 2022). It contains harmful pollutants such as ground-level ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, lead, nitrous oxides, and sulfur oxides (CDC, 2009). Isolated, these chemicals cause a plethora of health effects such as chest pain, eye, throat , and lung irritation, fatigue among others. Together, as air pollution, they affect lung development and are connected to the development of asthma, emphysema, and even Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) ( CDC, 2019, & U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2023, & ATSDR, 2002, & New York Department of Health, 2018 ). Air pollution significantly affects the health of Americans with a mean of 60,200 thousand deaths in 2019 alone (Ian, 2023). Air pollution is not only harmful for humans but also wildlife and the environment. Crop loses as a result of air pollution ranged from 20-30% in the U.S. over the last 40 years (Liu et al., 2021). Air pollution harms plants and animals, as it can acidify water and degrade habits (U.S Fish and Wildlife Services, 2020).Crop loss can have devastating affects on agricultural and the food industry, resulting in food shortages and increased prices for products.
3. In class we discussed and debated the relative pros and cons to using pesticides for various applications, despite some potential health risks. Choose one of the following topics: (i) DDT for indoor residual spraying to combat malaria, or (ii) Insect Blocker clothing impregnated with pyrethroids for children’s protection against disease-carrying vectors such as ticks and mosquitoes. For your topic, describe the risk and benefits, supporting any statements of fact with citations. (2-3 bullets points for pros and 2-3 bullet points for cons; 10 points) DDT for indoor residual spraying to combat malaria Pros (benefits) Cons (Risk) · Reduces the number of malaria cases (Rehwagen, 2006) · Quick way to reduce number of cases (Rehwagen, 2006) · Cost effective – beneficial for developing countries (Rehwagen, 2006) · Possible human carcinogen – studies of lab animals showed negatives effects on liver and reproduction (CDC, 2009) · Persistent in the environment and animal tissue – half-life of 2-15 years (CDC, 2009) · Risk of insecticide resistance (Sadasivaiah, 2008) 4. You are the new Director of Public Health and have been asked to investigate food- related outbreaks in your state for the last 5 years. One tool we discussed that is useful for extracting these data is the CDC’s NORS dashboard. Using this tool, find the following (8 points): a. Which state had the highest frequency of all food-related outbreaks between 2018-2020? California has the highest frequency of food-related outbreaks between 2018-2020 with 299 outbreaks b. How many food-related outbreaks occurred in MA between 2018-2020? There were 81 food outbreaks that occurred in MA between 2018-2020 c. How many outbreaks were related to E. coli in MA between 2018-2020? There were five E.coli outbreaks in MA between 2018-2020
d. For the largest E. coli outbreak in part (c), how many people became ill? How many died? In which setting did this occur? There were 364 illnesses and 6 deaths, the setting in which this occurred was private home/residence 5. Using the State of Global Air website introduced by Dr. Patton, answer the following questions: (7 points) a. Describe the pattern of ambient PM2.5 levels over time for Brazil (1 sentence). Brazil had a steady PM2.5 annual average of around 14.6 m g/m3 from 1990 to 2011, then dropped at during 2012, with a value of 13.8 m g/m3 till 2016, at which it was 11.4 m g/m3, it then increased slightly in 2017 to 11.7 m g/m3 and has plateaued until 2019. b. Describe the pattern of ambient ozone levels over time for Brazil (1 sentence). Brazil had a steady ambient ozone seasonal average of around 32.9ppb from 1990 to 2010, in 2011 it increased to 35ppb and has continued to increased steadily, the last year data was collected was 2019 where it reached 39.7ppm c. Compare the patterns in parts (a) and (b) for Brazil to the patterns in the U.S. Describe in 2-3 sentences. The patterns of ambient PM2.5 and ozone are vastly different in Brazil, in which PM2.5 started out plateaued, increased a little and then began to decrease to which it then plateaued. On the other hand the ambient ozone average seasonal levels started lower and plateaued, but then began a steady increase without a plateau ATSDR. (2002, April). NITROGEN OXIDES . ATSDR. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaqs/tfacts175.pdf Centers for Prevention and Control. (2009, November). Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) . Centers for Prevention and Control. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/biomonitoring/pdf/DDT_FactSheet.pdf Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019, June 21). Sulfur dioxide . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/sulfurdioxide/default.html#:~:text=Exposure%20to %20sulfur%20dioxide%20may,from%20exposure%20to%20sulfur%20dioxide. Duhigg, C. (2009, December 17). That tap water is legal but may be unhealthy . The New York Times. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/17/us/17water.html Environmental Protection Agency. (2022, June 1). Air Quality - National Summary . EPA. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.epa.gov/air-trends/air-quality-national- summary#:~:text=In%202021%2C%20about%2067%20million,of%20acids%2C%20and %20visibility%20impairment. Environmental Working Group. (2021, November). The dirty secret of government drinking water standards . EWG Tap Water Database | The Dirty Secret of
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Government Drinking Water Standards. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.ewg.org/tapwater/state-of-american-drinking-water.php Ian Tiseo . (2023, February 6). U.S.: Air Pollution Deaths 2019 . Statista. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1137375/air-pollution-deaths-united-states/ Liu, X., & Desai, A. R. (2021). Significant Reductions in Crop Yields From Air Pollution and Heat Stress in the United States. Earth's Future , 9 (8), e2021EF002000. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021EF002000 Rehwagen, C. (2006). WHO recommends DDT to control malaria. BMJ : British Medical Journal , 333 (7569), 622. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.333.7569.622-b Sadasivaiah, Shobha & Tozan, Yesim & Breman, Joel. (2008). Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) for Indoor Residual Spraying in Africa: How Can It Be Used for Malaria Control?. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene. 77. 249-63. 10.4269/ajtmh.2007.77.249 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2023, March 23). Air pollution and your health . National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/air-pollution/index.cfm#:~:text=Air %20pollution%20can%20affect%20lung,urbanization%20and%20outdoor%20air %20pollution. U.S Fish and Wildlife Services. (2020). Air Quality: U.S. fish & wildlife service . FWS.gov. Retrieved April 26, 2023, from https://www.fws.gov/program/air-quality