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Environmental Congenital Diseases: The NGO’s point of view ARHENA Congenital diseases seminar 9th – 11th June 2005 Ir. Marie-Christine Dewolf
Environmental Congenital Diseases: The NGO’s point of view
ARHENA Congenital diseases seminar
9th – 11th June 2005
Ir. Marie-Christine Dewolf
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European Public Health Alliance Environment Network (EEN)
Highlight the health dimension of environmental policy, the costs of pollution and the benefits of a more sustainable environment
Increase the knowledge and participation of the health community in EU environmetnal policy
Created in 2003, pan European umbrella network of non profit NGOs from health and environmental sectors
Director: Genon Jensen39-41 ru d’Arlon – 1000 Bruxelles – Belgium
Tel. +3222333875 – Website: www.env-health.org
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Provincial Institute of Hygiene and Bacteriology of the
Hainautfocuses on relationship between the environment and the health of the populationplays an important role in risk prevention Its activities covers areas such as: control of water and air quality, study of pollution sources and effects, soil and waste analyses, ecotoxicology, hygiene and food quality control, medical and toxicological analyses, indoor pollution and housing salubrity.Boulevard Sainctelette, 55 – 7000 MONS – BelgiumTel. +3265403681 – E-mail: [email protected]
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3 questions
What are the concerns of the NGO’s ?
How could scientists be involved in NGO’s concerns ? … towards a multidisciplinary approach
What are EU policies opportunities ?
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What are the concerns of the NGO’s ?
Concerns arise:– from health observations (Ex. of Mellery,
Tarciennes in Belgium: who plays the role of the « Federator element » ?)
– from environmental emerging threats (Is it a recognized threat or not ?: ex. transport vs cement factories)
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What are the concerns of the NGO’s ?
Concerns arise – around « environmental historical heritages
» (management of the past): • past exposure (who remembers ???)
• present exposure
– around existing operations (management of the present):
• normal and abnorml emissions
– further to projects (industrial, policy projects or others) under development (management of the future)
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What are the concerns of the NGO’s ?
Difficulties encountered– Multiple and complex links between
environment and health
– Different timescales• Chemical delay
• Biological delay
• Societal delay
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What are the concerns of the NGO’s ?
Different needs
Industrials… need: market and €€€Strategy: develop markets, lobby for more researches (in
order to postpone actions), develop positive image (emit below emission values, EMS, …)
Unions… need: get a salaryStrategy in term of E&H: ???
Politicians… need: popularity Strategy: take popular decisions, popular policies (which
role lobbying plays ?)
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What are the concerns of the NGO’s ?
Scientists… need: understand, provide information to allow adequate action ???
Strategy ???
Population & professionals (Health care, environmentalists, …)… need: policies, action plans, adequate decisions, …
Strategy: awarenes raising, lobbying, ask for environmental health surveillance strategy…
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
Multidisciplinar studies :• epidemiological• toxicological• environmental• meteorological• legal, … aspects/pollutant/environmental media, …
Concerns Awarenes raising: • health care professionals• wider public• decision makers
Collect data from the field
Integration of informationfurther increases the knowledge(assessment of previous studies)
Developement of Policy and
Recommendations
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
Environmental Eurobarometer 2005– The survey, carried out in November 2004, showed
that almost 90% of Europeans believe that environmental concerns should be taken into account in decision making
– It is the relatively new and scientifically complex issues that people say they lack information about
– Trustworthy sources of information: Europeans across all 25 Member States look first to environmental protection associations (42%) and scientists (32%)
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
Environmental Eurobarometer 2005– One third of respondents believe that decisions
about protecting the environment can best be taken at European level – 3% more than two years ago
– Europeans would rather like to know about solutions to environmental problems than about the environmental problems themselves
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
Communication about complex issues: multifactorial aetiology of congenital malformations– specific vocabulary: mutagene, teratogene,
cancerigen…
– wide range of different pathologies
– evidences and confounding factors… « more researches are needed »…
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
« Evaluation of the risk of congenital diseases linked to the proximity of household waste incinerators », C. Chevrier, C. Lorente, E. Robert-Gnansia, P. Brula, S. Cordier, Ademe, 2002• « Most of congenital malformations registers don’t
have rigorous procedures » (information depend on the level of awareness of the hospitals)
• « The register the study refered to only includes the age of the mother (important risk factor) in 80% of the registrations »
• « The register didn’t consider malformations identified during pregnancy and leading to interruption of pregnancy »
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
• Many epidemiological studies assess the population risk by calculation of the distance to the source without considering the spreading pattern of the emissions
• If the spreading pattern of the emissions is considered, most of the exposure levels are calculated on a mean value
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
Pb: « considered to be responsible of limited congenital anomalies » … many studies refer to the blood lead level…
« Maternal Stress Modulates the Effects of Developmental Lead Exposure », Slechta, 2004:« We observe increased risk related to the
interaction of Pb and stress (cf. enhanced susceptibility to diseases and dysfunctions)»
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
« Decrease in birth weight in relation to ternal bone-lead burden », Cossio, 2004 + others« Taking together with other reseaches indicating
that blood lead can mobilize from bone into plasma without detectable changes in whole blood lead and because Pb remains in bone for years and decades, mobilization of bone lead during pregnancy may pose a significant fetal exposure with health consequences, long after maternal external lead exposure has declined »
« Pattern & Determinants of blood lead during pregnancy », Picciotto, 2004« Pb can remain a significant threat to the fetus long
after cessation of external lead exposure »
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
Aarhus convention … is « contribute to the protection of the right of every person of present and future generations to live in an environment adequate to his or her health and well being » by garanteeing the right of access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice.
… information on the health effects of the pollutants covered under the Protocol ar key for all audiences.
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
PRTR – Pollutant Release and Transfer Register and EPER – European Pollutant Emission Register
… towards the developement of integrated monitoring systems ???
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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Towards a multidisciplinary approach
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What are EU policy opportunities ?
Biomonitoring (EU action plan)Health indicators (birth defects)… EU wide registers… INSPIREREACHPRTR7th Framework for environmental and health researches and surveysEIA…
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Conclusions
