When you receive a prescription from your doctor or pharmacist, you expect them to take into account your overall health along with possible interactions with other prescriptions you may already be taking.
You expect your pharmacist to not only look for these potentially harmful interactions, but also warn you about them to protect your health.
You would think that regulators charged with protecting us from life-threatening pollutants would take the same approach by not allowing multiple polluting facilities into our communities, especially those inundated with hazards. That would mean using what are called cumulative impact assessments.
But that’s not how state regulators currently operate.
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Right now, when the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) receives a request from a company to expand or operate in a community, they do not measure pollution that already exists in the community. They also do not consider the rates of asthma, heart disease, cancer or other illnesses the community struggles with.
While Detroit’s asthma rate is twice as high as the rest of the state, current rules say regulators don’t need to take that into account when granting permits to potential polluters.
To protect our health, we need EGLE to use the best available science and consider the combined health effects of exposure to multiple pollutants and chemicals, as well as the health of the community when making permitting or other decisions that affect health. of Michiganders.
Studies show that pollutants combined can cause our health to deteriorate rapidly over time. The National Institute of Health (NIH) is one of many groups of scientists who say we can and should stop the health damage caused by multiple pollutants. The first page of the NIH report, “The Role of Synergistic Interactions of Environmental Pollutants in Cancer Development,” tells us three things:
- The combined contaminants are dangerous because of the way they can interact in our bodies, causing illness and death.
- Regulators underestimate these dangerous effects.
- Current standards to protect health are inadequate.
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In short, to save ourselves, we need to change the way we measure and regulate pollution. The NIH study also demonstrates, contrary to what industrial polluters and some regulators tell us, that it is quite possible to measure health damage from exposure to multiple pollutants, and therefore protect ourselves from harm, using the best science available. EGLE must use cumulative impact assessments to protect our health. This is crucial for the most affected communities (Black, Brown, and low-income) as they typically face multiple health threats.
But in our opinion the current EGLE rules favor companies that request permits to pollute. EGLE engages with corporations early and often, but only meets with the public after permitting decisions are made. Many times, these companies seem more willing to sacrifice human health than to make even minor expenses to prevent the release of pollutants and chemicals into the air, water or soil. State regulators should listen to those who are directly affected by pollution, rather than those who directly benefit from it.
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From Detroit, with countless sources of pollution, to the Straits of Mackinac, where indigenous people are leading a fight to protect the Great Lakes from oil spills from pipelines, communities of color across Michigan are exercising their right to live a healthy lifestyle. We have made progress in protecting the health of the most affected communities, such as closing the incinerator in Detroit. Our air will be cleaner and our climate safer as we force Michigan’s major energy companies to stop pollution and carbon emissions from burning coal and gas sooner than planned.
Still, EGLE needs to do a better job following the lead of states like New Jersey, which are already seeing benefits from their historic enactment of cumulative impact assessments. We are very encouraged that House Majority Leader Abraham Aiyash plans to reintroduce a cumulative impacts bill, House Bill 4777. That would provide, for example, realistic health protections for South Dearborn residents who work to combat the health harms caused by pollution composed of corporations like Cleveland Cliffs. ‘Steel factory and the nearby slag company.
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Everyone, regardless of race, income, or zip code, deserves the same level of environmental protection. For already overburdened communities, this means considering existing health issues and emissions when it comes to regulators making decisions about the pollutants and chemicals emitted in our communities, just as a pharmacist checks for potential drug interactions when fill prescriptions.
The health of all Michiganders should be our top priority. Those charged with protecting our health must provide realistic health protections. Join us in contacting EGLE at EGLE-Assist@Michigan.gov and demand that regulators protect the health of Michiganders through the use of cumulative impact assessments.
Juan Jhong-Chung is executive director of the Michigan Coalition for Environmental Justice. Devon Payne-Sturges is an associate professor in the Department of Global, Environmental and Occupational Health at the University of Maryland.
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