Highlights of Network News and Events
   Indoor Environments Network (IEN)
October-December, 2002
  AROUND THE  NETWORK:

  The "Smoke-Free Home Pledge" Campaign Celebrates One-Year Anniversary in October

  Since the initial launch by EPA Administrator Christine Whitman last year, EPA's
  Smoke-Free Home Pledge initiative continues to gain national momentum with
  almost one million brochures requested and several thousand pledges received
  from across the country.

  To facilitate pledging, there is now a new, easy-to-remember hotline number
  available: 1-866-SMOKE-FREE, or (1-866-766-5337). The previous number,
  1-800-513-1157, can also be used until it is phased out next year.
  The outreach efforts by partners at the local and state levels have greatly
  contributed to the Pledge campaign's success. The leader in the grassroots efforts
  to get parents to pledge to keep their home smoke-free is the Consumer
  Federation of America, which received almost 700 pledges through their many
  activities.

  Another leader in the Pledge initiative is the Asthma and Allergy Network/Mothers of Asthmatics (AAN*MA).
  Five AAN*MA Outreach Service Coordinators collected more than 500 pledges in just the last six months
  from parents in New York, Louisiana, Ohio and Virginia.

  The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology also continues to be a strong supporter of the
  Pledge initiative and an active partner, in collecting several hundred pledges nationwide.

  Thank you to all who have been a part of the Smoke-Free Home Pledge campaign! Together, we can
  reduce the number of children exposed to secondhand smoke in homes by encouraging parents to take
  the pledge! To receive assistance with your efforts or to share your success stories, call Lou Witt, EPA
  Program Analyst, at 202-564-9051.


  National  Radon  Action Week...and...Action  Month

  During National Radon Action Week—October 20-26, 2002—U.S.  EPA and their National Cooperative
  Partners (comprised of national, state and local governments, non-profit organizations and educational
  institutions) are holding numerous educational outreach activities again this year.  But these activities can
  only reach out so far. The action with the most impact is taken at the local level and begins with local
  affiliates and field partners.
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Air and Radiation
         Indoor Environments Division
            "Washington, DC 20460

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 IEN Quarterly                                                      October-December, 2002
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  In fact, National Radon Action Week is simply the kickoff week for an entire month of activities in January,
  2003—National Radon Action Month—designed to increase awareness of radon's serious health effects,
  encourage Americans to take action on radon in their homes, and to ultimately reduce the health risks
  posed by radon.

  Contact your National Cooperative Partner for information and materials to use during both National Radon
  Action Week and Month.  You may also visit EPA's Web site at www.epa.gov/iaq/radon/nraw/index.html for
  activity ideas and additional materials.


  3rd Annual IAQ Tools for Schools National Symposium

  The 3rd Annual Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools National Symposium was held on August 8-10, 2002,
  at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington, D.C. Over 500 school administrators, teachers, facility managers
  and parents from across the nation met to discuss improving indoor air quality in schools. Many innovative
  sessions addressing mold, implementing school-based IAQ programs, communication strategies, mold
  remediation, facilities management, integrated pest  management, new school construction, student
  performance, advocacy, financing and asthma management were offered to participants.

  The IAQ TfS Symposium provides a unique opportunity for representatives from schools and school
  districts to network with each other and share success stories about improving the indoor air quality in their
  schools. Attendees were energized to  return to their communities and apply the valuable lessons learned
  at the Symposium.

  During the Symposium, awards were presented to 21 school district representatives at a special ceremony
  on Thursday, August 8th. The schools receiving EPA's Excellence Awards are recognized as  national
  leaders in improving indoor air quality in schools. Special Achievement Awards also were presented in
  recognition of outstanding school commitment to a healthy school environment.


  American Association of Health Plans Addresses Asthma
  Asthma has  reached epidemic  proportions in the United States affecting about 15 million people. To help
  combat its continued growth, EPA's Indoor Environments Division recently entered into a cooperative
  agreement with the American Association of Health Plans (AAHP) to support their Taking on Asthma
  initiative. This initiative is a national program designed to improve the quality of care provided to people
  with asthma by enhancing their quality  of life through a comprehensive approach that focuses efforts at
  three levels—managed care organizations, providers and patients.

  Through this initiative, AAHP, in collaboration with EPA and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma
  and Immunology, will make a long-term commitment to support managed care organizations as they
  offer increasingly comprehensive asthma programs that incorporate management of environmental
  asthma triggers.  For more information, please visit http://www.takingonasthma.orq/index.htm.


  EPA Grants for In-Home Asthma  Education  and Management
  In a related effort, the U.S.  Environmental  Protection Agency awarded $150,000 in grants earlier this year
  to the Toledo Children's Hospital in Ohio and the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York City to help
  fight childhood asthma.
United States Environmental Protection Agency                                              Indoor Environments Division
Office of Air and Radiation                                                               Washington, DC 20460

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IEN Quarterly                                                     October-December, 2002
Page Three

  These two pilot projects will address the impact of environfnental triggers on children with asthma and
  strengthen the capacity of families to eliminate or control asthma triggers in the home—particularly
  secondhand smoke, dust mites, cockroaches, mold, and pet dander.

  The Toledo Children's Hospital is adapting their current asthma intervention model to conduct in-home
  environmental asthma education and management for 80 children with asthma and their families. The
  hospital will assess and mitigate indoor asthma triggers with the expectation that children receiving this
  asthma education and home assessments will experience fewer emergency room visits, hospitalizations,
  and asthma attacks, and use rescue medication less often.

  Mount Sinai, located in East Harlem, NY, will conduct environmental asthma education, management and
  follow-up in groups, while providing one-on-one education to 40 families in their homes.  This project will
  demonstrate the effectiveness of in-home environmental asthma education and management as a way of
  minimizing asthma exacerbations and reducing medical costs.

  For more information on the In-Home Asthma Environmental Education and Management Grant
  Program, visit the EPA's Web  site at www.epa.gov/asthma, or contact Brenda Doroski at 202-564-9764
  or doroski.brenda@epa.gov.

  IAQ PUBLICATIONS AND PRODUCTS:

  (For additional information on these publications, visit www.epa.gov/iacilradon/pubs/index.html.  To order
  any vf the products mentioned above,  call 1-800-IAQ-INFO.)

  •   Radon

  EPA's Indoor Environments Division (IED) has revised and printed one of EPA's key consumer radon
  publications, A Citizen's Guide to Radon (402-K-02-006, Fourth Edition, Revised May, 2002). This guide
  is also available in Spanish as El Radon (402-K-93-005, September 1993).

  For homebuyers and sellers, EPA has produced the first Spanish edition, Guia del Radon para el
  Comprador y Vendedor de Viviendas (402-K-02-001, Julio de 2002), of the popular Home Buyer's and
  Seller's Guide to Radon (402-K-00-008, July 2000). The Hispanic community is an  important and
  increasing part of the first time home buying and selling market.

  IED recently posted National Radon Results: 1985-1999 to the Web site. The report outlines more than a
  decade of progress on the radon issue.
      Environmental Tobacco Smoke CD-ROMs and Video
                                                                         .   EflMMlfliifJ ACTIIH III
  The highly anticipated CD-ROM version of the Community Action Kit—
  Protecting Children from Exposure to Secondhand Smoke (402-C-02-002) is
  now available.
  This one-stop shop of invaluable program information gives you a complete,
  strategic layout for planning all levels of secondhand smoke outreach and            *• >    J -     ||
  awareness activities. To help you get started or even enhance your current
  efforts, several easy-to-use samples are provided, including:
••«
United States Environmental Protection Agency                                  .           Indoor Environments Division
Office of Air and Radiation                               .                                Washington, DC 20460

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IEN Quarterly
Page Four
October-December, 2002
         o  Letters to local officials, health groups, and media
         o  A secondhand smoke PowerPoint presentation
         o  Brochures, flyers and other materials
  Another new arrival is the CD-ROM of the Environmental Tobacco Smoke and Children speaker's kit
  produced by the American Academy of Pediatrics and EPA. Unlike other speaker's kits, this resource is
  specifically developed for the medical community and audiences. The kit provides information on
  Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) health effects, statistics and more. From speaker's notes to
  PowerPoint slides, you will have the complete package for any speaking opportunity on ETS and asthma.
  You can also order the new Spanish-language video Envenenando a Nuestros Hijos (402-V-02-002)-
  complement to the Poisoning Our Children video by the American Academy of Otolaryngology. The video
  is especially useful for the public health community (hospitals, clinics, WICs).  Envenenando a Nuestros
  Hijos provides an excellent overview of the health consequences of exposure to secondhand smoke and
  graphic description of why children are particularly vulnerable.

  •  Also in inventory this fall:

         o  Secondhand Smoke and Children brochure by the American Academy of Otolaryngology will
            be available in English and Spanish
         o  Protecting Yourself and Your Family brochure by the American Lung Association, a low-literacy
            document for the Hispanic and African-American communities

   •  2002 IEN Directory

  The third edition of the Indoor Environments Directory will be available in early October. Look for your
   copy in the mail soon! The Directory is a comprehensive source of contact information for more than
   1,800 participants in  the Indoor Environments Network—IED staff,  EPA Regional IAQ & Radon
   Coordinators, State IAQ & Radon Coordinators, as well as the National Cooperative Partners and their
   local chapters and field affiliates.
                                                               Lou Witt
                                                      U.S. EPA Program Analyst
                                                 Partner Network Support Coordinator
                                                         Voice: 202-564-9051
                                                         Fax:  202-565-2071
                                                           witt.lou@epa.gov
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Air and Radiation
        Indoor Environments Division
            Washington, DC 20460

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