United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
In This Issue:
• Nail Salons: An
Environmental Justice
Issue? 1
• Collaboration for
Change in Pacoima 3
• Headquarters
Update 4
• Reaional Corner i
NEJAC Update 7
Environmental Justice
Awards Program 7
Environmental
Justlce/uarterly
www.epa.gov/compliance/environmentaljustice
Winter 2007
Nail Salons: An Environmental
Jnstice Issne?
"Close your eyes and walk past one of
the city's countless nail salons and you
might think you're passing an auto body
paint shop. That's because many of the
chemicals are the same, albeit in small-
er quantities." That is the opening line
of a recent article in the Seattle Post-
Intelligencer (December 4, 2006), and
yet it could have easily referred to any
city in the United States.
Across the country, newspapers have
published many disturbing articles, and
television news reports have shown the
potential hazards of nail care products.
Those who are most at risk are the nail
salon workers, or "nail technicians,"
who are exposed to the chemicals in
these products 10 to 12 hours a day,
six to seven days a week. Many of
these nail technicians are predominant-
ly low-income, people of color, unin-
sured, women of child-bearing age.
They are recent immigrants or refugees
who speak little or no English and are
afraid to come forward with their health
conditions. A few can grasp the possi-
ble links between their work and their
health conditions, and do not know
where to go for help. Others just accept
health risks as an occupational hazard.
There is also a growing concern among
customers who fear they are being
exposed to chemicals while getting
manicures and pedicures.
The nail salon industry is a booming
business, responsible for $6.43 billion in
revenue in 2005. In the past five years,
the number of salons rose 17
'Source: Nails Magazine 2005-2006 Big Book
Outreach poster for PVP's nail salon project
percent to 57,838, and the number of
licensed technicians rose 23 percent to
380,635. That means, on average, 40
new licenses are issued by local govern-
ments daily. Ninety-five percent of the
technicians are female, and almost two-
thirds are people of color. Vietnamese
technicians dominate 39 percent of the
industry and make up 80 percent of the
nail salon workforce in California.*
In 2001, EPA's Nail Salon Project identi-
fied at least 26 "chemicals of concern"
that are hazardous and highly volatile.
The health effects range from mild skin
irritation to respiratory illnesses like
occupationally induced asthma to
reproductive disorders, cancer, and
(Continued on page 2)
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Nail Salons: An Environmental Jnstice Issne?
(Continued from page 1)
This model salon is equipped with three ventilation tables that draw the nail products'
chemical vapors down and completely away from customers and nail technicians.
even death. Some of the most widely
used and popular artificial nail prod-
ucts have no established exposure
limits. Many other chemicals are
unregulated, and little is known about
their adverse health effects.
Although the regulatory oversight for
cosmetics like nail care products lies
with the Food and Drug Administra-
tion, EPA has taken initial steps to
address this emerging environmental
and public health issue through out-
reach, education, and training.
Through engaging the Vietnamese
community, local and state regulators,
the health and research communities,
non-profit community organizations,
and industry, EPA strives to ensure
that these efforts provide long-term
sustainable solutions and do not neg-
atively impact salon businesses. The
Agency released a booklet on nail
salon best practices in 2003 and
plans to publish an updated version
in 2007.
"We believe that the chemicals in nail
care products and their health effects
on the workers is an emerging envi-
ronmental justice issue," says Barry E.
Hill, Director, Office of Environmental
Justice (OEJ). In 2004, OEJ awarded
a $100,000 grant to the Pioneer Valley
Project (PVP), a community-based
organization in Springfield, Massachu-
setts, to form collaborative partner-
ships across the state to address the
potential environmental and public
health issues in operating nail salons.
PVP has creatively leveraged its
resources by working with state and
local partners such as the Springfield
Health Department, the Caring Health
Center, Vietnamese community
groups, the Lower Pioneer Valley
Educational Collaborative (LPVEC),
the Massachusetts Department of
Public Health and Division of Occu-
pational Safety, and the University of
Massachusetts Toxic Use Reduction
Institute.
PVP's education and outreach project
has resulted in the construction of the
first model salon in the United States.
As part of a new Cosmetology Pro-
gram, the LPVEC invested in building
a model salon that is fully equipped
with proper ventilating systems, per-
sonal protective equipment, and other
safety features. This salon will provide
hands-on training to salon owners,
technicians, vocational students and
teachers, and others. PVP is develop-
ing a training curriculum to educate
nail salon owners and technicians
about the biological and chemical
hazards of conducting nail services.
The training will provide guidelines on
how to reduce the use of hazardous
nail products and to properly store,
handle, and dispose of those that
cannot be reduced.
PVP is also working with local health-
care providers, like the Caring Health
Center, to adequately diagnose
symptoms and to communicate with
and treat patients with health ailments
related to chemical exposure in nail
salons. EPA Region 10 recently invit-
ed a representative from PVP to pro-
vide a briefing on the project and
facilitate a focus group to possibly ini-
tiate similar activities and partner-
ships in Washington State.
Altogether, PVP's outreach efforts,
training program, model salon, and
other aspects of the project make it
ideally replicable in other states that
want to address nail salons as an
environmental justice issue. "Through
successful partnerships like PVP's,
we hope to continue to raise aware-
ness of this issue," says Hill.
The Lower Pioneer Valley Educational Collaborative recently constructed the first model
nail salon in the United States. (Before and after photos)
-------
NEJAC Update
The National Environmental Justice
Advisory Council (NEJAC) provides
EPA with timely, salient advice and
recommendations on broad public
policy environmental justice issues.
In August 2006, NEJAC provided its
advice and recommendations on the
following reports: (1) Future Mecha-
nisms for Stakeholder Involvement
and Engagement to Address Envi-
ronmental Justice; (2) 2005 Gulf
Coast Hurricanes and Vulnerable
Populations: Recommendations for
Future Disaster Preparedness and
Response; and (3) Unintended
Impacts of Redevelopment and
Revitalization Efforts in Five Environ-
mental Justice Communities.
Following NEJAC's recommenda-
tions in its Future Mechanisms
report, Deputy Administrator Marcus
Peacock decided to renew NEJAC's
charter in September 2006. NEJAC
recommended that EPA utilize this
federal advisory council as its pri-
mary mechanism for continuing to
obtain public policy advice on envi-
ronmental justice issues. EPA
renewed the NEJAC charter for a
customary two years, in accordance
with the requirements of the Federal
Advisory Committee Act.
While EPA is carefully reviewing all
of the recommendations provided,
some of the suggestions made on
the Gulf Coast Hurricanes report
have already been implemented.
This report included recommenda-
tions to address 14 issues of con-
cern, which were distilled into three
major areas: (1) enhance EPA's dis-
aster preparedness and response
procedures; (2) facilitate risk com-
munications and environmental
health response; and (3) foster envi-
ronmentally sound redevelopment.
EPA has already taken steps to
address each of these areas. Most
notably, EPA is modifying the emer-
gency management Incident Com-
mand System to enhance the
Agency's ability to address environ-
mental justice issues. On November
2, 2006, Susan Parker Bodine,
Assistant Administrator for Solid
Waste and Emergency Response;
Granta Y. Nakayama, Assistant
Administrator for Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance; and
Thomas P. Dunne, Associate Admin-
istrator for Homeland Security,
issued the memorandum on incor-
porating environmental justice con-
siderations into EPA's disaster
preparedness and response proce-
dures. This memorandum
outlines changes to the Agency's
Incident Command Management
Handbook that will direct key inci-
dent command officers to ensure
that environmental justice issues are
addressed in a timely manner and
that resources would be dedicated
for that effort.
Environmental Justice Awards Program
Anew award program from EPA's Office of Environmental Justice will recognize businesses that undertake
environmental justice initiatives to make a positive impact in communities. The Achievement in Environ-
mental Justice Award will recognize industry organizations, such as a member of business or a member
of industry, for achievements in addressing environmental justice issues or achieving the goals of environmental
justice in ways that positively impact a community. Entries must be postmarked by March 31, 2007. The award
will be presented in September 2007 at the National Association of Manufacturers Annual Meeting in Washing-
ton, DC.
The award competition is open to all industry organizations within the United States. The nominated entity must
have reached a significant environmental justice milestone or accomplishment within the past five years (2001-
2006). Nominations will be judged on the following six criteria:
Innovation (10 points)
Corporate Responsibility (20 points)
Community, Equity, and Public Involvement (20 points)
Partnerships and Collaboration (10 points)
Environmental Justice Integration (20 points)
Demonstrated Results/Effectiveness/Sustainability (20 points)
Self-nominations are allowed and expected, and there is no entry fee. For more details on how to enter and the
judging process, visit .
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Headquarters Update
Office of Policy, Eco-
nomics, and Innovation
Each quarter, the Headquarters Update
features a specific office at
ters, highlighting recent activities, programs,
and policies aimed at addressing a variety of
environmental justice issues.
OPEVs Smart Growth Program Makes Gains for
Environmental Justice
For communities facing urban decline and suburban
sprawl, the Office of Policy, Economics, and Innova-
tion's (OPEI's) Smart Growth program promotes devel-
opment that invests in town-centered, transit- and
pedestrian-oriented infrastructure. The Smart Growth
program also serves communities by encouraging the
preservation of open space, revitalizing forgotten city
centers and older suburbs, and supporting Brownfield
initiatives, which by their very nature are inextricably
linked to environmental justice.
"There's an obvious interface between the Smart
Growth program and environmental justice," says
OPEI's senior counsel Robert Wolcott. He cites an
example of these linkages in the city of Atlanta. During
the 1996 Olympic Games, the city enhanced public
transit, closed downtown to private cars, and encour-
aged businesses to promote telecommuting and alter-
native work hours. This course of action for reducing
traffic congestion had the unintended effect of reduc-
ing hospitalizations for asthmatic attacks in the city,
particularly among children, by 20 percent during that
time. "By reducing the number of vehicle trips needed
and the walkability of communities, you can reduce
the localized air pollution and accompanying health
impacts," states Wolcott.
OPEI's Smart Growth program is a member of the
Smart Growth Network—a national coalition formed by
EPA in 1996 in response to increasing community con-
cerns about the need for new ways to grow while
boosting the economy, protecting the environment,
and enhancing community vitality. In 2001, a sub-
group of the network (on which OPEI participates)
released the report Affordable Housing and Smart
Growth: Making the Connections. The approaches
profiled in the report demonstrate how smart growth
and affordable housing strategies, when applied
together, can lead to more opportunities for develop-
ment than when the concepts are applied solely on
their own.
The Smart Growth program also played a major role in
the development of the publication, Getting to Smart
Growth: 100 Polices for Implementation. In 2004, the
publication was translated into Spanish to broaden the
audience who could access the information.
In 2006, EPA's National Awards for Smart Growth
Achievement featured an awards category for "equi-
table development," which highlights smart growth's
role in meeting the needs of underserved communities.
The category was added to last year's awards after Joe
Brooks, of PolicyLink and a member of the 2003 exter-
nal review panel for the awards, suggested that EPA
feature a category that recognizes models for fairness
in planning and development practices. On November
15, 2006, EPA announced the city of Chicago as the
winner in this category. The city supported the develop-
ment of Bethel New Life Center, which provides employ-
ment services, child care, retail space, and banking in
a "green" building erected on a former brownfield site
in the neighborhood of West Garfield Park.
Smart growth and environmental justice both recognize
the interconnectedness of the built environment to the
overall economic, social, and natural health of commu-
nities. OPEI's Smart Growth program has made some
gains in linking these two areas. However, the true
vision of environmental justice can not be achieved
until underserved communities and vulnerable groups
are equal partners in the process for fostering commu-
nities that are healthy, vibrant, and diverse.
To this end, the pace of achieving the objectives of
smart growth and environmental justice can be accel-
erated by:
• Incorporating smart growth into the Agency's envi-
ronmental justice training.
• Featuring "equitable development" as a permanent
category for the National Award for Smart Growth
Achievement.
• Building new partnerships with organizations and
institutions that reach out to minority audiences
such as the National Urban League or Operation
Hope.
• Increasing education and outreach to untapped
audiences, underserved communities, or vulnerable
populations, especially at the New Partners for
Smart Growth Conference, sponsored by the Local
Government Commission and Pennsylvania
State University.
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Regional Corner
Region 8
This column explores exciting environmental initia-
tives under way in EPA regional offices. Each quarter,
we focus on a different regional program. EPA Region
8 covers Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South
Dakota, Utah, Wyoming, and 27 tribal nations.
Region 8 Fights for Clean Drinking Water in Rural Colorado
One of Region Q's foremost environmental justice con-
cerns is to ensure that all residents have access to clean
and safe drinking water. Here, as in many other parts of
the country, a number of communities obtain their drink-
ing water from privately owned wells rather than from
public water systems. Although the
Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 regu-
lates public water systems, many pri-
vate wells are untested and
unregulated due to the small number
of people served by the individual
systems.
In Colorado, two rural communities
were identified as being at risk for
exposure to contaminated drinking
water: the migrant farm worker popu-
lation and the San Luis Valley com-
munity. Due to the remote location
and outdated infrastructure of their
well systems, the communities' water
may contain a variety of contami-
nants that affect water quality, includ-
ing lead, biological contaminants,
pesticides, and nitrates from agricul-
tural runoff. Knowing the serious
health risks associated with water
contamination, Region 8 set out to
address this issue by implementing
two environmental justice programs
that would engage the communities,
instill awareness, and provide a
healthy drinking water supply.
The Migrant Farm Worker Initiative,
led by Region Q's Michael Wenstrom,
is the first regional project to target
the issue of drinking water safety for
this particular minority population.
There are approximately 45,000
migrant farm workers in Colorado who
reside in nearly 300 widely dispersed
camps. With an annual income of about $7,500, the
average migrant farm worker faces substandard living
conditions, high risks of injury, and poor healthcare.
In 2002, testing showed that the drinking water at one
camp had nitrate levels that were more than double
Migrant Farm Labor Camp Water Treat-
ment System, Gilcrest, Colorado.
the maximum contaminant level (MCL) allowed in
drinking water. That same year, Region 8 launched its
Migrant Farm Worker Initiative to provide free testing of
drinking water to any interested camp at no charge to
the owner, operator, or lessee. The first major goal of
the project was to make residents
and owners of the camps aware
that well maintenance (including
water quality monitoring) is their
responsibility, and one that must be
taken seriously. The second goal
was for EPA to take steps to provide
safe drinking water for residents of
the camps and to establish itself as
a supportive and trusted resource in
the community.
With the help of EPA and its part-
ners, the Colorado Department of
Health and the Environment and the
Colorado Rural Water Association,
the Migrant Farm Worker Initiative
has been extremely successful. In
one camp located in Gilcrest, Col-
orado, EPA and its partners installed
a water treatment system that uses
reverse osmosis to purify the water.
The system has brought the commu-
nity's water within the Safe Drinking
Water Act standards; nitrates have
been reduced from about 20 parts
per million (ppm) to below 5 ppm
and total dissolved solids from
about 800 ppm to less than 100
ppm. These encouraging results
have led to a press release and
radio interview, which in turn have
brought about increased participa-
tion in the program. The success of
the Migrant Farm Worker Initiative
has not come easily, however. "It's a
real challenge, and it takes an enormous amount of
work," says Wenstrom. His advice to other organiza-
tions is to be persistent. "You really need to stay with it
and understand that you can get there."
The second environmental justice program developed
by Region 8 addressed drinking water safety in the San
(Continued on page 6)
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Region 8 Fights for Clean Drinking Water in Rural Colorado
(Continued from page 5)
Luis Valley. Initiated in June 2005, the San Luis Valley
Drinking Water Well Project is the first regional project
to provide free sampling and analysis of drinking water
from household wells. San Luis Valley is located in one
of the oldest communities in the state and has a pre-
dominantly Latino population. About 30 percent of its
residents are not served by the public water system
and instead obtain their drinking water from private
wells, many of which are more than 100 years old,
increasing the risk of water contamination.
Led by Region 8's Tami Thomas-Burton, the project
aimed from the start to engage the community as much
as possible to create a program that would continue to
benefit the area even after EPA was no longer there.
"We needed to get people invested in the program and
in the habit of doing these tests," says Thomas-Burton.
Therefore, educating local residents and community
leaders on the importance of well maintenance was a
crucial part of the project. EPA held eight listening ses-
sions and two community meetings, during which test-
ing kits were handed out to local families.
Over the course of two months, EPA tested the water
quality of 417 household wells. Testers traveled in a
mobile lab equipped with a testing apparatus that
could return bacterial test results within 48 hours of col-
lection. Tests for arsenic, pesticides, and nitrates had to
be shipped back to the EPA lab. If a household's drink-
ing water was found to be positive for E. co//or coliform
bacteria, EPA immediately instructed the residents on
how to perform shock chlorination on their well and how
to identify the source of the contamination. "It was very
labor intensive," says Thomas-Burton. "We visited six
counties in this rural area and had to drive to various
locations. But we were able to get instantaneous
results, and community participants really liked that."
Another challenge was meeting the cost of the testing,
which ranged from $150 to $250 per well. While EPA
was able to test every household's water for bacteria, it
had to limit testing for arsenic, pesticides, and nitrates
due to lab capacity constraints. "There are a large num-
ber of low-income family households (according to the
2000 Census) that live in the San Luis valley, and so the
affordability piece is a big factor for the future of the
program," says Thomas-Burton.
While significant obstacles do exist, EPA is optimistic
that the program will endure and will continue to benefit
families who currently face water contamination. Region
8 will soon perform an extensive review of the program,
which will include making call-backs to each household
to see what kind of corrective action has been taken,
following test results. Region 8 will also develop a
model plan to be used as a template for other regional
offices' environmental justice programs.
The success of both the Migrant Farm Worker Initiative
and the San Luis Valley Drinking Water Well Project in
instilling awareness, providing outreach education, and
supplying affordable technology solutions represents a
significant step forward in Region 8's battle for environ-
The San Luis Vallely Drinking Water Well Project provides
free sampling for household wells like this one.
mental justice. "A lot of folks forget that household
water wells aren't regulated at the state or federal level,
and we could potentially have families and children
drinking contaminated water," says Art Palomares,
Region 8 Director of the Policy, Information Manage-
ment and Environmental Justice Program. "If we have
knowledge that children and pregnant women could be
drinking contaminated water, we really can't allow
that—we have to reach out. And here, we met our goal
in reaching out."
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Collaboration for Change in Pacoima, California
The community of Pacoima is located
in Los Angeles, California, northeast
of the San Fernando Valley. Since the
mid-1990s, Pacoima has benefited
from the efforts of a local, community-
based, non-profit organization called
Pacoima Beautiful. Pacoima Beautiful
is dedicated to creating resident-driv-
en programs to improve the commu-
nity's health and environmental
quality. Already, the organization has
addressed a wide range of environ-
mental hazards that threaten the com-
munity's health, including congested
freeways, a nearby airport, and aban-
doned hazardous waste sites. In
2000, Pacoima Beautiful developed a
Lead Poisoning Prevention Communi-
ty Program to target the specific
problem of lead poisoning in the area.
Four years after its inception, the pro-
gram received a Collaborative Prob-
lem-Solving (CPS) grant of $100,000
from the Office of Environmental Jus-
tice, which has provided the means
for significant improvement and
expansion.
Lead poisoning first came to the orga-
nization's attention in 1999, when one
of its university partners discovered
that the northeast Valley area was at
particularly high risk for lead poison-
ing. Most of the houses in the area
were built before 1978 and contain
lead-based paint. Exposure to lead is
linked to a wide range of health prob-
lems, particularly in infants, children,
and pregnant women. Upon learning
of this significant health threat to the
area's 98,000 residents, Pacoima
Beautiful decided to take action.
Grants and organizational support
from universities and organizations-
such as the Washington-based
Alliance for Healthy Homes (formerly
the Alliance to End Child Lead Poison-
ing)—allowed for the creation of an ini-
tial partnership in 2000, featuring a
promatora (Spanish for health educa-
tors) training program. The promatoras
received extensive training on the
health risks associated with lead expo-
sure and became leaders in educating
the community. In a process that
included meeting with more than 120
physicians and health care providers,
Pacoima Beautiful and the promatoras
have been able to educate more than
300 families on primary prevention of
lead poisoning and asthma triggers.
Pacoima Beautiful is dedicated to educating the community and working for environ-
mental justice, and seeks self-determination for all residents.
The 2004 CPS grant allowed Pacoima
Beautiful to expand on the program
by increasing the number of commu-
nity residents with access to educa-
tional tools and screening services for
lead poisoning. The grant also helped
the organization further develop its
partnerships and improve resource
networks to enrich educational out-
reach opportunities.
"We have a consortium of health care
providers and university partners
coming from various disciplines,"
says Marlene Grossman, Executive
Director and Principal Investigator for
Pacoima Beautiful. "We all come from
very different perspectives, but each
of the partners takes this very seri-
ously and believes that, through col-
laboration, we can prevent lead
poisoning in many children and pre-
vent risk for many others. With this
partnership, we can work on a much
larger scale."
One of the main goals of the partner-
ship is to create long-term, multi-
organizational engagement, which
will support community health revital-
ization even after EPA is no longer
involved. To this end, Grossman
believes that partnering with universi-
ties is crucial. "University partners
provide us with students, interns, and
technology that we didn't previously
have. We learn a great deal from
them. I think that a very key aspect is
having the university faculty in the
partnership—they are invested in
being around for the long haul."
The Lead Poisoning Prevention Com-
munity Program continues to be a
great success, reaching 2,500 people
a year through outreach. The proma-
tora model is spreading throughout
the country, according to Grossman,
who sees it as an excellent way to
learn about environmental justice and
health issues while actively engaging
residents in the process of improving
their community. "We have all listened
enough to believe that there is no
safe level of lead in children's blood,"
she says. "The challenge now is to
communicate what we know to all
kinds of other communities."
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