environmental health

A Flood Devastated This Town In 2019, And Residents Are Still Struggling

By Carter Barrett • Aug 25, 2020

Floods, hurricanes and other natural disasters can devastate a town in just a few hours. But the impact on residents can linger for years in the form of anxiety, depression or other mental health problems.

How Redlining, Racism Harm Black Americans' Health

By Brittani Howell • Jun 24, 2020

Carter Barrett, Side Effects Public Media

Systemic racism has a huge impact on the health of Black Americans, and not just in the doctor’s office. In a Facebook Live event, Side Effects Public Media reporter Darian Benson spoke with three experts on topics ranging from generational mistrust to the impact of COVID-19.

Climate Change Brings Health Threat To Great Lakes Region

By Side Effects Public Media • May 5, 2020

The impact of climate change is vast: rising sea levels, climbing temperatures and more severe storms. These problems stretch beyond the coasts and grasslands, and cities along the Great Lakes are not immune.

Climate change brings serious health impacts, too.

How These Neighborhood Gardens Help Combat Climate Change

By Susan Bence • May 5, 2020

Climate change is expected to bring an increase in heat waves, flooding and severe storms to the Great Lakes region. And it's likely to disproportionately impact people already grappling with many other obstacles, particularly in urban areas.

Ohio Community Fears Pollution From Planned Coal Mine

By Paige Pfleger • Mar 7, 2019

“I water my horses out of this creek down here,” Jeff Ivers says, resting his hand on his horse’s nose.

He looks out over his land: 43 acres, surrounded on three sides by Perry State Forest, with a small creek running through it.

Louisville — Known For Its Dirty Air — Is Using Big Data To Help Residents Breathe

By editor • Nov 29, 2017

In Louisville, Kentucky, traditionally known as a hotbed of air pollution and an uncomfortable place to live for a person with asthma, a community-run study is using big data to figure out how to make its residents healthier.

Breathing Fire: Health Is A Casualty Of Climate-Fueled Blazes

By John Upton - Climate Central & Barbara Feder Ostrov - Kaiser Health News • Nov 9, 2017

SANTA ROSA, Calif. — As the deadliest fires in California history swept through leafy neighborhoods here, Kathleen Sarmento fled her home in the dark, drove to an evacuation center and began setting up a medical triage unit.

California Cracks Down On Weed Killer As Lawsuits Abound

By Stephanie O'Neill - Kaiser Health News • Nov 8, 2017

Jack McCall was a fixture at the local farmers market, where he sold avocados and other fruits he grew on his 20-acre ranch in Cambria, on California’s Central Coast.

Common 'Wet Sock' Pipe Repair Method Releases Dangerous Chemicals

By Azra Ceylan - WBAA • Aug 8, 2017

cf9b8430-d6ca-497f-92e3-2dfa4c8323a7 — courtesy Andy Whelton

That white plume also became a focus of the research. Whelton and his team visited several sites and placed air quality monitors in and around the chemical clouds to capture samples of emissions that the professor now definitively says are “not steam.”

Fixtures, Pipe Materials Could Affect Drinking Water Safety

By Nick Janzen - Indiana Public Broadcasting • Jan 20, 2017

There's a wide array of drinking water piping options available to builders. Many pipes are entirely plastic and some are metal pipes with plastic inner coatings. (Erin Easterling/Purdue University)

A Purdue University professor is investigating drinking water safety with a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Andrew Whelton, an assistant professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Ecological Engineering, says drinking water safety, despite what many people might think, is not well understood.

“A lot of the declarations about drinking water safety are not actually based on science,” Whelton says. “They’re based on hope.”

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