Definition
Hazardous environments are those where one or a group of toxic chemical, biological, radiological, technological, or physical agents in the environment may kill or negatively impact the health of those exposed to them, particularly children (World Health Organization n.d.).
Introduction
Our quality of life and years of healthy living is dependent on maintaining healthy environments. Globally, around 23% of all deaths and over a quarter (26%) of deaths among children 5 years and younger are due to environmental hazards (Department of Health and Human Services 2014). As far as environmental hazards are concerned, we live in a world of contradictions. As human beings we require clean environments to live a good quality of life, but in our daily living, we are the principal drivers of hazardous environments by the way we live and work.
For instance, whether on purpose or because of a lack of knowledge, lapses in judgment or malfunction in technical systems or in the built...
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References
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Further Reading
Amadeo, K. (2018, updated). Three Mile Island nuclear accident facts, impact, and status today. The balance. Accessed at https://www.thebalance.com/three-mile-island-nuclear-accident-facts-impact-today-3306337
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Masten, S. J., Davies, S. H., & Mcelmurry, S. P. (2016). Flint water crisis: What happened and why? Journal-American Water Works Association, 108(12), 22.
Needham, L. L., & Sexton, K. E. N. (2000). Introduction and overview: Assessing children’s exposure to hazardous environmental chemicals: An overview of selected research challenges and complexities. Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, 10(S6), 611.
Office of the Governor. (2016). Flint Water Advisory Task Force, final report. Retrieved from https://www.michigan.gov/documents/snyder/FWATF_FINAL_REPORT_21March2016_517805_7.pdf
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Thompson, D.D.P. (2018). Hazardous Environmental Effects. In: Shapiro, L., Maras, MH. (eds) Encyclopedia of Security and Emergency Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69891-5_146-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69891-5_146-1
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