Centre for Population Health - Projects

Environmental Health

What is "Environmental Health"?
What do Environmental Health Officers do?
Roles Related to the Public Health Act 1991.
Roles Related to the Public Health Regulation 1991.
EHOs' Non-Legislative Roles.

Environmental Health Staff

Bob Allen
Ron Bouwman
Ian Goldthorpe
Helen Ptolemy
Wendy Shailer (trainee)

 

What is "Environmental Health"?

"Environmental Health" is defined in the National Environmental Health Strategy as "Those aspects of human health determined by physical, chemical, biological and social factors in the environment". The strategy states further that "Environmental Health practice covers the assessment, correction, control and prevention of environmental factors that can adversely affect health, as well as the enhancement of those aspects of the environment that can improve human health" (enHealth Council)

 

What Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) do

EHOs carry out roles related to the enforcement of various parts of the Public Health Act 1991 and Public Health Regulations. EHOs are also responsible for a number of non-statutory areas involving collaborative work with other local and state government authorities. Details of these roles are outlined below.

 

Roles Related to the Public Health Act 1991

Health risks:

Public Health Risks Generally

EHOs investigate matters which constitute actual or potential health risks and which may or may not be successfully resolved by a local authority (eg. local Council EHOs) or fall outside the ambit of other government departments (eg. Department of Fair Trading, WorkCover Authority). These can vary from general hygiene risks to risks of exposure to specific hazardous chemicals or infectious disease.

Public Water Supplies

EHOs can assess a public water supply and close it if there is reason to suspect that it is unfit for human consumption.

 

Notifiable Diseases:

Investigations

EHOs may investigate sources of exposure of cases with arboviral infections (eg. Ross River Fever), cryptosporidiosis, lead poisoning and Legionella infections. Investigations hold a higher priority if more than one case (a "cluster") of the same disease is diagnosed around the same time or if a disease is diagnosed in particular at-risk group (eg. lead poisoning in a child). Sampling of potential sources of infection (eg. water in an air conditioning system, paint from a building) may form part of investigations.

Prevention

EHOs may instigate action to prevent further spread of diseases, such requiring the owners of public swimming pools to take immediate disinfection measures, or using media releases to educate the public.

 

Microbial Control

EHOs monitor and provide advice regarding the installation, operation and maintenance of water cooling systems to prevent or inhibit the growth of micro-organisms that cause Legionnaires' Disease.

 

General Health Matters

Skin Penetration

(The term "skin penetration" relates to specific practices carried out during acupuncture, electrolysis, waxing, tattooing, ear and body piercing, blood glucose and cholesterol testing, beauty therapy and hair dressing.)

EHOs distribute the NSW Health Department’s "Skin Penetration Guideline" (1999) and advise on the interpretation of this document. EHOs may investigate complaints of inadequate infection control practice by a skin penetration operator and provide educational programs for local Council EHOs and/or workers in this field.

Crematories

EHOs monitor and provide advice to ensure that appropriate plant/equipment is used for the cremation of human remains and that waste is appropriately handled and disposed of. A crematory can be closed where Public Health Regulations are not met.

 

Tobacco Control

Tobacco Products

The sale of unpackaged tobacco products is prohibited. A person who sells an unpackaged tobacco product may be fined up to $5,500.

A person who places a tobacco product into a package without an approved health warning may also be fined up to $5,500.

Retailers are reminded to aware of these requirements.

Juvenile Smoking

A person who sells tobacco products to a person who is under the age of 18 years may be fined up to $5,500. All tobacco retailers have a duty of care to ensure that they only sell tobacco products to persons 18 years of age or older. Retailers must ensure that the purchaser produces a proof of age document if necessary, and that their sales staff are appropriately trained regarding these obligations.

Tobacco Advertising

The advertising of tobacco products is strictly regulated to restrict retailers from overly publicising tobacco products. Environmental Health Officers actively monitor retailers for advertising breaches under the Public Health (Tobacco) Regulation 1999.

 

Roles Related to the Public Health Regulations

Public Swimming Pools

EHOs inspect public swimming and spa pools for compliance with the NSW Health Department’s "Public Swimming Pool and Spa Pool Guideline" (1996) and "Protocol for Minimising the Risk of the Contamination of Public Swimming Pools and Spa Pools" (1999). This may involve checking pool disinfection systems, surrounds, toilets, change rooms and plant rooms as well as chemical and microbiological testing of pool or spa water. Public pools and spas may be closed if reasonable grounds exist to suspect a risk to public health.

Funeral Industries

Exhumations

An exhumation is the removal of human remains from a grave or crypt for the purpose of relocation to another burial site. This requires approval from the Director-General of Health. EHOs attend the procedure to ensure that the correct remains are exhumed and other conditions are observed to protect the health of the public.

Transportation Overseas of Bodies of Deceased Persons

Funeral directors requesting that the remains of a deceased person be transported overseas require authorisation from EHOs that these bodies are free from diseases that may pose a risk to public health.

Mortuary Regulation

EHOs monitor and provide advice to ensure that bodies of deceased persons are stored on appropriate premises and under hygienic conditions, that details are recorded appropriately and that waste is appropriately handled and disposed of.

 

EHOs' Non-Legislative Roles

Town Planning

EHOs review and comment on Environmental Impact Statements (EISs), Local Environmental Plans (LEPs), Development Control Plans (DCPs), Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), and planning guidelines with respect to potential public health risks associated with the proposal and the principles of Ecological Sustainable Development (ESD). The National Framework for Environmental and Health Impact Assessment (NH&MRC, 1994) emphasises the importance of cross-sector collaboration in development and assessment of planning proposals. This is in recognition of the fact that environments have potential social, psychological, economic and ecological as well as physical impacts on human health. The health of the community is also seen as a basic requirement for ESD (NH&MRC 1994).

Brothels

EHOs inspect brothels, usually on the basis of complaints from the public, to assess compliance with the NSW Health and WorkCover guideline "Health and Safety Guidelines for Brothels in NSW" (1997). This guideline was developed in response to changes that resulted from the introduction of the Disorderly Houses Amendment Act 1995.

 

Waste Management

Sewage Disposal from Residential Dwellings

EHOs disseminate to local Councils, NSW Health Department information on accredited aerated wastewater treatment systems, septic tanks, collection wells and composting toilets under the provisions of the Local Government Act (Approvals) Regulation. This facilitates Councils' approval process for the installation and/or construction of residential waste management facilities in unsewered areas.

Waste Management in Health Care Facilities

EHOs disseminate the NSW Health Department’s "Waste Management Guidelines for Health Care Facilities", assist public health care facilities to implement them and provide advice on interpretation of the guidelines.

 

Disaster Management

A "disaster" has been defined as an occurrence that causes loss of life, injury, distress or danger to people, or loss of or damage to property and which is beyond the capacity of available resources to manage.

EHOs are involved in the management of disasters in the Sydney West Area. This involves activities to plan for the prevention of, preparation for, response to and recovery from a variety of natural and man-made disasters that could impact on the heath of the public (eg. toxic chemical incidents, earthquakes, infectious diseases, bioterrorist events etc.).