ATSDR Fall Webinar Series - Effective Policies to Eliminate Chemical Releases and Exposures in Schools (1st Webinar - Oct 13)

Fall Webinar Series – Effective Policies to Eliminate Chemical Releases and Exposures in Schools

To promote a national framework for the prevention of chemical incidents in schools, the ATSDR National Toxic Substance Incidents Program (NTSIP) has teamed up with Interstate Chemical Threats Workgroup (ICTW) to bring you this exciting fall webinar series. During the sessions we’ll explore policies and prevention efforts for three chemicals/chemical categories that lead the NTSIP incident list: elemental mercury, cleaning products, and pesticides. At the conclusion of the webinar series, the summary notes will guide the development of a white paper entitled, Best Practices and Policies for Eliminating Chemical Releases and Exposures in Schools. This paper will be distributed nationally and will serve as a basis of ATSDR’s outreach to those who can effect change.

Save the dates:
Effective Policies to Eliminate Chemical Releases and Exposures in Schools

All sessions will begin at 12:30pm EST/9:30am PST and run for 75 minutes.

• Mercury exposures and effective policies October 13th
• Green cleaning policies to eliminate exposures November 10th
• Pesticide exposures and effective policies December 15th
• Discussion on white paper development: “Best Practices and Policies for Eliminating Chemical Releases and Exposures in Schools”. January 12th

Session 1:
Effective Policies to Eliminate Mercury Exposures in Schools
October 13, 12:30- 1:45 Eastern

Elemental mercury is most toxic in its vapor form. It evaporates slowly at room temperature and more quickly when heated. Children are drawn to mercury by its silvery color and novel properties. Children playing with elemental mercury can be poisoned by breathing the vapor from mercury beads held in their hands or from mercury spilled on carpeting, furniture or other surfaces. The HSEES and NTSIP data have shown mercury to be the most frequently released substance in schools and very costly to clean up. This session will focus on the extent of the problem of mercury releases in schools and experiences with legislation and outreach to remove mercury from schools.

Roundtable Discussants:

• Robin Lee, PhD, MPH, ATSDR Division of Health Studies
• Martha Stanbury, MSPH, Michigan Department of Community Health
• Wanda Lizak Welles, PhD, New York State Department of Health
• Sue Casteel, BS, MS, ATSDR Regional Representative

Meeting Password: mercury; Meeting number: 572 153 685
1. Go to https://cdph-ooa.webex.com/cdph-ooa/j.php?ED=180940797&UID=1248059447&PW=NNzdhYzJmMWMw&RT=MiM0 2. If a password is required, enter the meeting password “mercury” and click "Join"

• Provide your phone number when you join to receive a call back (this option will not work if you have an extension. Alternatively, you may call: 1-866-745-1015 and use access code 962 195 6 .
• WebEx will automatically setup Meeting Manager for Windows the first time you join a meeting. To save time, you can setup prior to the meeting by clicking this link: https://cdph-ooa.webex.com/cdph-ooa/meetingcenter/mcsetup.php
• For assistance during the call go to https://cdph-ooa.webex.com/cdph-ooa/mc and click "Support“ on the navigation bar.
• For more information before the call, contact Lori.Copan@cdph.ca.gov

Note: This meeting will be recorded