GirlsTalkingHealth

This puts a smile on my face “Obama Administation Endorses TSCA Overhaul”

by Kristie Conner

This is ‘one’ of the reasons I voted for President Obama.  He has young children, who are growing up fast so it does matter to him what is in the products they use and consume.  This is one of my biggest complaints, stresses and anxieties … Just the other day I spent several hours reviewing the New York Times Toxic Series.  This series is about how the EPA has fallen down on the job and now almost all of our water is full of grossness that can cause horrific damage.  Water is vital and when our water is polluted we can rest assured everything else is.  I spend extra money buying organic fruits, veggies, meats, but if the water is polluted it is likely polluting my groceries.  So, freaking stressful, luckily there are water ionizers!

So, today I found blog post on Healthy Child Healthy World about our current administrations edorsement of TSCA overhaul.  Thank you!  “Administrator Lisa Jackson said the time had come to strengthen EPA’s authority to regulate toxic chemicals, which are ubiquitous in the environment and human bodies. She will ask Congress to draft a tougher law to overhaul the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) …”  for the full article please click here.

The next section goes on to say that we, Americans, are looking for government assurances that chemicals are safe.  This makes me want to do a few things … laugh, cry and vomit.  I actually assumed that was part of the job, part of what a government did and I did not think I had to look to them for

The principles Jackson outlined to guide Congress in creating new legislation include:

• Chemicals must pass muster under a safety standard that protects human health and the environment;
• Responsibility for providing data rests with the chemical industry, not taxpayers;
• EPA must have clear authority to take quick action to restrict use of chemicals that violate the safety standard;
• Manufacturers and EPA should assess and act on priority chemicals, both existing and new, in a timely manner
• Vulnerable populations, especially children, must be given special consideration when setting safety standards;
• Green chemistry, which will lead to safer chemicals, should be encouraged and the public’s right to know about chemicals must be ensured;
• The EPA should be given a sustained source of funding for implementation and the chemical industry must pay its fair share to implement the new standards.

Right now we are all in a frenzy over healthcare, but it is time we start taking care of our own health.  Even if some form or ‘reform’ is passed it will never be enough to take care of fat, lazy, over-indulgent people.  The reform needs to take place at all levels … corporations be accountable for pollution, citizens be accountable for general health, the list goes on and on.  But, once again thank you Obama for paying attention to the details.