Clark County Environmental Public Health outlined its goals during the Board of Health’s June 28 meeting. Dr. Alan Melnick, director of Public Health, said there’s a lot of work going on behind the scenes related to environmental health.
“What we do in our environmental health programs is focus on the interrelationships between people and their environment to promote health and to protect us,” Melnick said.
That means monitoring the natural environment, including air, soil, water and food, and activities related to housing, transportation, roads and parks, he said. Examples of that work include monitoring septic systems to protect drinking water sources and advocating for sidewalks, bike lanes and pedestrian trails.
“We like to think of our environmental health programs really as safety programs,” Melnick said. “We believe that anybody who lives in Clark County deserves to have a safe and healthy environment.”
Melnick highlighted three programs within Public Health focused on water safety: drinking water, on-site septic and recreational water.
While not everyone in Clark County gets their drinking water from the same source — some residents have private wells while others rely on Clark Public Utilities or smaller regional water systems — Melnick said protecting the groundwater is important for all systems.
“By protecting the groundwater, we’re preventing people from getting waterborne illnesses,” Melnick said.
It also protects residents from being exposed to harmful contaminants such as arsenic and nitrates, he added.
Public Health protects drinking water by monitoring septic systems, evaluating locations for new or replacement wells, approving wells and reviewing building projects that may impact water sources, Melnick said. Last year, the department processed 137 applications for well permits.
Tracking and inspecting septic systems is especially important when it comes to keeping the county’s groundwater safe for consumption.
“We certainly don’t want that to contaminate any water source that could be a source of drinking water,” he said.
‘Greater good’
Public Health also works with local restaurants to ensure they are following food safety practices to reduce the spread of pathogens or contaminants.
Melnick noted the main source of funding for Public Health’s environmental programs comes from user fees, as well as grants and state funds. The Board of Health is expected to review those fees within the next several weeks.
“Much of the work we do at Environmental Public Health is mandated by state law. However, some of the services we do we consider greater good because it’s not work related to a specific permit or license, but it benefits the greater community,” Melnick said.
Work done for the greater good includes monitoring lakes and swim beaches for blue-green algae blooms and monitoring water systems for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, trichloroethylene and other harmful substances.
Clark County Councilor Gary Medvigy said the county tries to help rather than punish homeowners trying to keep their wells in working order. Medvigy also asked if there were programs available to help low-income families.
“Testing is expensive … do we have any programs out there to help people defray that cost?” Medvigy asked.
Chuck Harman, with the on-site septic program, said there are not, but the state Department of Health may be able to help.
Medvigy also said there have been instances where there is a disconnect between county code and enforcement. He said an issue arose recently after an unpermitted septic system was installed during construction.
“What I learned in that process was that, even though there wasn’t a permit … we essentially had a stovepiped code enforcement where permitting was really separate from (Public Health’s) work to ensure that a septic system was properly installed,” Medvigy said.
Medvigy asked if Public Health was taking steps to improve how it works with other departments.
Harman said each situation is unique, but the departments do work together.
“In most cases, we do communicate and coordinate with the code enforcement folks when there are public health issues around septic systems and wells, in some cases,” Harman said during the meeting.
Melnick said he is a fan of on-site septic systems because they recharge the groundwater, unlike sewer systems that send material out to the ocean.
“The problem is when you get into a too dense environment you have to have sewers … because with too many septic systems you end up with contamination of the aquifers,” Melnick added.
Recreational safety
Last, but not least, among the three programs is recreational water safety, which focuses on preventing recreational water illnesses and death or injury from drowning.
“When we’re inspecting pools and spas, one of the most important things we look for are whether the gates are high enough, the knob on the door to get into the area is high enough and the door is locked,” Melnick said.
With drowning a leading cause of death in children ages 1 to 4, Melnick said those things are critically important to pay attention to. He said the department also looks at issues affecting communicable diseases.
“We focus on recreational water facilities, including swimming pools such as those at hotels, health clubs and apartment complexes, spas … splash pads and float tank facilities. Having them properly maintained reduces the instances of waterborne illnesses,” Melnick said.
To watch the full meeting, go to https://clark.wa.gov/councilors/clark-county-council-meetings and click on the video link.
