Allen James, President of RISE (Responsible Industry for a Sound
Environment)
I am honored
and pleased to be a member of the Healthy Homes Initiative Task Force. I applaud the National Organization of
African Americans in Housing for recognizing the need for an initiative to help
improve health and safety conditions for families in affordable housing.
My
organization, RISE (Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment), a pest
management trade association, recognizes the significant threat pests, such as
cockroaches, rats and other vermin pose to the public and particularly to
minorities, people living in low- and moderate-income housing.
Rats, cockroaches, stinging insects and other pests
seriously threaten the health and safety of our children and all citizens. These pests spread fatal disease,
contaminate food, cause asthma and allergies, and can be deadly with their
bites and stings.
Pests sicken and injure millions of people every
year and are especially dangerous to children.
Take for instance:
·
A
public health official estimates more than 45,000 people nationwide are bitten
annually by rats and countless more are exposed to the diseases they carry.
·
Scientists
and physicians are learning more about the casual relationship between exposure
to pests and asthma in children. For
example:
-
A new study published in the Journal of Allergy and
Clinical
Immunology (J Allergy Clin Immunol 2001;
108:747-52) shows
African American and Mexican
American children are
substantially more likely than
other children to be sensitized to
allergens causing asthma,
including cockroach and dust mite
allergen. The study found that disparities in housing,
community,
or both environmental factors
play a role in determining patterns of
asthma morbidity.
-
A
study by Johns Hopkins University and published in the
December 11, 2000 issue of the Journal of Allergy and
Clinical Immunology cites mouse allergen as a significant
contributing factor in the increased rate of childhood asthma.
-
In
a 1993 study, 476 children with asthma were recruited from eight inner city
area in the United States. Data on
morbidity due to asthma were collected during a one-year period. More than 36 percent of the asthmatic
children reacted to cockroach allergen.
-
Between
1980 and 1994, the percentage of Americans with asthma increased by 75 percent,
while the percent of preschool children with asthma jumped 160 percent. Minorities and low-income populations have
the highest asthma rate. In 1995,
African-Americans were more than four times more likely than other groups to
visit an emergency room because of asthma.
I could continue with examples of health risks posed
by pests, but I will stop there in the interest of time. It is an essential public health priority
that pests be adequately controlled and our homes be safeguarded.
Pesticides are crucial tools in efforts to safeguard
residents from dangerous pests. The
pest management industry is committed to the safe and responsible use of
pesticides. These products are
thoroughly tested, well regulated, safely used and effectively monitored. Sound pest management practices rid homes of
pests and improve health and living conditions for residents.
We believe
pesticides should seldom be considered the first and only means to control
pests. But they are frequently an
essential – and sometimes the only—means to reduce the threat of rats,
cockroaches, fire ants, wasps and other pests to an acceptable minimum. Non-pesticide means of pest control are
important but are often not sufficient on their own.
All people should be healthy in their homes and the
risk of exposure to pests that spread disease, cause injury or contaminate food
reduced to an absolute minimum.
I look forward to working with my fellow Task
Force members who I’ve met here today in drafting a report that will document
the extent of health threats posed by pests and offer steps to substantially
reduce these threats.
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