Monday, May 12, 2025
5/12/2025
Chemical Hazards Assessment and Mitigation Projects - The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) conducts activities at hazardous waste sites and releases to protect and promote the health of people in Georgia. The purpose of the program is to increase Georgia’s capacity to:(1) identify pathways of human exposure to hazardous substances in the environment; (2) implement and sustain ATSDR’s Choose Safe Places for Early Care and Education (CSPECE) program in Georgia; and (3) innovate proactive strategies to prevent harmful exposures from occurring. Measurable outcomes will support the following APPLETREE goals for short-term, mid-term, and long-term outcomes: (1) Timely dissemination of site-specific findings to partners, stakeholders, and community members; (2) Increased partner buy-in and acceptance of recommendations leading to increased implementation of recommendations by regulatory agencies policy makers, and/or individuals; (3) Decreased or eliminated site-related exposures; (4) Enhanced and expanded CSPECE program; (5) Increased stakeholder/partner knowledge of ECE issues and recommendations to prevent exposure ; (6) Increased stakeholder practices to reduce or prevent hazardous exposure among children; (7) Enhanced infrastructure among partners to sustain CSPECE program; (8)Increased systems and policy changes to support prevented exposures and practices of partners to manage CSPECE program independently; (9) Decreased, eliminated, or prevented exposures to hazardous chemicals; and (10) Improved evidence base on effective practices, policies, and processes for preventing exposure. In order to achieve the outcomes listed above, DPH will conduct environmental health assessments and health education activities at NPL sites, petition sites, CERCLIS or other state-identified sites, RCRA sites, Brownfields and other redevelopment sites, and facilities or releases within Georgia. Site-specific activities and outputs include public health assessments, health consultations, and health educational materials for communities. DPH will also participate in health and environmental workshops and community meetings to discuss and respond to question's concerning a site’s impact on public health. DPH will work with ATSDR to build upon the CSPECE pilot program developed in the previous cooperative agreement, provide a 3-year plan for full-scale implementation and long-term sustainability. Specifically, DPH will evaluate Georgia’s CSPECE pilot program and use this evaluation to better implement screening, education, response actions, process or policy change, and any other innovative activities to support the goals of CSPECE. In addition, DPH will focus their efforts on maintaining and developing a long-term sustainable CSPECE program in Georgia DPH has established successful partnerships throughout the state with local, state, and federal agencies, academia, organizations, policy makers, advocacy groups, businesses, community leaders, and residents. We collaborate with those affected, including underserved populations, by the release of chemical substances to the environment from hazardous waste sites and learn from and educate the public regarding exposure pathways, related health effects, and exposure reduction and prevention. DPH will also evaluate the effectiveness of our program activities in meeting the short, mid, and long-term goals of the APPLETREE program, in order to gauge how effective we are and where we need to make improvements.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).