Environmental Health: EPA Has Made Substantial Progress but Could Improve Processes for Considering Children's Health.

摘要

Scientific studies have shown that because children's bodies are still developing, they can be more vulnerable than adults to certain environmental hazards, including air pollutants, pesticide residues on food, contaminants in drinking water, and toxic chemicals in the home. EPA has made protecting children's health part of its mission by establishing a policy in 1995 to ensure that the agency consistently considers children in its actions and creating OCHP to support those efforts. In a 2010 report, GAO found that EPA had not fully utilized OCHP and other child-focused resources to protect children's health. GAO was asked to review EPA's progress in protecting children's health. This report determines (1) the extent to which EPA has implemented GAO's 2010 recommendations on children's health protection and (2) the role, if any, that OCHP has played in ensuring that key EPA program offices consider children's health protection in their regulatory activities. The report also describes how OCHP has worked with external partners to leverage its resources. To conduct this work, GAO reviewed relevant laws and EPA regulations and guidance, analyzed EPA data, and interviewed EPA officials and other stakeholders.