| Integrating Human Health into Environmental Impact Assessment: An Unrealized Opportunity for Environmental Health and Justice Rajiv Bhatia1 and Aaron Wernham2 1San Francisco Department of Public Health, San Francisco, California, USA; 2Alaska Inter-Tribal Council, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA Abstract
Objectives: The National Environmental Policy Act and related state laws require many public agencies to analyze and disclose potentially significant environmental effects of agency actions, including effects on human health. In this paper we review the purpose and procedures of environmental impact assessment (EIA) , existing regulatory requirements for health effects analysis, and potential barriers to and opportunities for improving integration of human health concerns within the EIA process. Data sources: We use statutes, regulations, guidelines, court opinions, and empirical research on EIA along with recent case examples of integrated health impact assessment (HIA) /EIA at both the state and federal level. Data synthesis: We extract lessons and recommendations for integrated HIA/EIA practice from both existing practices as well as case studies. Conclusions: The case studies demonstrate the adequacy, scope, and power of existing statutory requirements for health analysis within EIA. The following support the success of integrated HIA/EIA: a proponent recognizing EIA as an available regulatory strategy for public health ; the openness of the agency conducting the EIA ; involvement of public health institutions ; and complementary objectives among community stakeholders and health practitioners. We recommend greater collaboration among institutions responsible for EIA, public health institutions, and affected stakeholders along with guidance, resources, and training for integrated HIA/EIA practice. Key words: environmental health, environmental impact assessment, environmental justice, health determinants, health disparities, health impact assessment, public policy, social justice. Environ Health Perspect 116:991–1000 (2008) . doi:10.1289/ehp.11132 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 16 April 2008]
Address correspondence to R. Bhatia, San Francisco Department of Public Health, 1390 Market St., Suite #822, San Francisco, CA 94102 USA. Telephone: (415) 252-3931. Fax: (415) 252-3818. E-mail: rajiv.bhatia@sfdph.org We thank the San Francisco Department of Public Health, Alaska Inter-Tribal Council, and the Columbia University Center on Medicine as a Profession for their support of this work. D. Bear provided valuable advice, support, and insight in preparing this manuscript. T. Rivard contributed the map of modeled roadway particulate matter concentrations in the manuscript. R. Bhatia did not receive funding support for writing this review. However, he conducted the analysis described in the review's case examples as an employee of the San Francisco Department of Public Health, a public institution. Neither R. Bhatia nor the San Francisco Department of Public Health has any financial interest in the publication or its outcomes. A. Wernham received funding for writing this review as a Fellow of the Columbia University Center on Medicine as a Profession. He conducted the analysis described in the review's case examples as a consultant for the nonprofit agency Alaska Inter-Tribal Council. Neither A. Wernham, nor Columbia University, nor the Alaska Inter-Tribal Council has any financial interest in the publication or its outcomes.
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