Environmental Health Resources and Links.

The Maine Chapter of PSR is not responsible for the content of the following websites. Inclusion on this resource list does not constitute an endorsement of the information presented on the website or the website’s sponsors by the Maine Chapter of PSR. 

To suggest additional resources for this list please email psrmaine@gmail.com

Plastics and Chemicals  

• Read Body of Evidence: A Study of Pollution in Maine People, a study conducted by the Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine, which found that 13 Mainers from every walk of life tested positive for 46 toxic chemicals – a snapshot that illustrates how all Mainers are exposed to chemicals from the products we use every day.
• Find information about the Safe Chemicals Act of 2010 including fact sheets, health reports and how to get involved at the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families website.
• What's in your toybox? Search a database to find health alerts on toys.
• The Healthy Legacy website features information about safer toys, cleaning products, plastic, food, personal care products, and pest and weed control.
• Print PSR Oregon’s guide to safer plastics (PSR) and Ten Simple Ways to Avoid Exposure to Plastics
• Read the smart plastics guide and other public health policy topics from Health Observatory at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.
• Read the Bisphenol-A fact sheet, styrene fact sheet and the PVC Fact Sheet from Healthy Child, Healthy World.
• Get an introduction to phthalates from the Environmental Working Group.
• Read about PVC, DEHP and Phthalates from Health Care Without Harm
• Read the Childrens Health Environmental Coalition Chemical Profile on Phthalates.
• What is nanotechnology? Learn about nanomaterials and health at the Environmental Defense Fund website.

What are Endocrine Disruptors?

• Learn about Endocrine Disruptors from the Natural Resources Defense Council and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences at NIH.
• Find information on endocrine disruptors at the Our Stolen Future website which accompanies the book written by Theo Colburn.

Toxic Flame Retardants

• Read about toxic flame retardants from the Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine.
• Read reports done by the Environmental Working Group:
  Tainted Catch: Brominated fire retardants (PBDEs) found in San Francisco Bay fish --and people
  Mother's Milk: Toxic fire retardants (PBDEs) in human breastmilk
  In the Dust: Fire retardants in dust

Pesticides

• Reduce low-dose pesticide exposures in infants and children by reading the PSR guide for parents and patients
• In Maine you can receive notification of outdoor pesticide use within 250 feet of your home by registering at the Maine Board of Pesticides Control website.  Read more about pest control and Maine resources at this link.
• There are links to many resources about organic farming, including information about pesticides, at the Maine Organic Farmers and Growers Association website.
• Find out about alternatives to common pesticides from the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides
• Get pesticide fact sheets from the National Pesticide Information Center

Lead

• Learn how to keep Maine children safe from lead poisoning at the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention Division of Environmental Health webpage.
• Documents including Lead Paint Safety: A Field Guide for Painting, Home Maintenance and Renovation Work andDon’t Take Lead Home From Your Job are available at the bottom of the Maine CDC webpage.

Chemicals Policy

• Check out Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families, a nationwide effort to pass smart federal policies that protect us from toxic chemicals – and sign up to get involved
• Read about the Louisville Charter for Safer Chemicals
• Find out about the Consumer Product Safety Act of 2008, which banned three phthalates and strengthened lead standards in children's products
• Search for bills, get general information and reviews on our current regulations, and see alternative policy drafts compiled by the Lowell Institute for Sustainable Development Chemicals Policy Institute
• The REACH SIN* List 1.0 Database  (*Substitute It Now!) identifies a set of chemicals through the combined efforts of public interest groups, scientists, technical experts and businesses. The list is based on credible, publicly available substance information from existing databases, scientific studies and new research.

Clean Maine Water

• Information on State of Maine resources for wellwater safety and a brochure Is Your Well Water Safe to Drink? 
• Spills and leaks from an outdoor oil tank can contaminate well water.  Click here for a checklist and more informationabout keeping your tank in good shape.

Clean Maine Air

• The Maine Department of Environmental Protection Air Bureau posts an air quality forecast for the state.  You can also sign up to receive email notification when air quality is forecast to be poor in your area.
• Information from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection’s Air Quality Bureau, including topics such as indoor air quality, wood stoves, vehicle emissions, and energy use.
• Burn Wise is an EPA that emphasizes the importance of burning the right wood, the right way, in the right wood-burning appliance to protect your home, health, and the air we breathe.

Food

• Find Maine farms and farmer’s markets.
• Print a smart meat and dairy guide.
• Learn where to find local and sustainable meat and dairy in your area with the Eat Well Guide.
• Print a smart produce guide.
• Print a wallet reference card about pesticide residue on fruits and vegetables.
• Choose vegetables and fruits based on the amount of pesticide residues on them.
• Find out why breastfeeding is still best for baby (in English and in Spanish).
• The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association has lots of information about growing organic food.

Fish

• Print PSR’s Healthy Fish, Healthy Families brochure with wallet reference card on mercury levels (Also in Spanish)
• Calculate the amount of mercury you will consume by eating various types of fish
• Before your next fishing trip, read up on the current safe eating guides from the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.  You can also download the Maine Family Fish Guide.
• Make smart choices and weigh in on ecological issues when choosing which fish to eat.
• Keep a wallet card on safer fish choices or print out a poster about mercury in fish.

Cosmetics and Personal Care Products

• There’s great information about personal care products at the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.
• Find out which personal care products are safest at Environmental Working Group's "Skin Deep" Cosmetics Safety Database
• The Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine and the Learning Disabilities Association of Maine worked with Colby College students to set up a cosmetics database called Clean Makeup.
• Colby College and Waterville High School Students worked with the Maine Women's Policy Center and the Environmental Health Strategy Center to test some of their own personal care products and then analyzed the results in a report called That's a Killer Look
• Read what the Environmental Working Group says about sunscreens.
• Read about alternative fragrances on Environmental Working Group's Scented Secrets page.
• The Dirty Dozen Chemicals in Cosmetics from National Geographic’s Green Guide for Living.
• A Phthalate-and Paraben-free Skin Care Product List from the GreenerPenny blog.

Healthy Homes and Living

• Healthy Child, Healthy World inspires parents to protect young children from harmful chemicals.
• Get information, ask questions, and watch short videos about maintaining a healthy and safe home at Healthy Child, Healthy World’s Health eHome page. 
• From right here in Maine, the Naked Truth Project educates people about the link between human health and the products we put in our bodies, on our bodies, and in our homes
• Create a healthy environment for your child’s development: English and Spanish
• The Global Stewards website features an extensive list of Ecotips for sustainable living.
• Healthy Stuff researches toxic chemicals found in everyday products.
• Get recipes for safe household cleaners through OEC.
• Safelawns is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting natural lawn care and grounds maintenance.
• Read about how the Breast Cancer Fund is working to expose and eliminate the environmental causes of breast cancer.
• Search or browse a database for finding toxicity and health risks of common household and automotive products
• Find out about YardScaping, a program to inspire Maine people to create and maintain healthy landscapes through ecologically based practices that minimize reliance on water, fertilizer and pesticides. 
• The Learning Disabilities Association of Maine published the informational booklet, Healthy Homes and Families (download 756 kb PDF), which provides great information on how to minimize exposures to toxic chemicals in the home. Printed copies are available by email at ldame@ldame.org and by phone at 207-465-7700.
• Get the latest on a variety of environmental health topics with the American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities' teleconferences

Your voice matters.  Get involved with organizations working hard for a clean and healthy Maine.

• The Maine Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility is a community of physicians, health care professionals, and community members committed to nuclear disarmament, environmental health, and the reduction of violence and its causes.
• The Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine is a diverse coalition of Maine-based organizations that have embarked upon a multi-year public health campaign to phase out the long-lived toxic chemicals that build up in the food web and our bodies.
• The Environmental Health Strategy Center promotes human health and safer chemicals in a sustainable economy, and believes that every person has a right to a clean and healthful environment wherever they live, work, learn or play.  EHSC founded and leads the Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine.
• The Natural Resources Council of Maine works to improve the quality of Maine's rivers, reduce poisonous chemicals threatening human and wildlife health, decrease air and global warming pollution, and conserve Maine lands.
• The Toxics Action Center helps neighborhood groups across New England fight toxic pollution in their communities.

National Environmental Health Organizations

• The Environmental Working Group (EWG) uses the power of public information to protect public health and the environment.
• Health Care Without Harm works to implement ecologically sound and healthy alternatives to health care practices that pollute the environment and contribute to disease.
• The Collaborative on Health and the Environment’s (CHE) primary mission is to strengthen the science dialogue on environmental factors impacting human health and to facilitate collaborative efforts to address environmental health concerns.
• The Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) combines research, reporting, and media outreach to spotlight illegal pollution, expose political intimidation of enforcement staff, and encourage federal and state agencies to take enforcement action to stop these practices.
• Commonweal conducts programs that contribute to human and ecosystem health.