CANCER MAPPING
A.1592-A (Libous, et al.)
S.1143-A (Brodskey, et al.)
Summary
This bill would amend New York State’s
Environmental Conservation and Public Health laws to require that the
Departments of Environmental Conservation and Health conduct studies
using computer mapping to examine cancer incidence in relationship to a
variety of environmental risk factors.
Explanation
Efforts to reduce the incidence of cancer require that New York State
make the fullest use of all the tools at its disposal. The State
collects extensive epidemiological information in its cancer registry
but, to date, has not fully capitalized on this excellent resource. Maps
released by the Department of Health to date have been less than
illuminating, with overly broad mapping intervals. They also fail to
make use of existing sources of potentially correlative data. This bill
would require the Departments of Health and Environmental Conservation
to maintain detailed computerized databases on key factors that may
contribute to cancer incidence in New York, including hazardous waste
disposal sites. Doing so will help illuminate potential relationships
between incidence and risk, and may ultimately open the door to reducing
those risks.
The bill would be even
more effective if it were more specific regarding the environmental
factors for mapping against cancer registry data. Instead of making
reference to a generic category of environmental facilities and sites in
the Environmental Conservation Law, it would be useful to clarify
precisely which factors should be used, e.g. pesticide reporting data,
the Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS),
inactive hazardous waste sites, oil spill sites, and Toxic Release
Inventory facilities. It would also be good to specify overlay mapping
of other sources of epidemiological information, such as birth defects
registry data.
Environmental
Advocates of New York supports this bill.
SUPPORT
US
JOIN
E-MAIL LIST
TAKE
ACTION
