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Environment

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The environment plays a key role in public health. Environmental exposures such as lead, radon, air pollution, and poor water quality can impact our health.

Quick Links

Asthma Emergency Department Visits reportHeat-Related Illness report linkClimate Change page link

Why It's Important

Many adverse health outcomes have links to the environment, such as air pollution and an increased risk of heart attacks. Having reliable data about these health concerns provides a clearer picture of how the environment impacts health. This information can then be used to target interventions to prevent and control these adverse health outcomes.

What's Known

  • Poor air quality is associated with breathing and heart problems.1
  • Climate change is associated with heat-related illness, drought, flooding, wildfires, and increases in populations of vectors (such as ticks and mosquitoes) that carry diseases.2
  • Lead poisoning is associated with developmental delays, difficulty learning, and behavioral issues.3
  • Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer deaths.4
  • Harmful germs or chemicals in drinking water cause a variety of mild to serious health issues.5
  • Environmental factors can cause birth defects, cancer, heart disease and stroke, hormone disorders, and adverse reproductive and birth outcomes.6
1. Air Quality (Outdoor). CDC. 2/12/24.
2. Climate Change. CDC. 11/16/23.
3. About Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention. CDC. 5/23/24.
4. Radon and Your Health. CDC. 2/16/24.
5. About Drinking Water. CDC. 1/9/24.
6. Environmental Public Health Tracking. CDC. 11/19/24.

Who's at Risk

  • Social factors such as poverty, race, and ethnicity, along with preexisting health conditions may increase the health impacts of environmental burden.7
  • People with lung or heart issues, young children, and older adults are more susceptible to the effects of air pollution.
  • Older adults, infants and children, people with chronic conditions, people without air conditioning, athletes, outdoor workers, and pregnant women are at increased risk for heat-related illness.8
  • Children from low-income households and those who live in housing built before 1978 are at the greatest risk of lead exposure.9
  • Infants, young children, pregnant women, older adults, and persons with weakened immune systems are most likely to get sick from water contamination.10
7. CDC/ATSDR Environmental Justice Index (EJI). Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. 2022.
8. People at Increased Risk for Heat-Related Illness. CDC. 6/25/24.
9. People at Increased Risk for Childhood Lead Poisoning. CDC. 4/10/24.
10. About Drinking Water. CDC. 1/9/24.

How to Reduce Risk

To reduce the risk of heat-related illness, stay cool, stay hydrated, and know the symptoms of your body overheating.11

To reduce potential lead exposure, keep homes clean and dust free; eat a diet high in iron, calcium, and vitamin C; wash hands; play in grass rather than dirt; wash toys, pacifiers, and bottles daily; remove work clothes and shoes before entering your home and shower after possible lead exposure; run tap water before using; get your children tested for lead poisoning; and hire certified professionals for home renovations and repairs. 12

Reduce radon exposure by obtaining a radon test kit, testing your home or office, sending the kit to an approved lab to determine radon levels, and if radon is present, hire a professional to remove it from your home.13

To reduce the risk of waterborne illness, understand your water quality, know who to contact if there's a problem with your water, understand your water treatment options, and protect rivers, lakes, and other water sources.14

11. About Heat and Your Health. CDC. 6/25/24.
12. Actions to Reduce Potential Lead Exposure. EPA. 5/6/24.
13. Radon and Your Health. CDC. 2/16/24.
14. About Drinking Water. CDC. 1/9/24.

How It's Tracked

Information on environmental exposures and health effects is available on the New Jersey Environmental Public Health Tracking portal, which is part of the National Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) Network.

Other Data and Information Resources

In NJSHAD

New Jersey

National