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Environment and Child Health Program

The goal of the Child Health Program is to foster healthy childhood development by reducing children’s exposure to contaminants in their environments.

To achieve this goal, Pollution Probe examines and reports on the latest research related to environmental contaminants and child health; educates the public on issues of concern to their children and families; develops strategies to reduce children’s exposures to environmental contaminants; and, works with government agencies, private businesses and other non-profit organizations to ensure that standards consider children’s unique sensitivities to environmental contaminants.

The first major child health initiative undertaken by Pollution Probe is its healthy schools project. Entitled, Healthy Schools — Healthy Children: Improving the Indoor Environment in Ontario Schools, this two-phase initiative assesses the range of indoor environmental challenges facing Ontario schools. It develops key solutions and policy recommendations to help school boards improve the quality of indoor learning environments for children. The final report from Phase One articulates an action plan that, if followed, will advance the children’s environmental health agenda in Canada.

Phase Two of the initiative, HealthySchools.com, is a cost-effective, proactive indoor environment management plan to help school boards identify, prevent and remediate indoor environmental problems.

Pollution Probe’s child health program will continue to evolve and address children’s environmental health issues. Although indoor contaminants are the main emphasis of Pollution Probe’s child health program, we are also involved in various network/collaborative activities that address a range of issues, including food safety, heavy metals (i.e., mercury), and outdoor air pollution. Pollution Probe's presentation to the federal Standing Committee on Health (Bill C-53 & Children's Health) is available in PDF format.