INSIGHTS ALONG THE PATH TO SUSTAINABILITY| November 30, 2005

Effect of Lifestyle on Mother/Infant Exposure to Ubiquitous Pollutants

ROLF U. HALDEN, PHD, PE, Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, JHSPH

SUMMARY

Prudent decisions in lifestyle often can result in either zero-exposure levels or significantly reduced environmental exposures to certain toxins. However, this general rule is not necessarily true for pollutants that are ubiquitous, i.e., those that have become dispersed throughout the chemosphere thereby leading to exposure of individuals from all walks of life regardless of their individual lifestyle choices. The vast majority of ubiquitous environmental pollutants are halogenated compounds containing chlorine, bromine and fluorine substituents, and many of these persistent ubiquitous pollutants are detectable in fetal and maternal blood, as the presented data illustrate.

But how can these unwanted exposures of mothers and children be limited if individual lifestyle choices are largely inconsequential due to the ubiquity of the pollutants in water, air, soils, sediments and food? An analysis of the current regulatory framework suggests that monitoring and regulating potentially harmful chemicals is too slow and unwieldy a process to protect human populations from exposures. Application of the precautionary principle in chemical production potentially could address these shortcomings, but this concept finds little support from either industry or government because it may hamper the nation’s economy and its international competitiveness. The present project puts forth an alternative solution, which is based on economic incentives rather than regulatory restrictions. As such, it (i) may be implemented rapidly, (ii) does not curtail the industry’s ability to produce chemicals, and yet (iii) promises to achieve a reduction in both environmental contamination and human exposures to toxic halogenated organic compounds.

PRESENTER BIOGRAPHY

Rolf Halden graduated from the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany, with a M.S. in Biology, and earned a M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil/Environmental Engineering from the University of Minnesota. He is a certified Professional Engineer who specializes in water quality issues and bioremediation, i.e., the use of microorganisms for environmental restoration. Prior to joining Johns Hopkins, Dr. Halden was an Environmental Scientist and Project Leader at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Superfund Site 300. Since joining JHU in 2001, Dr. Halden has conducted research on the fate of anthropogenic compounds in the environment and on the structure and dynamics of microbial communities responsible for the transformation and detoxification of anthropogenic pollutants, including pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). Dr. Halden is a member of the JHU Center for Water and Health and currently serves on the Maryland State Water Quality Advisory Committee.