About the Central Coast Environmental Health Project

The Central Coast Environmental Health Project (CCEHP) first began in 1998, as a collaboration between the Environmental Defense Center (EDC), the Environmental Center of San Luis Obispo (ECOSLO) and California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc. (CRLA). In 2001, CRLA left the official collaboration to expand the geographic scope of their own environmental health activities. As of 2002, ECOSLO is an official project partner.

CCEHP's mission is to raise awareness about health risks posed by pesticide exposure while decreasing our reliance on pesticides through education and advocacy. The project is tailored to the needs and concerns of farmworkers and their families, and other community members who work, go to school, or live near farming operations. However, our education is not limited to rural areas and targets anyone who works with or uses pesticides in any setting.

CCEHP components include assessment, community and farmworker outreach and education, outreach to and training for health care professionals, and policy and regulatory advocacy. With the help of the Environmental Center of San Luis Obispo, CCEHP effectively provides education and resources to communities in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties.

Need
The use of pesticides in current agricultural practices poses immediate health risks to farmworkers, their families, and people who live near farming operations. Children who attend school or live adjacent to farms are especially vulnerable to pesticide-related health risks. Only a small exposure to pesticides is required for potentially devastating health consequences to infants. Yet, in many communities, day care centers and schools are located immediately adjacent to fields and can be contaminated with drift from pesticide applications. In May 1999, for example, Cuyama Elementary School in Santa Barbara County, CA was evacuated and closed for two days after students and staff were sickened by the pesticide metam sodium, which had drifted onto the school from a neighboring agricultural field. A similar incident occurred in
Ventura in November 2000, after a fungicide called Lorsban drifted from an adjacent lemon orchard.

The risks faced by farmworkers, children and others who live near agricultural operations is exacerbated by the fact that health care providers often do not properly diagnose, treat and report pesticide exposure cases. Dr. Lynn Goldman, former Assistant Administrator of the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances of the U.S. EPA, has publicly acknowledged that "medical problems caused by pesticide exposure are often overlooked or misdiagnosed by health care providers." Doctors who have attended medical trainings coordinated by the CCEHP agree that the medical community lacks understanding of pesticide exposure symptoms and their proper treatment.

Project Staff
Eric Cardenas, Program Director - EDC
Miranda Leonard, Program Coordinator

Current Project Funders
The California Endowment
The California Wellness Foundation
The Center for Environmental Health
The Fund for Santa Barbara
Landsberg Trust
The Mccune Foundation

CCEHP Advisory Committee
Eric Cardenas (Staff)
Greg Chittick
Edgar Cifuentes
Jesus Estrada
Cristina Gonzalez
Noemi Velasquez
Miranda Leonard (Staff)
Eleuteria Olivera
Deb Robinson
Sandra Sarrouf

Promotres/Trainers
Elena Vargas
Elva Sanchez
Ernestina Sanchez
Estela de Jesus
Emiliana Perez
Santiago Hernandez
Mariana Perez
Roselia Vargas
Valdemar Vigil